GENEVA’S BEST DONUT SHOPS
by Alana Dunsmore
Finding even more sugary treats whilst you’re already indulging in chocolates from advent calendars, candy canes and Christmas cookies, is probably not your top priority right now. However, this has been a pretty awful year, so ending it on a very sweet note is just fine with us. We’ve been watching Geneva’s ‘donut-wars’ (our kind of war!) for a while and we thought we’d settle the score once and for all by testing them all!
We try the Christmas-themed donuts at three local donut shops with some mouth-watering results:
THE HOMER SIMPSON-STYLE DONUT – Ginger Donuts
This new donut shop, which opened this year, is close to our home in Eaux-Vives, and honestly, we probably go there more than we should because it is so close. That said, it’s worth the trip from anywhere in the city, and the longer the walk to get there, the better you will feel about about eating these massive donuts (the biggest and sweetest we tried). Their style is classic, with a good amount of flair! These donuts remind you of the classic American hand-made donut shop. They are fresh, soft and super tasty. There is no sit-down option in Ginger Donuts, everything is takeaway.
We sample the sprinkled glazed donut, the cinnamon donut and the limited special Biere de Noel. My husband calls the sprinkled glazed donut the ‘Homer Simpson” because it reminds him of the ones from the show. It is super sweet but also nice and light, definitely a classic for a reason. The tasty cinnamon donut is one of the few non-glazed and non-chocolate options and it is my son’s absolute favourite. He ends up ear to ear in cinnamon and sugar. Finally, the Biere de Noel is a limited time option, but has a delicious fruity spice, similar in taste to what you would find in a Belgian Christmas beer.
My seven year old says: “Prepare to get messy!”
Pro tip: Call ahead the day before to place an order before you go! On Saturday morning this place opens at 9am and usually there is already a line of about 10 people by then. They routinely sell out for the entire day within an hour on the weekend, but if you call ahead they’ll set aside an order for you so you don’t have to be up before dawn.
WHERE
rue des Eaux-Vives 3, Geneva
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LE PLUS SUISSE DES DONUTS – Donuts Factory
Donuts Factory call their products “Le plus Suisse des donuts” because of their focus on locally-sourced ingredients, which is a nice touch. Donuts Factory is located between the Cornavin and Servette, and easy to get to by foot or tram. Staff are very friendly and allow us to take some pictures of their treats. These donuts are very tasty and not too sweet with a cake-y base and some really unique toppings. There is a place to sit with your friend and chat over donuts and coffee/latte (provided the cantonal rules allow in-person dining), or you can get a takeaway.
We sampled the speculoos donut, the Christmas candy donut and the gingerbread donut. We couldn’t decide what to choose so we each had a taste of all three. We felt these donuts had really unique flavours, and my son saved the real candy cane on the Christmas candy donut for the end. These donuts would be a perfect mid-day snack, not overly sweet, and you can eat them and escape relatively clean (if you want to). They were all so tasty, we will be back!
Our seven-year old critic says: “If there are two of you, get two donuts and cut them in half to share”. His recommendation is the speculoos donut.
Pro tip: Donuts Factory has an opportunity this December to order a box of six special holiday-themed donuts to be picked up on December 24th or 31st.
WHERE
rue Tronchin 30
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TASTY SURPRISE – Loops and Coffee
Our final stop is Loops and Coffee in the Plainpalais area. Loops and Coffee has a few different locations in Europe, and the Geneva shop is getting into the Christmas spirit. This would be a great spot to warm up after a tour of the Plainpalais market. They have a number of unique donuts with interesting toppings, as well as a full range of hot and cold drinks. They also offer bagels, smoothies, milkshakes and more. There are plenty of tables to sit down and enjoy your treats in-house.
We sampled three of their Christmas-themed donuts. Each of the ones we tried had a special treat in the middle, much like unwrapping a present to get to the goodie inside! First we had a standard ‘snowflake’ Berlin-style cream filled donut which had plenty of filling, but not overbearingly sweet. Second was a first for me, a Berlin-style gingerbread man adorned donut, but with a dulce de leche filling, that was quite the treat! Finally, we had the star of the show, the Ferrero Rocher chocolate donut with the classic hazelnut & chocolate treat in the donut hole. Festive and fun for sure.
Our seven year old says: “The Christmas donut designs are really neat, and they have nice decorations in the store. You can see Santa having a coffee and a donut”
Pro tip: For a limited time you can pre-order boxes of 6 or 12 holiday-themed donuts for 25 or 35 CHF. This offer is only available if you order ahead and only between the 18th and 25 of December, so look into it soon!
WHERE
Boulevard Carl-Vogt 71
MORE INFO
OUR VERDICT
We will definitely be tasting these yummy sugary treats again! Whether it’s to find donuts that would make Homer Simpson jealous or to have the ‘plus Suisse’ donut or to discover a yummy surprise, we’ll definitely be visiting all 3 donut shops in Geneva for our next sugary high!
