Krispy Kreme Doughnuts – Mountain View, CA

On the eve of July 4, 2009 I ventured to the Shoreline Amphitheater to watch my good friend, Jimmie Adams iii, play drums in the 4th of July celebration put on by Bethel Church of San Jose. It was a very impressive production with hundreds of people involved in singing, dancing and playing instruments in front of a crowd of about 7,000. My favourite part, of course, was the 10 minute drum solo Jimmie compiled. That guy is a maniac. Please go see him live if you have a chance. Anyway, this blog is about donuts, not Jimmie Adams so let’s get to it.

After the show, as I was driving back home to Santa Cruz with my girlfriend a familiar glowing sign caught my eye. I remember a few years ago, pre-Atkins diet craze, there was a donut craze where Krispy Kreme’s were popping up like Starbucks Shops. Atkin’s hit, and the Krispy Kreme’s began to go out of business. I didn’t realize that there were any still around so I had to stop and re-live the experience I had about 10 years ago when I first tasted a Krispy Kreme Donut.
*Side note: Krispy Kreme has been around since 1937. Sounds pretty stable.

Vibe of Shop: 4 ½ Nadas
The shop was very clean and sterile, with corporate written all over it. The redeeming factor is that you can watch the donuts assembly line, the whole process of “the life of a donut” from dough to mouth.

Outside Appearance: 3 Nadas
Just average and slightly corporate.

Service: 5 Nadas
The people were very friendly and helpful. When I was taking pictures they would wait to walk in front of the shot. I was pleasantly surprised with their consideration. They weren’t Asian, I expected this of corporate donuts, though.

Taste of Glaze Donut: 1 ½ Nada
I’ve had a 5 plus Nadas glaze here before, but that is when the donut is warm and fresh off the assembly line. This glaze donut was old and cold. It wasn’t very moist or soft. I was disappointed. Their sour crème glaze donut off the line was fresh, warm, and delicious on this night. I think the quality of taste will change depending on what is fresh. In other donut shops, I believe that the quality of the glaze donut will last longer than a few minutes…

Blueberry Donut?
Sort of... They had regular donuts with blueberry frosting and blueberries in it, and it was delicious!

Coffee: ½ Nada
Jenn Allen put it best after tasting it. The coffee tasted like “burnt dish water.”

Special: On this festive night they had patriotic donuts with Red, White, and Blue sprinkles. Also, they had a delicious cinnamon apple filled donut that sent me over the edge. I ate too many. Ha.