Federal Donuts: Where the Fried Chicken Donut Shop Began

Federal Donuts opened in October 2011 in a tiny corner shop at 1219 South 2nd Street in Pennsport, started by chef Michael Solomonov, restaurateur Steven Cook and their partners, and quickly became a citywide obsession. The concept was simple: fresh donuts and Korean-style fried chicken in the same small room. It grew into a local chain, but the original shop closed in January 2024, when the flagship moved to a larger space on Wolf Street; that shop, too, closed in early 2026. The corner on 2nd Street is where it all started.