Vegan doughnut shop to open in Kittery

Vegans still get a lot of grief for their food choices, whether deserved or not. Some meat lovers, despite the plethora of tasty new options, still say that vegan food tastes like cardboard or sticks. Or that they feel sorry for vegans because they’re missing out on so much good food.

Well, don’t feel sorry for vegans in southern Maine. A new vegan doughnut shop is scheduled to open this spring at 450 Route 1 in Kittery, and it will be serving flavors like pistachio cream and mango-vanilla with a tangy guava stripe.

Mango-vanilla glazed vegan doughnut with a tangy guava stripe, topped with a slice of mango.

The owners of Lovebirds, Tamara Monroe and Ryan MacDougall, grew up in Maine, and have just moved back from Boston, where they had been working in marketing and finance. Both have restaurant experience, too – MacDougall cooked and managed restaurants in Maine for 10 years, and Monroe worked her way through high school and college with restaurant jobs.

Monroe is a vegan and MacDougall is not, but they both love slow-raised yeast doughnuts and have dreamed of opening their own shop, Monroe said. She said it was important to her that the shop sell only vegan products, so all of Lovebirds’ doughnuts will be free of eggs, milk, honey and butter (they use a vegan butter). “We found that the recipes are not lacking in any way,” she said.

They also plan to offer gluten-free options.

The debut menu will feature 15 to 20 flavors of doughnuts, with flavors changing monthly. Lovebirds will also sell monkey bread, croissant doughnuts and Chelsea buns – similar to a cinnamon bun but filled with different flavors, such as strawberry cream.

Monroe said the couple hope to open Lovebirds the second week in April.