We love trying new foods everywhere we go. We mostly enjoy trying the popular local cuisine to get a sense of their culture. Living in Boston, we quickly realized that this city LOVES donuts and coffee. I mean, they go perfectly together, so it makes sense. So before leaving Boston, we put together a donut tour of Boston. It was one of the most fun activities and we got to try so many unique flavors of donuts.
Important tip before continuing: trying donuts at all the stops will leave you exhausted and full of sugar. We recommend splitting donuts amongst a group. We also recommend cutting the donuts with salty foods as well. Make sure to stay hydrated and try your best to walk between donut shops to walk down some of the sugary treats.
The Tour Route
The most important part of the tour is the donut route! We will be doing a mix of walking and taking the train for this donut tour of Boston. On the map, there are additional shops that you should check out even if they don’t fit well in this tour route. Additionally, feel free to change up the route, and the stops, and even do the tour over the course of multiple days (then report back to me so we can hear all about your favorite donuts).
Starting: North End
We will start fresh and early in North End at our absolute favorite bakery in all of Boston. We have gushed and raved about Bova’s many times, but fun fact: the first time we ever went to Bova’s was for our donut tour of Boston. Then we couldn’t stop going back.
Bova’s
Bova’s Bakery offers many, many different delicious baked goods. While I can’t stop you from being tempted by the peanut butter bomb, whoopie pies, cannolis, or many cookies we are on a donut tour so also get a Boston Creme Donut while you’re there. This is a cake donut (baked not fried) and then it is cut in half to be filled with custard. The top is coated with a delicious chocolate ganache.
Address: 134 Salem Street, Boston, MA 02113
Hours: Open 24/7/365
From Bova’s Bakery, we will walk over to Red Farm Donuts in the Boston Public Market. It is an easy walk from the North End to this downtown stop.
Red Farm Donuts
Fall is an important time of year in New England. One of the key parts of celebrating fall is Apple picking, apple cider, and apple cider donuts. Of course, if you’re going to get the best apple cider donuts, then you need to go to Red Farm Donuts in the Boston Public Market. They are made fresh in front of you. You really can’t help but popping several warm donuts into your mouth while sipping on some warm apple cider.
Address: 100 Hanover Street, Boston, MA, 02108
Hours: Open Daily from 8am-8pm
Union Square Donuts
While inside the Boston Public Market, it’s time to walk around to find Union Square Donuts. There are plenty of delicious stands in Boston Public Market, which is a great place to get a little salty snack to split up all the sugary donuts. Union Donuts are very delicious, and they are only open until they sell out, so go early!
Union Donuts has many different seasonal flavors that you can check out online. They announce the next season’s flavors online. Outside of their seasonal flavors, check out the maple bacon donut, Belgian dark chocolate donut, and/or the sea salt whiskey caramel. Those are by far our favorites at Union.
Address: 100 Hanover Street, Boston, MA, 02108
Hours: Open Daily 7am-10pm
Blackbird Doughnuts
From the Boston Public Market, we’ll walk to Blackbird Doughnuts. Another Boston staple is Blackbird Doughnuts. They offer a variety of monthly popular donuts and regular reoccurring doughnuts. One of the specialty donuts that’s worth a try when it makes it to the menu is the tiramisu bismarck. For a salty twist on a donut, try the Everything Bagel donut. This is another place that won’t have any more donuts once they run out so be sure to get there early.
Address: 175 Cambridge St, Boston MA
Hours: M-F: 7am-3pm Sat & Sun: 8am-3pm
Kane’s Donuts
From Blackbird Donuts, we will take the Blue Line train from Bowdoin to Aquarium then walk to our next stop. Kane’s Donuts is one of the most popular donut shops in Boston. It is so popular that they now ship nationally! Here, you’ll find many delicious cake donuts. They also have many gluten-free options, making it popular for all. I love the chocolate honey-dipped ones. Larry’s favorite is the Maine Blueberry one.
Address: 90 Oliver St., Boston, MA 02110
Hours: Open Daily from 7am-2:30pm
Doughboy Donuts
From Kane’s, we will catch the Red Line train from South Station to Broadway Station. Doughboy is about a 5-minute walk from the train station. It is important to make it to Doughboy earlier rather than later to still get a pick of doughnuts. They go FAST! Once they run out, there are no more for the day, which is a bummer. Once there, get the Bavarian creme one or the Boston Cream. Both are delicious.
Address: 220 Dorchester Ave Dorchester, MA 02127
Hours: M-F: 9am-10pm Sat: 9am-4pm
DJ’s Market
From Doughboys, we will take the Red Line down to Andrews station, then walk over to DJ’s Market. Now, this market is a supermarket, so it is not what you’d expect on a donut tour, but trust us on this one! They have the best Pฤ czki (Polish-filled donuts). They are filled with a variety of different flavors and then covered in sugar. Get PLENTY of them because they go fast. They are homemade and incredible. Our favorites are the original minis, the Nutella stuffed, and the mocha flavored.
Fun backstory time! We learned about DJ’s Market and their Pฤ czki at a dessert festival in Sommerville, MA. We decided to hit up a dessert festival since we love trying out all different kinds of desserts. Well, the woman who makes the Pฤ czki was there representing DJ’s Market, and we simply could not resist. She gave us the card for the market, and we KNEW it had to be included in our Donut Tour of Boston.
Address: 120 Boston St., Boston, MA
Hours: M-F 8am-6pm Sat: 8am-4pm
Honorable Mentions: Donuts That Didn’t Make the Tour
Mass Hole Donuts
Maybe a whole donut is too much? So check out Mass Hole Donuts. They only make donut holes while coming up with a punny name, making fun of the name for Massachusetts drivers. The donut flavors change every single week, so you need to show up to see what they have! Or you can check their website to order online. They sell out every day, so be sure to pre-order in order to get what you want.
Address: 1157 Broadway St, Somerville, Massachusetts 02144
Hours: Friday: 7:30am-11am (or until sold out) Sat & Sun: 8am-12pm (or until sold out)
Sofra Bakery & Cafe
Sofra Bakery & Cafe is a Turkish cafe in Cambridge, MA. They offer freshly made pastries and baked goods. The cafe also has meals like soups, salads, and flatbreads. But we are here for the donuts since this is a donut tour of Boston, after all! They have a Persian Spiced Doughnut to try. They also have morning roll donuts that have cardamon and orange blossom. Definitely a treat!
Address: 1 Belmont Street, Cambridge, MA
Hours: M-F: 8am-5pm Sat & Sun: 8am-3pm
Final Thoughts
That rounds out our donut tour of Boston. Boston is truly a city with a passion for donuts. While this is more of a “DIY” tour, there are also tours that you can purchase with a guide that’ll help you pick out places. We particularly enjoy going to these donut shops and have favorites at each one. Hopefully, you’ll get to add some of these donuts on your next trip to Boston!
