Doughnut Dolly - Outstanding doughnut pop up in Oakland

[Morton the Mousse]

I've been kvetching about the lack of quality, artisan doughnuts in the Bay Area for years now. I like Dynamo, but it's so damn far into the Mission. Pepples, like all vegan desserts, is a disgrace. Yes, there are restaurants that do a good biegnet or zeppole, but sometimes I just want a good doughnut without a pricey, sit down dinner.

So, I was delighted to read the recent grubstreet report on Doughnut Dolly - a new pop-up doughnut vendor frequenting Temescal and Old Oakland. I was able to try her product at Cosescha last night, and it was incredible.

The concept here is filled donuts, but these aren't those nasty jelly things that sit around in windows all day: they are filled to order with her own delicious concoctions. Yesterday she had sour cherry, lemon curd, and her standby - the "naughty donut" with a creme fraiche and vanilla bean pastry cream. All of these were amazing, but the creme fraiche was the favorite. Of course the doughnut itself is also great - light, fluffy - the perfect base for these fillings.

I highly recommend this product. This is the doughnut I've been craving all these years. I can't wait to eat more of them. Good news is that she'll be opening a shop in Temescal soon, so I won't have to wait for the pop-up days. Until then, you can follow her on Facebook to find out when she'll be popping up next.

http://www.facebook.com/DoughnutDolly

[jaiko]

We are not normally doughnut lovers, but did try DD when we were in the neighborhood last week.

I guess if you're a doughnut lover, they're fine. The cream fillings are excellent quality.

BUT - the help, although cheerful and jovial, was incompetent. He couldn't keep our order straight (2 of one type of filling, one of a different filling). It took three repetitions before he said he 'got it!".....

....but he hadn't. When we got back home, one of the doughnuts had barely any filling inside it - maybe 1 teaspoonful, at most.

Strongly suggest keeping a close eye on what they're doing as they fill your order. And check it again before you leave the store!

[sundeck sue]

I haven't been there so many times, but each time, Hannah, the lovely boss/baker is the only one serving. And she is cheerful, jovial--and competent--a total professional.

[singleguychef]

That's funny, everytime I've gone (I tend to go on the early side to avoid a sell out) it's always been Hannah, and she's always great with handling the crowds while still being warm and chatty. I've never seen anyone else in there with her.

Last weekend I tried her Bourbon naughty cream, which really took the naughty cream to another level. I love boozy donuts, so I enjoyed them, although initially it does take you back a bit because it is so boozy.

[jaiko]

Hannah was there, but she had a helper. It was the helper, who ended up not being so helpful. He might not have made it through probation. Nice as he was, he just didn't cut it for accuracy.

Doesn't matter to us, as we're just not in love with doughnuts. People rave, we try various places, and just shrug. Now....pie, OTOH, especially Pietisserie's Key Lime or Coconut Custard - woohoo!

[sundeck sue]

So I am a total Doughnut Dolly fan, booster, champion.

But sad to say, the Meyer Lemon Custard on offer this week needs tinkering. It's a B+, rather than A+ (goes w/out saying, the Naughty is an A++).

But this is a problem easily remedied.

Meyer lemons have a delicate flavor. So you don't want a custard base, which mutes/muddies an already subtle taste, leaving you with a kind of tangy custard.

You want a curd. That way you have creaminess, but the flavor is of that incomparable meyer lemon, front and center.

To micromanage even more here: David Leibovitz's Meyer Lemon Curd recipe would be just the ticket! http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2009/12/...

[Melanie Wong]

Doughnut Dolly - 482B 49th Street, Oakland - 510-338-6738

[Robert Lauriston]

She opened last week. Wed.-Sun. 8-3 or until sold out. She still had some around 2:15 on Sunday. Pluot filling was great.

http://www.doughnutdolly.com

[Robert Lauriston]

Finally got to try these, they were surprisingly good. Usually I find doughnuts too cloying, but she balances sweet that with salt. Very grown-up flavors. She'll be open 12-5 today at 482 49th.

[lmnopm]

It was a doughnut bread pudding (only option) at the Temescal Street Fair (in what will be the permanent space in the alley) - when we returned to buy something after eating real food, it was already sold out and closed. But it looked/smelled very delicious.

