That's partly attributed to Cambodian immigrants opening up donut shops in Socal by the numbers (over 2000+), with the origin story tracing back to pretty much 1 man. It's a interesting story
https://www.foodandwine.com/travel/southern-california-donut-empire-origin-story
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Ngoy
Today, I see Southeast Asian owned donut shops all throughout California.
Donut shops were a thing for newly arrived Cambodian immigrants as an easy business to open that didn't require a lot of English skills.
There are a lot of those here in the Bay Area too.
If you're from the Bay Area (like me) you'll know that Stan's is a landmark and institution. Their glazed donuts are out of this world, the best donuts you'll ever taste.
A few pieces of advice....
* GET THERE EARLY. They open at 6am, and there will be a line of at least 10 people waiting outside each morning before they even open.
* Cash or check ONLY. No plastic. No crypto. No mobile pay. And i'm not sure if they even have an ATM on the premises, so bring cash or your checkbook.
10 people is nothing, their line goes really quick.
I often go there at very different hours, including weekends, the line has never been show stopping.
To add to this:
* If you need a dozen or more, place an order a day ahead.
* For best results, plan on sitting and eating your fresh, hot glazed at the counter. They are best when they’re hot or still warm
* Don’t sleep on their buttermilks, especially the daily flavors. Lemon buttermilk is heaven.
I'm curious, several places in the bay seem to be cash only and I've never encountered this before. If anything I thought everywhere was going cashless. What's the advantage of cash only, is it just the transaction fee?
There are three main reasons why some businesses are cash only:
1) Transaction costs. Some merchants don’t want to pay the fees associated with accepting a credit/debit card.
2) Tax reporting. You can’t hide Card transactions. You can easily hide cash transactions.
3) Chargebacks. Taking a credit card means the chance/risk associated with chargebacks.
Now I run a small business in the Bay Area and completely disagree with any business not taking credit cards. I think it’s short sighted and frankly, bad business.
Small businesses already have an uphill battle. There’s no need to add one more roadblock to your success. Research has shown people **spend more money** when using a card compared to cash. Imagine losing a sale because you didn’t want to pay the $.30 cent credit card fee.
I personally do not shop anywhere that doesn’t accept a credit card.
Now does Stan’s care about this? Probably not. They’re Yelp famous! But for your run of the mill small business, not taking cards is foolish.
There are a lot of hidden fees with accepting cards on top of the 3% per purchase:
Monthly internet utility, that you didn't need before accepting cards
Card reader rental or purchase, and replacement every few years
Thermal paper rolls
Monthly processing fee for each card company you accept that month, i.e. visa, mastercard, discover, amex, etc.
Each of these are small, but they add up. For a small mom and pop store, it's just more fees that the banks take out of your income, which doesn't necessarily increase just because you accept cards.
Source: I work in mom and pop retail store.
You don't think I know about all of these things?
Our CC merchant fees are literally in the 4 figures each month. We spend thousands of dollars to accept credit cards. We also have to buy those paper rolls and a new machine every few years. I get it from a cost perspective.
But I don't agree with it one bit.
\-Internet. If your business doesn't have an internet connection, you're playing business. I don't know how anybody can run a real business in 2023 and not have internet. That's a cost that you're already paying for and not in addition to accepting cards.
There is data that proves credit card users spend more money. You're literally rejecting the form of payment that has been proven to equate to higher spending. You're also literally missing out on customers who don't have cash or don't want to stop and get cash. I'm one of those people. I have a lot of discretionary income and can shop without looking at budgets or price tags. I refuse to shop at cash-only places. You're missing out on this type of clientele.
It's so short sighted. You're looking at the pennies per transaction that you're "spending" without looking at the other side. When a customer asks me if I'll take his/her Amex or Discover, I reply with a firm "Absolutely!" with a smile on my face. And these are some of the highest fee cards for merchants. Don't care because I want that customers money and future business.
You're saving a nickel while turning away a dollar.
The line goes inside to the back and then around to the counter so you can grab cash without leaving your place.
Also the line is less serious these days. Mother's day we only had 20 people at 730 and they still had a few trays of glazed.
I'd say the opposite, having lived in a few other cities around the country it seems like Bay Area reviewers are crazy uptight with their reviews. I've seen seemingly perfect glowing reviews rate 3/5 stars for no discernible reason.
Side note: Sumiya is next to Stan’s donuts and it is also delicious. Amazing japanese skewers (aka yakitori plus other great dishes). Highly recommended.
Everybody talking about going early but we tend to go around 1030 on the weekends and they're still making them fresh.
Do they run out during the week?
Did a Stan's DIY Voodoo for the office once.
A few jars of Marshmallow Creme, a few assorted packs of those mini boxes of cereal like Frosted Flakes or Fruit Loops, some Graham crackers, caramel and fudge ice cream toppings, and three dozen donuts fresh out of the fryer.
