I am truly at home @ District Doughnut - 97/100

Having a favorite local doughnut shop is the ultimate security blanket for me.  When they day goes south and you haven't had a good doughnut in a long time (sometimes a week feels like an eternity) it's nice to know there's that special place where you can go and get a perfect doughnut every time.

I can't get to District Doughnut every time I need a doughnut, and that's not the key for me.  I realize that I just feel better that it exists in the world and there's some lucky people getting fed those wonderful doughnut creations.  And whether I duck out of work and ride the Metro over for a quick doughnut, or I just let the anticipation build for the next time I can get there, I feel content.

A rainy day brought sunshine by District Doughnut

District has a home in Barracks Row, DC with a great location near the Eastern Market Metro stop and right across from the Marine Barracks (I've seen Marines there!).  Lots of restaurants line 8th Street and District fits right in.  And soon, they will be popping up a Georgetown location for a while!

The view from inside the space
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It's doughnuts and Compass coffee here until they sell out, which definitely happens, and you do need to get there before you miss out, especially on a weekend.  These really are the most decadent doughnuts in DC.  I think they are also the most expensive, along with Astro Doughnuts, but you have to splurge from time to time, and indulge in these finely crafted gourmet doughnuts.

The selection process, so difficult to choose!

The District counter displays your choices for the day.  The "Brown Butter" is a constant there, a yeast doughnut with cinnamon coating and brown butter icing.  I have enjoyed this doughnut and it's a pretty solid regular and something different than the standard plain glazed yeast doughnut.  Many of the other flavors rotate on the season or just for a weekly change of pace.

The District Doughnuts are a huge hit at work

The greatest doughnut of them all is the "Cannoli".  This creation is so perfect I find it difficult to communicate my true feelings.  The best way to describe it are "ecstasy", "pure bliss", "dessert paradise", "the greatest", and "I eat this doughnut, therefore I am". It's the fluffy yeast lightness, fried to perfection, hit with cocoa powder, and filled with a glorious cannoli filling that is perfect for a doughnut.  Creamy, sweet, ricotta-goodness, chocolate chip-ness filling that just makes you want to curl up inside the doughnut with the filling.  I'm not exaggerating here, I would be buried inside one of these doughnuts if possible.

They have boxes that hold 24 doughnuts for large orders!

The "Salted Dulce de Leche" is my second favorite at District and if I can eat one of these alongside a "Cannoli", I can pretty much consider my day a success with no further effort.  It's a caramel delight in both the filling and the topping that really puts me over the edge.  Salted caramel is a personal favorite so this is fitting right into my pleasure zone.

A special District Doughnut spread including the cake bite holes

Some of the other recent featured flavors include Baklava, Chocolate Creme Brulee (with an on-the-spot torching!), Mocha Crunch, and the Fluffernutter (combining peanut butter and marshmallow).

Their cake donut holes are even big and decadent!  They often have vanilla bean glazed and I've been able to pre-order chocolate and snickerdoodle ones for a special occasion.  Delivery can be made through Postmates, so keep that in mind!

Make sure you show them your #Doughface!

District Doughnut
749 8th St SE
Washington, DC 20003

Quick Score - 10 out of 10 - This is pure gourmet goodness at its finest.
Donut Quality - 9 out of 10 - They are always well crafted with the finest ingredients.  There was an occasion where some filled doughnuts were light on the filling, but it was a one-time thing.
Donut Selection - 10 out of 10 - It's just that any more choices and I either would not be able to decide on a couple and I'd have to eat a dozen.
Donut Freshness - 10 out of 10 - These are always daily fresh doughnuts that just do not taste the same too late in the day or the next morning so gobble them down!
Service - 10 out of 10- People are always friendly and good with questions about the doughnuts and what they have going on with the different flavor combinations.
Extras - 9 out of 10 - Coffee is very good and the new Georgetown popup will do espresso drinks.  Maybe they will adopt that at the Barracks Row location for more coffee options.
Appeal - 10 out of 10 - It's just a fun doughnut haven.
Emotion - 10 out of 10 - I just got such strong emotions at the thought of District and this Cannoli doughnut does things to my brain that many other doughnuts don't do.
Other's Rating - 10 out of 10 - There's great ratings out there and then you got some national media attention such as Thrillist's "Top 33 Doughnut Shops in America"
Price - 4 out of 5 - This is DC and we pay high prices.  These are gourmet and they are way worth it, but there are times where a dozen for the office are just a little too much.  I would have to note, I have seen people want to bring doughnuts to the office and realize these are just a little too much.
Doughnut Dunkability - 5 out of 5 - You want to dunk a yeast, you're set.  You want to dunk a cake, you're set.  You want to dunk a cake bite, you're set.  They all taste great in the coffee.

