DODO BIRD Donuts — Restaurant in San Diego

If you like overpriced donuts, pretentious menu items like "bone broth" (you mean soup? at a donut shop?), and inexplicable donut policies like "We only have one flavor of donut on Wednesdays," then you have come to the right place. And after spending $20 on two coffees and two donuts, I myself felt like a dodo. The interior reminded me of Palm Springs, and the coffee was really good. However, there was absolutely no selection of donuts--it being a Wednesday and all--but I guess I know better now than to expect this donut place to have a regular selection of donuts all days of the week. The donut I had was tasty but super small, and I couldn't bring myself to spend $4 more (plus tip) on another tiny donut that should usually cost $1 or $2 in Portland, OR, which many consider to be the Napa Valley of donuts. But we're not in Portland, we're in Bird Rock where flocks of other dodos like us feel fine spending all that money on two donuts and two coffees. At least that seems to be the expectation of the owners at Dodo Bird Donuts. I'm aware that new businesses operate in the red in their first few years and mistakes get made, but I hope...

Because of the rain over the weekend, my office got flooded and a lot of our products were damaged. To cheer everyone up, I decided to buy doughnuts for the team. It was around 10:30 a.m. I asked the cashier if they had enough doughnuts for a dozen, and she said no. When I asked how many doughnuts were left, she refused to tell me. She said she wanted other customers to have a chance to buy doughnuts rather than sell me the rest. I would understand if there was a line of customers, but it was just my colleague, one other person, and me in the cafe. Also, I'd get it if there was a limit per customer, but the menu offers a dozen doughnuts for $35, so it was confusing why at 10:30 a.m., with the cafe opening at 6:30 a.m., I couldn't buy the rest.

I told her I was buying doughnuts to cheer up my coworkers, and the cashier just said "aw" and pouted mockingly. It made me feel very uncomfortable and demeaned. So, we took our business to Wayfarer down the street, where everyone at my company enjoyed the...

We hadn’t read the reviews before tasting these donuts. It’s kind of a relief that we didn’t experience something out of the ordinary, that perhaps of all people, we alone were handed yesterday’s donuts left out to dry. However, it disappoints me that the Dodo Bird hasn’t addressed the quality issue that has been consistently brought to their attention for months now. I love a good donut and I would happily pay a premium because they’re within walking distance. But alas, I’d be better off hopping in the car to get Lucky’s Donuts on Grand, or better still, Barrio Donas in Clairemont Mesa Blvd, which I think is a real contender for best donuts in SD.

Do either of these places, or any Dunkin’ Donuts as a matter of fact, have great coffee, stunning decor, a gorgeous location near the ocean? No. But they do have donuts far superior to Dodo’s. And if quality donuts are important to you, I suggest ordering a latte and a breakfast burrito or anything else from Dodo’s main menu — but skip the...