Every day is a good day to have a doughnut, but June 1 is an especially good time to hit up your local Dunkin' Donuts or Krispy Kreme—because the treats will be free.
In celebration of National Doughnut Day, several chains will be offering promotions to help sate your sugar cravings, as spotted by WRAL-TV. Dunkin’ Donuts will give away a free classic doughnut—including Boston kreme, glazed, glazed chocolate, or strawberry frosted with sprinkles—with any purchase of a beverage.
And in a promotional video featuring Shaquille O’Neal, Krispy Kreme announced that customers will get a free doughnut of their choice—no purchase necessary. (Fun fact: Shaq owns a Krispy Kreme store in Atlanta, Georgia.)
Duck Donuts, a chain with locations throughout Texas, the Midwest, and the East Coast, is also giving away free classic donuts with no strings attached. Customers can choose from any of their classic varieties, including cinnamon sugar, powdered sugar, and bare.
Doughnut chain Fractured Prune is offering one free O.C. Sand doughnut (made with honey glaze and cinnamon sugar) at participating locations, and Walmart is gearing up to give away roughly 1.2 million whole glazed donuts to customers that day.
National Doughnut Day was founded in 1938 when the Salvation Army decided to honor the World War I volunteers who served pastries to soldiers on the front lines in France. It's celebrated on the first Friday of June, and a second National Doughnut Day is observed on November 5. The latter's origins are harder to trace, but it was likely introduced by a retail outlet that linked the holiday with Veterans Day on November 11.
[h/t WRAL-TV]