Have traveled up north Michigan many times and always seen the billboard advertising Cops & Doughnuts in Clare. Made it a point to make this a stop on our travel route to Traverse City. So glad we did! It's in a small quaint downtown Clare. Street parking. Many different goodies to choose from, including donuts, cookies, mini cakes, and much more. They offer day "old" items as self serve in a separate area, so be sure to check it out for a great deal. They also have a storefront with jelly, salsa, cherries, honey and more. Also, tshirts and some other logo apparel and souvenirs. Staff is very friendly and helpful. They were very patient when we told them it was our first time and spent time looking at all the options. Very reasonable prices. Probably the freshest baked goods I have ever had. The apple fritter is hands down the best! Pieces of cut apples baked into the donut. Delicious! The blueberry donut has fresh and moist literally melted in my mouth. The chocolate cookie with chocolate frosting is a real treat, very sweet and can be shared. The list goes on and on... every single thing we had was delicious - you can't go wrong with anything! It was so good we made a stop in route going home. This is a definite must try! You may even find yourself making a special trip just to get more of their delicious goodies. Stop in - you won't be disappointed! read more

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I had been hearing about Cops & Doughnuts for years now. Our usual route up to Traverse City doesn't typically go through Clare but this year we did find ourselves going through on a detour and I thought that would a good time to try the place. I have to say, after the years of hype, I was disappointed. First off, the storefront isn't anything fancy. And it doesn't have to be! Most of my favorite donut shops are no frills with florescent lighting and the same cabinets and pans they've used for decades. But it's a weird vibe because it's also kind of touristy? Like they know they get a lot of tourists so they sell merch and stuff, and the two just don't really mesh? IDK. We got a dozen donuts to munch on during the drive and take with us up north and they were just ok. A little too dense for my liking (I like a melt in your mouth, pillowy yeasted donut) and very, very sweet. One of the donuts we got was the maple bacon "squealer" and the bacon was limp and chewy. I also got an apple turnover and had an odd aftertaste and left a bit of a film on my tongue. IDK, it all just didn't' seem fresh? Like the options had been sitting on the shelf for more than 24 hours. Maybe we got them on a bad day? IDK. The staff was really nice though, and I know they do a lot for the community so I don't begrudge them of any success, and they do seem to have a playful sense of humor which is fun for the brand but I just wasn't wowed. I can't see myself going out of my way to get here again. If we're detoured, maybe, but I think we'd be better off coming earlier in the day for the freshest offerings possible. read more

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This place is separated into 3 sections. The 1st section is a tourist trap with clothes, jams, jerky, and other things. The 2nd section has the donut cases. The last section has seating to enjoy your bakery goods. I ordered a box of Cinnamon rolls ($8.49), a large chocolate chip cookie ($2), a twist donut made cinnamon roll style ($2.29), and lastly a strawberry bismark ($2). The Bismarck was very good, the twist was good, but the box of Cinnamon rolls was by far the best thing  Not in my top 5, but definitely in my top 10. The cookie I sadly did not like. It just had an odd taste, I couldn't place. I ended up tossing it. The service was very good. The staff was very friendly and helpful. Overall a 4 star review. Would I return? Yes, but I wouldn't go outta my way. read more

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Big selection of doughnuts. The apple fritter was good it would be better if it was warmed up. The decor is really cuts. They had plenty of staff to serve the nonstop line at this location. read more

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Oh, my must stop place on my way up north!! My usual Sticky Bun was available. Got a few to go. The shape has changed but not the delicious sticky pecan recipe. As usual, the staff were so nice, friendly and welcoming. There is indoor and outdoor seating. Delicious Coffee!! You can buy beans/ground for home. The store is everything cop oriented. Law enforcement information type museum. Atmosphere is quite inviting to everyone. Restrooms available and clean. You into day old? They have those for the early risers. Parking available on the street along with handicap. Just stop. You can't and won't regret it. Easy on and off the highway. read more

Cops & Doughnuts - Clare City Bakery - Sticky Bun - Bakeries Near Me - Clare, Michigan

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Never been there in person (yet) but this is now my go-to bakery for paczki. Outside of Hamtramck which has no little Polish ladies any more or the defunct Haglemans in Royal Oak, these yummy pastries are the best! I have them sent to me in Colorado. They get here within a week even with the iffy postal service. My once a year indulgence! Next time I'm in the area, I will definitely stop in. read more

Cops & Doughnuts - Clare City Bakery - My box of paczki. - Bakeries Near Me - Clare, Michigan

The products are poor quality and the ambiance is a tourist trap! The doughnuts are gummy and nothing special. Hopefully the new owners will upgrade their products and make it worth another visit. read more

