The Donut Bar, located at 631 B St., has garnered a lot of attention. It was ranked in USA Today as being one of the top 10 donut shops in the country and it was also a winner in San Diego Magazine for best-restaurant award.
In addition to that, Donut Bar has been featured on shows such as “The View” and “The Doctors.” Then there have been people teasing me by posting pictures and check-ins from the place on my Facebook news feed. I love donuts and had to go there. And after about a year of being tempted, I finally found my dream home.
What’s all the hype?
When you walk in the tiny, narrow place you are greeted by huge, thick donuts and some smaller yummy-looking donuts in all different colors and flavors, and a smiling staff. My first try was their birthday cake donut which is frosted on top with multi-colored sprinkles and a surprise Oreo cookie inside the middle. Later, I ate a strawberry cream cheese, which I loved even more and is probably my favorite so far.
They have more than a hundred different kinds of donuts, such as chocolate Twix, maple bacon, Nutella, red velvet, peaches and cream, and even green tea.
About 25-30 different kinds of donuts are featured each day that are all decorated nicely and look good. Every day, donuts vary by the day of the week and special themed donuts are available on Fridays.
There’s a constant flow of customers coming all morning long to get one of the many uniquely-crafted treats. According to the owners, about 3,000 items a day are sold. They also have help-it-yourself coffee and water which is nice and convenient.
If there is a down side to the Donut Bar, it would be that they don’t have a regular jelly donut, which before finding this shop, was my favorite kind of donut. When I asked for one, a cashier and one of the co-owners both referred me to a strawberry tart donut with fresh fruit and whip cream, so I think I can happily settle for that as they look huge and really yummy.
The other disappointing factor is the shop usually closes before 11:30 a.m. Their closing time is based on when they run out of donuts. So even though they are cranking out a few thousand donuts a day, they still run out due to their popularity.
Although it is disappointing that they shut down early, that may help limit one’s sugar intake and give them the rest of the day to work it off. The price may help limit your calorie intake, too, as their donuts sell for $2, $3, and $4. A dozen donuts cost me $31, plus one free.
It’s expensive to treat your office to a box of these, but they are really, really good and they are really, really big and they make people look in amazement at them when they see them for the first time, so it scores a lot of points. Tasting them is the best part.
