Refreshingly Unhip: The Best Glazed Doughnuts in SF

While there’s no denying the appeal of the hipster doughnut—maple, apple, and bacon really do taste great together—sometimes you need a break from doughnuts that make you think. (Not to mention the steep price tags and long lines.)

A longtime fan of old-school doughnut shops, I picked the five of the city's best and bought a glazed from each (glazed being the true benchmark of a doughnut shop). Here are the taste test results.

1. Happy Donuts, 3801 24th St. (Noe Valley)
Appearance: Big and puffy, with a crackly glaze.
Sweetness level: Pretty darn sweet, but not achingly so.
Melt-in-mouth factor: Excellent. It’s light, airy, and super fresh.

2. Allstar Donuts, 2095 Chestnut St. (Marina)
Appearance: Medium-puffy with a nice sheen.
Sweetness level: Off the charts.
Melt-in-mouth factor: Fair. This one was a bit cakey.

3. Bob’s Donut and Pastry Shop, 1621 Polk St. (TenderNob)
Appearance: Charmingly misshapen.
Sweetness level: Medium. Detected a bit of saltiness, too.
Melt-in-mouth factor: Good. It’s the densest one of the bunch, but still maintains lightness.

4. The Jelly Donut, 3198 24th St. (Mission)
Appearance: On the smaller side, not as much puff.
Sweetness level: Just right.
Melt-in-mouth factor: Good. Slightly chewy, with a delicious fluffiness.

5. Eagle Donuts, 3303 Mission St. (Bernal Heights)
Appearance: Puffy and well-glazed.
Sweetness level: Almost too sweet. Almost.
Melt-in-mouth factor: Fair. Sadly, it’s a bit on the dry side.

Overall winner:
Happy Donuts. Out of all of the contestants, it has all the hallmarks of a great glazed: It’s puffy, fresh, not toothache-sweet, and literally dissolves in your mouth.

Runner-up:
The Jelly Donut. A solid contender that’s light and airy. Plus, they give you free doughnut holes.

What’s your favorite doughnut shop? Let us know in the comments.

I like eating doughnuts with my brewed coffee.
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By Anonymous (not verified) on January 11, 2012

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By Lydia Fourmy (not verified) on December 28, 2011

The Jelly Donut holds a very dear place in my heart. I am pretty sure that, for the price, they are the best donuts in the City. I'm not 100% sure that they're the best donuts EVER, but I do think they have possibly.gps navigator

By Derlierpro ssy (not verified) on December 13, 2011

Fav is Bob's donut shop one as not too sweet and I like the idea of a little salt. Also maple and bacon. Pics made me drool!

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By Ricardo Roizner (not verified) on October 05, 2011

I used to work for BofA at Van Ness and Market. I forget the name of the donut shop on the corner there -- had driven by there a zillion times (of course) but never really expected to be shopping there (okay, call me a snob, whatever). But, once I worked nearby, I found myself among that (very mixed!) clientele. NICE people, work hard -- and i thought the donuts were good. I'm not a gourmet, but I love doughnuts and know when i don't like 'em (Krispy Cremes, by the way, are NOT a doughnut they are some sort of disgusting wet sugar abortion...)

By Anonymous (not verified) on August 30, 2011

Donut World -- yes indeedy! All those UCSF students at all hours keep 'em fresh!

By Anonymous (not verified) on August 30, 2011

I know some of you may be thinking, "But what about the apple fritter? That one's my favorite!" but I would advise you not to lose focus. Order the plain glazed and prepare yourself for the perfectly crisp exterior and deep, doughy interior which sometimes reminds me of the joy of falling into a soft, welcoming bed at the end of a long, tiring day.

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By jijida (not verified) on August 01, 2011

Dream Fluff Donuts on Ashby & College Aves in Berkeley. It's been there for at least 40 years, for a reason!

By Berkeley native (not verified) on July 18, 2011

Love the sound of the maple, apple and bacon - I make donuts so may experiment with this!!Enjoyed reading, thanks.
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By Sara (not verified) on June 14, 2011

Georgies on San Bruno Ave in SF. Yumm

By Anonymous (not verified) on May 20, 2011

Krispy Kreme,and I know people are going to say it's too corporate, but it's big for a reason! It started out just like the little guys, but melt in the mouth factor is high! You ALMOST can't go wrong with a donut. Good article.

By Anonymous (not verified) on May 20, 2011

Bob's all the way! No competition. Just make sure you go post 10 pm :)

By Allison (not verified) on May 16, 2011

Gateway Croissants, Golden Gate Ave at Larkin.

Yeah, it's in an "interesting" part of town, but it's also 24/7, and all of their pastries are to die for. Treat yerself the next time you have a jones for donuts when the opera's over. The pleasant Vietnamese ladies who run the place will thank you.

By Dan (not verified) on April 20, 2011

DONUT WORLD is the best! Mmm....apple fritter!

By Anonymous (not verified) on April 05, 2011

happy donuts on third street is my all time favorite. just remodeled. you can get burgers, sandwiches, amazing fried chicken and yummy donuts. i always go there after work and get some fresh ones out the kitchen.

By anonymous (not verified) on March 24, 2011

I think All Star on Chestnut is the best!! Henry, David and family are the lovliest people. The coffee is delish!!!

By Anonymous (not verified) on January 23, 2011

Seconding the Donut World vote. 24/7 delicious donuts right in my neighborhood. Too tempting.

By Anonymous (not verified) on January 20, 2011

I love Jelly Donut. It smells like delicious morning in there.

By rikki (not verified) on January 18, 2011

Hmmm... Looks like our standards are entirely different, since cakey in my book is better than a piece of bread with sugar on top.

By Anonymous (not verified) on January 18, 2011

Donut World, Inner Sunset. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. C'mon!

By Sweet Kiera (not verified) on January 18, 2011

I have to put a vote in for Eagle Donuts on Mission. Been going there with my kids on Sunday for 6 years and it is a true neighborhood donut shop.

Part of being such a donut shop involves the variety of customers and the treatment of the staff. The two women that work that shop know my kids names and nearly everyone else who comes through the door. They're Chinese, and even make a solid effort to speak Spanish to the Latino customers!

A great start to our Sundays and part of our neighborhood.

By Kirk (not verified) on January 18, 2011

If you get the timing of your visit right, Bob's maple glazed is still the best donut in town!

By Robert (not verified) on January 18, 2011

So The Jelly Donut is actually at So Van Ness, not Mission. (There's another donut place at Mission that mixes donuts w/Chinese food - nooo, bad combo!)
But the cool thing about the Jelly Donut is that they always put a bunch o' munchkin sized donuts in your bag, too, so you get something like 8 donuts for the price of 1!

By Maureen Futtner (not verified) on January 18, 2011

Happy Donuts is our favorite too! The best thing in there is the apple fritter. It's perfect!

By naomic (not verified) on January 18, 2011

Rudy's - Castro Valley

By Anonymous (not verified) on January 18, 2011