The doughnuts are great! This business has expanded over the years to include 3 storefronts. But don't think that their service has faltered - every time I visit, I receive a warm welcome. Their location is in downtown Clare close to the famous Doherty Hotel. The ambience is somewhat touristy. When you walk in the doorway, you are immediately presented with souvenirs of all sorts related to the business. Have a look around and then venture to the next room. Their assortment of doughnuts is very good, even if I visit in the afternoon. I am a tea drinker, so I have no opinion of their coffee. Their teas are pretty good, though. I recommend! read more

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You know a good doughnut shop always has police cars out front. Ill just assume they were unmarked cars. Lol Parking was scarce on their side of the street so i had to patk across the street. Started to jay walk over then thought better of it. Speed traps, jaywalking traps? Who knows. Very cool inside but as a rule i dont buy souvenirs with a buisness advertisement on it till i am blown away. After a long time studying the menu i overheard a lady buying day olds for a buck a piece. I turn and there are 2 cases full. So i figured i can try five different varieties for under the price of 2 normal ones.Plus i coild get my furry companion Loki a plain for himself. They werent marked so i had to guess what i was grabbing. A couple Long Johns. A (what i thought was a )apple fritter. Lokis plain and 2 others i havent tried yet. The long john was heavy and not lacking the vanilla cream most shops skimp on. Delicious. Loki had and approved of half a plain in thectruck before leaving. When i got home i pulled out the fritter. In truth it was tasty but definitely starting to taste stale. And if it truly was a apple fritter i had no indication of apple. Im sure the other 2 will be somewhere between the ones i had already . So to be fair i knew they were day old so a solid 4 stars. Next time ill splurge for same day and maybe theyll earn that 5th star. read more

Cops & Doughnuts - Clare City Bakery - Located in a nice area. - Bakeries Near Me - Clare, Michigan

Cops and Doughnuts was a fun place to stop on a long road trip. They have a nice little dining area and restrooms making it a perfect break stop. There's a wide variety of doughnuts and other pastries. We arrived on a Thursday which is apparently donut hole day. They had about eight different varieties of donut holes. I tried the cherry and cinnamon sugar varieties and preferred the cherry of the two. My family ordered a variety including a long John, a chocolate frosted cruller and a pecan roll. The pecan roll was the far and away favorite. Prices were very, very reasonable! And all of the staff were super kind and helpful - outstandingly so! I would definitely recommend Cops and Doughnuts to anyone passing through Clare. read more

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The real story is the history. I'm told the doughnut entity has been around since 1896 when it was Clare City Bakery. In 2009, nine Clare police officers purchased the struggling business and today they boast over a half million visitors, annually. It's clearly a legend in the northern Michigan doughnut community and the town loves this place. I found it to be a bit pricey and the doughnuts are decent but not great. They are generous with filling in the long John's and jelly filled. I will brag about their Pączkis every Fat Tuesday. A welcome alternative to being far from Hamtramck. It's more than just donuts. A full menu as well as cop-oriented souvenirs make it a fun place to browse. A small simple bakery with a few tables, most folk get their goodies to go. It's a good idea to grab a coffee and soak up the ambiance as often as you can. 04/24 read more

Great service & doughnuts!! Along with very friendly staff. The coffee is also great!!!

Went in for some morning donuts, but they didn't have any of the basics: no plain chocolate, maple, or glazed. In fact, I didn't see a single traditional donut in the whole store. About half their selection is misc. sweets, so I really wouldn't call this a donut shop, especially since they don't actually offer any traditional donuts. I picked half a dozen but they were way too sugary. Ended up throwing them away. Donuts aren't supposed to be healthy, but the selection here could give anyone diabetes. The chocolate donut I tried just tasted like sugar and the texture of the dough was nothing special. For all I hype this place gets, I was very disappointed. I just wanted a few traditional donuts for breakfast and ended up spending twice what I expected for what amounted to a box of sugar that wound up in the trash. Donuts done right have a wonderful flavor and texture, but when you bury that with layers of sugar, it's just gross. With all the non-donut related stuff, the whole place feels more for tourists rather than locals who want donuts. read more

On our way to Traverse City, my wife and I decided to stop and experience the fun. The donuts are awesome! Can't say enough about that and all of the neat little things there as well! I wish we could support them more often. read more

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A fun place to stop while heading north! Great pastries and a wide selection. Plus, it gives us a chance to walk around and shop a bunch of fun items. read more

Been years since I've been here. Didn't find the donut to be that good. Ordering process was chaotic. Lots of stuff for sale

Great doughnuts and surprisingly no cops. Everyone was friendly and respectful. Would highly recommend!

