The Brioche Box

Imagine waking up at 2 a.m., going into work, and spending the next eight hours making donuts.

That's basically what the woman behind The Brioche Box does every weekend, Mabel Hong.

And after trying eight of them, I understand why people are seeking this little place out.

The Brioche Box isn't really a traditional donut shop. It's a small operation in Middleton specializing in filled brioche donuts, with flavors like Japanese milk cream, Thai tea, pandan, black sesame, butterscotch and whatever else they're experimenting with that weekend.

They're only available during a small weekend window.

They're made in small batches.

And once they're gone, they're gone.

But what really caught my attention wasn't any of that.

It was when she told me she purposely makes her donuts less sweet than your typical American donut.

At first I didn't know how I felt about that.

Then I took my first bite.

And holy crap.

These might be some of the best donuts I've had in Wisconsin.

The Lowdown

• City: Middleton, WI
• Address: 2303 Pinehurst Dr, Middleton, WI 53562

The Ambiance

For starters, it’s pick up only. Some walk ins, but good luck. You place your order online and head to their pickup location on Pinehurst Drive in Middleton.

There's something cool about knowing this is a tiny operation where the person making your donuts was literally awake hours before most of us even thought about getting out of bed.

Everything is small batch.

Everything is fresh.

And when they're gone, they're gone.

Visit Middleton currently lists their weekend hours as 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or until sold out, and they specifically recommend checking the weekend flavor lineup because specials rotate.

This isn't a "swing by whenever" kinda place.

Order ahead.

What I Ordered

I ended up getting eight different filled brioche donuts :

• Butterscotch
• Chocolate
• Peaches & cream
• Black sesame
• Thai tea
• Matcha
• Pandan
• Japanese milk cream

And yes...

I tried every single one.

One of the things I learned talking with the owner is that her philosophy is basically the opposite of what you might expect from a donut shop.

She doesn't want these things to be overwhelmingly sweet.

The idea is to use familiar ingredients and let the filling add just enough sweetness without completely taking over the donut.

And that's EXACTLY what these taste like.

The first one I tried was the butterscotch .

One bite.

That was pretty much all I needed.

The actual brioche is so unbelievably soft that I described it while eating as biting into a cloud with sweetness in the middle .

And I still think that's probably the best description.

The butterscotch had plenty of flavor without becoming this giant sugar bomb.

Then came the chocolate , which surprised me even more.

Normally when you get a chocolate-filled donut, the filling completely takes over.

This didn't.

You get the chocolate, but it's light enough that you can still actually taste the brioche.

The peaches & cream was probably one of my favorites.

The filling was made with actual peaches, and this was the one where I really noticed just how fresh everything tasted.

Then I got into some of the flavors I wouldn't normally order.

Black sesame was almost not sweet at all. It's very sesame-forward and has that toasted, nutty flavor you'd expect from sesame seeds.

Thai tea was probably about 60% tea flavor and 40% cream to me.

The pandan had this interesting almost nutty flavor that I couldn't completely put my finger on.

And then there was Japanese milk cream .

Simple.

Light.

Creamy.

Ridiculously good.

Apparently that's not an accident either. Japanese milk cream and chocolate custard are specifically called out as two of their most popular flavors, while things like pandan and rotating specials have also become favorites.

But here's the weird part:

After trying eight flavors, the thing I kept thinking about wasn't actually any specific filling.

It was the donut itself.

Every single time I picked up another one, I couldn't get over how soft and fresh the brioche was.

And because they're not overly sweet, you don't get two bites in and feel like you've had enough.

These are light.

Fluffy.

Just a little sweet.

If you're looking for some gigantic donut covered in frosting, candy, cereal, cookies and 900 grams of sugar...

This probably isn't your place.

If you want something completely different?

That's where The Brioche Box gets really interesting.

Important & interesting info:

• It’s only open on weekends. The Brioche Box currently operates Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., or until they sell out. Small batches + limited hours means I wouldn’t wait until the end of the day.
• Preordering is absolutely the move. They do have some walk-in availability, but quantities are limited. Local customers specifically recommend ordering online because showing up and hoping your flavor is still there can be risky.
• The menu changes regularly. Japanese milk cream and chocolate custard are two of the staples, but they rotate in flavors like pandan salted mascarpone, peaches & cream, ube custard and other seasonal creations.
• It’s easy to miss if you don’t know what you’re looking for. The Brioche Box is tucked inside the same building as Isthmus Eats at 2303 Pinehurst Drive. This isn't your normal walk-in bakery with a huge storefront and display case. The Brioche Box

Conclusion

The Brioche Box is one of those places that reminds me why I love finding small food businesses around Wisconsin.

It's one person showing up in the middle of the night to make ridiculously fresh brioche donuts that you pick up a few hours later.

And you can taste that effort.

I said at the beginning of my review that these might be some of the best donuts you can get in the entire state of Wisconsin .

The Brioche Box is absolutely worth trying.