Food nostalgia is the sentimental experience of a dish that transports us back to a happy or meaningful moment. For Happy Place Homemade founder and owner Tyler Gerber, that feeling comes from a sweet, strawberry frosted donut that takes him straight back to his childhood.
With the slogan, “Your new go-to spot for making core memories,” Tyler’s vision is to blend the classic flavors we know and love with unique twists, creating what he calls a “new nostalgia.” From donuts and soft serve to coffee and more, Happy Place Homemade offers something delicious for everyone.
The donuts are cake-based and baked fresh daily. These fluffy creations come in three categories: Classic, Signature, and Mini.
The Classics remain a staple on the menu, featuring original glazed, chocolate, strawberry, and my personal favorite, glazed blueberry cake. Its texture is soft and packed with a generous amount of fresh blueberries, finished with a thin coat of glaze that keeps the donut perfectly balanced.
The Signature donuts are where Tyler’s creativity truly comes alive. Rotating monthly, the current lineup includes Wildberry Cheesecake, S’mores, Brown Butter Banana Crumb, and the top customer favorite, the Inside-Out Boston Crème, an imaginative spin on the beloved classic. The frosting is creamy and rich and the variety of flavors makes sampling each donut a fun experience.
The Minis are the perfect bite-sized treat, served as powdered sugar, sugar-coated, and cinnamon toast. Each donut is heavenly and satisfying on its own, but paired with soft serve, they become crave-worthy sundaes.
The soft serve at Happy Place Homemade is unlike anything else in South Jersey. Made by using their own custom-developed base and served with a gravity-fed soft serve machine, it’s denser and creamier than traditional soft serve. Vanilla and chocolate are always available, with additional flavors rotating monthly. Sundaes come in two styles: Perfects and Happy Stacks.
Perfects are the traditional sundae, featuring soft serve with two toppings and a sweet drizzle. Happy Stacks combine your favorite donut flavor with soft serve for a one-of-a-kind special treat. Banana has been the star of the launch, with the popular Banana Bread Happy Stacks. This indulgent treat pairs Banana Cream and Cinnamon Donut twist with a Brown Butter Banana donut, then tops it with cinnamon streusel and a caramel drizzle, a combination so luscious it tastes just like fresh-baked banana bread. This pairing can also be enjoyed as a Donut Dandie, a playful twist on a childhood favorite: an ice cream sandwich, but swap the cookies for donuts.
For those who are dairy-free, Happy Place Homemade offers decadent sorbet options like
Pineapple Whip, which can be substituted for flavors such as Wildberry and Passionfruit, so everyone can enjoy the fun of discovering new tastes.
Rotating flavors give guests the chance to experience endless combinations, like a Spicy Hot
Chocolate and Brown Butter twist. Each week, the letter board features “What’s in the Test Kitchen?”, highlighting a new menu item only available that week in-store. It also offers a sneak peek at upcoming flavors, serving as an interactive way for guests to stay engaged with the menu.
What would a donut shop be without coffee? Opening at 7:00 a.m. with a drive-through, Happy Place Homemade is a great stop to brighten your morning commute. They serve La Colombe coffee, both hot and as cold brew, including signature creations like Brown Butter and Hazelnut, to make your morning a bit sweeter. The menu also features customizable refreshers with a base of lemonade, iced tea, or half and half, plus one flavor, such as strawberry or blueberry. Or pick from one of their featured drinks like Winterberry Lemonade, made with lemonade, wildberry, and blueberry, leaving a refreshing, minty finish.
And because great taste shouldn’t come at a high price, Happy Place Homemade offers morning and evening combo deals. For example, the Mini Morning includes three mini donuts and a 16 oz hot or iced coffee for just $6.75, delivering both flavor and value.
Since opening in January, Happy Place Homemade is quickly becoming the go-to “happy place” in the neighborhood, bringing families and friends together to indulge in all the irresistible goodness available. And this is just the beginning, with exciting plans on the horizon, including soft serve pints. Until then, swing by and catch Tyler Gerber in the test kitchen, whipping up new creations.
Happy Place Homemade
690 Stokes Rd
Medford, NJ 08055
