Donut Wheel – Cupertino, CA

Overall Shop Rating: 4 NadasSome donut shops understand the importance of supply and demand. This shop is conveniently located in the Silicon Valley near some colleges. College students regularly need munchies and a place to study late into the night. Providing for their needs, Donut Wheel is open 24 hours serving donuts and coffee to those who must pull all-nighters to finish papers, or to those who just need a midnight snack.

Vibe of Shop: 4 ½ Nadas
Though there wasn’t much use of “donut pink” this shop had an amazing donut shop vibe. It was super comfortable like a throwback to the 70’s , complete with custom made signs, classic donut shop signs, and a large mounted deer head above the door. There was ample seating and nice booths to chill out in.

Outside Appearance: 3 Nadas

It was not located in a strip mall like most donut shops, but it was perfectly located on the corner with plenty of parking for all. This shop has been around since the 50’s so it has definitely passed the test of time.

Hours: 24 hours

Service: 3 Nadas
The Asian man working in the back wasn’t very friendly. When I couldn’t decide on what donut to taste he got a little impatient. I can understand his point of view, as he has hundreds of donuts to make though out the night. But, I do think friendliness builds a great business vibe. I guess if you’ve been open since the 50’s you can do whatever you want…Taste of Glaze Donut: 4 Nadas
Fluffy, with a good glaze, I thought the donut was a bit on the dry side.Blueberry Donut? No

Coffee: 3 Nadas
Classic donut shop coffee. I wasn’t blown away, but I didn’t throw up either.

Special: I love the deer head above the door, and I love the blunt, random signs.


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Sunshine Donuts – Waterford, CA

Overall Shop rating 3 ½ NadasOnce in a while I find myself playing music in a small town, where, for most people, the town is not usually the destination, but more of a pit stop for food or gas. Waterford is a quaint town on the 132 highway about 30 minutes east of Modesto on your way to Lake McClure or Yosemite. Through my many years of donut experience I knew there would be a donut shop in a town like this, I just wasn’t sure how well it would hold up to the standards of quality produced by competition in larger towns. I was pleasantly surprised at the taste of the glaze donut, but everything else was lacking.

Vibe of Shop: 2 ½ Nadas
This shop was a bit cramped and did not have much seating. Also, the only donut pink I saw were the boxes stacked behind the counter. If I lived in Waterford, CA I would most likely get my donuts to go.

Outside Appearance: 3 ½ Nadas
Located on the highway heading out to Yosemite, I think this location would be ideal for maximum donut sales. Also, this is the only shop in town. They have a monopoly on donut making. The small strip mall (if you can call it that)

Hours: 5am until the donuts are gone or something like that.Service: 2 ½ Nadas
I was not to happy with the service. The Asian lady behind the counter was not very friendly. I expected more hospitality from small town America.

Taste of Glaze Donut: 4 ½ Nadas
I tasted it first and I knew… So I handed a glaze donut to my buddy… all he could say was, “Oh wow!” This was a great donut. It was fluffy, moist, and the glaze was near perfect.

Blueberry Donut? Yes! And it tasted good… not as good as my hometown blueberry donut, but it was surprisingly good.

Coffee: 3 ½ Nadas
Again, I was pleasantly surprised. The taste of the coffee was nice… And the price was great!!! 75 Cents for a small cup!

Special: I’ve noticed that most Asian-owned donut shops have a shrine to Buddah and a little gold cat statue with it’s paw swinging back and forth. Honestly, I don’t know what it’s all about but I do know that this shop had the best one I have ever seen… There were donuts and coffee on the altar. I couldn’t help but chuckle. God bless them.


