BY KADIE TAYLOR
THE OBSERVER
OPELIKA — Spreading the joy of sweet treats through opening KLM Tasty Donuts in Opelika, Owner and Operator Gigi Chhim said after years of serving Lee County customers in her original location, Tasty Donuts in Lanett, she decided to expand to serve Auburn-Opelika residents closer to home.
“People were coming from Opelika and Auburn, they were like, ‘come to Opelika, come to Auburn,’ for the last seven years, and we couldn’t find enough help to be able to expand until recently, we were able to secure a place here and also find enough help over there to be able to [add a shop in Opelika],” she said. “We’ve had big support from everybody — it’s such a positive place to be in. We didn’t expect it to be this big, but it’s just an honor to be here in Opelika.”
Chhim said KLM Tasty Donuts serves customers with a variety of breakfast options — from sweet to savory — along with caffeinated drinks to fuel the day.
“We make everything fresh daily,” she said. “We have a variety of donuts from original glaze, chocolate, maple caramel, sprinkles, to cake donuts. And then we’ve got different kinds of pigs in a blanket. We have apple fritters [which are] one of the best sellers — besides the original glaze and also donut holes. We also have breakfast sandwiches, burritos and biscuits. We’ve got specialty drinks, coffee, refreshers and Red Bull-like drinks also.”
With more space in her Opelika location, Chhim said she is able to offer more drink options, and shared her favorite menu items for customers to try.
“I drink the KLM Special, it’s like a Vietnamese coffee, but not directly because of the condensed milk that’s in there, but also, there’s a hint of caramel in there that makes it really good,” she said. “And my favorite donut is the apple fritter — we sell a lot of those.”
When designing the colorful KLM Tasty Donuts shop, Chhim said she wanted to create a space that is fun, welcoming and family-friendly.
“The decoration is fun, [we have] the pink, the purple and the donut [decorations] — we made it fun so it feels like home,” she said. “Last weekend, there was a family who was sitting down at the table, and there were three or four kids, they were running around in their PJs, and on the couch that we have over there… It feels like home, it’s not like a business, it’s more like a home.”
Having opened on Jan. 15, Chhim said she has already felt the community support for KLM Tasty Donuts and is excited to continue to serve the community.
“It’s our honor to be able to be a part of their morning routine,” she said. “[I also enjoy] seeing kids come in with a big smile on their face, and then seeing people get to enjoy their little sweet apple fritter and get a coffee, it just makes us happy.”
For more information, visit KLM Tasty Donuts Opelika AL on Facebook.
