Who doesn’t love donuts?  But who can resist donuts + local, organic, San Francisco, Alice Waters inspired flavors?   Now we’re just getting ridiculous.   And worse yet, they’ve opened up a block from my apartment, and have become a daily challenge not to wander a block down 24th Street and see what the flavors of the day are. 

Taking over the old La Torta Gorda stand, Pastry Chef Sara Spearin has created something special.  Serving directly onto the sidewalk her donut shop harkens to street food (something sorely missing in the area) and offers a dynamic and daily choice of flavors.  Each day they serve 2-4 flavors, and when they are out, they are out.  There are a few sparse chairs on the sidewalk, but besides that, this is a to go-operation only. 

 

  

 

Today, there were Carmel Glazed (good, but too messy), Chocolate Spiced, and so far my favorite flavor, Banana De Leche stuffed donuts.  It had slices of banana and carmel inside, which while in the fryer, meld together to form a gooey, but not too sweet filling that showcases the fresh ingredients. On other days I’ve tried the Apple Maple Bacon (awesome, but needs more bacon on top,) and the Lemon Pistachio.

Everything has been good, but I think the stuffed donuts are my favorites so far – besides being easier to eat, they allow for more interesting flavors.  Last week, I tried a Nectarine and Ginger stuffed donut which was also good but could have been more aggressive with the ginger. The one downside of the stuffed donuts is that they are less exciting to look at – the Lemon Pistachio donuts, which weren’t being served today, are a visually striking with a band of pistachios adhered to the glaze along the upper crust.  The pistachios also provided a great textural contrast to an otherwise soft donut. 

 

   

 

The coffee is also exceptional.  Picking up on what seems to be the new San Francisco standard, they make small french press pots of Stumptown Coffee, and then serve out individual cups from carafes. 

So sure, $2-3 for a donut is a lot – but like anything else, you get what you pay for.  I’ll pay the extra dollar for a nectarine and ginger stuffed donut any day.  Maybe twice in the same day, depending how tight my belt is feeling.

Tags: coffee, donuts, dynamo

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 28th, 2008 at 7:27 pm and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.