Where to find apple cider donuts around Kansas City

Fall in Kansas City is measured in apple cider donuts, and the region has a wide spread of places to find them, from historic family orchards to local breweries. Whether you want to pick your own fruit or just grab a dozen on the way home, there is a spot for every version of the season.

Louisburg Cider Mill is the name most people think of first. About 20 miles south of the city at 14730 K-68 Hwy in Louisburg, Kansas, it has been going since 1977 and is famous for donuts made daily with an elastic cake texture and a cinnamon-sugar coating. The Country Store carries hard cider, cider spices and apple wine. The mill is open Monday through Saturday 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM and Sunday 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Its Family Farm attraction runs through the end of October and includes a 10-acre corn maze, a pumpkin patch and farm animals, with admission between $15.99 and $18.99 and children 2 and under free. A few dates are worth noting: Zombie Forest Night on Saturday, October 17, College Weekend on October 17–18 with a $2 student discount, and the Burning of the Scarecrow on Saturday, October 24.

Cider Hill Family Orchard keeps things closer to home at 3341 N. 139th St. in Kansas City, Kansas. The 38-acre orchard has 6,000 apple trees and serves donuts with a slightly crispy crust and an airy center, alongside pressed cider slushies, apple crisps and apple pie nachos. It is open Tuesday through Saturday 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM and Sunday 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM, with U-pick apples, a pumpkin patch, fishing ponds and free hayrides.

For a bit more of a drive, Johnson Farms Plants and Pumpkins in Belton, Missouri, sits on 17701 Holmes Road with a 40-acre pumpkin patch and more than 5,000 apple trees. Their donuts are made from a family recipe that leaves them fluffier than most, and they pair them with cider slushies or hot cider. The farm is open Monday through Saturday 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM and Sunday 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM, with U-pick pumpkins, apples and sunflowers, a giant tunnel maze and jumping pillows. Historic Weston Orchard & Vineyard at 18545 Co. Road H in Weston, Missouri, lets you pick your own apples through October 31 and fries its donuts all day before rolling them in cinnamon sugar. It is open daily 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM through November, with fresh pressed cider by the jug, caramel apples, cider slushies and hot spiced cider.

If you would rather stay in town, Baxter Coffee and Donuts has locations at 1729 E. Langsford Road in Lee's Summit and 723 N. Main St. in Grain Valley, with a denser donut that tastes like apple pie. The Lee's Summit shop is the one doing the baking, open Monday through Saturday 5:30 AM to 5:00 PM and Sunday 6:00 AM to 5:00 PM.

And if you prefer your cider hard, the local brewery scene has plenty of options. Boulevard Brewery makes an Old Fashioned Hard Apple Cider with Louisburg Cider Mill, Fringe Brewery in Lee's Summit and Independence carries a Boulevard blackberry cider as a guest brew, and Diametric Brewing Co. in Lee's Summit pours a Sangria Cyser with Concord grapes, tangerines and apples. Casual Animal Brewing Co. has a dry, crisp Viper in the Garden Cider, Rochester Brewing and Roasting Company does a French cider with saison yeast alongside apple pie and cherry versions, and Cinder Block Brewery in North Kansas City keeps apple and cherry cider year-round.