doughnut – Michael Eats

Quick Bites: Machino Donuts, Fuji Noodle House, Kunafa’s

Published on May 14, 2024May 17, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Various doughnuts from Machino Donuts

Machino Donuts specializes in vegan doughnuts, and I’ll admit that I’ve dragged my feet on trying it because of that fact. I assumed that the vegan-ness of the place would result in compromised, subpar doughnuts, and I was 100% wrong. I tried three doughnuts here: the apple fritter, the banana bread fritter, and the sour cream orange, and all three were quite tasty. In particular, the apple fritter was right on par with the better fritters I’ve had in the GTA, with a lightly crispy exterior, a nice and tender interior, and a great apple flavour.

Fuju signature noodle soup from Fuji Noodle House

Fuji Noodle House specializes in tasty Chinese noodle soups, and yeah, it’s good. I tried the Fuji signature noodle soup (“signature hand-pulled noodle soup with beef, crispy pork fillet, Fuji meatballs, beef brisket, cilantro, and scallions”), and while nothing about it jumped out at me as mind-blowing, the noodles were nice and chewy, the broth was tasty, and all the meaty add-ons were satisfying.

Kunafa from Kunafa’s

Kunafa, for the uninitiated, is a delicious Middle Eastern dessert in which a gooey, neutral-tasting cheese is topped with syrup-soaked pastry. It’s great, though I have yet to find a truly exceptional version in the GTA. Kunafa’s, which I wrote a few years ago, specializes in the stuff. As you’d hope, it’s very good — probably the best in the GTA. I visited the original Scarborough location last time, and the one in Mississauga this time, and it’s clear that they haven’t missed a step in the expansion (they also have a location in Ajax). It’s a really tasty dessert.

Apple Fritter Greatness at Better Days Coffee & Donuts

Published on May 5, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 963 Dovercourt Road, Toronto
Website: https://www.betterdaysdonuts.ca/

Better Days Coffee & Donuts is a delightful new doughnut shop on Dovercourt, and you know what? I’m not going to beat around the bush. The apple fritter here is the best I’ve ever had.

Better Days is inspired by the classics, with the owner telling Toronto Life that they won’t have any “stunt doughnuts” (i.e. social-media-friendly creations with elaborate toppings) on the menu. I enjoy a good stunt doughnut every now and then, but you can’t beat the classics.

And it doesn’t get more classic than an apple fritter, which is unbelievably good here. Again: it’s the best apple fritter I’ve ever had.

It’s just the perfect combo of a crispy/craggly exterior and a moist interior with enjoyably tender apple chunks interspersed throughout. It covered in a sweet glaze, but it’s never cloying, with a delicious balance of sweetness that feels just right. I could eat about a million of these. Strap me down into one of those Homer Simpson doughnut force-feeding machines, please.

I also tried the double chocolate, which was a delicious cake doughnut with a satisfying chocolatey punch. Nothing can compare to that glorious fritter, but it’s still clearly above average.

Tasty Polish Doughnuts at Basket of Bread

Published on December 12, 2023 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 2783 Lake Shore Boulevard West, Etobicoke
Website: https://basketofbread.com/

Basket of Bread is a tiny little bakery on Lake Shore in Etobicoke; though they sell a small variety of breads and some imported grocery items from Eastern Europe, they specialize in Polish filled doughnuts called paczki.

According to Wikipedia, the two most traditional fillings are plum jam and rose petal jam, and both are options at Basket of Bread, along with other fillings like raspberry, strawberry, and Nutella.

I tried the plum and the rose, and they were both quite tasty, with a restrained level of sweetness that’s so far from the overly sweet sugar-bombs you’ll find at place like Krispy Kreme or Tim Hortons that it’s hard to believe that they’re even the same thing.

The doughnuts themselves are slightly more dense than the norm, and both fillings have a good balance of tartness and sweetness. The rose, in particular, was pretty interesting, with a pronounced rosewater flavour. I wish the filling were a bit more generous, but it’s a quality doughnut.

Unique Doughnuts at Isabella’s Mochi Donut Boutique

Published on February 23, 2023 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 4 St. Patrick Street, Toronto
Website: https://isabellasdonuts.com/

A mochi doughnut, for the unaware, is basically a regular doughnut, but with the addition of rice flour. This gives it a delightfully chewy texture that works better than you might expect. Even if you don’t like mochi, it’s worth a shot — the chewiness is definitely there, but it’s not particularly aggressive.

They have nine flavours at Isabella’s; they all looked tasty, but I went with the s’mores (“chocolate, toasted meringue, graham crackers”).

It’s really good. The chocolate glaze has a nice chocolatey flavour that isn’t too sweet, and while the fluffy toasted meringue isn’t super marshmallowy, it’s tasty and complements the chocolate well. I don’t think the graham cracker crumbs made much of a difference, but it’s tasty either way.

As for the doughnut itself, yeah, it’s good. The chewiness is just enough to set it apart from a standard doughnut, but not so much that it feels overwhelming. It’s really satisfying.

(Mostly) Tasty Doughnuts at Cops Doughnuts

Published on January 31, 2023January 31, 2023 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 445 Adelaide Street West, Toronto
Website: https://www.eatcops.com/

What’s better than a doughnut? A warm, fresh-from-the-fryer doughnut, that’s what.

Outside of a few beverages, Cops does just one thing: Tiny Tom’s-esque mini doughnuts that you can order topped with OG sour cream glaze, cinnamon sugar, or the weekly feature, which was orange sherbet when I visited. I went with an order of six of the feature.

My batch had an unnervingly pale colour, and I thought, uh oh, but maybe they serve a different style of doughnut?

Alas, they do not — the doughnuts were underdone, with an interior that wasn’t quite raw, but that was softer than you’d like.

Still, I didn’t dislike eating them — it’s hard to go wrong with a fresh doughnut, even when it’s not quite fully cooked. The exterior still managed to have a very light crispiness, and while I wish the interior was less mushy and more fluffy, it wasn’t unpleasant to eat.

That’s not to mention the orange sherbet icing, which was fantastic — it had a great balance of sweet and tart, and a nice hit of orange flavour. You could put that on anything and it would be great.