My first job was at a donut shop. We simply called it, “the donut shop,” despite it having a real name. It was a little mom-and-pop donut shop that was run by a family. I was one of the few employees who was not related to the family in some way. That job taught me a lot about life. But, more importantly, it taught me a lot about donuts.
When I worked at the shop, we had a policy. At the end of the day, if we had, say, 3 dozen or more donuts left over, we would call a church or charitable organization and they could come and collect them for a food pantry-type situation. However, if there were less than 3 dozen donuts left, it wasn’t worth having the church people drive over, as they came from pretty far away. These donuts were either going to be tossed, or they needed to be brought home by somebody.
I was raised in a family where you do not waste food. We once ordered lechon for a family gathering and had so much leftover pig. My Auntie almost fainted when we told her that we weren’t going to keep the whole thing. The next thing I know, my little Filipino Auntie is grabbing two big black garbage bags and sliding the pig carcass into them, preparing to shove it into the trunk of her car. She refused to let us waste that food.
That anecdote is one of many that I could tell on the topic of Filipinos not wasting food. But, not wasting food was something that was instilled in me from a young age. So the thought of dozens of donuts being tossed out each day? It was preposterous! Naturally, I brought them home pretty much every time it happened on my shift. My family had so many donuts in the year and a half that I worked there that I’m surprised anyone still has a stomach for them! Beyond that, we were allowed to eat the donuts (to an extent), while we worked. If we worked a morning shift, we could help ourselves to breakfast. If we worked a lunch shift, it meant donuts for lunch!
Because of this experience, I consider myself a donut connoisseur. I’ve tried so many different flavors of donuts, you wouldn’t believe me if I told you them all! I was on a trip earlier this year, and I realized, I tend to go get a donut whenever I’m traveling. I just gravitate towards donut shops, I guess. Then and there, I decided that that was going to be my goal. I want to try a donut from a mom-and-pop donut shop in each state, and beyond that, anywhere I go where they make donuts!
I tossed this idea out to my Mame, who I was with at the time, and she said, “Well, why don’t you write about each donut you try?” I brushed the idea off, because writing about my travels online was not anything I was considering at the time. Lo and behold, a month and a half later, here I am, starting my Donut Digest.
This compendium of donuts will consist of where I tried the donuts and a ranking of the donut shop on a scale from 1 to 10. As I try new donuts, I’ll update the Digest!
Best of the Best
Pinkbox Doughnuts – Las Vegas, NV
According to their website, Pinkbox was cited as the Best in Las Vegas in both 2017 and 2018. Pinkbox absolutely blew me away the first time I tried them, and honestly? They might be my number one donut shop of all time. When I go to Vegas, it’s one of the first places that I know I need to stop at!
Pinkbox is a bit different than a normal donut shop. When you walk in, they do have the typical donut shop display case. But, instead of the employees grabbing donuts out of the glass display cases, they only have one or two donuts on display. The rest of the donuts are stored on baking racks, and the employees grab them straight off of the racks instead of out of the display cases. As someone who frequents donut shops, I’d never seen a setup quite like that before and found it interesting!
Pinkbox does one of the best cronuts I’ve ever had. I’ve come to realize that many people do not know what a cronut is! I guess it’s something you only really know about if you’re very much enamored with donuts, as I am. A cronut is, you guessed it, a mix between a croissant and a donut! A.K.A. Heaven on earth! They’re probably one of my favorite foods. Pinkbox really outdoes themselves with their cronut, or, as they call it, a DoughCro. They also do really fun, cutesy donuts that are totally instagrammable! The first time I stopped there, I got a red velvet unicorn. The second time? It was a poop emoji donut!
Pinkbox, in my opinion, is the best of the best. If you ever stop in, you definitely need to grab a DoughCro!
Donut Digest Rating: 8 out of 10!
The Farmhouse Donuts and Decor – Sarasota, FL
Pictured: Farmer’s Sugar Toast, Sweet Squealing Pig, and Apple Pie. Not pictured: the cronut. 
The inside of the store! 
You just read me raving about the DoughCro at Pinkbox. Honestly, I thought that nothing would ever top that cronut. Until I spontaneously stopped into a tiny, just opened donut shop in Sarasota, FL. My Mame and I were driving down the road and I spotted a pretty banner on the side of a building advertising a newly opened donut shop. I immediately said, “OOH what’s that?” We both decided to check it out on our way back from lunch we were headed to. I am so glad we did. I have DREAMS about those donuts.
This place was super neat! There are 3 locations, one in Sarasota, one in Bradenton, and then one in Georgia! They sell custom and pre-made furniture, all of which is gorgeous! And they make donuts and sell coffee and other foods as well.
When you walk in, you grab a “menu”. Their menu is a piece of paper on which you can check off which donuts, drinks, or food items you want. Then, you bring it up to the counter and place your order. There were so many options that we had to try multiple donuts each despite being stuffed from lunch!
We decided to do a mini of the “Farmer’s Sugar Toast,” which was a donut topped with cinnamon sugar, maple, and marshmallow drizzle. It was out of this world. We also got a “Sweet Squealing Pig,” which was a maple, bacon, and salt donut! I’m not a huge maple bacon person (shocking, right?), but this one was pretty dang delicious! But, the pièce de résistance was the cronut.
Oh my LORD. This was the best cronut I’ve ever had, and I’ve tried many cronuts. They brought it out warmed up and covered in warm glaze, and I think I died and went to heaven.
Overall, this place ranks WAY up there on my list of best donut shops in the country! I cannot imagine a single donut tasting badly from this place! And the whole shop is adorable, with all of the furniture that they constructed on display. If you’re ever in Clayton, Georgia, or Sarasota or Bradenton, FL, it’s absolutely worth your time to stop in!
