NOBLESVILLE, Ind. — May is Asian-American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. In Noblesville, there is a couple spreading joy to Hoosiers through a sweet treat.
At the VFW in Noblesville, you'll find customers looking for a special donut.
Husband and wife, Tom Nguyen and Rachel Burnett, own Mochi Joy Donuts. They run the small startup shop inside the VFW on select days, selling mochi donuts.
But these aren't your average donuts.
"So, mochi donuts are different from traditional donuts because it's a mixture of rice and wheat flower. And the rice gives it a pillowy chew and a little crispy on the outside," Burnett said.
The style of donut was created in Japan and recently became popular here in the U.S. through Hawaii.
"We finally ate one and was like, 'This is the best dessert ever. It would be so cool to have a shop like this one day,'" Nguyen said.
So several years after a taste test in California, the couple brought Mochi Joy Donuts to central Indiana.
"We do some traditional toppings, some more Asian toppings, and then kind of that Midwest vibe, like mud pie or Chaco toffee caramel," Burnett said.
And people love it.
"We come every Sunday and sometimes in between," customer Keila Loran said.
"I'm from Australia, so a lot of the cake donuts we eat around here are not like I've had – but these are a lot more similar to what I'm used to," customer Ryan Ogilvy said.
Right now, the couple runs things on their own, three days a week with pop-up events on Saturday. Their goal now is to grow and spread Mochi Joy all across the Hoosier state.
"Mochi Joy is more than just mochi donuts, we want to create a mochi experience," Nguyen said. "So we try to have all of these new products that are also new to this area, so we're trying to be innovators in the mochi space."
Mochi Joy is open Thursdays and Fridays 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Sundays from 7:30 a.m. to noon.