One of everybody’s favorite marketing-ploys-we-mean-food-holidays is here: today, June 7, is National Doughnut Day. You can score freebies at a few national chains—get a gratis doughnut with a beverage order at Dunkin’, and free doughnuts with no required purchase at Duck Doughnuts and Krispy Kreme. Or, head to one of our favorite local shops and buy one:
Astro Doughnuts & Fried Chicken
1308 G St., NW; 7511 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church
The oversized doughnuts at these long-running shops can read more as dessert than breakfast (the best of the bunch: the crackly-topped creme brûlée). In the mood for something savory? The rest of the menu includes six fried chicken sandwiches, which you can get on brioche bun or a biscuit, but also on an Old Bay doughnut.
B. Doughnut
6700 Crain Hwy., La Plata
Portuguese/Hawaiian hole-free malasadas—both light and rich at the same time—are the thing at this La Plata shop, which formerly had space in Union Market. They’re in the area’s top tier of doughnuts. Among the fillings: housemade three-berry jam, vanilla, coffee, or chocolate cream, and cookie butter. There are also non-filled vegan doughnuts and American-style glazed and sugared rings.
District Doughnut
749 Eighth St., SE; 1309 Fifth St., NE (inside Union Market); 5 Market Square, SW
DC’s doughnut scene leans more bougie than small-town bakeshop, and this chainlet is a prime example. Flavors change by the season; spring standouts include cookies-and-cream or cherry blossom, a jam-filled round glazed in cream cheese. Other varieties, such as vanilla glazed and brown-butter, stick around all year. Another staple: huge, gooey Cinnabon buns.
Donut King
3727 University Blvd. W., Kensington
This 45 year-old Kensington bakery is a favorite for straightforward, old-timey yeast and cake doughnuts. And it’s offering a Doughnut Day deal: buy a dozen doughnuts, and each one will cost 99 cents.
Donut Run
6904 Fourth St., NW
The snug vegan shop, which opened in 2021, comes from husband-and-wife duo Shawn Petersen and Nicole Dao. You’ll find yeast and cake doughnuts in dozens of ever-changing flavors—Thin Mint, blueberry-pancake, and maple Frappucino have been on the recent roster—plus tasty apple fritters and coffee from local Brewing Good Coffee Company.
Heidelberg Pastry Shoppe
2150 N. Culpeper St., Arlington
Crusty pumpernickel loaves, biting mustards, and loads of buttery tea cookies can be found at this 49 year-old German-style bakery in Arlington. Also: terrific Berliners, or jelly doughnuts, filled with raspberry or apricot jam. The raisin-studded apple strudel is also worth a place on your breakfast table.
Love on the Run
200 Massachusetts Ave., NW
The fast-casual operation at the Japanese Love, Makoto food hall churns out a variety of sweet, heart-shaped doughnuts in flavors like strawberry-yuzu and black-sesame. The pastry not to miss, though, is the wagyu bread, stuffed with mild or spicy curried beef.
Rose Ave
2633 Connecticut Ave., NW
Pediatric nurse/baker Rose Nguyen—who launched her doughnut phenom as an online business during the pandemic—runs an excellent brick-and-mortar shop in Woodley Park. Her hit passionfruit doughnut is here, as are confections in flavors such as strawberry/lychee with rose pastry cream, or pandan tossed in sugar and filled with coconut cream.
Sunday Morning Bakehouse
11869 Grand Park Ave., North Bethesda
Love a jelly doughnut? Head to this pretty Pike & Rose shop for its brioche puffs piped with strawberry jam and rolled in sugar (the unfilled cinnamon sugar version is pretty great, too). The bakehouse also excels with croissants—ham-and-swiss, twice-baked almond—and the baristas make a lovely London Fog. Later this year, it’ll open a location in Tysons.
Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
