Cancel

Open app

Search

The Donut Experiment

4.3 (604 reviews)
ModerateDonuts, Coffee & Tea
Closed • 7:00 am - 1:00 pm

The Donut Experiment Photos

Business Info

THE DONUT EXPERIMENT ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Moderate noise
Dogs allowed
Good for kids
Outdoor seating

You might also consider

More like The Donut Experiment

Recommended Reviews - The Donut Experiment

Your trust is our priority, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more about reviews.
Yelp app icon
Browse more easily on the app
Review Feed Illustration

Reviews With Photos

Maple bacon donut, sprinkle donuts, coconut donut
Karissa K.

Super cute place, donuts are made fresh in front of you with fun combinations. Coffee is decent but be warned the house cold brew is really sweet and creamy. Lovely people, though limited parking.

Bacon Maple Donut
Business G.

Few things are a sublime as the salty sweet combo that is a bacon maple donut! The donut itself was absolutely perfect. Not too dense, not too light, the perfect foil for the sinful toppings to come. The maple frosting was decadent, delicious and would have been perfect all by its lonesome. But oh no, what's that sound? I think I hear bacon music! In charges bacon in all its chewy, salty, mind-bendingly awesomeness to complete perhaps the greatest single bite humanity has ever achieved. This place was worth the six hour flight!

Donuts from the Donut Experiment
Maura C.

The Donut Experiment is one of those places that is simply worth the hype. My family loves coming here when we vacation on the island. This past weekend, I was visiting the area and had to make a stop to create some donuts. Upon entering the building, you will fill out a card checking off the frosting, toppings, and/or drizzle you want to have on your donut. It's basically like building your own bowl at Chipotle, but maybe better since its donuts? I like to keep it simple and do vanilla frosting with rainbow sprinkles. My sister ordered a chocolate frosted donut with rainbow sprinkles, and we got an extra "fun" one with vanilla frosting, chocolate chips, and caramel drizzle to try. Let me tell you, all of them were amazing! The donuts are made to order, so they are fresh and warm, which makes them so yummy. They are also a bit smaller than your average donut, which is nice because you can sample a few different creations that you make without feeling a major sugar overload. They also serve coffee and my sister enjoyed her iced vanilla latte and said it had a "delicious strong coffee flavor." Depending on the morning crowds, parking can be a bit difficult to find. In total, we probably waited about 15 minutes from creating our order to waiting for it to be done, which was not bad at all despite it being crowded inside. Additionally, there is some outdoor seating under cover.

Our custom donuts!
Didi N.

We were in Anna Maria island and heard of this place through social media. Since I love donuts, we decided to give it a try! The concept is pretty cool and basically you make your own donuts. You fill out a form that has icing, drizzle, and topping choices and then get in line to pay for them. Then they make your donuts fresh! It was extremely busy upon walking in a little chaotic as there's so many people in an enclosed space. But the line goes pretty quickly and if you want coffee drinks, you wait on the other side to pick up your drink. Customer service was great and everyone was super nice and friendly. The donuts didn't take long to be made and they were constantly pumping out fresh donuts. We got custom made donuts with the following glaze/toppings: Peanut butter icing with raspberry filling Cookies and creme (chocolate drizzle with vanilla glaze and cookie crumbles) Fruity pebbles (vanilla glaze with fruity pebbles cereal) Maple bacon (maple glaze with bacon) S'mores (chocolate glaze with chocolate drizzle and graham cracker crumbs) Blueberry (blueberry icing with raspberry filling) All the donuts came out hot and fresh! I would rarely then a 8.5/10 The donuts were more cake like and the edges were crispy! Husband and I enjoyed all the donuts but the only con is that once the donuts are cooled, it gets a little soggy. The base for all the donuts are the same. Overall, we would come back and try other flavor combinations. They have limited flavors too like sriracha and key lime (when we visited). I would suggest trying these donuts at least once! Or maybe twice or more!

worth it! Wait in the line and just do it. These donuts hands down were some of the best donuts I've ever had! My combo was the maple glaze with bacon and I wish I had gotten two. The cake donut was amazing, not heavy at all and all 8 of us loved every bite.

Donuts on the beach
Jesenia H.

YES. EVERY. TIME. Please come here if you are even remotely near AMI. The coffee: to die for. I mean seriously, I do not think I have ever drinken 24oz of coffee that quick. Not to mention the picture perfect donuts that taste even better than they look (which you wouldn't think is possible given these photos!) Overall, this is a staple spot for me and my family. Oh, and did I mention it's on the water???

Desiree L.

