Generally, I’m not too much of a donut person. If I want something bready for breakfast, I’ll go for a pastry over a donut, mostly because donuts often can be quite greasy and overly sweet. However, when I found out about Magic Donuts, a recent addition to the Potrero Hill neighborhood, I knew I wanted to give it a try. They specialize in sourdough donuts which is probably one of the most San Francisco donuts you could find, plus they are headed by a pretty strong restaurant group that runs some high quality restaurants in the Bay Area.
The venue itself is new and clean, located in a deluxe condo building, and when you walk in, the display of donuts look outstanding. The first time I went I gravitated toward a couple of the fruit donuts and the vanilla honey which looked to be their equivalent of a plain glazed donut. The first thing I noticed when I bit into the vanilla honey donut is the donut base itself isn’t sickly sweet which is a characteristic I loved. The overall donut was slightly sweet, well fried and had a real burst of sourness from the sourdough base.
The two fruit donuts were saved for dessert later in the evening, and they also didn’t disappoint. I think the strawberry was slightly better as the topping was just slightly sweet with some acidity from the strawberries. The lemon meringue was very good, but a whole lot sweeter due to the meringue. It also showed that Magic Donuts can satisfy any person’s donut craving, as the donuts can definitely go mega sweet if that is your preference.
I’ve been back a couple of times and tried a few more, including the blueberry and lime, the cheesecake (with pumpkin!) and the maple pecan. Honestly, all of them were really delicious and didn’t feel overly sickly sweet or greasy. And if chocolate is your thing, they have plenty of options for you there too. They also have a selection of coffee drinks available, so if you want to hang out there and enjoy donuts and coffee with friends, it’s definitely got a cool vibe for that. I think it’s going to stay a staple for me when I do get those occasional donut cravings, or possibly a nice treat when I have visiting guests as a sourdough donut is probably a treat you’d only find in San Francisco.
Score: 4.5/5
Recommendation: I’d say try the Vanilla and Honey to get a real taste of the donut, but go wild!
Magic Donuts
1675 Mariposa Street
San Francisco, CA 94107
