Here they are: the tastiest, most culturally specific doughnuts in L.A.

A generous dusting of matcha powder. A drizzle of taro icing. A filling of red bean paste. The ingenuity of scrappy doughnut shop owners has made Los Angeles the unofficial doughnut capital of the United States, with 680 shops in L.A. County alone. And from the moment doughnuts hit Southern California, this creativity has been tethered to immigrant culture.

Cambodian refugee Ted Ngoy touched down in San Diego’s Camp Pendleton on a military jet in 1975 with his wife and children. Months later, Ngoy signed himself up for a managerial training program at Winchell’s Donut House, his heart set on owning his own shop one day. Not only did he achieve that goal when he bought a Christy’s Donuts shop in La Habra, Calif., in 1977, but Ngoy began making small changes, tweaking existing recipes and frying multiple fresh batches of doughnuts a day instead of just two. As a result, Christy’s Donuts became more popular than ever and, by 1980, he owned 20 Christy’s Donuts locations. Also the first to package doughnuts in light pink boxes, when Ngoy realized he was getting his own taste of California gold, he began sponsoring visas for Cambodian immigrants to start their own shops. Southern California is now rich with local doughnut chains and independently owned shops, many owned by first-generation and second-generation Cambodian immigrants. “The Donut King,� a 2020 documentary, tells the story of Ngoy’s life.

For Ngoy and those he helped to open their own doughnut shops, the focus was on improving service, refining recipes and creating a formula for success that could be replicated for years to come. It’s this steadfastness that’s given second-generation and even third-generation doughnut shop owners the freedom to experiment and introduce new ingredients and flavors that honor their culinary heritage.

“Nobody gets to the next stage without help. My mom helped my aunt get a store. My aunt helped her cousin get a store. You bring everyone with you,� said Jennie Fou Lee, who took ownership of L.A.’s DK’s Donuts in 2021. “Our parents’ generation are either selling their shops or closing down. There’s a group of us that are taking over and taking everything into the next era. We all have kids now, so we want our kids to see what their grandparents have built.�

“The doughnut is very enigmatic,� said Nile Dreiling, owner of Holey Grail Donuts, a taro doughnut mini-chain that was founded in Hawaii and opened a bricks-and-mortar shop in Santa Monica in December 2022. “It’s a platform for our values [and] a teacher about a very accessible product.�

Food

How these Chinese doughnuts helped save my refugee family

Golden crullers, dipped in soy or served with rice porridge, are more than breakfast — they’re a symbol of resilience

Sept. 5, 2022

This devotion to doughnuts can’t be found in any other city. While Dunkin’ dominates the average American doughnut experience with its straightforward menu of fritters, crullers and sprinkle-topped rings, L.A.’s mom-and-pop doughnut shops have always stood out for their international flavors. From Japanese-style tofu doughnuts to traditional Greek loukoumades, here are eight doughnut shops that are adding a cultural spin to the classic dessert.