The original RANDY'S DONUTS was one of our food and tourist destinations to hit up during our…read moreweek-long vacation to the Los Angeles area in May, 2023. Z and I made a quick stop here on the afternoon of Monday, the 8th.
RANDY'S DONUTS is one of Los Angeles' most iconic landmarks, likely one of the most known donut shoppes in the world, thanks to its colossal doughnut-shaped sign perched atop the roof of its otherwise modest building. Randy's has made cameos in numerous films such as "Earth Girls Are Easy," "2012," "Dope", including "Iron Man 2" in which Tony Stark, in his Iron Man armour, eats a box of doughnuts while sitting inside the large RANDY'S DONUTS sign. Also appearing in music videos like Justin Timberlake's "Can't Stop the Feeling!" and Prodigy's "Wind It Up," its fame has certainly spread and the famous, gargantuan donut is as synonymous with the city as the Hollywood sign.
Located at the corner of Manchester and La Cienega Boulevards in Inglewood, this 24-hour shoppe offers no dine-in options. Customers either line up in their cars at the drive-through or queue up at the outdoor front window to place their orders. Both lines can grow at all hours, but the wait is not very long.
Luring both locals and travelers alike with its extensive selection of homemade pastries, Randy's offers four categories of donuts (CLASSIC, DELUXE, FANCY, and PREMIUM) with four price tiers ranging from around $2 to $4 each. The assortment here is impressive and creative including some gimmicky, over-the-top tourist traps topped with cereal (FRUIT LOOPS RAISED), cookies (OREO RAISED), and candy (M&M'S RAISED).
We left with a box of a dozen donuts, consisting of 1 CLASSIC, 7 DELUXE, and 4 PREMIUM (1 DEVIL'S FOOD CAKE, 1 CHOCOLATE TWIST, 1 MAPLE LONG JOHN, 4 CHOCOLATE LONG JOHNs, 1 RED VELVET CAKE, 1 MATCHA TEA RAISED, 1 NUTELLA RAISED, 1 COFFEE RAISED, and 1 CHOCOLATE ICED CRUELLER) which cost me more than $30. Not every doughnut was as impressive as the signage - most were super sweet, though the MATCHA TEA RAISED did delight my niece -, but we really didn't mind. Standing in the shadow of that towering, legendary donut is an experience all on its own.