A Donut Dream That Has Come True
For thirteen years Loyce Hale has worked in the restaurant industry and last week one of her biggest dreams came true. Hale is the owner of Jerry’s Donut Shop in Vidalia and recently moved to her new location across from the Concordia Parish Court House at 3004 Carter Street.
Behind the counter Hale works with dedication and passion for her customers and employees. Her customers are one of the biggest reasons she moved to the new building. For many years they have waited outside in the rain, sun, heat and cold to take away some of her delicious food. She wanted to provide them with a climate controlled area to sit down and enjoy a meal. That idea became a reality on June 19.
Hale began looking for the building in March of this year. The building she found was originally two office units that she renovated to provide a seating area, kitchen, bathrooms and office. As with most moving projects, Hale was faced with financial and structural obstacles which she overcame through the tremendous support from her customers, family members and employees.
On Saturday June 16, Hale closed the doors to the 1630 Carter St. location at 2 PM and her family pulled together over the weekend to get her back and running in her new location. She said she could not have done it without her family, “when my family is faced with a problem, we fix it,” and by Wednesday they had everything moved. Before Jerry’s could officially open their doors one last obstacle was the fire inspection which she passed with flying colors. The brand new Jerry’s Donut Shop opened at 11 o’clock that morning and that evening the tables were full.
Don’t let the name fool you, Jerry’s Donut Shop is much more than a donut shop, it is a restaurant. Hale prides herself on using the highest quality ingredients. At 2AM each morning, the bakers show up to fire up the ovens. All of the hamburger buns and breads for the sandwiches are baked in house, not to mention her delicious rolls. Each donut is hand cut to Hale’s standards. In previous years the tomatoes and romaine lettuce on the sandwiches were grown in her garden. The move this year took too much of her time but she hopes to cultivate them in future years.
Jerry’s Donut Shop is in a brand new place but the food has the same great taste. Jerry’s is open from 5AM – 8PM Monday through Saturday, lunch is served 10AM – 8PM. Featuring: poboys, burgers, shrimp, catfish, salads, donuts and variety of sandwich trays.
