Randy’s Donuts

Randy’s massive donut sign atop the roof of its drive-thru and walk-up bakery has been an L.A. landmark since it opened in 1953. It even reached celebrity status and was featured in films, including Iron Man 2 and Mars Attacks! While the giant donut may be the most obvious trait, Randy’s surprisingly light and flakey “Glaze” donut is a defining feature and is personally the best I’ve ever had. Their apple fritters are also popular, and with most items under $1, it’s also a great deal.

When my husband and I took our first trip to California in 2011, we wanted to go with the flow and didn’t really have any specific etched-in-stone plans of what we would be doing while we were there - with one exception: we had to stop at Randy’s Donuts; we had seen the humongous roof-top donut fixture featured in a couple of big Blockbuster movies and a Snoop Dogg music video - it was an L.A. landmark not to be missed. On one of our last mornings in L.A., we ordered a mixed half-dozen (around $1 ea. per donut), for just the two of us, and we ate them ALL in the parking lot in our rental car, (while listening to Snoop Dogg) with the massive donut towering over us like a guardian angel; Devil’s Food, Chocolate Olde Fashioned, Creme-Fill, Apple Fritter and two Jelly donuts, did the trick to please our nagging appetites, with two hot-chocolates for the wash-down. The strawberry filling was literally oozing out of the puncture holes of my powdered jelly donuts - it was over-stuffed amazing-ness. Let me tell you, I can never have another jelly-filled donut anywhere else. Living in Miami with Dunkin’ Donuts every 5 blocks makes me yearn for one more big bite of deliciousness at Randy’s Donuts.