What a great place. It has a lot of police artifacts and swag you can buy besides doughnuts, huge cookies, brownies, and other pastries. We got four doughnuts the custard long John, two cinnamon pinwheels, and chocolate frosted doughnut. My husband said the custard long John was pretty fresh and tasted great! The other three doughnuts seemed stale like a day old or so. The store is definitely a place to check out. I took some pictures but not enough as usual. There was a pretty long line but it went very fast! The owner was very nice. This place has three areas to it: the shopping area, doughnut order area, and then the eating area. Very nice and clean. You were able to get mug shots taken and also had a mini jail set up for even more pictures. read more

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Milk was spoiled, even though is was 5days before expiration, gave the 3 of us diarrhea. Not what it used to be. So sad. ​ read more

I'm over 7 feet tall, according to the photo backdrop! So that boost alone is worth an extra star. I had the Cousin Vinnie--I think they call it--a donut with bacon on top. I love the cop photos and stories on the walls, especially the K9's. The counter service was helpful, since they have too many different flavors for me to choose. The style is old small town diner, and the coffee is more functional than delicious. But a few of the donuts are surprisingly fancy, and it's a great place to stop while charging at the Tesla station behind the police station. read more

What can I say that hasn't already been said? Its a police themed donut shop, and that is just as awesome as it sounds. They have all the merch and all the jelly filled donuts you need. The line was long on a Monday afternoon, so I cannot imagine what weekends are like. The donuts were highly recommended by two sugar loving kids. Make sure to get your "mug shots" before you leave. read more

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Stopped by Headquarters on a Saturday about 2 hours before close. Didn't think they would have any squealers left but they did have cherry blossoms and custard filled long Johns which were very good. The odd thing was that they said they were not offering 1/2 dozen or bakers dozen right now and everything was individually priced because they had to put the cookies and doughnuts in the same displays because they were running low. Seems like you would want to give a better deal and get them sold so they are not around the next day, or maybe they are? Strange business model. Nice gift area that you have to walk through to get to the pastries. Friendly staff. Minimal indoor/outdoor seating. Unknown on wifi. Limited street parking. I'll continue to support the brother in blue and just go earlier to get the squealer and a better deal on donuts. read more

Cops & Doughnuts - Clare City Bakery - Outside exit. - Bakeries Near Me - Clare, Michigan

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I've stopped at Cops & Doughnuts several times. This one, the original, is by far the best. I was sad to see that they've done away with their cafe. I stopped by on a Saturday afternoon. They still had LOTS of doughnuts in their case. But, being the bargain hunter I am, I couldn't resist the day old doughnuts -- especially at $5 for a baker's dozen! It was also self-serve, so I could pick the ones that I wanted. I actually prefer slightly older doughnuts to fresh because they're not as soft. Weird, I know. Doughnuts are something I can usually pass up. But not these! read more

This place is somewhere to go to say you have been there. I stopped on a Sunday morning and there was a line, which I expected, but it moved quickly. I got a mixed bunch of 12 donuts- including long John's, cookies and cream, apple fritter, coconut cream, pb&j one, maple bacon ones, the cherry specialty one, a traditional sour cream one and a sticky bun. All should have been fresh. However all tasted kind of like they were stale, as if they had been baked 2 days earlier. The frosting and the fillings were very sweet- cloyingly so. I get they are donuts and frosting is sweet but these were very SUGAR tasting, like when you can still taste the sugar crystals in everything. Honestly on many I could barely tell the difference in flavor as the sugar in the frostings overpowered the taste of the donuts. I probably wouldn't go again as I just found the donuts average at best. They look tasty and fresh but I just found them stale and sugary. read more

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This is a fun place to browse and even buy a mug or shirt. There are many doughnuts to choose from and take a minute to look at all of the patches placed around the bakery. I enjoyed my bacon doughnut (Cousin Vinny). read more

Cops & Doughnuts - Clare City Bakery - Cousin Vinny: a cinnamon roll covered with thick maple frosting and piled with chunks of bacon - Bakeries Near Me - Clare, Michigan

Busy place good service. Donuts were good. We got day old donuts a dozen for $5 excellent. If your a cop this place is for you. Lots of shirts & hat etc. read more

Cops & Doughnuts - Clare City Bakery - Storefront - Bakeries Near Me - Clare, Michigan

We had high expectations for this donut spot. What they do well: the theme. It's carried out to perfection. There's photo spots all over and there's themed memorabilia and decor on the walls, tables and even the bathroom doors. The store had many items for sale, from socks to T-shirts to "mugs" with puns. Plus big and small stuffed donuts. Dessert they do well: ironically it was the huge cake like frosted cookie. This was delicious. What they didn't do as well: ironically it was the donuts. Maybe I've been spoiled to have had donuts from places like California Donuts in LA, Sweetwaters in Kalamazoo, and many local places in Detroit. But the actual donuts were mediocre. Nothing stood out as special about them sadly. I wouldn't make a point to stop here if I was passing through town, though I'm not upset we did today. It just wasn't what my family or I hoped for. read more

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They have the best glazed donuts in the country! They also have good sprinkle donuts and great service. don't go there too late or the donuts won't taste as fresh. read more

