When we were getting ready to visit Portland, we heard of multiple things that we needed to do. Some of the items on that list included coffee, microbreweries, vintage stores and donuts...yep, donuts. Now if you know me personally, you'll know that I'm not a dessert guy (I'd rather eat two savoury meals). But luckily for me, I can get down with a cake or pastry every now and then so I knew this was something that I wouldn't pass on. I was told that there are tons of places to check out but there's always going to be a debate on the PDX staple - Voodoo Doughnut or Blue Star Donuts.
On the same day that we got into the city, we went to hunt down Afuri (which we had eaten in Harajuku in the fall). Right beside Afuri just happened to be Voodoo located beside a walking alley with a variety of restaurants including an old fashioned bar and an oyster restaurant. This place is known for its branding with their suggestive slogans and over-the-top donuts. Voodoo has become so popular and successful that it opened its own location in Disney World. Our friend Matt who we were with mentioned that we had to check out the place for ourselves.
The first thing that came to my mind was "punk". It wasn't only naming their donuts after rap stars and words you probably shouldn't say at a Disney resort, but the staff, decor and interior played well with the loud music and atmosphere. I thought it was really cool and the lineup out the door suggested that others thought the same. Unfortunately for me, that's where this cool factor ended. I ordered the "Voodoo Doll", a raspberry filled yeast donut with chocolate frosting and a pretzel stake to symbolize a pin. It was mediocre and I ate it as quickly as I could just so that we can could continue with our day. The experience was neat but the product isn't something I'd return for.
The day after when we exploring downtown, we decided to take a sugar break at Blue Star Donuts. These guys currently have eight locations in Oregon and three in California. The space was bright, clean and there was lots of natural light from all of the glass windows. The staff were helpful and explained to us all of the favourites that they had available and let us sample a few items as well. I went with a matcha lime donut and Aash chose a buttermilk cake donut.
If I lived in Portland, I would be tempted by this place all the time. It has an atmosphere where you can take a laptop to do some work, drink a tea and pretend contemplating ordering a donut. I'd likely end up Instagramming my donut and not get any work done. At this point it sounds like I'm being petty and complaining, but I really loved hanging out here.
My suggestion is that if you ever visit Portland, check out Voodoo to say that you went and immediately follow it up by walking five minutes to the downtown Blue Star location to get a quick dose of reality to see who really wins this "Voodoo or Blue Star?" debate.
Yours Truly
