Mighty-O Donuts

Another day, another donut shop.

Today, my goal was to complete the shootout for best donut in Seattle … and by proxy, best donut in the solar system.

After yesterday’s trip to Top Pot Hand-Forged Doughnuts, it was time to go to the Food Channel’s winner for Best Donut Shop in the USA … Mighty-O Donuts.

At around noon, I hopped on my Humvee and headed north to Wallingford.

I like Wallingford. It’s peaceful, tranquil, and overwhelmingly caucasian. As urban neighborhoods go, it’s very “pretty” … for lack of a better word. It’s also home of the formerly-great Food Giant, which is now a QFC.

I rode up Wallingford to 55th street, parked my Porsche 911 outside, then stared at the main sign for a moment. “Why is this place called Mighty-O?”, I wondered.

I went through every permutation I could possibly think of, but the only thing I could come up with was “mighty orgasm”. Perhaps the donuts are supposed to induce one. I dunno.

I banished the thought and went inside.

The interior of Mighty-O is very pleasant and laid back. It looks like a coffee shop, and this being Seattle, of course they also sell caffeine. There were fewer hipsters and more secure normal people sitting around the dining room, and I appreciated this. Nothing against hipsters really, I live amongst them, but a break every now and then from the constant posing is kind of nice.

Since this shop was a little more distant, and required a trip over the ominous University Bridge (which eats scooter tires for the fun of it), I decided to get several donuts.

I had a list that we made before I left from the Might-O website, and I ordered the following donuts:

DON King
Grasshopper
French Toast
Cookies and Cream
Nutty Chocolate
Lots O’ Chocolate

The employees were polite enough, bagging each donut as I rattled them off, and giving me correct change for my bills. What more could I ask for?

Having stowed my loot under my seat, I cut a path home through the U District, crossed the evil bridge again by cheating in the bicycle lane, and made my way back to my Pike/Pine environs.

When I got back, it was time for the taste test. This time, no fewer than 4 people were involved in the sampling, and since all of them had eaten at Top Pot before, I felt the judges were qualified.

We cut pieces out of each donut, passed them around, and I took mental notes of the reactions.

The verdict?

Extremely positive all around.

Supposedly, Mighty-O donuts are vegan, organic, and contain “no products made from animals”. I washed my donuts down with a glass of milk, which I assume was a slap in the face to O ownership, but what can I tell you. To each their own.

Overall, Mighty-O donuts are exceptional. The outer ring of the cake is firm and “crunchy”, while the inner layer is soft and moist. I feel like they really perfected the cake part of the donut. The glazes are a bit on the sweet side, but I like them this way. The whole point of a donut is to get a sugary punch in the mouth.

So, who is better? Top Pot Hand-Forged Doughnuts or Mighty-O Donuts?

I’m not sure yet.

I need to convene a meeting of the rhesus monkeys who assisted in the taste test and come to a conclusion.

Stay tuned.

Additional Info:

Happy Hour Daily (half off all donuts) 4pm – 5pm

Free Mighty-O Donuts to Celebrate Food Network Challenge Victory. They will be hosting a viewing party on April 27th from 5:30 to 7:30. Address: 2110 N 55th St. Seattle, WA 98103