Glazed and Confused, the successor to the doughnut shop of the same name that operated on Winchester's East Piccadilly Street from 2021 to 2023, is preparing to reopen as a takeout and delivery business based out of Cristina's Commissary, a new commercial kitchen where food truck operators, caterers and vendors can rent space to prepare food and base their operations.
Crissy Willis, who owns and manages the commissary, said the kitchen and storage facility opened last month at 1581 Commerce St. in Winchester, and Glazed and Confused owner Courtney Clark was the first client to rent space there on a full-time basis.
On Wednesday morning, Clark was hard at work preparing a broad assortment of doughnuts and bagels — her menu lists two dozen varieties of doughnuts — that she planned on delivering to Kern Motor Co. in Winchester as a way to reintroduce her offerings to the community. She has been treating local businesses to her gourmet doughnuts all week to get them excited about Glazed and Confused's reopening on Valentine's Day, Feb. 14, which Clark calls "the day of love and doughnuts."
If you're excited about opening day, you won't have to wait in line for a table. Cristina's Commissary does not offer dining space, so all Glazed and Confused products must be ordered online for pickup or delivery via DoorDash.
"If you want to do a larger set than, like, two dozen [doughnuts], then you'll have to do it 24 hours in advance for a pickup," Clark said. "If you want catering or something like that, get in contact with me and we can set that up."
The majority of everything on Glazed and Confused's new menu is gluten free, as opposed to the mix of both standard and gluten-free doughnuts that were sold at Clark's previous location. The new gluten-free doughnuts are denser than standard donuts but every bit as delicious.
"I started eating gluten free and I've noticed that I feel a little bit better," Clark said, noting that she doesn't have to eat gluten-free but chooses to do so for health reasons. Since she expelled wheat from her diet, she has lost 60 pounds.
"I'm trying to get the gluten free out there so everybody can taste them and they're not shocked when they come here and they order a dozen doughnuts and they're not like they were before," she said. "These are just as delicious but most people are afraid of gluten-free items."
At the end of the day, Clark said she knows that some people don't want gluten-free treats, so she also offers standard bagels that can be eaten as-is or used to make a sandwich. Additionally, she has diabetes-friendly doughnuts that are sugar free and have no icing.
Among the gluten-free doughnuts on the new menu are The Drunk Pig (a vanilla doughnut with maple glaze, crispy bacon and a honey bourbon drizzle), The Oreo (a chocolate doughnut with vanilla frosting and crumbled cookie bits), Purple Haze (a vanilla doughnut with Nutella, chocolate wafers and hazel nuts) and The River (a vanilla doughnut with chocolate frosting and sprinkles), which is named after Clark's 9-year-old son, River.
Glazed and Confused will also offer doughnut holes, which Clark calls "gremlins."
"You shouldn't eat them after midnight" she joked, referring to the movie "Gremlins" where cute creatures called mogwais turned into mischievous, destructive beasts if they ate after midnight.
The gremlins and all the other items at the new Glazed and Confused will be baked rather than fried, Clark said, hence the business' new slogan: "Always Baked."
Clark said she is excited to return to the doughnut-making world after taking a nearly three-year break following the closure of her former downtown location. She worked there for an average of 90 hours per week while also putting in 40 hours at her other job as an X-ray and MRI technician at Winchester Medical Center.
"I just couldn't keep doing both," Clark said, adding that her new Glazed and Confused venture should be much easier to oversee because orders will only be filled from 9 a.m. to noon weekdays and she has given up her job with Valley Health.
Eventually, Clark also plans on operating a food truck.
"I bought a 1985 RV that's been redone," she said, "so now we'll use that as a party RV for catering our doughnuts"
Clark won't have trouble finding a place to park her party RV because there's a large parking lot behind Cristina's Commissary where clients can leave their food trucks in between events.
Willis said the commissary is perfect for people who operate mobile food businesses, even if they don't need to use the state-of-the-art commercial kitchen for prep work. For example, one of her customers reserves a spot there just to store his hot dog cart.
"He needs to be able to park indoors, so he rents that whole corner from me for his cart and his supplies," Willis said. "They won't let you do that at home because the property [used for storage] has to be zoned commercial."
Another of the commissary's benefits, especially for food truck operators, is that vendors can use it to meet Health Department requirements regarding the disposal of trash, water and cooking oil.
"I already have a lot of people that are looking for that service," Willis said.
If you would like to rent space or kitchen time at the new Cristina's Commissary, visit cristinascommissary.com. To learn more about Glazed and Confused prior to its opening on Feb. 14, go to glazedandconfuseddonuts.com.