Carmel’s Dutch Door Donuts Opens a Sequel
Words by Anh-Minh Le
Dutch Door Donuts has arrived in Healdsburg—its bright orange portal a beacon for handcrafted, fried-to-order treats, made using local and seasonal ingredients. The sequel to the 4-year-old Carmel Plaza location, which has achieved cult status and become a viral sensation, opened in September.
During a recent Saturday visit, nine options enticed, including an apple fritter—typically only available on weekends—made with Honeycrisp apples and cinnamon, and coated in an apple cider glaze. The two seasonal offerings were maple bacon, which featured a brown butter maple glaze and bacon bits on top, and a pumpkin old-fashioned comprising dough infused with pumpkin spice and a pumpkin puree glaze.
Just as in Carmel, patrons in Healdsburg can observe the doughnut-making process. Toward the back of the shop, behind a clear partition, the shaped dough is dropped into hot oil, retrieved when golden brown, then passed over to a neighboring station with the various glazes.
There are a handful of tables, inside and out. Banquette seating beckons in a corner of the venue. Or partake of the doughnuts and some solid people-watching at a bistro-style table or the bench that overlooks Healdsburg Plaza. (In addition to Dutch Door’s signage, the façade bears the name of Plaza Barber Shop, which opened across from the main square in the 1930s before moving around the corner a couple of decades later.)
Unlike the Carmel outpost, which is only open during the day, the one in Healdsburg keeps later hours on Friday and Saturday. While Dutch Door closes at 5 p.m. daily, on those two evenings, the orange door reopens from 9 p.m. until midnight.
DUTCH DOOR DONUTS, 109a Plaza Street, Healdsburg; Carmel Plaza, Unit 205C, Carmel-by-the-Sea.
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