So for National Donut Day on June 1st, I really wanted to do something. I absolutely love donuts. Usually I go for my classic, the cake donut with chocolate frosting and sprinkles. But this time was different! My husband suggested we go on a self-guided donut tour around Los Angeles. How could I turn that down? So we made a list of places we always wanted to go and set off on a Saturday morning to try out some of the best donuts in Los Angeles.
First up…Trejos Coffee & Donuts!
Trejo’s Tacos are some of my favorite tacos so of course I’ve wanted to try the donuts when he opened up the Trejos Coffee & Donuts shop! They had a pretty good variety and you can’t miss the bright pink building as your drive by. Struck with indecision and it being my first donut of the morning, we went pretty simple but was instantly transported.
On the left was the Abuelita donut. Have you ever had the Abuelita chocolate drink mix? Well…this is it! I couldn’t believe how much it was literally just like it. It was still a light and fluffy donut but had that great Mexican chocolate taste to it. On the right was Cinnamon Crumb. The donut itself was just a glazed donut but the little cinnamon crumbs on top made it just a little bit extra special. A great way to start out!
Next up we decided to head to Sidecar Doughnuts.
I hadn’t heard of Sidecar Doughnuts but the area it’s in is a great area. Family friendly, walkable and close to the beach. We went early enough that we thought we’d miss the rush but this place is obviously popular with the neighborhood. It was jumpin’! And I can’t even talk about how much the color scheme and decor made me want to just hang out there for the entire morning.
One of the brightest donuts and most talked about was the Huckleberry. You can see it has that beautiful purple-pink color. And the taste is just as colorful. The donut had that little crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. And the huckleberry flavor was sweet and slightly tart at the same time. So good! The one more on the right…oh my. That is the Mexican Hot Chocolate donut. This. Donut. Was. Incredible. I swear, it was like eating hot chocolate with a delicious marshmallow on that went straight through the core. And around the marshmallow center, the donut was a little gooey still. Oh man, I’d make the drive just to get another one of those.
We took it a bit old school and decided to hit up a staple, Randy’s Donuts.
We couldn’t pass up going to Randy’s Donuts! This is a “best donuts in Los Angeles” staple. It’s hard to miss with the giant donut on top and one of the only drive-thru donut windows that I’ve ever seen. If this looks familiar it’s because Randy’s has been used in a ton of movies and TV Shows.
- Randy’s has been featured in Iron Man II, Big Bang Theory, Entourage, Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles, Dope, Californication, California Girls, 2012, Mars Attacks!, Volcano, Get Shorty, Earth Girls Are Easy, Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, The Simpsons, Arrested Development, Victorious, The Golden Child, and more!
I went with my go-to, the cake donut with chocolate and sprinkles! And it did not disappoint. It’s pictured at the top of the blog post. My husband went with the Texas Donut. I’m not sure what we thought it was going to be…but it was just a giant glazed donut. I died laughing! This donut was probably 3-4 donuts put together. He did not make a dent in finishing that thing.
Last but certainly not least, Donut Friend!
Oh Donut Friend. How delicious you are. I couldn’t write a post about the best donuts in Los Angeles without including Donut Friend. I must be honest, I’ve been here once before but it had been so long that all i could remember was that I thought it was a good donut. So we set out to make this our last stop. And they did not disappoint!
In walks the Polar Berry Club donut. Here’s the description from Donut Friend: Lemon glaze, fresh mixed berries, and fresh mint on top of a raised donut. I am a sucker for the mix of dessert flavors with fruit so I was all over this donut and so was Brandon (the husband). The base donut was fluffy and sweet but still had a little doughy texture to it. And I also won’t pass up a chance to have lemon flavoring so it was a great addition as the glaze. Basically what I’m saying is…this donut is made for me! The perfect way to end our self-guided donut tour.
So there you have it, my favorite places that we visited on our best donuts in Los Angeles tour. Is there one that stuck out to you most? What’s your favorite donut shop in LA? I’ll add it to my to-do list!