As Doughnut Time like to remind us: It’s always a good time! Is there really anything more gratifying than savouring something so pillowy and sugary in one sitting? I didn’t think so. Doughnuts are to be devoured guilt-free; a moment for salivation and sticky fingers.
Ever wondered where you can get your endless sugar-fix of flavours, fillings and toppings? Do-nut worry (Sorry! Couldn’t resist), here’s my top 10 places in London to get your hands on the best. Some of these are just too good to miss out on. While I update this post every year, prices may have varied since it was written.
1. Rinkoff’s Bakery, 224 Jubilee Street, E1 3BS
Spend £3.00
A family-run business since 1911, Rinkoff’s famous
2. Doughnut Time, Various locations
Spend £4.50
Hand-dipped into colourful glossy icing and sprinkled with everything from 100s and 1000s to pic ‘n’ mix, these are the most over the top sugar-rush to get your hands on (and teeth into!). The Aussie brand has quickly taken London by storm with its tongue-in-cheek menu, offering up the most decadent flavours alongside vegan and gluten-free options too.
3. Dunn’s Bakery, 6 The Broadway, N8 9SN
Spend Prices vary but start from as little as £0.95
This bakery has a special place in my heart, having grown up in Crouch End. Established in 1820, it’s been in the family for almost two centuries and has survived over generations. They source fresh, local ingredients wherever possible and nearly all the flour they use comes from Wrights Flour Mills, the only remaining flour mill in London. The glass counters are adorned with so many delicately iced doughnuts, you won’t leave here with just one! Choose from jam doughnuts to lemon ones, chocolate fudge or classic ring and sprinkle creations.
4. CrossTown, Various locations
Spend Minis £1.95, Regular £3.95
With stores popping up all over London since 2014, including their very own food truck in Spitalfields, CrossTown uses a unique yeast-raised sourdough to make their doughnuts by hand. The banana cream sea salt caramel is to die for – think banoffee pie in a mouthful, although they’ve just launched a strawberry & English sparkling rosé option with a homemade crumble topping. Hello, summer.
5. St John’s Bread & Wine, 94-96 Commercial Street, E1 6LZ
Spend £2.80
Their Spitalfields restaurant has a tiny bakery window where you can find the fluffiest, most generously filled cream doughnuts ever. Butterscotch and vanilla are the absolute pinnacle of a classic filled doughnut and aren’t too sickly sweet in any way. Swing by first thing in the morning when they’re freshly baked and savour one for your breakfast.
6. Dum Dum Donutterie, Unit 31, Box Park, E1 6GY
Spend Minis £1.75, Regulars £2.75
Dum Dum’s Donnuterie pride themselves on their all natural ingredients list and technique of baking rather than frying. With end-to-end platters of all different flavours, it’s like being a kid in a candy store trying to decide which one to taste. Once they sell out, that’s it for the day so go early for the most popular flavours.
7. Mamasons, 91 Kentish Town Road, NW1 8NY
Spend £3.50
Primarily an amazing ice cream parlour, Mamasons added the infamous ube (pronounced oo-beh) doughnut to their menu last year due to infinite demand. Made from exotic purple yam, a staple in the Philippines, it tastes like an amalgamation of sweet vanilla and nutty pistachio. The smooth velvety filling has a sublime deep purple colour which makes for a highly photogenic doughnut and a tasty one at that!
8. Karma Bread, 13 South End Road, NW3 2PT
Spend £3.00
They might do a fantastic doughnut, however I couldn’t help but eye up the cinnamon rolls and challah bread too in this little family-run bakery next to Hampstead Heath. Selling the most beautifully handcrafted breads and treats, all made lovingly with natural ingredients, their doughnuts are crammed with flavours including raspberry jam, banana cream and apple pie. Take a walk on the heath, then take a seat and watch the world go by.
9. Bread Ahead Bakery, Various locations
Spend £3.00
Justin Gellatly’s beautifully crafted recipe has certainly given these doughnuts a reason to be famous. At Bread Ahead, which now has a few London locations (the original being at Borough Market), these doughnuts are filled to the brim with generous portions of vanilla custard, rich chocolate, sweet honeycomb and homemade jams. If you like a bigger filling to dough ratio, this is the place to get your fix!
10. Longboys, 119 Lower Stable Street, Coal Drops Yard, N1C 4DR
Spend £3.90 each
Think of a dessert. Then think of it in doughnut form. Longboys are serious about long doughnuts and patisserie with surprising flavour twists. They also have a handful of vegan options like Coconut Chocolate and Peanut Butter Jelly, although the options change every month based on seasonality. Everything’s baked fresh daily, made with a light brioche base and is available for delivery online or pick up in either their Wembley or King’s Cross locations. Plus the very fact that the duo behind it are the former Group Pastry Chef for the Hakkasan group, Graham Hornigold, and Heather Kaniuk, former Executive Pastry Chef at the Mandarin Oriental and Shangri-La at the Shard is a good a reason as any to try them out.