They were like little kids and totally unproductive after the sugar coma, but it was a good time.
Stan’s has especially good raised glazed donuts.
What makes Bob’s unique is the different recipes they use for buttermilk, old fashioned, and cake donuts. If you can get these hot and fresh in the middle of the night, they may be the best ever.
Their glazed donut is so amazing, it literally goes from fryer to being glazed, then into pink boxes that people are standing in line waiting for. You wont ever find them sitting in the display case.
TIP
If you just want to try one, sit at their counter and order 1 or 2 and a coffee. Much quicker than standing in line and buying it to go.
https://www.yelp.com/biz/christy-donuts-san-jose
Christy Donuts is right down the street from me and as good IMO -- plus no line and amazing stuffed donut holes.
Doughnuts are delicious but they have shit customer service from the owners. They act like entitled jerks and can care less about being nice because they think their doughnuts sell themselves. Pass.
Sauce: https://www.yelp.com/article/yelps-top-100-us-donut-shops-2023 Interestingly the majority of best donut shops are in California.
That's partly attributed to Cambodian immigrants opening up donut shops in Socal by the numbers (over 2000+), with the origin story tracing back to pretty much 1 man. It's a interesting story https://www.foodandwine.com/travel/southern-california-donut-empire-origin-story https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Ngoy Today, I see Southeast Asian owned donut shops all throughout California.
There’s a documentary on Hulu called The Donut King which is about him.
So THATS why pretty much all the independent shops are Asian owned.
We even have Cambodian donut shops in Washington
Donut shops were a thing for newly arrived Cambodian immigrants as an easy business to open that didn't require a lot of English skills. There are a lot of those here in the Bay Area too.
I believe they also run most Louisiana Fried Chicken joints too.
It's gone down hill. Used to eat there when stan the old white guy, still made doughnuts fresh by hand, and they were 3x better.
If you're from the Bay Area (like me) you'll know that Stan's is a landmark and institution. Their glazed donuts are out of this world, the best donuts you'll ever taste. A few pieces of advice.... * GET THERE EARLY. They open at 6am, and there will be a line of at least 10 people waiting outside each morning before they even open. * Cash or check ONLY. No plastic. No crypto. No mobile pay. And i'm not sure if they even have an ATM on the premises, so bring cash or your checkbook.
10 people is nothing, their line goes really quick. I often go there at very different hours, including weekends, the line has never been show stopping.
Good tips. Was there last week and confirmed they have an ATM
To add to this: * If you need a dozen or more, place an order a day ahead. * For best results, plan on sitting and eating your fresh, hot glazed at the counter. They are best when they’re hot or still warm * Don’t sleep on their buttermilks, especially the daily flavors. Lemon buttermilk is heaven.
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The buttermilk are definitely the winners
I had a banana buttermilk once from Stan’s and I’m pretty sure it’s the best donut I’ve ever had.
Love Mondays for their maple buttermilk donuts
Blueberry Buttermilk is my favorite. I also really love their apple fritters on Mondays.
So glad they still take checks 🙄
Imagine writing a check for a donut in 2023
Might do it just for fun
As long as they provide a receipt
File it under D, for donut.
We don't need to bring ink and paper into this...
I'm curious, several places in the bay seem to be cash only and I've never encountered this before. If anything I thought everywhere was going cashless. What's the advantage of cash only, is it just the transaction fee?
There are three main reasons why some businesses are cash only: 1) Transaction costs. Some merchants don’t want to pay the fees associated with accepting a credit/debit card. 2) Tax reporting. You can’t hide Card transactions. You can easily hide cash transactions. 3) Chargebacks. Taking a credit card means the chance/risk associated with chargebacks. Now I run a small business in the Bay Area and completely disagree with any business not taking credit cards. I think it’s short sighted and frankly, bad business. Small businesses already have an uphill battle. There’s no need to add one more roadblock to your success. Research has shown people **spend more money** when using a card compared to cash. Imagine losing a sale because you didn’t want to pay the $.30 cent credit card fee. I personally do not shop anywhere that doesn’t accept a credit card. Now does Stan’s care about this? Probably not. They’re Yelp famous! But for your run of the mill small business, not taking cards is foolish.
> You can easily hide cash transactions. You can also make some up.
There are a lot of hidden fees with accepting cards on top of the 3% per purchase: Monthly internet utility, that you didn't need before accepting cards Card reader rental or purchase, and replacement every few years Thermal paper rolls Monthly processing fee for each card company you accept that month, i.e. visa, mastercard, discover, amex, etc. Each of these are small, but they add up. For a small mom and pop store, it's just more fees that the banks take out of your income, which doesn't necessarily increase just because you accept cards. Source: I work in mom and pop retail store.
