Celebrate National Doughnut Day this Friday

Free doughnuts!

In honor of National Doughnut Day on Friday, the Four Seasons, 3960 Las Vegas Blvd. South, is offering free hot mini-doughnuts in its lobby from 7 to 10 a.m. The doughnuts, made by the chef-attended doughnut machine usually featured at the hotel’s weekend breakfast buffet, will be available with a variety of glazes and toppings.

Krispy Kreme Doughnut outlets also are offering a free doughnut, one per guest, subject to availability.

And Dunkin’ Donuts is offering guests a free doughnut of their choice (while supplies last, and except for croissant doughnuts and cheesecake squares) with the purchase of any beverage, any time during the day.

Do you wonder how National Doughnut Day started? It was launched by The Salvation Army in Chicago in 1938 to honor the women who served doughnuts to soldiers during World War I, and traditionally is observed, as it is this year, on the first Friday of June. Honoring that tradition, the local branch of The Salvation Army will serve doughnuts, followed by lunch, to veterans from 9 a.m. to noon Friday at the Veterans Administration Community Resource and Referral Center at 916 W. Owens Ave.

And in a partnership with Pink Box Doughnuts, the Lake Mead Boulevard and Henderson locations of Pink Box will donate 10 percent of the day’s proceeds to The Salvation Army, which will have its red kettles at those locations as well.

And STK at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, 3708 Las Vegas Blvd. South, is celebrating the day in a different way — with Drunkin’ Donuts. Offered as dessert, the Cocoa Bomb will be injected with vanilla-lemon custard and hazelnut liqueur, the Fruity Rebel with cereal custard and raspberry liqueur and Not Your Daddy’s Donut with cherry-bourbon custard and orange liqueur, Friday only.

Contact Heidi Knapp Rinella at Hrinella@reviewjournal.com. Find more of her stories at reviewjournal.com and bestoflasvegas.com and follow @HKRinella on Twitter.