We first learned about Oram’s Donut Shop in 2011 while watching the Rick Sebak special, Things That Are Still Here, on WQED.
Our curiosity piqued, we quickly added a trip to Oram’s up in Beaver Falls, PA to our 2012 achievement list.
Where it stayed, neglected, for the whole year. We shifted it to 2013…
And the same thing happened. Both years, the limited hours at Oram’s and its distance from Pittsburgh kept us from making it out to the shop. So the achievement languished.
However, Fox and I have resolved that 2014 will be the year in which we truly buckle down and strive to hit all 101 achievements on our list — so instead of just waiting for the time to be right, we decided to schedule a day in advance and commit to getting ourselves out there.
And it worked! If you’re coming from Pittsburgh, like us, we recommend heading out first thing in the morning to beat the traffic. Oram’s opens at 5am, and the drive takes a little under an hour outside rush hour. Happily, Oram’s is quite easy to find once you make it to Beaver Falls, because it’s right on the main drag (and street parking is only a dime for half an hour!!).
Oram’s is a small and busy place, and the number of people in the shop made it such that we couldn’t really get a good general atmosphere shot. We did, however, get a nice look at the donut and pastry display.
(Well, half of the display, anyway!) Those cinnamon rolls are what Oram’s is really known for. So, obviously, we picked up one of those, and a second donut to share as well.
This beauty is one of Oram’s custard donuts — essentially, they’re the same thing as a Boston Creme. As you can probably tell, that’s a pretty good-size donut. But it’s nothing compared to the hugeness of their cinnamon rolls.
No, Fox does not have a small head — those cinnamon rolls are massive!
By the way, if you’re particularly astute, you have probably noticed that we had to shoot our amateur donut-porn in the car. That’s because Oram’s does not have any seating; it’s a strictly-takeout type of place. So make sure you bring some napkins with you if you’re not planning on eating them elsewhere!
So…the big question. How are the donuts at Oram’s?
They are heavenly. The custard donut was insanely stuffed with filling, with custard practically spilling onto your lap (hence the need for napkins). And the famed cinnamon roll? Um, hands-down the best cinnamon roll we’ve ever eaten. It was tender, fluffy on the inside, and coated in cinnamon-sugary goodness. Definitely worth the two-hour round trip.
So, in short, we absolutely recommend checking out Oram’s. It’s open Monday-Saturday from 5am to 2pm, so don’t make the mistake of waiting two whole years like we did. Pick a sunrise and get on the road!
I can arrange to have some of those sweet, sweet beauties for our MidSummer Feast! My co-worker makes Oram’s runs a couple of times a year for us. Ah, the smell!
I’m pretty sure Commonplace Voluto (in Lawrenceville) hauls in and sells Oram’s too. I could be mistaken, but I’m pretty sure I saw a note about it in their display case the last time I was there.
I was so excited by this prospect that I called up Voluto just to check! Turns out they used to have them brought in on Thursdays, but the arrangement they had has ended, so no more Oram’s there. 🙁 Maybe some other coffeeshop in town can take up the slack!
They used to be much bigger, but they are still delish !!!!!