Let me start by saying my co-worker is something of a donut connoisseur and her suggestion to try a new donut shop in town was the impetus for writing this article. While I may have donut connoisseur friends I do not consider myself a grand master of fried dough pastries, but I do think that I know a good donut when I try one. However, I have to warn you because I think save for ones that you buy pre-boxed at a grocery store I have loved every donut I have ever eaten. I am also easily persuaded into liking donuts that may lack in quality, but make up for that transgression in other areas. For example one of my fondest memories of eating donuts was in Peru when I wandered into a Panerderia and ordered a donut for breakfast. The donut was pretty darn good it just wasn’t amazing, but like I said any shortcomings in quality were made up by the fact that it was the size of a dinner plate. It also only cost me 50 centavos which I believe comes to about 15 American cents. So it had that going for it also.
A donut like all food is expressed in myriad ways. There are gourmet, creative, and utilitarian, versions of donuts but I find them all to be delicious.
The first donut I remember eating was a raised glazed from Colonial Donuts. I remember loving it. I remember asking for donuts every day after that, I remember my parents saying no to that request which was probably a good idea because I asked for donuts a lot and it would have been mightily unhealthy. For those who don’t know, Colonial Donuts is a small East Bay chain and in my opinion an institution of Oakland. When I was a kid I remember there being at least six locations, that number has been cut in half at least. I realize now that their donuts aren’t anything special, but hey you will always love your first donut right? I still love Colonial Donuts, I like that it looks the exact same way from when I was five…I mean exactly the same, and I like that they taste exactly the same. You have to give them points for consistency because it has been awhile since I was five.
My next favorite donut shop after Colonial was in Boulder Colorado where I went to College. It was obvious that no one in that town felt the same way that I did because the place shut down two years after I got there. However, people in Boulder may just be Donutphobes because when that shop closed it was the only donut shop in town, and after it went the way of the Dodo no one opened up another in the seven years leading up to the point that I left town. In the last year of my time there one man tried but as far as I know he was unsuccessful. I have to ask the question, What is a town without a donut shop ? You guys know what I mean. What else are you going to bring so you don’t have to pitch in gas money on the early morning drive to the ski slopes in your friends car? Or what do you bring to early morning study sessions with all your smart “acquaintances” in physch 101? I mean I must have heard this one a thousand times, “I have no idea what the medulla oblongata is but hey who wants a Maple Bar?” You know what I am talking about. But seriously Psych 101 is really easy so just go ahead and read the table of contents if your textbook and you will probably get a “B”. Anyways, these were questions that I asked myself for the better part of a decade.
Tastefully Toasted was the name of the place and it had in my opinion a genius concept. When you ordered the donuts they would make them fresh for you as you watched. And then they would guide you over to the topping trays. It was a cool rack of a series of sixth pans filled with glazes and different kinds of sprinkles and treats. Using the fresh donuts you were allowed to make our own creation. They had fruit glazes, dark, milk, and white chocolate, and good old fashioned plain glaze among many others. Then came the second toppings. Rainbow sprinkles, chocolate sprinkles chocolate chips, raspberries, strawberries and many other choices. Pretty much anything you could imagine. It was amazing! I will be truthful and tell you I am not sure if it was the actual donuts that did it for me or the freedom of getting to choose what went on it! The final word is that I am still sad that this place is gone and I still ask my friends from Boulder if they remember ever going their. Sadly the response is usually, “I have no idea what you are talking about.” I remember it though and I miss you Tastefully Toasted.
This brings us to the present and back to my friends suggestion to try Donut Dolly located in the Temescal Alley, which is so freaking cute by the way it makes me a little sick to my stomach to be there. Donut Dolly is a small shop that opens in the morning and sells till all the donuts are gone. They have one stock hollow donut which the proprietor, an extremely nice and smart women, fills with the flavor of your choice. There were four fillings on the day we went in: Naughty Cream, Banana Cream, Strawberry Marmalade, and Mexican Chocolate. Two of each please! After we selected or flavors we watched as she filled our donuts to order with her hand powered machine. They were simple machines that were clamped on to the countertop to keep them from moving. On top there was a funnel filled with the different flavors. Below the funnel there was a spigot that shout out sideways. On the other side of the funnel there was a trigger like the one you would find on a caulking gun, But this trigger didn’t dispense waterproofing adhesive, it dispensed donut fillings which, let’s face it, is way better. As I was watching her fill our donuts it struck me how intriguing seeing the process was. This place is not only popular because the donuts are delicious, which they are by the way, try the naughty cream. Donut Dolly is popular because it is really fun to watch the donuts being filled for you. As simple as the process is it pulled me in. And I watched other customers derive a certain amount of satisfaction just by watching someone complete a simple task that led up to the you receiving a finished product.
The Donut was very tasty. The pastry was simple and fluffy and coated in granulated sugar which gave it a great texture that balanced out the richness and silkiness of the fillings. The fillings were all unique and but subtly flavored not to overpower the flavor of the pastry. What I enjoyed most about it was the simplicity of the entire process, Donuts should be simple and delicious and Donut Dolly has exceeded in that.
Yeah..I Could Eat 