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    Cruel Donuts

    4.8 (320 reviews)
    Open 6:00 am - 2:00 pm
    Updated 2 months ago

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    Donuts
    Andrea P.

    Just discovered Cruel Donuts in San Mateo and wow... let's get into it ‍ So delicious--light, airy, and definitely a level up from your average donut. I could've easily eaten my way through the entire day. Absolute danger (in the best way).

    Mango sorbet and vanilla passionfruit non dairy ice cream
    Ranjan P.

    This is a tiny unobtrusive blik and you'll miss it kinda place. Ducked in here to check it out, not expecting much ... and boy oh boy were we ever wrong. I. Mean. Alphonso mango sorbet?The purest most decadent essence of an alphonso. No joke. And having issues with dairy, it'd been forever since I'd eaten any ive-cream, but they have a huge selection of non-dairy ice creams, e.g. vanilla passionfruit swirl and pandan vanilla. I got a little sample of each and was blown away. Incredible flavors and the texture? I could not tell if it had not been real dairy, super creamy on the tongue, the mouth feel luxurious. We met the owner, Ray, who was super kind and sweet, getting genuinely ex cited when my husband and I named the alphonso! He told us that the non dairy concoctions have a base of either coconut or pea protein--sign me up! It's an adorable little place with croissant sandwiches and all kinds of donuts, along with iced and hot drinks. Next time, I have my eye on their matcha. They do something super thoughtful for the kids that troop in here: they have a television screen playing kids' shows, cartoons and the like, to keep the tantrums at bay :-) The prices are very very fair, way beyond what you might pay in SF, the quality here of each thing is off the charts, e.g my husband also got their Vietnamese coffee ice-crea,--the real deal, not sugared up, with a faint bitter edge but creamy. Parking (street) is free and easy.

    Linz C.

    Donuts are definitely on the pricier side but their flavor combos are delicious. They have everything from the classics, crullers, and speciality donuts like passion fruit, guava filled, and creme brûlée. Their breakfast sandwiches are also really good and they have an assortment of ice cream pints with unique flavors. If i was going straight home I would've gotten a pint of the POG.

    French cruller
    Ming C.

    Absolutely delicious donuts! I am not a huge donut person since I'm not into how dense they are but if I'm ever in the mood, this is my go to place! I was pleasantly surprised by the ube cake and the black sesame mochi donuts. They were my favorites of the batch, not too sweet and the black sesame was so delightfully chewy! Even better than the mochi donuts places I've been to. We went back again to get the crullers (popular and limited on the weekends), so good. I will definitely be back!

    Ang P.

    Cruel Donuts? Yes cruel if you try to avoid them and can't from time to time. Fun donut shop now innovating home made ice creams! sooo yummy. Owners on site and passionate about their food creations. We loved their Chinese Almond Cookie ice cream flavor! Their fruit ice creams use real fruit! Fan of their strawberry shortcake donut and creme brulee ... but the basic glaze is always fresh

    Outside
    Michael C.

    WoW! I can see what all the hype is about... 4.5 **** rounded up to 5 ***** for me. In this case it was all about the experience. The venue was not something to gloat about... the typical mom & pop small business run by a small staff feel. Parking wasn't an issue, there were a decent amount of spaces when we got there. However they were packed! Luckily when we got to the front, most of the crowd had dissipated. We had a chance to chat with the Ice Cream chef and try a few samples as well. They have several flavors, all made in house that aren't New Zealand Style Real Fruit Ice Cream. Ahhh...that Kiwi intuition! According to the Ice Cream chef Cruel Donuts was the first the Bay Area to import the Real Fruit Ice Cream machine from the Land of the Long White Cloud. He was a bit taken back with my knowledge of the New Zealand Style Real Fruit Ice Cream... I did call the Southern Hemisphere my home a lifetime ago... If you are not familiar; "New Zealand Style Real Fruit Ice Cream" is made by blending Ice Cream with fresh fruit in a special blender that churns out a soft, yet creamy and natural fresh treat... basically a fresh fruit soft serve. The original base was usually Vanilla Ice Cream, but I know in recent years people started using all sorts of other Ice Creams. #NotSoCruel: ~ New Zealand Style Real Fruit Ice Cream Pineapple - 4.5/5 Light, Fruity, refreshing and not to sweet. Tasted oh so natural... ~ New Zealand Style Real Fruit Ice Cream Mango - 4.5/5 While we did enjoy the flavor of the Mango better, the texture of the Pineapple Ice Cream was better; thicker and creamier. I think the mangoes were a bit too ripe. Perhaps the texture would have been a bit creamier or heavier if the Mangoes were not so ripe? ~ SPECIALTY DONUTS: STUFFED: Creme Brulee - 4.5/5 I thought a good amount of thought and effort was put in to creating something like this. "Addicting" commented the gent in front of me... Can't disagree with him. It's exactly what i thought it would be; if a Crème Brûlée was a donut!

    Christine D.

    My coworker got a box of donuts from here for our meeting and it's safe to say they were a hit! Not too sweet and very fluffy. Even the box they came in made you want to keep opening it and eating more because it was so cute! Definitely a hit and would purchase if I was in the area looking for donuts!

    Passion fruit glazed donut $3
    Sheila E.

