Cruel Donuts — Restaurant in San Mateo

WoW! I can see what all the hype is about... 4.5 * rounded up to 5 ** for me. In this case it was all about the experience. The venue was not something to gloat about... the typical mom & pop small business run by a small staff feel. Parking wasn't an issue, there were a decent amount of spaces when we got there. However they were packed!

Luckily when we got to the front, most of the crowd had dissipated. We had a chance to chat with the Ice Cream chef and try a few samples as well. They have several flavors, all made in house that aren't New Zealand Style Real Fruit Ice Cream.

Ahhh...that Kiwi intuition! According to the Ice Cream chef Cruel Donuts was the first the Bay Area to import the Real Fruit Ice Cream machine from the Land of the Long White Cloud. He was a bit taken back with my knowledge of the New Zealand Style Real Fruit Ice Cream... I did call the Southern Hemisphere my home a lifetime ago...

If you are not familiar; "New Zealand Style Real Fruit Ice Cream" is made by blending Ice Cream with fresh fruit in a special blender that churns out a soft, yet creamy and natural fresh treat... basically a fresh fruit soft serve. The original base was usually Vanilla Ice Cream, but I know in recent years people started using all sorts of other Ice Creams.

#NotSoCruel: ~ New Zealand Style Real Fruit Ice Cream Pineapple - 4.5/5 Light, Fruity, refreshing and not to sweet. Tasted oh so natural...

~ New Zealand Style Real Fruit Ice Cream Mango - 4.5/5 While we did enjoy the flavor of the Mango better, the texture of the Pineapple Ice Cream was better; thicker and creamier. I think the mangoes were a bit too ripe. Perhaps the texture would have been a bit creamier or heavier if the Mangoes were not so ripe?

~ SPECIALTY DONUTS: STUFFED: Creme Brulee - 4.5/5 I thought a good amount of thought and effort was put in to creating something like this. "Addicting" commented the gent in front of me... Can't disagree with him. It's exactly what i thought it would be; if a Crème Brûlée was a donut!

Stop by Cruel Donuts for something unique, delectable...

Okay. Finally an amazing handcrafted quality donut shop in San Carlos. We've been well standing strong with Chuck's Donuts but it never crossed into the "special" category. Cruel Donuts seems to have sprung out of nowhere, located in a less-traveled stripmall away from El Camino. Regardless, Cruel is a gift to this city.

Let's first benchmark it with the glazed. Absolutely soft and fluffy and is nearly as good as Stan's (which is THE best). This is a huge statement. The Apple Frittata was deep fried crisp. Really well done. Sweetness not overpowering and structure. These are quality donuts, bar none. The creme brulee donut was also fabulous. Clearly, regardless of the variety, they are made with passion and care. And it shows.

So then, why the 1-star discount. It's the price. To charge $4~$5 per donut, you really have to provide the entire experience. Yes, the donuts are top notch. The service is wonderful. The store is spacious considering a donut joint. But you're not getting a "Paris Baguette"-like experience (not that they donuts are great).

At Stan's Donuts, for $30, you get 2 dozens and then some. We exited Cruel with just 8.

Cruel Donuts is absolutely a blessing to Belmont and San Carlos. Will be...

Update 4/5/25: They now have ice cream! Not just any ice cream though, truly gourmet. We went in on Saturday night to check out their newly added ice cream (BTW they now are staying open until 8pm Fri and Sat nights for ice cream and donuts). We were lucky that the ice cream chef was there that night and he was able to give us a tasting of several flavors, explaining the flavors in detail, before we decided on our 2 scoops each. I went with a scoop of yuzza sorbet and a scoop of vanilla with a passion fruit swirl. My partner went for a Vietnamese coffee ice cream and a scoop of chocolate ice cream. We both agreed this ice cream is the best we've had in the bay area and beyond. We are the type who are willing to drive across several counties to be enjoy our favorite food finds. How lucky for us that this is now in our backyard!

Ube, cruellers, mochi, all their donuts have been great!

Yummy guava jelly donuts, creme brulee, vanilla custard filled bars, etc. Very nice and helpful lady works here. I need to come back on a Thursday or Saturday to try the Ube donuts. My...