John had bakers’ DNA in his blood, however, when growing up in the Worcester and Albany, New York areas where his dad managed sales for Table Talk Pies. Having worked mostly in the back room while his dad was “a jack of all trades,” John had a challenge ahead as the sole owner. George soon left the business and Jim eventually retired from ownership, leaving John with the option to buy out his dad’s half of the business. John Stevens, his dad Jim Stevens, and his uncle George Stevens bought Country Kitchen Donuts in 1979. Country Kitchen has been in business nearly 50 years with its core recipe for success virtually unchanged from the beginning - that is, creating delicious hand-cut doughnuts and serving them with a good cup of coffee and a commitment to salt-of-the-earth, efficient service. Country Kitchen Donuts serves as a strong example of the quintessential, small business doughnut shop. Looking across the old-fashioned Country Kitchen dining room and take-out area begged for answers to questions that seem eternal: What is it about doughnuts and coffee that bring together people? What is it about the aromas of doughnuts and coffee that elicit good feelings? Why do doughnuts and coffee continue to appeal to a cross section of people and generations in a world that has become more polarized? These questions might not ever be fully answered, but one certainty remains: from the proliferation of doughnut shops in the 1940s to this very day, these small business treasures have always tapped into the heart, soul, and taste buds of a local’s way of life. Elderly men - some wearing 1920s-style flat caps - sat together on old-fashioned stools at the diner-like counter either conversing passionately about the news of the world or stoically bonding together in virtual silence.įamilies and friends, some coming right from church, convened at several dining area tables to also enjoy time together before taking on a mountain of homework, deadlines, commitments and other responsibilities of the impending Monday work and school days. Parents waited in line for doughnuts and coffee while their young children jumped up and down in anticipation of bringing home a box of their favorite flavors. A recent Sunday morning scene at Country Kitchen Donuts in Walpole revealed a wonderfully familiar, classic slice of small town Americana. Editor's note: One Dish is a regular feature on restaurants in and around the towns of Dedham, Dover, Medfield, Norwood, Sharon, Sherborn, Walpole, and Westwood.

Doughnut country