Best doughnuts, paczkis and bread ever. Keep up the good work. Had to order more Paczkis because the family mounded them in as soon as I opened the box. read more

Every time we're headed up north we see the sign for Cops & Donuts which alone peaked our interest in the donut shop. So we finally stopped on our way home on a Sunday!! Huge mistake! There was a line out the door onto the sidewalk. Because you can't park behind the building by time you park and walk we just decided to stay in the line and it was worth it. The line wove through a little gift store so you could keep busy looking through the store while you waited. The only problem was by time we got to the front of the line there weren't too many flavors to choose from but we did find enough to round out a dozen. The donuts were fresh and had that great taste that the small donut shops had before the days of Dunkin' Donuts. If we go back for sure it won't be on a Sunday morning read more

Cops & Doughnuts - Clare City Bakery - Cherry and Apple fritters were best - Bakeries Near Me - Clare, Michigan

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Awsome atmosphere and variety of fat making glorious doughnuts. Their coffee is basically the best I have ever had. I'm a coffee snob. I have hoodies and need new designs please. The service this morning has me thinking like a fat kid that loves cake. Wish I found out if the woman who helped me this morning was seeing anyone. Wowza for real. Hey no cages needed. read more

Cops & Doughnuts - Clare City Bakery - Fat Kid love. - Bakeries Near Me - Clare, Michigan

The quality and flavors have went down over the years. The coffee is still good along with friendly staff. The building used to be a little more fun to visit with a small diner area. The diner left years ago and the place is just kinda there now. It is an ok bakery, but far from the way they started.... read more

Great old school bakery with a new twist. Cops and Donuts is un the Historic Clare City Bakery since 1896. They have donuts, cakes, sweet s and other treats! read more

Cops & Doughnuts - Clare City Bakery - Welcome - Bakeries Near Me - Clare, Michigan

Great friendly prompt service experienced on a Sat evening. The donuts were plenty big and quite tasty . The three of us agree that we will return to this location on another visit. read more

You're a hugely successful bakery and the first donuts were incredible really special, but are they still as great? Store is beautiful by the way read more

It's hard to beat a place like this! Awesome donuts (the first reason you go) with a well-deserved great reputation (all your friends in the area recommend it) of fantastic service and ample portion sizes. We were a little overwhelmed with the number and quality of the choices for this first visit (I expect many more in the future) but the woman behind the counter was very helpful and very patient, even when we added on a loaf of bread at the last minute. Friends from almost two hours away occasionally take a road trip here just for the donuts! Meaning that even if it is out of your way, it's worth the trip. And they have such a following that one room in the store is dedicated to a gift shop (the t-shirts are very humorous). Go check it out!! read more

While returning from a golf trip up North, a billboard for "Cops & Doughnuts" caught my eye as we were approaching the small town of Clare (population 3,000) on Route 127 in west-central Michigan. How can you pass up a chance to check out such a unique marketing strategy? I was shocked to learn that this storefront on Clare's main drag, under a different name at that time, actually opened as a bakery almost 125 years ago!...in 1896...and has continuously operated as a bakery since then! The bakery's theme, promoting Clare's finest boys in blue, is highlighted in its front windows where dozens of miniature, "hot wheels-style" police cars are displayed. Inside, the bakery's showcases are loaded with oversized sweet delights of every type. If in Clare, don't miss a chance to experience "Cops" while enjoying a French Cruller! 5-stars all day long. read more

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Expensive round of doughnuts but everyone at work loved them, we got an assortment, Apple fritter, bacon, but the long john with custard was the star of the show read more

I stop by every time I'm in area to visit family and friends. After several years of amazing doughnuts this year something has changed... I came in only twice this trip and the first time 90% of the case was cookies and I was told it was because they were short staffed. Second stop the case was full (I was delighted to see.) Counter help were new which was okay but proper training would have made the service and experience much better. Now as I reached in my bag for my Apple fritter it just looked different. First bite was not very flavorful, dry, little frosting, and chewy. So, I went for another bite on the opposite side and it still was chewy (not in a good way) and tasted old. Not the usual crunchy on the outside moist and delicious with lots of cinnamon & apples on the inside that I usually experience. And so, in the trash it went. Such a disappointment. I hate that such a great bakery is still being hurt by the pandemic and the negative effects it has left behind. Hopefully, this was just an odd 2 weeks and the donuts come out fantastic next week! read more

I wish I could give it more stars because the concept and the shop is fun. They have a ton of variety in the case, but unfortunately over the years it seems they've traded quantity for quality. The last several times we've stopped in we've thrown most of what we bought away because it's too stale to even enjoy. read more

Cops & Doughnuts - Clare City Bakery - Cookie with peanut butter filling - Bakeries Near Me - Clare, Michigan

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