Where to Find the Best Doughnuts in Sydney
Fill that doughnut-shaped hole with these sugary treats scattered all over Sydney.
Where to Find the Best Doughnuts in Sydney
Fill that doughnut-shaped hole with these sugary treats scattered all over Sydney.
The humble doughnut has long outgrown its stale reputation as a snack reserved for Homer Simpson, police-folk and school kids. The treat has gained widespread popularity recently, with vendors exploring unique and, at times, outrageous flavour combos.
Luckily for us, there's no shortage of excellent doughnut shops in Sydney, slinging freshly fried rings of joy. You'll find some stuffed with Nutella, topped with matcha, handmade with seasonal ingredients and reimagined as burger buns. If this sounds like your jam, check out our list of the best doughnuts in Sydney.
Recommended reads:
The Best Ice Cream and Gelato in Sydney
The Best Bagels in Sydney
The Best Bakeries in Sydney
The Best Cafes in Sydney
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Founded by long-time doughnut-lover Kenneth Rodrigueza, this sweet little doughnut store specialises in small-batch, handmade doughnuts, spiked with creative Asian flavours. Forget jam, cream and powdered sugar, Rodrigueza prefers to stuff his dough with taro and pandan custard and glaze his rings with sticky matcha brûlée, strawberry sakura and bitter sweet calamansi (Chinese orange).
He has also been known to produce some weird-dough flavours too, including a pepperoni-pizza doughnut, a caramel Vegemite doughnut and a cheese-and-bacon-ball Cheetos doughnut. One of the best things about Donut Papi is its incredibly high turnover, with a fresh batch of fried batter coming out every ten or so minutes. This means you’re never stuck with a sad, stale display doughnut.
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After reaching cult-like status in Melbourne, Shortstop opened the doors of its Sydney outpost in Barangaroo in early 2016 to much fanfare. The success of this Sydney doughnut shop can be boiled down to its unique flavour combos like Earl Grey tea and rose, triple matcha and honey and sea salt.
Each flavour goes through rigorous testing before hitting (and then swiftly disappearing from) shelves, ensuring no wild new flavour combo misses the mark. This store, similar in style to the Melbourne original with light timber finishes, has limited seating. It is much more a grab-and-go affair, perhaps to hit the sweet spot after a luxe long lunch at one of the neighbouring Barangaroo restaurants.
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Feeling a little dusty on Sunday morning? Two words: Grumpy Donuts. There’s no headache these spectacular conglomerations of perfect dough and sugary brilliance cannot handle. Check to see if there’s a weekly special on for a chance to try a tasty, new creation, otherwise, count on a tried-and-tested favourite, such as The Buttered Toast (yep, that’s brekkie and dessert right there).
Other hits include the perfectly sprinkled Pink Somer Donuts, the light and tangy Vanilla Glazed Donut, the classic Cinnamon Cake and the cartoon-looking Choc Somer Donut. It also sells a great range of sodas from Soda Boss, with flavours such as the Grape Chewie, Raspberry Red Frogs and Peach Rings.
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Okay, okay — these technically aren’t doughnuts. But these sweet and spicy doughy swirls are so delicious you’ll barely notice. Originally, Oregano Bakery was a Lebanese pizza store — but boredom led to sugar cravings, so owner Tony Jabbour started making his favourite sweet. Enter the cinnamon scroll. Starting with ten units a day, he now produces more than 3000 daily, and the family-run business distributes its oozing scrolls to hundreds of cafes across Sydney and Melbourne.
The humble bakery in South Hurstville is bright, modestly small and never without a crowd. It’s not just the notorious cinnamon scrolls that sell out: mocha, tahini, honey and walnut, orange and macadamia, chocolate, Nutella and banana, lamington, cookies and cream and salted caramel are also dropping jaws. With sweet, syrupy goodness swirled into each crevasse, they really are moist morsels of joy worth cradling.
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Raw warehouse setting, house-roasted coffee and hearty vegetarian breakfast and dinner menus. When there is so much to love about Two Chaps, it could be easy to overlook the tasty treats that are baked on-site. Until you go up to the register to pay for your bill, that is.
Sitting proudly in and atop the glass display case are a myriad of naughty treats, including croissants, tartlets and flourless cakes. But in a rainbow of colours, the doughnuts really draw the eye. True to its inner west identity, the flavours are far from original: blood orange, blueberry and violet and pomegranate topped with honeycomb. These are easily some of the best doughnuts in Sydney.
