Donut Run — Restaurant in Washington

I think this place is a tad bit overhyped but definitely worth at least one trip to give it a try. I read the other reviews about how quickly things sell out so I got there around 6:50am on a Saturday morning and there were about 20 people already lined up (socially distanced of course). The line moved pretty quickly, I was probably in the store in less than 15 minutes after opening.

The best thing here was by far the donut holes. Perfectly yeasted and puffy, with a thin sweet (but not overly sweet glaze). It's 10 per order but I definitely got close to 20. The next best thing was the cinnamon sugar cake donut. I usually don't like cake donuts but I decided to try this one and it was perfectly moist and delicious. Kind of reminded me of entenmanns from back in the day.

The rest of the donuts were actually kind of disappointing. The overarching problem was the texture, not the flavor. These donuts are more pillowy with a tight crumb rather than yeasty and chewy with a larger crumb and a springier texture. This meant that when you bite the donut it sinks under its own weight and does not puff back up. This was especially a problem with the filled donuts which completely collapsed once bitten into. The Boston creme also has an extremely thick layer of chocolate frosting which made it more susceptible to collapsing. The raspberry filled was saved by the raspberry jam which was absolutely delicious, tart, and not overly sweet. However, it suffered from the same texture issue and the donut became dense and not fluffy once bitten into.

The following donuts had the same texture issues as I described so I'll just comment on the flavors:

Payday: I love peanut butter but this was actually overly peanutty. It needed something else to counteract the rich nuttiness.

Snickers: this was like the improved version of the payday. Chocolate icing with peanuts make for a classic and delicious combination.

Cookies and cream: not a huge Oreo fan, but if that's your thing you'll probably enjoy this. Large chunks of Oreo over a (vanilla?) cream icing.

Also, they only serve hot coffee. I wish they had iced coffee especially during the warmer months. The donuts are quite large; I was only able to eat a very small piece of each one. If you plan on eating the entire donut definitely don't get more than two. I love that donut run is committed to being fully vegan. They need to make more donuts and extend their hours--clearly the demand is there.

I suggest you try ordering from Elizabeth’s Counter. Their vegan donuts are fluffier and chewier, they don’t artificially decrease supply, they are open every day all day, and best part is they deliver. There’s no need to wake up at an ungodly hour on a weekend for...

I don't even know where to start...Donut Run, DC's first ever vegan doughnut shop, has been on my bucket list ever since they first opened their doors in Takoma in 2021. I only just managed to finally make the trek up to Takoma and...wow...it left me genuinely speechless. The doughnuts are absolutely incredible, and I don't just mean in the "good for a vegan dessert" way. Their doughnuts are decadent and have such a delightful variety of flavors. Their classic yeast doughnut are soft and pillowy, with a super airy and fluffy texture that makes them almost feel weightless (dangerously so). My friend and I tried their pistachio lemon doughnut, which came with a gorgeous pistachio icing and dollop of lemon cream in the center. The doughnut was predominantly pistachio flavored, since the lemon was so concentrated in one part, but I loved the combination -- the doughnut was nutty, citrusy, and sweet, all at the same time.

On the complete other end of the spectrum, their cake doughnut were remarkably dense and moist, with a rich, almost velvety doughnut that just screamed decadence. We got their apple cider doughnut, which was the perfect celebration of the beginning of fall in DC. It had a delightfully fruity and slightly spiced flavor, and the extra cinnamon sugar gave the outside a slight crunch. The doughnut were incredible on their own, but especially delightful when paired with a hot cup of coffee.

There isn't really any space to sit in Donut Run, which is unfortunate because the shop constantly smells absolutely divine from all the doughnuts. However, the staff is super friendly and will offer recommendations on other local spots where you can enjoy your treats; a classic favorite is Lost Sock Coffee Roasters, which is just across the street. The line is also often quite long at Donut Run, so you should expect to wait upward of 20 minutes on the weekends and/or for them to have run out a good chunk of the flavors if you go later in the afternoon. However, it is always worth the morning trek and the long wait, and, even if you can only get there a bit later, every single item on their menu is incredible so it's a great excuse to try...

Donuts here are good, not great. Don't get me wrong: they're tasty. The problem is they drop the ball in places where they could easily capitalize on what they've got going for them. Example 1: the lemon pistachio donut. The flavors are great: the pistachio frosting is subtle but present, the lemon whip is tangy but sweet, and there's a sort of pistachio jelly layered under the lemon. Beautiful. Here's the problem: those work best as a complete bite. The whip only exists in the middle where the donut hole would be, and the donut itself is a massive amount of real estate to cover in one bite. Example 2: the crumb cake donut. The cake is moist and has a good subtle chocolate flavor. How do you capitalize on it? With a simple sugar glaze and crumbs of something generic that varied in texture. It's such a good base and it feels like a waste to not even dress up the glaze with some vanilla. Example 3: death by chocolate. Great chocolate frosting, nice addition of chips, an actual filling!...but it's chocolate pudding. Why not a sugar creme? Or an avocado cocoa mousse? Death by chocolate needs decadence that pudding dilutes. Example 4: creme brulee. Great idea. Caramelized sugar she'll executed beautifully. Custard is...just in the middle, not a filling. So most of the donut is me just biting into a still massive yeast donut while approaching the crisp sugar. So close. Example 5: maple/coffee donut. Maple flavor typically stands well on it's own. It's a more subtle sweet rather than sugary, normally, which was why I was surprised that this was quite grainy in its frosting. It could have been balanced by the coffee whip but... once again, it was relegated to the middle of the donut. Argh!

Look, I know people love these, and I agree that they are good donuts. I just think that for the price point, I expect great donuts and these just aren't quite there yet. I look forward to how these...