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Valley Bible Fellowship Christian School – Bakersfield, CA

Doing music as a profession calls me to keep strange hours and visit strange places. I’m so thankful for all the opportunities to find new and delicious donuts all over the world. On this particular morning, me and the band had driven through the night to a city called Bakersfield. We had to be up early to play at the school for their chapel, so in order to sleep more we skipped on donuts and coffee. Fortunately for us the school provides donuts and coffee for sale to the kids each morning! What a great idea! I was particularly blown away by the taste of these morsels. I wanted to visit the actual donut shop (Jesse’s Donuts) after we played but we didn’t have time to stick around. My professional opinion would put the glaze donut at a 4 ½ Nada… Near perfect. I will one day visit Jesse’s and give it a proper critique.

Thanks for reading!

Live. Love. Surf. Eat Donuts.
Dave

The Muppets' Swedish Chef Makes Donuts

The Original Ferrell’s Donuts – Scotts Valley, CA

Overall Shop rating 2 NadasI usually don’t wake up before 8:30am. Today, I had an appointment to have my car’s oil changed at 7am so I had to be up and out early. After the oil change I found myself with a couple hours before any of my friends would be awake so I thought I would go check out a new donut shop. I found out some Santa Cruz Donut Shop history.

In Santa Cruz there are 5 shops toting the name “Ferrell’s.” I found out that they were originally all owned by the same guy, or by him and his family. According to my source he sold off 2 of them or gave them to a family member who then sold them off. There are the Ferrell’s on Ocean Street and Mission Blvd. After a few years, the original owner wanted to distinguish his shops from the others so he added “The Original” in the name. Too bad for him, the “un-original” shops make better donuts.

Vibe of Shop: 4 Nadas
There was plenty of seating. It felt like a small breakfast café. I wish there was a little donut pink in the mix though.

Outside Appearance: 3 ½ Nadas
I must say that this shop definitely is cute. It is awkwardly located in a lot with auto detailers and auto shops but it sticks out nicely, throwing out a very welcoming vibe.

Hours: Weekdays 5:00am-11:30am, Weekends 6:00am-12:00pm

Service: 1 Nada
The lady seemed grouchy, she wasn’t Asian, and she smelled like smoke. I don’t think I saw her smile once the whole time I sat there and ate my donut.

Taste of Glaze Donut: 2 Nadas
Making the claim, “The Original Ferrell’s” I would expect extreme quality and superiority in the most basic things such as the glaze donut. Instead, I found the donut to be lacking moistness, fluff, and the glaze was slightly too thin.

Blueberry Donut? Yes!!!
The selection is slim and diminishes quickly as they have the donuts delivered so get there early if you want a specific donut. The Blueberry donuts didn’t look as scrumptious as the ones I have found in other Santa Cruz shops but these ones had something special: blueberry icing.Coffee: 3 Nadas
It was just average. Nothing special.

Special: Not much special about this place… although I met a guy who runs the gun shop around the corner. If you need guns, ammo, or archery stuff, it’s real close by.


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Sunny Donuts – San Jose, CA

Overall Shop rating 3 ½ NadasHappy Holidays! On this cold, blustery, rainy day, I found a warm ray of light in the dark storm clouds. It was a donut shop called Sunny Donuts and it truly brightened my day. I was glad to get out of the rain and dry my bones while enjoying a donut and sipping coffee. I felt right at home as the donut pink counter tops and tables surrounded me like blankets on my bed and an unfamiliar, yet oddly familiar at the same time, asian man hovered behind the counter slinging donuts and coffee. If there was a donut club for men, I guarantee this would be one of the more popular chapters.

Vibe of Shop: 4 Nadas
Great layout. Long shop with plenty of seating highlighted in donut pink. As this is December, there were cute Christmas decorations and a little Christmas tree. I feel like I could spend a lot of time here.





Outside Appearance: 4 ½ Nadas
The appearance of this shop is what originally drew me to this place. I drove by a few days earlier and I made a mental note that I had to come back. I was highly impressed with the location as it is the corner shop in a strip mall, and having wonderful use of donut pink outside as well as in. My most favorite part was the bright donut pink picnic table outside.Hours: Monday – Saturday 5:00am to 10:00pm, Sunday 6:00am to 3:00pm

Service: 3 Nadas
Often when I walk in to a donut shop with camera phone blazing I get suspicious looks from the owners/workers. I wish I knew what they were thinking. Like… “Is he trying to steal our donut secrets?” or “Oh no! Is he from immigration? Act normal… act normal… act like you are legal…” Ha. Anyway, these guys weren’t that friendly. I guess I should be more lenient for some one who has been up all night baking so that I can come pay 75 cents for a donut.

