One afternoon my wife Tamara and I were watching the Food Network on TV and we came across an episode of Bobby Flay’s “Throwdown“, where the chef will challenge randomly selected cooks/bakers. Bobby will take on an imitation of the challenger’s signature dish, and both dishes are tested by judges whose tongues will decide the victor of the day.
This afternoon’s episode was a donut episode, with Bobby taking on a donut-maker in New York City.
Naturally, this sparked a debate between Tamara and I—on whose donuts in our area reign supreme: those from the bakery of Shopper’s Food Warehouse (SFW), Krispy Kreme (KK) or Dunkin’ Donuts (DD).
It’s no secret that Tamara has a sweet tooth—I’d be inclined to say she has a full mouth of sweet teeth rather than just the one! I grew up with Dunkin’ Donuts—I have vivid memories of their Munchkins in the early mornings before school, or a yummy powdered Bavarian Kreme—whatever the mood called for!
Tamara maintained that SFW had the best donuts, with me picking DD. So, we decided to collect specimens and do a taste test to determine whose donuts reign supreme!
We included Krispy Kreme because, well, you can’t have a Donut War and just ignore KK. It’d be like Star Wars without Darth Vader.
The contestants were a glazed, a crème-filled, and a double-chocolate donut from each store. The Mrs. and I agreed on criteria:
Presentation, texture/consistency, taste, and size. Naturally we also factored in another variable—cost.
However—this Donut War was more about the taste, so we agreed to cleanse our palates (and minds) of any bias and sample with equal discrimination.
Battle 1: The Field of Chocolate Donut with Glaze
We sank our teeth into SFW’s donut, followed by KK and then DD. To our surprise, KK stole the show. The SFW and DD samples were too dry while KK was just right—good consistency and a light, fluffy texture filled with the warm comfort of CHOCOLATE!
Battle 2: Regular Glaze Attack
Next up were the samples of regular glazed donuts…Once again, KK took top billing with the right touch of glaze vs. donut and leaving me with a darn-it-why-didn’t-i-get-more-of-this-stuff feeling. To my chagrin, my lifelong satisfaction of a DD donut was quietly shelved without any fanfare. For Tamara, SFW topped out because of its size—they make their Colossal Glazed Donut (enough said!) in a way that it towers over the other donuts on our plate. Think of a 777 jumbo jet pulling up next to a VW Beetle.
Battle 3: Crème de la Crème!
Because I love crème-filled donuts, I added this element to the War. SFW topped out with their Bavarian Kreme which had just the perfect balance of harmony between the crème itself and the donut. The donut itself had plenty of powdered sugar which offset the moist taste of the crème—try putting a spoonful of powdered sugar in your mouth, and you’ll appreciate a moist touch to help it go down! DD saved some face by beating KK out for 2nd place in this battle. While KK may have won the first two battles, they need to work on their fillings. The glaze, frosting and crème didn’t really mix too well for me—too many flavors overwhelmed it. On top of that, KK doesn’t carry a Bavarian Kreme, so I had to settle for a chocolate frosted, custard-filled sample.
Overall, Tamara and I were blindsided by the entry of KK into our donut-debate. We both suffered the brutal reality of our memories in our respective donuterias being slashed by KK! However, Tamara noted that if KK does it the SFW way, they’ll really up their business by increasing the size of their donut. Free advice for the head honchos at KK—don’t forget us when it’s time to do bonus payouts!
Cost-wise, SFW goes at 98 cents, with KK at 89 and we forgot to check DD, so we leave it to you to be your own judge.
After all, taste is what counts, right?
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Wow, what a bon appetite paradise. A great date idea, too! I don’t eat donuts anymore, but like you, I grew up with Winchell’s and a mom/pop donut store near where I lived, and it rocked. Now,I have to watch what I eat. :-(
Before I read the results of your taste test I knew that KK would win out for the most part just because of their donuts and glaze. Yet I knew that KK wouldn’t do as well with their creme-filled donuts. Funny how your results confirmed my hunches.
I do love DD’s munchies, but I can’t stand their donuts. In a perfect world we’d have DD’s munchies, KK’s glazed donuts, and SFW’s creme-filled donuts in one store.
I actually prefer Dunkin’ Donuts. The only time I’ll eat KK is when I can get a piping, steaming, gooey hot glazed donut just off the belt.
Aaron, methinks we need a trip to Raleigh soon. ;-)
I’m disappointed you guys didn’t include Winchell’s. I guess ya all could be called Eastern Snobs-LOLOL
Winchell’s is based in California (not know if its anywhere else) and its a franchise all over the state. Their Buttermilk donuts are to die for and I have yet to taste anything like theirs. KK, DD and others don’t do it justice and don’t always have it.
They use the same buttermilk donut, glazed, chocolated, flavored icing with trimmings and creme filled. Me thinks ya all missed a good one.
Next time you go to California, check it out! :-D
and… where are the photos?!? Oh come on!!! ;-)
I love this! Thanks for sharing! Now I am craving for good ol’ raspberry filled glazed! :-P
I’m a Krispy Kreme gal! DD never really did it for me. I swore off SFW donuts after seeing kids opening the doors, pulling out the donut trays, and rubbing the donuts with their saliva-ridden hands. I kid you not.
Oscar, I’m wondering if you and your better half ever sampled Fractured Prune donuts? They have several locations in Maryland and Virginia, and one in DC at 2153 P St NW. Website is http://www.fracturedprune.com.
Personally, I like their Sands donuts. The other flavors? Eh, not so much.
Donut King, just off Telegraph avenue in Berkeley, near the Bank of America (Durant St?), is my choice. If you made the tip jar a bit heavier before your order / purchase, they will cook you a donut on the spot. Any donut. I went berserk for a “just-out-of-the-fryer” vanilla glazed donut. That donut was so good and fresh, it was practically in its creation stage when I chowed it down. Of course, it was cooled down a bit beforehand.
I think 7-11 donuts rock. Nothing like the taste of crusty, stale, 2-days-out-more-than-they-should sweet confections washed down with weak and lukewarm coffee. Ah, the life!
This was fun reading, Oscar… I always enjoy food-related posts.
Did you know that there actually is a recipe for making Krispy Kreme donut bread pudding? This guy named Bill Nicholson apparently came up with the recipe, and he was actually on the Food Network with Paula Deen, showing everyone how to make it. You can find the recipe here:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/foo.....13,00.html
I have never made it myself, and to be honest I am not really crazy about fruit cocktail, so the idea of dumping two cans of it in my bread pudding isn’t that appealing. But a friend of mine says it’s actually quite good, so I might give it a try… or maybe just pick up a dozen donuts and use my own bread pudding recipe, with a few modifications.
Truthfully, I’m not a big donut fan. I go more for things like turnovers, elephant ears, muffins, bagels, and that sort of thing. My big guilty pleasure are cream horns - those puff pastry long thingies filled with sweet whipped cream and covered with powdered sugar. Now those are to die for!
I think 7-11 donuts rock. Nothing like the taste of crusty, stale, 2-days-out-more-than-they-should sweet confections washed down with weak and lukewarm coffee.