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While this Hungarian bakery — with outposts in Randwick, Darlinghurst, Haymarket, Crows Nest and Surry Hills — boasts all manner of gluttonous treats, its namesake is why you visit. Kurtosh, or Kürtoskalács, the titular treat is a chimney-shaped cake made of brioche-like ribbons of pastry, finely coiled and covered with a luscious coating.
The cinnamon and sugar kurtosh is fragrantly reminiscent of delicious doughnuts, yet with coatings like pistachio, Nutella and coconut, the flavours gratify all continental cravings. They are adequately portioned and perfect for sharing between two or as part of a sweet spread among more. Though we really wouldn’t judge anyone for scoffing a few down on their own.
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Duo Duo is probably best known for its deep-fried ice cream and generally being one of the best places to pick up some of the best ice cream and gelato in Sydney. But behind the counter, full of frozen creamy goodness, are shelves packed with incredible doughnuts.
We recommend tucking into a crème brûlée or strawberry, cream and berry jam-filled concoction or going for crowd-pleasers like Biscoff cheesecake and classic original glazed. Pair it with a scoop of ice cream, and there you have a truly excellent gluttonous treat.
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Gluten-conscious and cruelty-free foodies, we bring you tidings of great joy. Thanks to the good folks at Nutie, no longer will you be deprived of doughnuts. Based in Beattie Street, Balmain, Nutie Donuts bakes its goods daily in an open kitchen using premium gluten-free ingredients.
It also offers a variety of vegan and dairy-free options because doughnuts are for everyone. Speaking of options, let’s talk about flavour combinations. Some of the past extravagant creations include pink champagne, black sesame and green tea, and beetroot with dark chocolate ganache. Oh, and don’t worry: despite no gluten in sight, they taste just like the real thing.
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This is one for the south Sydney dwellers. Nestled in the industrial area of Kirrawee, this family-run business is the type of Sydnye doughnut shop every suburb wishes it had. Baked Patisserie was an early adopter of the ‘cronut’ craze. It still sells them — occasionally including a lamington version for patriotic sugar fiends.
Filled doughnuts are also on offer, and they are everything you want from a sweet treat: pillowy-soft dough with a creamy filling (in classic flavours like cookies ‘n’ cream, Nutella and vanilla bean custard) and covered in sugar. Bring on the sugar coma and inevitable sugar crash.
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There’s a relatively new doughnut queen in town, and she’s doing things decidedly differently. After developing a gluten and dairy allergy back in 2017, Yu Ozone refused to give up on her love of food. Instead, she created Comeco, which is serving up gluten (and dairy) free sourdough doughnuts and vegan sushi to the Newtown masses.
All the Sydney doughnuts are made using an organic brown rice sourdough starter, which gives the doughnuts a crisp exterior and a wonderfully chewy inside. Our favourite is the sweet-and-sour passionfruit custard, drizzled with fresh passionfruit pulp. You’ll see plenty of Japanese influence on the menu too, including flavours like red bean, black sesame custard (made with house-roasted seeds) and matcha custard, which uses high-grade organic matcha imported from Japan.
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There has to be something magical about Sweet Belem’s Portuguese tarts that keeps people coming back. Maybe it’s because it strays from tradition and serves them warm and a little bit singed, with gooey, slightly caramelised custard that melts on your tongue, or maybe it’s the satisfying crisp of layered, golden pastry. Either way, the folk at Sweet Belem serve over 1,000 of these little gems a day, often selling out too soon.
Aside from the pastel de nata, there are croissants, milk bread, classic palmiers, Portuguese lamingtons, birthday cakes and, of course, doughnuts. Doughnut-wise, it’s a fairly classic selection that includes cinnamon, egg jam, chocolate and hazelnut and dulce du leche — our favourite.
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Butter is best known as the home of fried chicken, champagne and sneakers — a combo we doubt you’ll find anywhere else in Sydney. But it also slings some of the best doughnuts in Sydney. There’s only one type available — the Hot Cinnamon Donut — and that’s all you need when it’s this good.
Fried fresh, these sugary, pillowy rings of goodness work so well with all the other fried offerings available at Butter. But you don’t need to go all in with the greasy items. You can simply come in to order a cinnamon dough boy and a glass of champagne. Why not feel a little fancy when stuffing your face with doughnuts?
Top image: Donut Papi
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