The Joy of Duck Donuts - 97/100

There are many places of donut lore I am still waiting to experience.  Voodoo, Blue Star, and Gordough's are just a few of the legends still on my list to taste.   But there's one I finally got to cross of my list, and I have been back several times!  This franchise is having a lot of success right now with more locations opening in Virginia, and it is just the kind of small chain that I readily support.  I've had the pleasure of conversing with folks who've eaten at Duck, and laud the warm, delicious donuts they serve.  I've been to the Fairfax and Arlington locations multiple times.  And this year, Duck was the site of my first donut of the New Year, a January 1 treat to start the next year of donuts off right!

The glory inside awaits

The formula is simple.  A warm donut is a delicious donut.  You can pick your icings, pick your toppings, and watch the donut makers get to it.  There's a donut assembly line with things being started with the "donut river" machine where batter drops into the fryer, cooks, flips, and is deposited in the ready plate.  I've seen employees check them out, pick them up, and remove the inferior ones, and it is a nice sign of quality control.

The box from the first Duck Donuts experience

Choices are set with a series of glazes and toppings that give a good variety, but are not overwhelming.  I wouldn't mind having a few more choices but you still get the basics to choose from, and the peanut butter, strawberry, and lemon glazes are very special to me.  Toppings include sprinkles, peanuts, bacon, and coconut, and more that allow for some really nice combinations.

It's the warmness of the donut and how it just melts in your mouth when you bite into it which seals the deal for me.  It's so soft and fluffy and the glaze just gets melted a little bit from the donut.  Their glazes are not too sugary in my mind, they are just right.  And the batter has a more yellow color to it than I've experienced at many donut shops.  I think the egg yolks are generous and makes it so yellow and delicious for me.

Inside a Maple Bacon

This dough is so good that Duck is the only place I've chosen a "Bare" donut with nothing on it at all.  The warm, fried, plain donut is wonderful being dipped in a hot coffee.  These donuts warm well in the microwave later so they are perfect for having some at the shop, and having plenty of leftovers.

A nice Duck Donuts spread

They are usually pretty generous on toppings but there's really only 5 to choose from (Chocolate Sprinkles, Rainbow Sprinkles, Coconut, Peanuts, and Bacon.  And it feels like you only get 1 topping per donut.  I tried getting them to put two types of sprinkles on my donut once and it just wasn't done.  And if I wanted bacon + peanuts on a donut, I wonder if they will fill that order?  Maybe an idea for my next visit!

Duck Donuts 

Multiple Locations on the East Coast

Quick Score - 10 out of 10 - Having all warm donuts makes for a great score.  
Donut Quality - 10 out of 10 - They are just the perfect combination of dough, sweet-but-not-overly sweet icings, and nice toppings.
Donut Selection - 9 out of 10 - It's all up to your imagination on what you're going to create, and there's good options to get a good variety going.  But there could always be more.  
Donut Freshness - 10 out of 10 - There's just no danger of getting a stale donut.
Service - 10 out of 10- People are always friendly.  Lines can become long and service may appear slow for those who just want to grab a donut and go, but the wait is really worth it.
Extras - 9 out of 10 - Coffee is fine but nothing to get real excited about.  This place isn't about the extras though so it's okay.
Appeal - 10 out of 10 - A fun place to bring joy to donut lovers and make new ones.
Emotion - 10 out of 10 - These donuts are just so fabulous and it's a fun place to go.  It really is the joy that Duck brings me.
Other's Rating - 10 out of 10 - There's great ratings out there and it's more the word of mouth that really got me excited about this place well in advance of going there.
Price - 5 out of 5 - It is pretty competitive and it really feels worthwhile since you're getting the donut made for you on the spot.
Donut Dunkability - 4 out of 5 - Really good tasting these donuts in coffee.  But no donut holes, and this seems like it happens way more often than it should.  Why no donut holes served warm out of the fryer with cinnamon sugar and/or dipped in glazes?  I would love to get their donut batter in donut hole form.

Total - 97