Families and Kids

Donut Delights in Tempe

May 27, 2024

We donut mess around when it comes to donut shop in Tempe.

Each year, National Donut Day is observed on June 3. Because Tempe is an authority on all styles and flavors of these sweet treats, we held a donut competition to determine which shops received top honors.

We’ve also included a roster of delicious donut spots throughout Tempe below, so you can vote for yourself.

The Donut Competition 

To showcase some of Tempe’s most beloved donut shops, we pinned donuts up against one another — sprinkle for sprinkle — in the sweetest competition of the year. Of course, this is just based on the voting palates in the office and based on flavors available at the time. So, we welcome all additional taste-testers to contribute their opinions too.

Round 1  

The first go around, we were so fascinated with the donuts from local creative favorites, Donut Parlor and Hurts Donuts. Who doesn’t love a colorful character donut? Things kicked off with consideration given to the following categories: “most Instagrammable,” brave and bold” and most creative and colorful.” From there, judges had a free-for-all trying out the donut(s) they were drawn to visually, which included such flavors as Strawberry Special K cereal, S’mores and Maple Bacon.

Round 2 

For this round, the taste testing became a bit more scientific, as the two donut shops went head to head with nearly identical donuts. The Round 2 showdown included Arizona Donut Company as “Donut Shop A” versus Boba & Donuts as “Donut Shop B.” Because each donut had very similar flavors as its counterparts, the judges drove themselves glazy comparing batter profiles, size and sugar content.

Round 3

In the name of fun and fairness, Round 3 included two very unmistakable donut brands. There’s no way to be stealthy when it comes to VooDoo Doughnut and Mochinut. But, nevertheless, we brought both of these distinct brand to the our judges. Now that they have the hang of their important duties, it was a piece of cake evaluating these decadent and adventurous candidates on the criteria of how accurately they lived up to their names, flavor profiles and descriptions.

The Results

A great idea in theory, we do recommend consuming donuts in moderation. Still, the results yielded a win for every contestant:

• Judge #1 Favorite: Chocolate donut with chocolate chips from Donut Parlor
• Judge #2 Favorite: Sugar twist from Boba & Donuts
• Judge #3 Favorite: Glazed donut from Arizona Donut Co.
• Judge #4 Favorite: Matcha donut from Mochi Nut
• Judge #5: Favorite Vegan Donut: VooDoo Doughnut
• Judge #6: Favorite Gluten-Free Donut: Hurts Donut
  

Round 4: To Be Continued …

Until we officially launch Round 4 of the Tempe Donut Challenge, it’s your turn to try out Tempe sweet selection of donut spots:

Arizona Donut Co.
1030 W. Broadway Road, Tempe, AZ 85282 | 480-968-1321

Boba & Donuts
2700 W. Baseline Road, #129, Tempe, AZ 85283 | 480-773-6888
1320 W. Elliot Road, Tempe, AZ 85284 | 480-590-2332

Bosa Donuts
414 W. University Drive, Suite 103, Tempe, AZ 85281 | 480-955-5505

Green New American Vegetarian (vegan, and gluten-free, donuts available on occasion)
2240 N. Scottsdale Road, #113, Tempe, AZ 85288 | 480-941-9003

Donut Parlor
1245 W. Elliot Road, #103, Tempe, AZ 85284 | 480-570-1900

Hurts Donuts
2161 E. University Drive, Tempe, AZ 85281 | 480-765-2101

Mochinut
117 E. Southern Ave., Tempe, AZ 85282 | 480-248-3516

Parlor Doughnuts
707 S. Farmer Ave., Suite 125, Tempe, AZ 85281 | 480-597-7373

Sesame Donuts
3231 S. Mill Ave., Suite 101, Tempe, AZ 85282 | 480-404-6535

Voodoo Doughnut
1324 S. Rural Road, Tempe, AZ 85281 | 602-641-6669