So many kinds of donuts, so little time

In my first LA Unique Travel article, I made a brief mention of Randy's Donuts shop in Inglewood. It's known first as an icon of roadside architecture and second for offering a popular, if traditional, selection of donuts. I didn't expect to be writing about donuts in Los Angeles again so soon.

Be that as it may, one of the biggest food service stories of 2009 in California is the controversy over the "themed" Psycho Donuts store in Campbell, south of San Jose. The story has been covered at Examiner.com here and here. Psycho's bakers have shown a flair for the anti-conventional, while its owners have demonstrated a knack for sustaining a stream of publicity.

The visitor to the L.A. area won't find an outrageously themed donut shop like Psycho Donuts. Of course, there are other ways to drum up a donut shop's business, such as theming the shop's building. 

Randy's Donuts, 805 W. Manchester Blvd., Inglewood, (310) 645-4707
Donut Hole, 15300 Amar Rd., La Puente, (626) 968-2912

Another way is to offer a consistently tasty menu that more or less spans the traditional American donut spectrum, perhaps with an item or two that are unique. There are several shops in L.A. that fill the bill in this way. Donut Man in Glendora is famous for offering donuts with in-season strawberries or peaches. Frittelli's in Beverly Hills takes the "gourmet" route to donut heaven.

Stan's Donuts, 10948 Weyburn Ave., Los Angeles, (310) 208-8660; 658 N. Moorpark Rd., Thousand Oaks, (805) 381-1818 (two locations)
SK's Donuts and Croissant, 5850 W. 3rd St., Los Angeles, (323) 935-2409
Primo's Donuts, 2918 Sawtelle Blvd., Los Angeles, (310) 478-6930
Bob's Coffee and Doughnuts, 6333 W. 3rd St., Suite 450, Los Angeles, (323) 933-8929
Donut Man, 915 E. Alosta Ave. (Route 66), Glendora, (626) 335-9111
Fritelli's Doughnuts and Coffee, 350 N. Canon Dr. #6, Beverly Hills, (310) 276-1408

A third way for a donut item to become well known is for a restaurant to offer it on the dessert menu. There are quite a few L.A. area restaurants that offer variants of the basic donut--shape, recipe, and fillings--as well as donut-like items that are unique to various national and ethnic cuisines.

As an aside: Please add to your web browser's bookmarks this amazing list of the varieties of donuts and donut-like pastries invented over the years by the world's cooks.

OK, since you've read this far, I can assume that you've got an appetite for exotic donuts that's whetted and ready to be satisfied.

At Grace Restaurant in L.A., on Wednesday nights only you can find its "Doughnut Shoppe" selections, which change seasonally and are available to go (with a minimum order).

Grace Restaurant, 7360 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, (323) 934-4400

The following L.A. area restaurants (with web site addresses, street addresses, and phone numbers) are known to offer a unique donut or donut-like item on the menu. You might want to call ahead just to make sure the item you crave is still being offered.

Churro with caramel dip:
Asia de Cuba, 8440 W. Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, (323) 848-6000

Churro and cajeta:
Gabbi's Mexican Kitchen, 141 S. Glassell, Orange, (714) 633-3038

Churro and champurrado:
Taco Rosa, 2632 San Miguel Rd., Newport Beach, (949) 720-0980
Senor Fred, 13730 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks, (818) 789-3200
Cobras y Matadors, 4655 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, (323) 669-3922; 7615 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, (323) 932-6178 (two locations)
Three Drunken Goats, 2256 Honolulu Ave., Montrose, (818) 249-9950

Curry donut:
Yamazaki Bakery, 123 Japanese Village Plaza Mall, Los Angeles, (213) 624-2773

Maple-glazed bacon donut:
Nickel Diner, 524 S. Main St., Los Angeles, (213) 623-8301

Belgian Abbey Ale donut with toffee sauce:
Blair's Restaurant, 2903 Rowena Ave., Los Angeles, (323) 660-1882

Turkish donut:
Susan Fenigere's Street, 742 N. Highland (at Melrose Ave.), Los Angeles, (323) 203-0500

Green tea cake donut:
Gyenari, 9540 Washington Blvd., Culver City, (310) 838-3131

Lomit el addi:
Cafe Dahab, 1638-1640 Sawtelle Blvd., Los Angeles, (310) 444-0969

Bomboloni:
Osteria Mozza, 6602 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, (323) 297-0100
Drago Centro, 525 S. Flower St., Suite 120, Los Angeles, (213) 228-8998

Bola de Berlin:
Nata Pastries, 13317 Ventura Blvd., #D, Sherman Oaks, (818) 788-8050

Loukoumades (Greek):
Papa Cristos C&K Importing, 2771 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, (323) 737-2970

Malassada (Portuguese):
Nata Pastries, 13317 Ventura Blvd., #D, Sherman Oaks, (818) 788-8050

Malasada (Hawaiian):
Back Home in Lahaina, 519 E. Carson St., Carson, (310) 835-4014
King's Hawaiian Bakery and Restaurant, 2808 Sepulveda Blvd., Torrance, (310) 530-0050
Hong Kong Bakery and Deli, 21720 S. Vermont Ave., Suite 120, Torrance, (310) 328-8353
L&L Hawaiian Barbecue, 18657 Devonshire St., Northridge, (818) 363-8840

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