Grand Rapids has a new option for late-night dessert runs, and it is not pretending to be subtle about it. Slutty Buns, a scratch dessert kitchen operating under the tagline “Dessert After Dark,” is now serving over-the-top cinnamon rolls and sweet buns from the Chef Shack space at 1003 Lake Drive SE. The concept is built around one idea: warm, gooey, slightly unhinged desserts for people who are just getting started when most bakeries are closing.

Late-night hours and location

Slutty Buns operates Thursday through Saturday from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m., with regular hours set to begin in December 2025. The kitchen runs out of Chef Shack on Lake Drive in the East Hills neighborhood, giving night owls on the southeast side an easy dessert stop after dinner, drinks, or a show. There are no substitutions and no overthinking, just a focused menu of scratch-made buns meant to be ordered, grabbed, and devoured while they are still hot.

The soft opening made it clear there is demand. The team sold out in about 40 minutes, turning their first weekend into a quick stress test of how many cinnamon rolls Grand Rapids can put away in a night.

What to expect on the menu

The menu leans into the brand’s NSFW humor, but behind the names is a classic bakery lineup built on dough, fillings, and frosting made in house. Guests can expect rich bases, high sugar content, and a lot of texture from nuts, cookies, and toppings.

Here is a look at some of the core items that were featured at launch in Traverse City and are expected to guide the Grand Rapids menu.

Classic and cinnamon-forward rolls

• Cinn-A-Slut: A classic cinnamon roll with buttercream frosting.

• Good Girl: Funfetti dough with sprinkle filling and buttercream frosting.

Nutty, caramel, and cookie flavors

• Nut Me: Nutty filling with brown butter frosting, caramel drizzle, and toasted nuts.

• WAP (Warm Apple Pastry): Nut filling with caramel frosting, apple topping, and caramel drizzle.

• Sticky Situation: Peanut butter pretzel filling with peanut butter frosting, salted caramel, and toasted pretzel.

• Biscoff Baddie: Biscoff filling, Biscoff frosting, crushed Biscoff, and Biscoff drizzle.

• Double Stuffed: Chocolate dough, creamy cookie filling, crushed cookies, and frosting.

Coffee, matcha, and other twists

• EspressHo: Chocolate dough with mocha espresso filling, chocolate ganache, and espresso soak.

• Wellness Check: Matcha dough with strawberry filling, matcha glaze, and crushed dried strawberries.

Fruit, cream, and chai inspired rolls

• Cream Pie’d: Graham dough with buttercream, lemon curd, and toasted marshmallow.

• Menage a Tres Leches: Milk soaked bun with caramel frosting and dulce de leche drizzle.

• Chai Me Daddy: Chai filling with maple frosting.

The names are designed to get a laugh, but the structure is straightforward: soft enriched dough, heavy fillings, and thick frosting layers, often with nuts, cookies, or cereal crushed on top. It is the kind of dessert lineup meant for sharing a box with a group or attacking a single bun as a full meal.

Who it is for

Slutty Buns is targeting the late-night crowd more than the brunch line. The hours cater to service industry workers getting off a shift, bar-hoppers who want something sweet on the way home, and anyone who gets a sugar craving well after the usual coffee shop closing times.

The kitchen also fits neatly into the existing Chef Shack ecosystem, adding a dessert focused option to an already busy corner of Lake Drive. With regular hours beginning in December 2025, it is likely to become a standard stop for people looking for something different than a scoop of ice cream or a standard bakery case.

How to try it

For now, the best strategy is to arrive early in the evening, especially on weekends. The soft opening sellout suggests that limited batches go fast. Expect a simple ordering setup, a tight menu that rotates through featured buns, and a focus on takeout.

Grand Rapids has seen a steady wave of niche dessert concepts over the last few years. Slutty Buns adds something new to that mix: a fully committed late-night cinnamon roll kitchen that does not mind being loud, a little chaotic, and very heavy on the frosting.