[Robert Lauriston]

She'll be at Cosecha tonight from 5:30-9 and on the patio in front of the former Cafe Fanny / future Bartavelle tomorrow from 9 to 3, along with the CRO Cafe espresso cart that's there every day from 7:30 to 3. A friend who works nearby has been raving about the coffee (Sightglass).

[Melanie Wong]

Caught up with Doughnut Dolly at Cosecha on Friday night for a friend's birthday party. Here's the birthday boy blowing out the candles on the tower of strawberry jam-flled and creme fraiche and vanilla pastry cream donuts.

[Robert Lauriston]

Yesterday she sold out in half an hour.

[hyperbowler]

Caught her this morning on 49th & Telegraph.

They're fat and roundish. The creme fraiche and vanilla pastry cream filling was brilliant. She's generous with the filling, and because they're filled in front of you for immediate consumption, she's not shy about letting them ooze all over the place. I'm not sure I could compare their dough to other places without a side by side test, but it's in the same league as Arlequin Cafe's beignet and Bellanico's bomboloni, and better than the bomboloni formerly at the Ferry Building.

The Twitter feed is more reliable than Facebook: https://twitter.com/#!/DoughnutDolly

[jhinky]

I'd had a similar contemporaneously filled doughnut called naughty doughnut at Local 123 about 6 months or so back. Was that her?

[hyperbowler]

re: Bellanico's bomboloni. I recently revisited them, and they were overly bready and overcooked. The dipping sage custard sauce had too much sage and the chocolate sauce was too intense. Otherwise, a great breakfast.

[eethan]

Does anyone know if the bricks&mortar location is open yet?

I tried going through the facebook posts for news, but it's so confusing to try to read anything on facebook now. I get the sense they're/she's opened last friday?

[Robert Lauriston]

I don't think the remodeling has started yet. She just finished fundraising.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b727gb...

[eethan]

Wow, amazing command of the internet. =]

Any word if she still 'pops up' or is the renovation full-time right now? It looks like nothing since March. (Sorry if there was sth. missed in the video--this computer hasn't any sound)

[Morton the Mousse]

She's scheduled to be at Swans / Cosecha this Friday from 6-9pm.
Starting April 26th she'll be poppint up in Temescal Alley Thur, Fri, Sat from 9am to "sold out"
Projected storefront opening is mid-May.
She's not great at keeping facebook / twitter feeds up to date. Only reason I have intel is that I donated to her kickstarter and got an update email.

[eethan]

Thanks for the info I won't be up there until Saturday--won't get my doughnut fix this time. =(

[AntarcticWidow]

Here are her facebook posts from today:

Doughnut Dolly
47 minutes ago
And, We're Back! There will be Naughty Doughnuts at Cosecha Friday, April 20th, (that's tomorrow), from 5:30-9pm. Fillings are: Naughty Cream and Raspberry Jam. Dominica is featuring Grilled Swordfish with Spicy Olives for Friday Night Supper! I can't wait to see you all there! It's been 2 weeks=too long! ♥

and

Doughnut Dolly
33 minutes ago
Doughnut Dolly is proud to be part of this Earth Day celebration! Did you know, that doughnuts, and their packaging are compostable? Of course you did! So, do your part and join Me, San Francisco Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, and Trumer Pils USA after the beach cleanup this Sunday! There will be music, "Naughty Cream" doughnuts, and some of SF's favorite Food Trucks! Pick up some trash, and get some cream on your face!
Surfrider & Trumer Pils Earth Day Block Party & Ocean Beach Clean up!
‎22 April at 10:00

[Dave MP]

This thread was featured in this week's SF Bay Area Digest. Thanks Morton for the great post.

http://www.chow.com/digest/110190/nau...

[moto]

if you haven't tried them already, you might like Pizzaiolo's doughnut, but it's pretty traditional in style. in a similar vein, during Lent only , the malasadas at Boniere Bakery (for .75 each, nothing like them on the mainland -- the baker's family is from the islands).

[shanghaikid]

dolly make an appearance at the swan's popup, every fridays, 5-9, in swan's marketplace.

each donut is 3. all fillings homemade. i prefer them to cupcakes.