Taste of Glaze Donut: 3 Nadas
The glaze didn’t fully envelop the donut and it was pretty thin. The dough was fluffy, but pretty dry. This was just an average donut. You could find the same quality at 7 Eleven.

Blueberry Donut? No, but they had blueberry filled donuts…. Not the same. ☹

Coffee: 3 Nadas
I ordered a coffee and the man helping me told me it would be a couple minutes until he could fill my cup. I noticed he was making a new pot for me and I had high hopes for greatness. I was only slightly let down when I found that the coffee tasted just average.

Special: This is one of the only donut shops that I have visited that is living in the age of computers and smart phones. I saw www.sunnydonuts.com posted throughout the shop and they also offer free wifi! I while eating my donut I surfed my way to www.sunnydonuts.com and I was impressed at all the helpful information. For example, their donuts have “0 grams of trans fat per serving!” And, they used to be a Dunkin Donuts until they changed their name to Sunny Donuts in 2001. They best part of the website is “Deals” page. They offer multiple coupons, one being a free donut with purchase of a Hot Coffee!!!



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Trish's Mini Donuts - San Fransisco, CA

Dave's note: occasionally I like to have a guest critic check out a shop and share their thoughts. This blog is by Andrew Penniman, my house mate. I read through this, and though it's hard to believe that he found a donut worthy of 5 Nadas, I can't hold him to my standard of expertise. I have mostly likely tasted hundreds, if not thousands more donuts than he. Still, thank you, Andrew, for taking the time to invest in this blog. We all appreciate it. :)

Overall Shop Rating: 4 1/2 NadasAlthough I have experienced a fraction of the donut shops that Mighty Dave has conquered with incredible valor, I was pleasantly surprised to run into this unique and tasty shop while walking back from a classic San Fransisco dinner of clam chowder in a bread bowl. I could smell the fresh baked mini donuts from two piers away and I followed my nose right to Trish's Mini Donuts.

Vibe of Shop: 3 1/2 Nadas

The shop is walk up only, although there are a few tables outside if you want to sit and enjoy the fresh, hot donuts. It doesn't carry the feel of a tradition shop (no donut pink to be found anywhere) but the donuts they serve up more than cover for the street stand feel.


Outside Appearance: 4 Nadas

They did have a cool sign that was well lit at night, making it easy to spot the source of the delicious smell. The tables outside were clean and provided a good people watching location while we enjoyed the tasty treats.

Hours: Didn't see a sign, although it was around 9 PM that I got the mini mouthfulls of donuty goodness and they didn't look like they were closing down anytime soon.

Service: 4 Nadas

This place was pretty crowded and rightly so, which meant the service was brief but effective. They did go out of their way to make me a fresh batch of coffee.

Taste of glaze donut: 5 Nadas

So they only carry one donut here at Trish's Mini Donuts: The Mini Donut. It is exactly as the name implies. A small version of a regular sized donut, complete with the hole in the middle. As for the taste, it was melt-in-your-mouth, should-have-ordered-more, they-refill-the-bag-for-$2.50 delicousness. I can't recommend enough stopping by this place if you happen to be cruising Pier 39 in San Fransisco. If you have friends, they have a bucket option that could prove tempting if you were one person on a mission to consume as many mini donuts in a day as possible.

Blueberry Donut: Nope

Coffee: 3 1/2 Nadas

It tasted great and as I mentioned before they made me a fresh batch. It was some standard Starbucks drip, but it complimented the minis quite well.Special:

The cool thing about the shop is that you can watch the donuts being made and when they serve them up in the bag, you watch the final process of the cinnamon and sugar being applied right after the donuts are made.

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