BOZEMAN — Granny’s Gourmet Donuts recently was highlighted for its Yelp reviews, boosting a 5-star rating; however, the owner notes that it's the critical comments that can make the biggest difference in his business.
"It’s nice to keep the quality up, it’s nice to get the positive good, but sometimes it’s the bad reviews is what you need to hear. So recently someone notified me that he didn’t think the donuts tasted as good as it should,” said Granny's owner Robert McWilliams. “So I looked at what I was doing, and I changed some things and called him up, and he tried them and they’re good again."
McWilliams has owned and operated Granny’s Gourmet Donuts since 2001 and has been serving up donuts to the community ever since. Being mere steps away from Montana State University, McWilliams says that plenty of hungry students come through his door for a sweet treat on the way to class.
Reading through reviews, Granny’s goes far beyond a campus donut shop—people come in from out of state to grab a bite to start their vacation, or locals swing in to get a dozen of their favorites.
“This is not just a donut shop, this is a community, and it’s a community of nice happy, fun, interesting people. It has been a privilege,” McWilliams said. “I really enjoy seeing them and serving them, and being in the Bozeman community, and making Bozeman a better place, and I think Granny’s does that.”
McWilliams said that on a busy weekend, such as Cat-Griz, Parents weekend, or graduation, it’s not uncommon for Granny’s to cook and sell around 6000 donuts. He goes on to say that he’s glad that the quality has been unaffected by the quantity the team is producing.
Something special to McWilliams is when people come into Granny’s and reminisce on memories that were made in the doughnut shop over the years.
“I particularly enjoy the stories about people who are talking about how they remember what it used to taste like, so talking to someone who is a little older, they can taste the donut and it reminds them of their youth and that’s really nice,” McWilliams said.