We love visiting every time we come to the island, so much so we make sure to be there before they close. The maple bacon and caramel M&M are my absolute favorite. You just can't beat a fresh donut, still warm from the oven. This is a must stop if you are coming to town.

Sara G.

Such a cool place! The kids loved coming here and constructing their own donut. They were actually good too! Long lines!

Aimee B.

4 stars bc our last order was incorrect but still yummy. You get a sheet to tell what kind of icing, toppings and drizzle you want. Kind of like ordering sushi with a pencil and paper. Cute, beachy place. No frills. We went at busy times and though it was crowded it went pretty quickly. Helpful staff. Very popular place. Their half and half coffee was delicious. Sweet and creamy. Just a cinnamon sugar donut was a fave. Tasted like a churro.

This is the maple bacon doughnut, and the key lime doughnut! Both were a slice of heaven. So good!
Kathy S.

Staff was amazing and very helpful. I got the maple bacon doughnut, and the Keylime doughnut and both were just a slice of heaven!

Josephine T.

If I'm in the area I always stop for a house iced coffee with a maple bacon donut. Take a little walk to the pier or the nearest beach entrance and enjoy the little coffee break. Endless options of donut combinations and they're constantly cooking up fresh donuts.

Anna B.

Delicious donuts! Love how many combinations you can make. Service was quick even with a long line! Love sitting on the patio to enjoy them while they're still hot! No indoor seating (right now at least) and the coffee isn't the best, but it's good enough to scratch the itch!

Ciera B.

cutest little island coffee shop with the nicest workers! it's the perfect place if you're looking for a cheap and delicious morning coffee. i got the house iced coffee and it was exactly like described. great if you like sweeter coffee

See all

6 months ago

Business owner information

Photo of Donut E.

Donut E.

We appreciate your support!

Helpful 3
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

2 hours ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

8 months ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0
Photo of Karissa K.
64
125
32

1 month ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

11 months ago

Helpful 3
Thanks 1
Love this 1
Oh no 0

11 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

23 days ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

20 days ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

8 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

9 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

9 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

9 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Megan M.
14
70
103

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

7 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

10 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of James M.
322
115
83

1 year ago

This place is awesome. Take your kids! Relatively decently priced for what you get also. A good spot to check out

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

9 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 4
Thanks 1
Love this 2
Oh no 0

11 months ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

6 months ago

Always a great experience, everyone gets the donut they want and it's quick and easy.

Business owner information

Photo of Donut E.

Donut E.

Thank you Michael!

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 7
Thanks 0
Love this 3
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Service was good and fast. The line may seem super long, but it does go by quickly. We all enjoyed the donuts before heading to bean point.

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

2 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 3
Thanks 0
Love this 4
Oh no 0

Page 1 of 16

Ask the Community - The Donut Experiment

Are there any gluten free donuts?

Nope

View All 2 Questions

You might also consider

Paradise Bagels Cafe - Omelette with ham and cheese. The picture does not do it justice. This thing was HUGE!

Paradise Bagels Cafe

3.6(134 reviews)
3.0 mi
•$

HIGHLY RECOMMEND! We accidentally found this cute little…read moreplace as we were looking for breakfast our first day on vacation on Anna Maria Island. Initially, we thought it was just a bagel place. But what a WONDERFUL SURPRISE this place turned out to be!!! It really should be named "Mama's Delicious Food". Because this lady is amazing! She's run this business for 30 years! And has the most delicious food! I ordered cranberry walnut pancakes and she put some fresh bananas and strawberries on the side. The cranberries tasted so fresh. It was positively delicious! My husband had what he claimed "the best omelette ever". It was just a ham and cheese omelette but it was HUGE! He couldn't even finish it!!! I'm telling you.... We will definitely be back before our vacation is over. And we are telling everyone to go there!!!! And the staff - so kind, so nice, I can't say enough good things about this place!!!!!

We stopped here for lunch and had the Tuna Platter ($13) and the Chef Salad ($12). Both were huge…read more The tuna was very tasty and served on a bed of greens. The Chef Salad was a plate of field greens smothered in ham, turkey and cheese strips. The turkey and ham were fresh, not luncheon meats. Both were more than we could eat. A beverage was $2 - $4. No alcohol is served. Seating is quite limited in this tiny place consisting of a few tables inside and a few outside. Very reasonably priced considering the freshness of the food and the size of the portions. Service was fast and friendly. Located in a strip shopping center near the Publix on Anna Maria Is. Free parking in the shopping center lot.

Photos
Paradise Bagels Cafe
Paradise Bagels Cafe - Blueberry Pancakes

Blueberry Pancakes

Paradise Bagels Cafe

See all

The Donut Experiment - donuts - Updated May 2026

Loading...
Loading...
Loading...