Its the day after Christmas and the last thing I should be doing is eating a doughnut. This torture was brought on by my own design, though; I stuffed my daughter’s stocking with a gift certificate for a 12 pack from Krispy Kreme. My daughter Katia, AKA Lil Bit, can’t drive, so I knew it’d be up to me to facilitate the transaction. Funny how things worked out like that.
Let me just say right up front that I looooove Krispy Kreme doughnuts. I’ve been a big fan of theirs since my first taste of that sweet goodness many years ago. If I can impress upon you one thing, let it be this: HOT DOUGHNUTS NOW. The mainstay of the Krispy Kreme line up is the Original Glazed. Some of the shops (was almost all of them until recently) cook the doughnuts right there on site. They go through the entire process; mixing the dough, baking the circles, and icing them perfectly. When the doughnuts are coming off the conveyor, the neon Krispy Kreme sign outside will light up with the words “Hot Doughnuts Now”. That, my friend, is your invitation to taste one of the best confections in the world. When the doughnuts are fresh and hot, they melt in your mouth, making them almost too dangerously easy to eat. I used to wonder why, when I would order a dozen dooughnuts…all by myself…the server would ask me if I wanted that for here or to go. After wolfing down more than I care to admit, I can easily see why.
Back to our Christmas story….
So me and Lil Bit rushed over to Krispy Kreme to use her stocking stuffer. Sadly, the “Hot Doughnut” bat signal wasn’t on but we were still excited. It had been a while since we made the trip to Artesia and the 110 to get fresh dough.
The store was brightly lit and welcoming with its clean, diner like interior. The focus of the place is the huge doughnut kitchen in the back, complete with vats for mixing dough, a huge oven, and a cement mixer looking thing that pours the frosting. The wall of the kitchen is made of glass to allow visitors to look in and see the process. They even have a sort of stage in front of the window so kids can clamber up to see the goings on inside.
To the left of the kitchen is the counter. But before we can even get to the counter, a Krispy Kreme chef is welcoming us with a free sample of the Original Glazed. That’s so awesome! I love it when they do that (especially when the doughnuts are hot) because you can get in and out having had three doughnuts (or maybe four if you can weasal your kid’s away) without having to but a half dozen. But, if you’re like me, you usually end up buying the whole or half dozen anyway.
The counter is all too familiar to me: Original Glazed, chocolate glazed, various cake style doughnuts, and plenty of others covered in sprinkles or stuffed with some fruit or another. I also see a few surprises. A pumpkin spice doughnut is there, a seasonal offering for the Fall/Winter. They also have a banana fritter, which I don’t think I’ve seen anywhere else. I lean towards my adventurous side and order both. Lil Bit opts for a chocolate cake, a chocolate iced, and a couple Original Glazed.
[Yes, we only got a six pack. Just as we started to make our order, we realized that we left the gift cert at home! Rats. Bitter sweet though; we have to pay this time, but now we get to come back and use the cert!]
Next to the doughnut counter is an open cooler with milk, OJ, water, and other bevs for washing down treats. They also have coffee and cafe style drinks; they’re coffee is decent but I almost always opt for a plain old cup of water with ice. To me, drinking anything besides water with sugar coated dough puts me into a carbohydrate coma.
The pumpkin spice was a pleasant treat. It was cake style, so the texture was firm but moist, making it east to eat on the ride home (the frosting on the Original Glazed tends to flake a bit). The flavor was definitely pumpkin but not overly so. It was just spicy enough to be reminiscent of pumpkin or sweet potato pie without giving up any of its doughnut heritage.
I couldn’t finish the banana fritter. I mean, not that I would have or should anyway but the flavor was off. I’m a fan of apple fritters and this was indeed a fritter, given its shape and texture. But the flavor was way off. I could taste the artificialness of it. It smelled good, like a banana with a little sugar on it; but the taste made think of banana flavored cough medicine. I’ll stick with the apple ones next time.
Altogether it was a good experience. The bright, sweet smelling shop always cheers me up and a free doughnut easily puts a smile on my face. The pumpkin spice was a welcome diversion and a compliment to the Original Glazed. Lil Bit was content with her selection, nibbling away and scattering crumbs over my backseat. I’ll be looking forward to the next trip to use that gift certificate.
Krispy Kreme – Gardena
1199 W. Artesia Boulevard
Gardena, CA 90247
Phone: 310-532-5281
[rating:4.5/5]
