Posted on September 11, 2026 by

Yonutz combines gourmet donuts, ice cream and creative toppings into one over-the-top treat
September 10, 2026

BY ANDREA STETSON
FLORIDA WEEKLY CORRESPONDENT

Matt Derr and Ted Fitzpatrick were college friends at Carnegie Mellon, where they studied engineering. After graduating, they headed into high-stress jobs; Derr in civil engineering and Fitzpatrick in mechanical engineering. Now, they both want a new career, one that is fun and unique. So, the duo just opened a Yonutz franchise in Bonita Springs. “We are here to sell fun,” Fitzpatrick said. “There is no fun in engineering. It is a lot of stress. This changes things up. It’s just a fun family brand.”

Yonutz signature dishes are smashed donuts and smashed milkshakes. Both combine donuts and ice cream with an array of toppings.

They sell smashed donuts with names like Birthday Cake, which is ice cream wedged between donuts, topped with blue vanilla drizzle, confetti sprinkles and Little Debbie Birthday Cake. Kinder Bueno has vanilla ice cream, Kinder Bueno bar smashed, topped with Nutella drizzle and chopped Oreo. Pebble Rebel has strawberry ice cream topped with vanilla drizzle and cereal. S’moreo has Oreo ice cream topped with chocolate drizzle, graham cracker dust and mini marshmallows. Chocolate brownie is chocolate ice cream topped with chocolate drizzle, brownie bits and M&Ms.

Ted Fitzpatrick and Matt Derr are the owners of the Bonita Springs Yonutz franchise. They just opened their shop in the Promenade on August 24. -ANDREA STETSON / FLORIDA WEEKLY

Yonutz’s best seller nationwide is Nutella Crunch, which features cookie dough ice cream topped with Nutella drizzle, chopped Oreo and butter crunch pieces. That combination was the 2023 Dessert Wars national champion. Another big seller is Biscoff Cookie Butter that showcases vanilla ice cream, cookie butter and Biscoff cookies topped with salted caramel and Biscoff cookie crumb. There are 12 smashed donuts all with amusing names and a unique mix of ingredients. The milkshakes are also popular and feature a mini donut inside and on top, along with an array of mixed-in ingredients.

“I like cookie dough,” Derr said about his favorite

“I like them all. It is hard to choose,” Fitzpatrick added. “I am good with the Nutella Crunch.”

Chris Bramlett, a corporate trainer, has been at the Bonita location for about a week, training the employees in techniques and customer service.

“What really makes this different is we take the donuts and the ice cream, and we put them all together,” Bramlett said. “People have tried to copy us, but it is only done right at Yonutz. We are the ones that originated it.”

The brand was founded by Tony Bahu who opened the first location in Sunrise, Florida in February 2018. In 2019 he began franchising Yonutz. In 2020 Bahu partnered with Shark Tank star Kevin Harrington to expand the franchise nationwide. There are now 21 open or planned Yonutz locations.

Many customers had seen the ‘coming soon’ signs for months in Bonita Springs and were eager to try the unusual treat. On opening day, they munched on a variety of goodies.

“I just tried a mini one with coffee ice cream in between. I love it.” said Naomi Tran who works next door at Royal Nails & Spa. I think for sure a lot of people will come to this one.”

“My favorite is the mini donut with coffee ice cream,” added Yvonne Vo. “It is delicious.”

Joe Nugent came from North Naples to try the treat.

Bryanna Gilmore makes a Nutella smashed donut at the new Bonita Springs Yonutz location. -ANDREA STETSON / FLORIDA WEEKLY

Wow, this chocolate donut is outstanding,” Nugent said as he bit into his frosted goodie. “It is super fun and different from anything else out there. It is good that a family owns this, so you want to support them. This smash thing is so cool.”

Bramlett has some advice for those trying their first smashed donut.

“The best way to eat a smashed donut is like a sandwich so you capture every flavor in every bite,” she advised.

Yonutz is introducing Simply Smashed, which are smaller donuts with ice cream in the middle and rolled in sugary toppings. They also have regular donuts and breakfast all day.

Araceli Castaneda was intrigued by the bright colors of the Fruity Pebbles smashed donut.

“I like the combination,” she said as she took her first bite. “It is very delicious. It has all the yummy stuff.”

Domingo Pedro Zacarias sat near her eating an Oreo smashed donut.

“I like donuts and I like ice cream,” he said.

Juana Pedro munched on the chocolate brownie smashed donut.

“It is my first time having one,” Pedro said. “I have seen it on TikTok and wanted to try it. It is really good.”

Bryanna Gilmore just started working at the new shop and is enjoying making the treats and sampling them.

“I like the Biscoff. That was really good. I also like the Nutella,” Gilmore said.

Derr and Fitzpatrick bought the rights for three franchises anywhere from Estero to Marco Island. They hope to open their next one in Naples.

Cedric Willis and Arlene Noboa-Willis opened their Yonutz franchise in Cape Coral in March 2025. They hope to open another one in Fort Myers. Cedric Willis is at his Cape Coral store almost every day.

“We thought it would be a fun place,” Willis said about his franchise. “I love dessert. You can’t come into a donut place and be upset. It is just a fun concept. I think the concept is amazing. It is like an old school ice cream sandwich, just on steroids.”

He and his wife also like to do a lot of community outreach in schools and churches. That’s one of his best ways of showing people his unique product.

“The donuts are gourmet,” Willis said. “You are not going to find them any place else. We were rated the number one donut shop in Cape Coral by voters in the community. We do a lot of things with the community. We always said we wanted to give back to the community.”

The best-selling items at the Cape Coral shop are the Nutella Crunch and the Biscoff Cookie Butter Smashed Donuts and the Oreo milkshake.

But Willis says he likes the simple things best.

“I love our donuts,” he said. “They are so soft and fluffy. So, I would say the regular donuts are my favorite.”

For Derr and Fitzpatrick, their civil and mechanical engineering days are over and the only thing they are engineering now are gourmet donuts.

“This is a really good concept,” Derr said.

“It seemed like this was a great fit for what we want,” Fitzgerald concluded. “These are fantastic, but they are a little messy to eat.”

In The KNOW:

Bonita Springs Location

WHERE: 26795 S. Bay Drive, Suite 162, Bonita Springs
HOURS: All week 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
MORE INFO: 239-986-9024 or yonutz.com

Cape Coral Location

WHERE: 106 Hancock Bridge Parkway, #c11, Cape Coral
HOURS: Sunday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday-Thursday 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday-Saturday 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.
MORE INFO: 239-471-7994 or yonutz.com

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