    2/24/25- Finally tried the guava filled donut and it was delicious. Not too sweet and you could really taste the guava. I think my favorite is still the creme brûlée though. I haven't tried their glazed donut but my friend has had it a few times and loves it. Another friend has had their chocolate croissant a few times and also loves it. I'll have to try them sometime. New to their menu is their New Zealand ice cream! They make it themselves. I'll need to see what that's all about. They also make their own blend of coffee, which you can now purchase ground. 5/18/25 Now new to their menu is also their homemade ice cream, not to be confused with their New Zealand ice cream, which uses a different machine and has different flavors. Tried their New Zealand mango and pineapple. The mango had a thicker consistency than the pineapple and both both had that fresh fruit flavor. Sampled their homemade ice cream and in order of preference: Ube Macapuno Okinawan black sugar Vanilla jackfruit Vanilla passion fruit Lychee gewürztraminer All were super flavorful and maybe the jackfruit and passion fruit were equal in preference. The lychee was good too but just a little too sweet for me because of the gewürztraminer. If you're a fan of gewürztraminer, you may like this one. The okinawan black sugar is a new flavor that was not on the menu but it was really tasty and has a maple flavor but not overly sweet. I appreciate the small bench in the shade outside. Service is fast and friendly. Thank you!

    classic raised donuts, filled donuts
    Jessica H.

    Nice donut shop with fun flavors here and there. They have some specialty donuts that are made on certain days (for example mochi donuts are available on the weekends. Cake donut and french crueller also have their special days). Of the ones I've tried so far, I think the jelly donut was pretty strong for me. The raspberry was sweet and the airy donut was perfect imo. Nice pillowy soft bite. Good consistency for the jelly. What a treat! The classic glazed donut was also quite nice. Nice fluffy texture and size. The mochi donuts were fun to eat and very chewy. I didn't feel like it was too greasy either (some other spots I feel this way). The cake donut was flavorful and thick, in a good way. Good bite to it. The french crueller was airy and eggy soft inside, it was great! I'll have to get it again to enjoy. Flavor-wise, passion fruit was pretty fun to eat. Strawberry and chocolate were good as well. I wasn't a huge fan of the custard in the boston cream pie; it was very thick with no flavor (or no pleasant flavor). The guava was also a bit too thick imo. Not fragrant enough for me.

    Menu
    May L.

    Quick service and unique options. Got guava filled, passionfruit glaze, Boston cream, ham and cheese croissant this time around. Saving the strawberry short cake for next trip out here.

    Helen L.

    So glad they are so far away but reachable! I wanted to ask what made them name the donut shop "Cruel"? GPS took me to make a left on 42nd Ave! Wrong. It goes to a dead end street and actually goes to Samaritan. Don't do it. I got 4 items but that was a gift. I got the creme brulee and passion fruit (liloki). The lady was nice to make me a creme brulee because the display case was out. Cool. 5 stars for that. It was delicious. Loved the cream, burnt sugar. The passion fruit donut was so fluffy and it was not oily. Even their donut holes were fluffy! I have to go back and try their homemade ice cream. Their t-shirts are cute. I magnified the picture and I saw "roasted pineapple spam ice cream!" What? Oh, I read they bought a New Zealand ice cream machine. What! Most definitely going back!

    Apple fritter. Look at it
    Satchel M.

    Supreme donuts. Soft and flavorful. 10/10. Tons of options around the peninsula but make sure to give Cruel a shot.

    Drinks menu
    Jeff C.

    This was a great donut! Light, fluffy and flavorful. Definitely a step up from your typical Krispy Kreme donut. The coffee was pretty good as well with a full bodied taste that is difficult to get without using a french press.

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    29 days ago

    Hands down the best donuts in the area! Crème brûlée donut is out of the world. Loved their ube donut as well!!

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    Page 1 of 8

    Ask the Community - Cruel Donuts

    Did you guys open a second location on 25th Avenue in town?

    Yes I visited that location

    What is the story on the name "Cruel"?

    Are there any gluten-free options?

    No gluten free currently

    We have a peanut allergy (tree nuts are fine.) Is it safe for us to eat your donuts?

    We do not use peanuts on site currently. We do make almond croissants so please let us know if you have an allergy. Thank you

    View All 6 Questions

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    This is one of our go-to spots, not only in the area, but nation wide…read more They have their classic staple flavors but I like how they always have seasonal flavors. If you're unsure of which flavor to get, there is no limit to how many flavors you can try. My personal favorite is the Strawberry Coconut Water Sherbet. Light and creamy, lots of strawberry and coconut flavor, and It's dairy free. The customer service is always great and friendly. Their attention to detail for allergies is top tier. In store they also use a new scoop, wash their hands and even get a fresh scoop from a new pint to avoid cross contamination. It does get busy at times, but it's worth the wait. Trying new flavors is an experience in itself. If you don't feel like waiting in line, you can always go in and just get a pint from the available flavors in the freezer by the door. Nonetheless, it's always a good time at Salt & Straw.

    I'll be honest: I'm usually not a fan of the "salty and sweet" combo, but Salt & Straw is the…read moreexception. It's definitely an acquired taste, but after my first visit, I'm a believer. The texture is incredibly creamy, which balances out the bold, unique flavors perfectly. I tried the Pot of Gold and the Freckled Mint. Both were delicious and well-crafted. I've visited both the Burlingame and Hayes Valley locations--be prepared that there isn't really seating at either, but the Burlingame spot has a very hip, high-energy atmosphere. The Highlights: * Staff: Incredibly patient and friendly (crucial when you're trying to decide between wild flavors!). * Dietary Friendly: Great vegan options that don't sacrifice creaminess. * Value: Very decent pricing for the quality and creativity you get. If you want ice cream that's "different" and daring, this is your place.

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    Cruel Donuts - donuts - Updated May 2026

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