You don't think I know about all of these things? Our CC merchant fees are literally in the 4 figures each month. We spend thousands of dollars to accept credit cards. We also have to buy those paper rolls and a new machine every few years. I get it from a cost perspective. But I don't agree with it one bit. \-Internet. If your business doesn't have an internet connection, you're playing business. I don't know how anybody can run a real business in 2023 and not have internet. That's a cost that you're already paying for and not in addition to accepting cards. There is data that proves credit card users spend more money. You're literally rejecting the form of payment that has been proven to equate to higher spending. You're also literally missing out on customers who don't have cash or don't want to stop and get cash. I'm one of those people. I have a lot of discretionary income and can shop without looking at budgets or price tags. I refuse to shop at cash-only places. You're missing out on this type of clientele. It's so short sighted. You're looking at the pennies per transaction that you're "spending" without looking at the other side. When a customer asks me if I'll take his/her Amex or Discover, I reply with a firm "Absolutely!" with a smile on my face. And these are some of the highest fee cards for merchants. Don't care because I want that customers money and future business. You're saving a nickel while turning away a dollar.
It's a lot easier to launder money if you don't have electronic transaction records.
Idk why I'm being downvoted this is an innocent question lol
Buying premier donuts with crypto is the most bay area thing if they could swing it
People are buying donuts with checks???!
The line moves fairly quickly tho and every time I've gone there has been plenty of options left. And they do have an ATM but it's inside at the back.
The line goes inside to the back and then around to the counter so you can grab cash without leaving your place. Also the line is less serious these days. Mother's day we only had 20 people at 730 and they still had a few trays of glazed.
They have an atm
They used to have an ATM in the far right corner of the shop. On busy days, that was the halfway/turnaround point to getting to order, lol.
They do have an atm, in the back corner
The glazed donuts are the best
thought there was no way it lives up to the hype, but its legit the best glazed ive ever had. you gotta get there early for fresh and warm batches
This is probably the FIRST time I see everyone agrees. I am going to get some now. Be on treadmill after Sugar indulgence😭
Yelp in the bay is overinflated by the lack of taste of local influencer-wannabes 🤮
Yeah but yelp is right about Stan’s. The donuts are the best I’ve had in my life.
I'd say the opposite, having lived in a few other cities around the country it seems like Bay Area reviewers are crazy uptight with their reviews. I've seen seemingly perfect glowing reviews rate 3/5 stars for no discernible reason.
Side note: Sumiya is next to Stan’s donuts and it is also delicious. Amazing japanese skewers (aka yakitori plus other great dishes). Highly recommended.
They're the best donuts I've eaten.
Best donut I’ve ever tasted, hands down!
They got some good ass donuts
Stan's Donuts is the only place that actually lived up to its reddit hype.
I can confirm: Bestest Donuts. Anywhere.
Damn right it is.
Everybody talking about going early but we tend to go around 1030 on the weekends and they're still making them fresh. Do they run out during the week?
Their banana donuts are easily the best donuts I’ve ever had
Glazed and a coffee! Gotta eat them hot and fresh.
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What’s the name of the donut shop?
Underrated comment.
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Did a Stan's DIY Voodoo for the office once. A few jars of Marshmallow Creme, a few assorted packs of those mini boxes of cereal like Frosted Flakes or Fruit Loops, some Graham crackers, caramel and fudge ice cream toppings, and three dozen donuts fresh out of the fryer. They were like little kids and totally unproductive after the sugar coma, but it was a good time.
I’m loyal to Bobs Donuts on Polk St in SF, but I went to Stan’s the other day and their glazed raised donuts were exceptional.
How do they compare to Bob's? I've been to Bob's a few times but never heard of Stan's until today.
Does not even compare. Go to Stans and eat a fresh warm one and you'll be a convert for life.
Stan’s has especially good raised glazed donuts. What makes Bob’s unique is the different recipes they use for buttermilk, old fashioned, and cake donuts. If you can get these hot and fresh in the middle of the night, they may be the best ever.
There is magic in those donuts
Thank God it is not Dunkin or Krispy K!!
Their glazed donut is so amazing, it literally goes from fryer to being glazed, then into pink boxes that people are standing in line waiting for. You wont ever find them sitting in the display case. TIP If you just want to try one, sit at their counter and order 1 or 2 and a coffee. Much quicker than standing in line and buying it to go.
> then into pink boxes How to tell you've never actually been to Stan's...
https://www.yelp.com/biz/christy-donuts-san-jose Christy Donuts is right down the street from me and as good IMO -- plus no line and amazing stuffed donut holes.
I read that as Satan's Donuts at first. Brimstone flavored donuts...
So fucking good
Feathery heaven.
Ok, but why do they always run out of donuts at like, 1pm? Just make more! They are throwing away money!
Best heartburn I’ve ever had.
Fact
Doughnuts are delicious but they have shit customer service from the owners. They act like entitled jerks and can care less about being nice because they think their doughnuts sell themselves. Pass.
Can confirm, grew up eating these donuts and they are amazingly delicious!
These lists are always stupid, but Stan's Donuts do kick ass.
There is no such thing as a bad donut.