Donut Digest Rating: 9 out of 10.
NOLA Doughnuts – Portland, OR
Last year, I tried Blue Star Donuts in Portland, and was quite honestly a bit disappointed by them. They’ll be briefly mentioned in the Digest, but their donuts don’t warrant a lengthy mention. This year, I needed to try something new, and I stumbled across NOLA Doughnuts.
NOLA Doughnuts is located pretty much next door to Powell’s! If you’re visiting Portland, chances are you’re planning a trip to Powell’s. And if that’s the case, why not stop in at NOLA?! It’s a slippery slope, I’ll tell ya.
I wasn’t really hungry, yet I found myself devouring every bit of the entirely too much food that I ordered. Now, I’ve never been to New Orleans or had a proper beignet. NOLA Doughnuts claims to be authentic because they’re run by siblings born and raised in New Orleans. I can’t speak for how authentic they are, but I can vouch for how delicious they are!
While they do sell traditional beignets, I was drawn to their “specialty” item, which is the La’ssant. According to their website, a La’ssant is a square doughnut with “great complexity of flavor, a deep richness, and a delicate, crisp outer layer.” And you know what? Every word of that description rings true. I was drawn to the S’mores La’ssant, although I’m not a huge s’mores person typically. It definitely was the right call. It was covered in chocolate ganache, topped with marshmallow fluff that was somehow still melty, and a graham cracker cookie butter. It was one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. Holy smokes.
On top of that, I got a few Doughnut Bites, which were also fantastic! They weren’t too sweet, and they were the perfect size for a quick snack. You’ve heard me going on about my love for cronuts, but I think I have a new love for La’ssants. They’re both so delicious.
If you’re in Portland, you have to make some time to stop in at NOLA!
Donut Digest Rating: 9 out of 10
Daily Dozen Doughnut Company – Seattle, WA
Daily Dozen is located in Pike Place Market. I do a ton of research before I go anywhere. I always have a plan. My plans for the day that I arrived in Seattle had me dropping off my bags, and heading straight to Pike Place for a stop at Daily Dozen. But when I got to Pike Place Market, I wandered for a good half hour before I laid eyes on Daily Dozen! It’s a bit hidden.
When you walk into the main entrance of Pike Place, instead of walking towards your right, towards the flowers, you need to go LEFT, past the Pike Place Fish Co., then hook another left almost immediately. It will then be on your left hand side. It’s very disorienting to try and find if you’ve never been to Pike Place and you’re busy trying to see all that there is to see!
Daily Dozen is cash only. I knew that going in because of my extensive online research! There was virtually no line when I went, and I got a half a dozen, assorted. This place had ridiculously good Yelp reviews, and basically everywhere I looked online said that it was the place to stop while in Seattle.
As a donut connoisseur though, I was disappointed. The only one that stood out to me was the cinnamon sugar donut. If I ever went back, I would get a half dozen JUST cinnamon sugar.
I just wasn’t impressed with it overall! The sprinkle and powdered sugar donuts were dry. And they made a mess. If you’re a person who hates messy food, like I am, then you will not love this place. You order your donuts, and they grab a brown paper lunch bag. Then, they throw in plain fried donuts (if you’ve ordered cinnamon sugar), and take a big shaker and shake the cinnamon sugar right into your bag. Essentially “making” the donuts in front of you. The powdered sugar and sprinkle are already made and then thrown haphazardly into the bag, too. It’s pretty messy to try and eat, and I wasn’t really a fan of it.
Another thing to note about Daily Dozen is that there is VERY limited seating! So just be aware of that if you stop in. Would I go back? Yes. But I would only get the cinnamon sugar! Those were the one redeeming quality of this place!
Donut Digest Rating: 6 out of 10.
Doughnut Vault – Chicago, IL
Time for some bias. Chicago has a GREAT donut scene. Two Chicago donut shops are making my “Best of the Best” list! Doughnut Vault has two locations, but I’ve personally only stopped in at one of them. One location on Canal, and one on Franklin. I’ve had Doughnut Vault many times, and it’s always delicious!
The location that I’ve been to, Canal Vault, is super cute and instagrammable! The donuts are a bit pricey, like all the food in Chicago is, but they’re delicious! The best days at work are the days when someone brings in a box from Doughnut Vault! Someone actually brought in a box this morning, and it made my whole day. It’s also nice because the Canal location is located right on my walk to work. Well worth a stop if you’re in the city.
Donut Digest Rating: 8 out of 10
Firecakes – Chicago, IL
Firecakes was one of the first Chicago donut chains that I tried. After I had them once, I was hooked. It was lucky that they weren’t easy for me to get to, it was a pain to walk up to their location, and it was annoying to take the train such a short distance. So I rarely got them.
Fate intervened. They opened a Firecakes location TWO BLOCKS from my office. And I got to eat them more often!
Firecakes does an amazing raised (yeast) donut. They use Valrhona chocolate on their donuts, and if you’ve never had that, it’s life-changing. It’s actually an item on my Christmas wishlist this year, because although I think it’s ridiculous to pay $13 for a thing of cocoa powder, I won’t stop someone else from buying it for me! The Valrhona chocolate donut is one of the best things I’ve ever tasted, and everything else from Firecakes is amazing as well!
Donut Digest Rating: 8 out of 10
Honorable Mentions:
Blue Star Donut – Portland, OR
Donut Digest Rating: 4 out of 10
Voodoo Doughnut – I’ve seen them in Portland and Orlando!
Donut Digest Rating: 5 out of 10
Stan’s Donuts – Chicago, IL
Donut Digest Rating: 7 out of 10
Do-Rite Donuts – Chicago, IL
Donut Digest Rating: 7 out of 10
If you have suggestions for doughnuts or doughnut shops that I need to try, I would love to hear them! Drop a line here!
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