Philadelphia, PA - The doughnut (or donut) is the round symbol of infinite indulgence. Philly bakeries and restaurants offer a wide variety of sweet treats dusted with a sugary blend, stuffed with a variety of sweet surprises, or glazed with any number of fantastic flavors. Doughnut devotion has grown in recent years with the opening of Federal Donuts, featuring fancy donuts and fried chicken at outposts around the city. Still, long-standing city bakeries have all but perfected the fried delight.
Listed below, we’ve rounded up a few of our favorite doughnut and doughnut-inspired dishes found in and around the city that will bring out your inner foodie.
- Beiler’s Doughnuts - Located in the Reading Terminal Market, Beiler’s offers a wide variety of authentic, homemade Pennsylvania Dutch doughnuts. With up to 40 varieties on display in a mouthwatering showcase, including hand-filled, bacon-covered, and apple fritters, you should be prepared to walk away with at least a dozen new doughnut friends. Be sure to browse Beiler’s Bakery across the aisle for handmade sticky buns, rolls, and traditional Whoopie Pies. Location: 51 N. 12th St.
- Federal Donuts - Arguably putting Philadelphia on the map for doughnut gourmands, Federal Donuts has solidified its reputation with just two items: doughnuts and fried chicken. But it is the variety of flavors that have locals and visitors alike making the trek to Federal Donuts’ five locations (Pennsport, Rittenhouse, University City, Northern Liberties, and Citizens Bank Park). Choose from doughnuts hot-and-fresh from the fryer then dusted with creative sugar spice blends or the more cake-like fancy varieties in a rotating selection of flavors like cookies and cream, sticky bun, and spicy peanut butter and jelly. Bonus: Getting married? Federal Donuts can make you a towering cake of doughnuts for your special day.
Five Locations: 1219 S. 2nd St. | 1632 Sansom St. | 3428 Sansom St. | 701 N. 7th St. | 1 Citizens Bank Park Way - Frangelli’s Bakery - Since 1947, Frangelli’s Bakery in South Philadelphia has been cranking out fresh-made doughnuts and traditional pastries daily. Each morning, Frangelli’s creates more than 500 doughnuts, including hand-glazed and filled doughnuts, which the Huffington Post considers among the “Dozen Best Donuts in America.” In recent years, Frangelli’s has branched out from tradition by creating the delicious ice cream doughnut, a doughnut halved and filled with a scoop of ice cream, and the Franolli, a monster-sized doughnut filled with fresh cannoli cream and tiny chocolate chips. Location: 847 West Ritner Street
- Underground Donuts - A roving food truck devoted to the doughnut, Undrgrnd Donuts makes up for its lack of vowels with a bevy of wild doughnut concoctions. Hot doughnuts can be dunked, dipped, or swirled into the rotating selection of flavorful combinations like the Wake-Up, with chocolate glaze, expresso dust, and a cream swirl; the Captain Kranky, featuring a strawberry glaze topped with Captain Crunch cereal; or The Homer with vanilla glaze, raw sugar, and chocolate bacon chunks. Mmmm. Chocolate bacon chunks. Location: Roving
- Dottie’s Donuts - A following is steadily growing for the vegan delicacies from Dottie’s Donuts, found in select coffee shops throughout the city, including Green Line Cafe, Hub Bub, and Elixr. You can find the delicious vegan doughnuts in an ever-changing variety of flavors ranging from classic cinnamon and sugar flavors, fresh flavors like lemon lavender, and out-of-bounds creations like vegan maple bacon. For the latest flavors and locations, click the button below. Locations: Coffee Shops throughout the city
- Swiss Haus - Walk down 19th between Market and Chestnut Streets, and you’ll likely get a whiff of the sweet, century-old European recipes Swiss Haus uses to create their amazing cakes, pastries, and cookies. Swiss Haus eschews traditional doughnuts, instead offering the indulgent Swiss Cro-Creme. The flaky doughnut (no relation to the famous Cronut) is made with croissant dough, rolled in cinnamon sugar then filled with pastry creme. Location: 35 S. 19th St.
- Suzy Jo’s - First opened in Montgomery County in 1955, Suzy-Jo Donuts has been making handmade, affordable doughnuts ever since. Doughnuts start at just $1 a piece ($8.99 per dozen) and feature tasty varieties like the peanut butter fluff-filled doughnut (with or without nuts), sour cream doughnuts, or chocolate-iced Devil’s food cake. Suzy-Jo has three locations in the region, and most shops close in the afternoon, so don’t delay getting your doughnut fix. Three Locations: 49 E. Fourth St., Bridgeport | 205 W. Germantown Pk., East Norriton | 301 N. Lewis Road, Limerick
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