I’m originally from Moscow, but my family escaped communism and immigrated to the states when I was young. I grew up in Sacramento until 9, then moved to LA. I graduated from Cal State with a BA in Marketing. I’m passionate about comic books, films and outdoorsy things like hiking. I’m currently working for the city of LA.

My love of donuts started early when I was about 10-years-old. I remember going to this donut shop by my house in Brentwood with my family all the time. And I’m by no means religious, but I used to go to church with another side of the family and they would always have donuts and coffee there. Imagine a 13-year-old, enjoying coffee and extra sugar…

That’s the thing about donuts, though. They bring everyone together. I love the concept of people talking and sharing stories from the day.

Much like other food bloggers, I posted a lot of food pics on my personal account. Friends encouraged me to share it with the public. 

The nickname “The Duke of Donuts” came from my good friend, Nick. I have a dramatic flair about myself, especially when I talk about things I’m passionate about. It’s fun to throw a little bit of eloquence there with the Duke part.

The whole top hat and shirt was a step-by-step process. First, I had the shirt: a college friend gave it to me from H&M — which is now out of print, by the way, so it’s nice to have a bit of uniqueness to my costume. Then the top hat is something I put together because I love hats. I found the original hat from an old Day of the Dead costume, and I spray painted it black. A few years ago, I was visiting my girlfriend’s family in D.C. and left the hat on a subway train. I felt like it belongs in D.C. with Lincoln’s statue, so it’s all good.

I hunted for a new hat and slowly but surely I’m putting new styles together. A cane might not be a bad idea…

The Duke of Donuts enjoying a plate of Trejo’s treats in full costume.

My girlfriend is very supportive and encouraging. The funny part is she’s not a huge fan of donuts. Any photo of myself is either taken by her or my friends. My buddy Max also helps with filming.

The perfect donut has a lot to do with the process and what they use for ingredients. Even if you have to pay a little more for quality, it does make a difference. Time spent on shelf is important too. A lot of shops leave out their donuts for awhile, but no one wants stale or dry food. Randy’s is the best of the 24-donut spots here in LA. They don’t go too crazy with the ingredients so it’s easier for them to keep manufacturing fresh ones.

LA:

• Birdie’s LA and they also do really good breakfast sandwiches
• Blinkie’s Donut Emporium
• Broadway Donuts in Long Beach
• Donut Farm
• Kettle Glazed Donuts in Hollywood
• Primo’s near Culver City
• Randy’s in Inglewood: Affordable (under $2) and open 24/7
• Sidecar in Santa Monica
• SK Donuts in Wilshire
• Spudnuts in the Valley
• Stan’s OG location in Westwood. It’s a smaller operation than the Chicago chain, but they don’t have to get too crazy with the flavors.
• Sweet Retreat off the Pacific Coast Highway near Long Beach
• Trejo’s puts a unique Latin spin on donuts — check out their nacho donut and the Abuelita hot chocolate donut

Other Cities:

• Firecakes in Chicago
• Do-Rite Donuts in Chicago
• Angel Food Bakery in Minneapolis
• Cardigan Donuts in Minneapolis
• The Rolling Pin in Toronto
• Cartems Donuts in Vancouver
• Glazed Artisan in NJ: I really liked their Italian Donut and the Cannoli Donut was to die for! 
• Disney also has some really fun donuts

“Up” Disneyland Donut

Dole Whip Pineapple Donut from Disneyland

I hear the donut scene in New York is fabulous. I really want to try Peter Pan Donuts, Dough, so many more…and it wouldn’t hurt to try out some pizza too.

There are a few others in the Midwest, like Glam Doll Donuts, and Rhode Island, like PVDonuts. And I’m jealous you’re near Gourdough’s in Texas!

Dine LA is a digital publication that promotes everything food-related for the city. The Donut Trek was more of a go-at-your-own-pace challenge versus a festival. It was a great way to bring more awareness to the donut shops around the LA area. It was cool to see these shops create unique donuts just for the monthly event too. The downside was that some donut shops weren’t really advertising it. For instance, Randy’s did a Golden Dusted Donut, but I was told in-store that it was only a seasonal donut. Then when I went home Dine LA posted that there was “only 24-hours left and make sure to get your Golden Dusted Donut!” I was like “Are you for real?!” Luckily, I went to the Randy’s in Century City and they had one there.

