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Friday should be a cause for celebration. After all, it’s National Donut Day, an occasion that will have many of us seeking free offerings of the sweet treat from any number of purveyors.
But count me out of the big cream-filled (or jelly-filled) party — and not because I’m on one of my perpetual diets. Rather, it’s because I mourn the state of the American doughnut.
I’m old enough to remember a time when the doughnut reigned supreme in this country. I’m talking the era of neighborhood shops where you could count on getting a fresh O-shaped ring of goodness at almost any time of day, and pair it with a steaming-hot cup of joe, all for a sum not much greater than your daily bus or train fare. And even if you went to a chain like Dunkin’, you were still likely to be satisfied. Remember those Dunkin’ ads touting its labor-intensive “Time to make the doughnuts” approach?
But these days, you’ll generally be disappointed with the quality of the doughnuts you’ll find. Or you’ll pay dearly for the privilege of quality.
“‘I mourn the state of the American doughnut.’”
I’ve given up on keeping track of all the old-school doughnut shops in my native New York City that have closed over the years. It’s gotten to the point that the surviving ones, such as the Donut Pub in Manhattan and Peter Pan Donut in Brooklyn, have become almost retro shrines to the concept and are now doughnut destinations as a result.
Meanwhile, what’s taken over? You guessed it: There’s a Dunkin’ on practically every corner. Seriously, the city has more than 600 Dunkin’ locations — about twice as many as it does Starbucks shops — according to a 2022 report.
Read more: Free doughnuts? National Donut Day deals from Dunkin’, Krispy Kreme and more
The problem is that Dunkin’, by many accounts, no longer makes its doughnuts on-site. You’re essentially getting commissary doughnuts — not necessarily inedible, but far from the ideal. Whenever I visit Dunkin’, my immediate thought when I bite into a classic Old Fashioned is to paraphrase a line from Eugene O’Neill’s “The Iceman Cometh” and declare, “No life in the doughnut!” (In the play, the reference is to lifeless booze.)
When I reached out to the Dunkin’ folks, they didn’t directly address the question of where their doughnuts are made, but they insisted that quality has not been sacrificed over the years. “In keeping with our company’s heritage and tradition, all donuts regardless of production methods use Dunkin’s signature donut recipe and are finished by hand,” the company said in a statement.
“These days, you’ll generally be disappointed with the quality of the doughnuts you find. Or you’ll pay dearly for the privilege of quality.”
That’s not to say you can’t find good, even great, doughnuts. There are a number of gourmet emporiums in New York that will sell you all sorts of tricked-out doughnuts made with the finest of ingredients. My personal favorite is the Doughnut Plant, which offers square doughnuts, vegan doughnuts and even a savory doughnut inspired by the Italian pasta dish cacio e pepe. I haven’t tried that one, but I will say I’ve never been disappointed with anything the Doughnut Plant has served me. And I’m a fan for life of its crème brûlée doughnut, though I’m tempted to try one of its recently introduced ice-cream doughnut sandwiches on my next visit.
But here’s the rub: At Doughnut Plant and similar upscale shops, the doughnuts can easily run close to $5 apiece. I’ve even seen places that push that figure to nearly $6. That means a dozen will set you back real money (so much for surprising the gang at the office with a big ol’ box). In the process, such places violate the Passy Principle of Doughnut Dining — as in, doughnuts should be affordable! At least at my local Dunkin’, I can still get a doughnut for under $3.
How did we get to this place where it’s become so impossible to find a good doughnut at a good price? Stephen Zagor, a veteran restaurant consultant, explained to me that the process of making doughnuts requires a lot of space (think serious frying machines) and a lot of staff (think people waking up to, well, make the doughnuts). That all works against a proprietor, and doubly so in a city like New York, where commercial rents are high.
Plus, Zagor said, you can’t ignore the fact that doughnuts just aren’t as fashionable as they once were — in large part because we’ve become more conscious about eating better. “The only thing healthy about the doughnut is the hole,” Zagor joked. People will make exceptions for the gourmet stuff — hence the cacio e pepe doughnuts — but not necessarily for the everyday doughnut.
As for Dunkin’ and how it has seemingly de-emphasized the doughnut, Zagor noted the obvious: It’s become a coffee company — basically, a more affordable alternative to Starbucks. Indeed, Dunkin’ sort of made that point when it dropped the “Donuts” from its name in 2018. And my doughnut carping notwithstanding, I’ll say this much for Dunkin’: I’ll take its great-tasting, no-nonsense joe over Starbucks’ over-roasted brew any day of the week.
There may be some hope for us doughnut fanatics, though. I still love a good Krispy Kreme
DNUT,
especially the original glazed variety. The chain, which checks the affordability box, makes the doughnuts fresh at most of its locations, which helps explain the quality.
Ultimately, you may get what you pay for with doughnuts. And today’s inflationary environment makes the situation all the more challenging. “The cost of everything has changed so much,” said Jeff Magness, a vice president at the Doughnut Plant.
Magness also noted that his company’s focus on detail — such as creating individual dough recipes for every doughnut rather than using a base dough for all of them — only adds to the financial burden. Interestingly, Doughnut Plant makes its product at a central location and then distributes to its stores, but that doesn’t seem to affect the quality.
But enough of my doughnut dilemma for now. National Chocolate Ice Cream Day is June 7. Does anyone know where I can score a good cone without breaking the bank?
The Fast Foodist is a MarketWatch column that looks at restaurant menu items through a critical and business-minded lens. Send suggestions of products that you think should be critiqued to cpassy@marketwatch.com.
