A Discourse on Donuts or Open Sesame!

An Ode to Donuts
Donuts...I love them. They're so uncomplicated, so unpretentious. Simple round shape, dependable hole in the middle...and most of all, they cost less than $1, not like the $2.25+ you'll spend on a fancy (but not always good) scone or croissant...

Every place I've lived in has had a great donut place -- Puck's Donuts in Ashland, Mary's Donuts way out east in San Diego, Sunshine Donuts in San Antonio, and the beignets at Cafe du Monde in New Orleans (which are their version of donuts, and once you've had some, you're never the same...)...and now Sesame Donuts in Portland. It's actually closer to Beaverton, along Beaverton Hillsdale Hwy., but the 54/56 bus will take you there in 20 minutes from downtown...it's worth it, believe me....

Open Sesame!
Sesame Donuts is open 24 hours...and true to their name, they've got sesame donuts -- a crunchy saltiness that contrasts with the sweetness. It's folksy, the donuts are fresh and the 15 donuts holes for $1 is a great deal.

Don't Miss Jake
Best of all, they've got Jake. He works the night shift, making the donuts, serving people from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., when he either goes to his PSU classes or home to sleep until noon. He likes his job, he really likes eating donuts--either a maple bar, his favorite, or a handful of donut holes. He's friendly no matter how early in the a.m., and he'll take the time to get you fresh-baked old fashioned out of the back, or he'll wait while you choose from the usual donut line-up...no eye-rolling, sighing or tapping of feet while you choose between chocolate frosted sprinkles, marble bars, twist sticks, toasted coconut, pumpkin spice....or just a bag of donut holes..

That VooDoo That You Do
A sidebar on Voodoo Donuts -- okay, I was curious to go there when I first read about it -- despite the fact that they've been featured on The Tonight Show, Good Morning American, Wall St. Journal, New York Times, Food Network, etc. etc.---a sure sign that a place has gone from too cool to yawn...I figured it was still a Must on the Must-See in Portland list (like Montage, but more about that another time...) Their Voodoo Wedding services ($25 for an intentional commitment, $175 for the real thing) are pretty clever....but...here's the kicker...
Their donuts aren't anything special--and definitely not as good as Sesame Donuts AND
The folks behind the counter were snotty...yes, I know that if you work in such a hyper-hip place, your attitude should say "I'm really much more than a person serving donuts," but it kinda soured me on the donuts -- good thing, too, because they were super-sweet, and I didn't even try the ones with Lucky Charms on top...

So, I'm sticking to Sesame Donuts -- and Jake...