Overall, it was a fun event. I just think that some of the donut shops need to make sure they’re on the same page with Dine LA and the advertising.

As for the DTLA Donut Festival, you’d be surprised to know I didn’t eat one donut there! By the time I got to the front of the line around 9 am, the donut shops ran out of donuts. There was communication issues, not knowing how many people would show up. There wasn’t much line control either, so it was one huge blob. People were upset they couldn’t get their donuts, which is reasonable. For me personally, I knew I could just drive to these places on my own, so it wasn’t a huge deal.

The best donut festival I ever went to was hosted by the Salvation Army in a warehouse a few years back. They sold a certain amount of tickets ahead of time and cut it off.

For me, I don’t really care about monetizing. It’s more of a passion project. I’ve made a lot of new friends at these donut shops, and I mean life-long friends. I’ve known Spudnuts forever — they were the first shop I ever reviewed — and they’re  like family to me. I’ve also had the opportunity to attend cool little events at Trejo’s Coffee & Donuts. I got to meet Danny Trejo multiple times, he’s a very sweet man. I interviewed him too:

As interesting as the donuts are, I find the people behind the donuts to be more interesting. So the blog is about meeting new people and sharing stories. Eventually, I’m looking to create a donut documentary.

The Duke of Donuts with Danny Trejo from Trejo’s Coffee & Donuts in LA

The Duke of Donuts at Grizzby’s Biscuits & Donuts (Claremont, CA)

I spend more time on my blog. As far as the videos go, I work with my film partner, Max. We went to high school together. He does all the filming, directing, and editing.

I do the networking, connecting with the shops, building rapport, writing the posts, taking the photos. I typically use my Samsung Galaxy S8. I also have a Canon 7D SLR. Max will shoot with a Canon SLR as well. We have a mic on top and sometimes we’ll use LED lighting and reflectors. I use VSCO, Facetune and Color Story to edit my photos, and Max uses Adobe Premiere for film editing.

It’s always a learning opportunity because I can always improve.

Number one for me would be Abraham Lincoln because I have a deep fascination with him. I’ve read that despite how melancholy he appeared, he was actually a very colorful and positive person. It’d be a really fun photo with our top hats too! I’m reading an interesting book about him now called Team of Rivals.

Another person I’m fascinated by is Winston Churchill. He sounds like a really fun dude and it’d be interesting to pick his brain.

The third person would be Robin Williams. He’s probably my favorite actor of all time. He would be a really fun person to enjoy a donut with. I can only imagine his facial expressions and reactions.

I really enjoy reading about history. When I was in D.C., I was losing my mind at the American History Museum! I’m just really fascinated by people and the feats they’ve accomplished.

1. Yeast vs. Cake
2. Coffee vs. Tea
3. Vanilla vs. Chocolate
4. Ranch on Anything: Yes! I love dipping pizza in ranch. Or wings, french fries, thick onion rings…but I’m not a fan of ketchup or mayo.
5. Thin Crust vs. Deep Dish: I really enjoyed Lou Malnati’s and Giordano’s.
6. Favorite Movie: The Thing with Kurt Russell, Hook, Mrs. Doubtfire, Indiana Jones, Back to the Future, Jaws, Jurassic Park.

This is going to sound cheesy, but I’m grateful for my circle of friends and my girlfriend. They’re very supportive.

I’m looking forward to a big travel trip with my girlfriend. We’re thinking Croatia or somewhere in Europe.

If you’re looking for a blog with a heart of gold and enjoy reading coloring writing, feel free to hit up @thedukeofdonuts. Keep a look out on my YouTube channel too. 

I’d also add that any time you go to a donut shop, talk to the people who work there. Get to know the owners, make those friendships. I think people go in and out and don’t talk to the employees. It totally makes a difference when you have a relationship with the people who work there. It’s gonna sound weird, but the donuts and the coffee do taste better when you know the people behind them.