Without donuts being part of the plan when I travel, they seem to show up with some regularity. While Krispy Kreme and Dunkin’ Donuts seek to provide a consistent experience across geographies, there are also very unique experiences available in the very same category. The notion of donut is rather broad and is reinterpreted in some engaging ways. There’s something about the pure pleasure of a donut that also invites a fun approach to all aspects of the experience: the flavors, the environment, the presentation, the messaging.
Here’s a few I’ve documented. Please leave recommendations for other donuts-shops-to-experience in the comments.
Randy’s Donuts, LA (Amazing site, donuts are pretty good)
Voodoo Doughnuts, Portland, OR: Rex Diablo and Ol’ Dirty Bastard (fun to choose, less to eat)
Murciano in The Marais, Paris (the best thing I’ve ever eaten)
Fractured Prune, Washington D.C. (didn’t get to try it)
Roti Donat, Bali, Indonesia (definitely not good)
Mister Donut sign and exterior, Taipei, Taiwan
Mister Donut Simpsons promotion, Kyoto, Japan (I don’t remember what I got but it was good!)
cap’n crunch doughnut, originally uploaded by mokin.
Still life with Bacon Maple Bar and Voodoo Doughnut, originally uploaded by HPZ.
voodoo doughnut, originally uploaded by Poisson.
blood-filled voodoo doughnut, originally uploaded by mokin.
I’ve got to get to Portland soon and check this place out. Cool menu, interesting attitude.
Grape Ape
(raised doughnut with vanilla frosting and grape powder)Dirt
(raised doughnut covered with vanilla glaze and oreo cookies)Arnold Palmer
(cake doughnut covered with lemon and tea powder)San Dimas
(cake with three types of chocolate on top)Butter Fingering
(Devils food, vanilla, and crushed Butterfinger)Neapolitan
(chocoalte doughnut with vanilla frosting and strawberry quick powder)Triple Chocolate Penetration
(chocolate doughnut, chocolate glaze, and cocoa-puffs)Voodoo Doughnut
(voodoo doll doughnut)Dirty Snowball
(chocolate cake doughnut covered with pink marshmallow glaze and surprise filling)Apple Fritter
(apple/glaze/doughnut as big as your head)The Memphis Mafia
(chocolate chips/banana/ peanutbutter/glaze big!)Portland Creme
(raised doughnut filled with creme and covered in chocolate with two eyes)Cock-n-Balls
(Bachlorette party favorite, tripple cream filled, with your favorite saying written right on it. Comes in its own pink box. $4.95 Order ahead as supplies can be limited.)Nyquil Glazed and pepto-bismol (currently on hold)
No Name
A doughnut so good we couldn’t come up with a better name. It has chocolate rice crispys and peanutbutter on it.VEGAN
(thats right, vegan doughnuts! assorted flavors, come in and eat many)
Strange sign seen near the UXWeek hotel in D.C. Fractured Prune is a strange name for a donut shop (I mean shoppe). Their website explains how they named the chain after Prunella Shriek, a female athlete (sometimes injured) and landowner from the 1800s. But more interesting (as if the story of Prunella isn’t jaw-dropping in and of itself) is that “Here’s the fun part — you pick the toppings, glazes and sugars for your donuts!” from choices such as
* GLAZES
honey, banana, chocolate, maple, strawberry, raspberry, peanut butter, mocha, mint, cherry, lemon, orange, blueberry, mixed berry, caramel
* TOPPINGS
rainbow sprinkles, chocolate sprinkles, coconut, peanuts, Oreo cookie, mini chocolate chips, graham cracker crumbs
* SUGARS
powdered, granulated, cinnamon/sugar
and resulting in a wild array of interesting combinations:
Peppermint Patty
Mint / Mini Chips
Blueberry Hill
Blueberry / Powdered Sugar
Trail Mix
Banana / Nuts / Coconut / Jimmies
Who knew? I just saw a strange logo and an old deli being torn down. Looks like an interesting version of a familiar product, with customization as an easy but powerful tool for reinvention. I would bet it’s a pretty fun experience, too.
Tracing the roots of a Canadian icon
Wendy’s International Inc. is expected to spin -off a 15-per-cent stake in Tim Hortons this week, and curious observers are watching to see how many of the shares will land in Canadian hands.
The stock will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange, but the vast bulk of Tim Hortons’s coffee sales still occur north of the border, where the chain has strong roots.
…
Tim Hortons now has about 2,597 outlets north of the border and 288 in the U.S.Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan cheered when they learned that Tim Hortons is opening an outlet in Kandahar.
Hmm. Eating Timbits in Afghanistan? A new book idea!