Linda's Donuts, Pacific Beach

This weekend’s adventure brought me to Linda’s Donuts in Pacific Beach, with Miss Kitty providing good company. Linda’s is on Grand Avenue, in a small corner strip mall with a handful of parking spaces. The décor is nothing special inside, with a few tables and chairs for customers who wish to linger. On a weekend morning, lingering is one of my favorite activities: no rush to get anywhere, no job to do, no errands to run (at least not until the stores are open).

Linda's in P.B.

 We were informed by the folks at Linda’s that the donut shop has been there for seventy years, which is amazing. Miss Kitty recalls going to Linda’s when she was growing up, hanging out with her friends in this joint. Even though Linda’s walls and floors appear rather dated, their donuts, fortunately, are fresh.

No skimping on these toppings!

Our first donut was a cinnamon crumb twist, which was flaky and fluffy, with a generous amount of crumb topping on all sides. Miss Kitty said it had loads of flavor, and called it very yummy. The first donut is always yummy, as we all know! Although Linda’s didn’t offer my favorite, the maple old-fashioned, we tried the chocolate old-fashioned, which had a crisp, crunchy outside and a good coat of chocolate icing. The balance of donut and icing was ideal, which is something some places do not achieve because they skimp on the icing.

Miss Kitty also picked out a Boston crème (which Linda’s calls a “Bavarian cream,” but the finished donut is properly called a “Boston crème”), and twisted my arm to accept half. I’m not usually a fan of filled donuts, but this one was spot-on because it didn’t go overboard with the cream filling (which is properly called “Bavarian cream”—and I tell you this so you don’t get confused); my mouth was not overwhelmed by the gooey custard. 

Boston crème or Bavarian cream?

I was most pleased with the airy maple cruller, which is something I have been craving for a while now. Most places offer just plain or chocolate crullers, but Linda’s had plain crullers as well as crullers with chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, or maple icing. That gave Linda’s a few extra points in my rating of their variety. Plenty of cake donuts were on hand as well, although the one we shared—vanilla icing with peanuts on top—was nothing special.

Linda’s Donuts received the exact same scores from Miss Kitty and myself: above average for taste and variety, but just average for innovation and customer experience. The Donut Meter score was 76.0, which is just so-so even though the donuts were more than decent. The place could use a good scrub and perhaps a remodeled interior, but judging by their steady stream of business, the grubby look hasn’t kept the customers away. After all, who comes into a donut shop to admire the art on the walls?

Updated Donut Meter Scores:

1. Peterson’s Donut Corner, Escondido — 94.0

2. Donut Haven, Hillcrest — 82.7

3. Super Donuts, Carlsbad — 82.0

4. Danny’s Donuts, Vista — 81.0

5. OB Donuts — 78.7

6. K-Donuts, Oceanside — 78.0

6. Heavenly Donuts, Del Cerro —78.0

6. Plaza Donuts, National City — 78.0

9. Donut Touch, Mira Mesa — 76.8

10. Linda’s Donuts, Pacific Beach — 76.0

11. Foster’s Family Donuts, San Marcos — 68.0

12. Pam’s Donuts and Chinese Food, Temecula — 66.0

13. Leucadia Donut Shoppe — 62.5