Donutopia, Poway

Out in the boondocks of the “City in the Country” is a nice little donut shop tucked away in the corner of a strip mall at the end of Twin Peaks Road. As you can see from the picture here, the sign proclaims that the establishment’s name is “Fresh Donuts & Coffee,” but it is actually called Donutopia. When I was in high school (go Titans!), we just called it “that donut place down on Twin Peaks.” Whatever you call it, there’s one reason why you go there, and it’s not for the bags of Chinese sunflower seeds.

No one really knows what this place
is called.

I am a great admirer of fine art, especially donut art. I’ve seen it at various places here and there—perhaps I should write an essay devoted solely to the subject of donut art? At Donutopia is one of the best examples I’ve seen, a full wall mural depicting an old-time donut shop out in the country, warmly welcoming anyone who might stop by.

Awesome. At least IMHO.

 Donutopia’s selection is a bit above average, with all the varieties represented, although I have to say that there were no creative donut varieties to be seen. Just the basics: cake, old-fashioned, raised, cruller, buttermilk bar, fritter, and a few pastries and muffins. In fact, the most “creative” donut I could find was a cake donut with strawberry icing and sprinkles. It also turned out to be the best one I tried, as the outside was just slightly crispy, with the inside soft and moist, not dry and crumbly as some others I’ve tried lately. The strawberry flavor was lacking in the icing, though.

Creative? Eh.

Donutopia’s strength lies in its cake and old-fashioned donuts, which had that great crackly crunch on the first bite, followed by a soft follow-through inside. Their raised varieties, however, were rather bland, with thinnish icing that did not do much to massage my taste buds. The apple fritter was also crisp, but completely lacked a soft, juicy inside filled with apples and cinnamon, and was also a bit dry.

This disparity between the cake and raised donuts at Donutopia makes me wonder if they are perhaps frying everything at the same temperature. As any skilled donuteer knows, raised and cake donuts need to fry at different temperatures in order to bring out their best qualities.

Donutopia could also use some work on their icings, which tasted somewhat watered-down. A rich and flavorful icing can go a long way toward rescuing what would otherwise be just an ordinary donut.

Although the donuts were a bit inconsistent and nowhere near the best I’ve had, Donutopia’s great cake and old-fashioned donuts rescued their score a bit and prevented them from dropping too far down the ranks. Nevertheless, the Donut Meter score of 75.0 was not good enough to crack the top ten, although it came close. Would I go there again? Probably not, but if you are a fan of cake and old-fashioned donuts, the place is worth a try.

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. Christy’s Donuts, Kearny Mesa — 80.0

6. OB Donuts — 78.7

7. K-Donuts, Oceanside — 78.0

7. Heavenly Donuts, Del Cerro —78.0

7. Plaza Donuts, National City — 78.0

10. Donut Touch, Mira Mesa — 76.8

11. Linda’s Donuts, Pacific Beach — 76.0

12. Donutopia, Poway — 75.0

13. TK Donuts, Bay Park — 71.0

14. Marte’s Donuts, Escondido — 70.0

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

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

16. KD’s Donuts, Ramona — 66.0

18. Solana Donuts, Solana Beach — 63.0

19. Leucadia Donut Shoppe — 62.5