If you're hankring for something sweet on the south slope, drop into Vortex donuts and grab a bite. We recently stopped by to pick up some donuts to go, and they did not disappoint. We have tried different donuts in the Asheville area, but one thing we've noticed is that when grabbing donuts to go, they don't travel well - by the time we get home, or to our destination, they have become tough and chewy. This is not the case with the vortex fare. Even after cooling they are still soft and delicious. Additionally, many of the Vortex donuts are vegan, making it a safe bet when you are unsure as to whether your crowd is omnivorous, or herbivore. I only wish they were open later! read more

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Came by Sunday afternoon on our way out of Asheville. Vortex wasn't busy, but it wasn't slow either. They offer cake and yeast donuts. The staff was pleasant. I ordered half dozen yeast donuts to go: $2+ each Raspberry shortcake (I think) Espresso Salted Caramel Snickers Strawberry Glaze with sprinkles Chocolate AMAZING! The yeast donuts were not only big on size but also big on flavor. The texture was soft, but not too soft. It was just right. My favorite was the salted caramel. Definitely one of the best salted caramel donuts I've ever had! Second fave was the espresso. Hubs' favorite was the strawberry. Son didn't have one favorite. He liked them all! I can't wait to go back to Asheville just so I can have these donuts again! read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Yeast half dozen: Raspberry shortcake (I think), Espresso, Salted Caramel, Snickers, Strawberry glaze w sprinkles, and Chocolate. $2+ each - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

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A rad donut shop tucked into the fringe of downtown Asheville. The vibe is super cool to hangout for a coffee. The staff was super friendly and shared all their recommendations! We got a 4-pk. I'm partial to cake donuts and the Old Fashioned was great, but their yeast donuts were unreal! They have a knack for creating killer frosting, which was more like a dessert sauce! Highly recommend!! read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Apple fritter, old fashioned, dulce de leche and caramel - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

You really cannot deny how fabulous their donuts are! My favorite is the coffee-flavored one! Every bite is like biting into a piece of a tasty, sweet, delightfully fried pillow. The hint of coffee enhances the already addicting taste of the donut. 100 thumbs up! read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Half dozen - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

IN A WORLD LACKING GOOD VEGAN DOUGHNUTS... Vortex is here to make things right! How I wish we lived in Asheville so we could eat at Vortex whenever we desired. Both the yeast and cake doughnuts were so incredibly wonderful. We ordered banana pecan espresso & peanut butter chocolate cake donuts, and a Vortex, Blood Orange Waffle, Chai Chocolate, and Blackberry Granola (non-vegan! for my husband) yeast donuts. We also ordered a cold brew and an iced seasonal/specialty coffee, both with oat milk, and they were both DELICIOUS. We can't wait to be back in Asheville and grab some donuts again!! read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Coffee Menu - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

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Fantastic doughnuts that really satisfy the sweet tooth! Located right next to Catawba and near the funkatorium, twin leaf, green man and burial breweries, this place is a great place to stop by in between your brewery hopping! PSA they even have vegan doughnuts. They have all sorts of flavors from your classic chocolate and sprinkles and apple fritters to more unique flavors like matcha and honey lavender. The most amazing one I had was the caramel doughnut which legitimately tasted like funnel cake but more doughy! read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

We finally made it to Vortex and it was ok. It's hard to be too ecstatic about the donuts when you spend almost $30 with tip for four donuts two coffee drinks and a chocolate milk. Yes the donuts are on point, that's for sure. But I grew up in STL where you get donuts just as good or better and you'll walk out the door with a dozen and a coffee for just over ten bucks. Also the staff that helped didn't seem to happy to be working today. Maybe it's the cool vibe they are trying to emit but I'm not a fan. Put on a happy face, talk to your customers instead of acting like we are interrupting something. Anyway I don't think the prices are changing but the vibe from the employees can. I'll give you a second chance one day Vortex. read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

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This is the perfect spot to stop for a quick breakfast. We ordered the 4 pack and got the vortex, blackberry sprinkle, cream cheese, and apple fritter. The Apple fritter was the best I have had! Real apples throughout the entire donut and it is so filling. The others were very good too! Reasonably priced and quick service. read more

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DELICIOUS. We got a dozen box of yeast doughnuts. Variety pack, i ate a cream cheese and cinnamon sugar. AMAZING. I can't really explain the texture, it was "swishy" read more

Popular donut spot. We were here several years ago and Vortex was the only business on the block. Now it's a sprawling area with hardly any place to park. The donuts were pricey. I had a coconut chocolate iced one. The chocolate was quite bittersweet . My husband didn't like it at all. These are definitely on the gourmet side of donuts. You order at the counter. Staff was friendly and helpful. We would probably stop by again when we are in town. read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Coconut Chocolate glaze - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

Honestly the donuts were pretty good I just wouldn't recommend them if you want to grab a quick donut and go. I waited almost 40 minutes for those donuts and it was a weekday. If you have the time then yes go but , they have a nice little outside area to enjoy your donut as well as inside. read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Inside menu - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

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Looked up the beat donut places in Asheville and this place came up. They have 2 types of donuts- yeast and cake. Most of the flavors were available in both types. I did notice that there were some apple fritters as well. The cake donut was dense and not real sweet with a thin glaze for flavor. The blackberry didn't have any berry flavor that I could discern. The salted caramel was rich and buttery. The chocolate topped yeast was more more chewy than a typical airy yeast donut. The chocolate was rich more decadent than a typical iced donut. This icing did not come from a packet or can. Coffee is available but we did not order any. read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Outside - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

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Excellent coffee, the yeast doughnuts are perfection. Service Excellent. Loved the expresso and the cranberry was very good. Worth the trip to Asheville. Next time I visit, will get a baker's dozen. read more

Love this donut shop! They have about 8-10 yummy flavors with two different styles of dough- cake (dense and crumbly) or yeast (super fluffy and chewy in the best way!). All of the flavors are available in both of the dough options so you don't have to sacrifice flavor for texture! We got some of both. I personally loved the yeast donuts because they were so fluffy and tasted like a cloud. The cake donuts were also great- nice and crispy on the outside but dense and moist on the inside. We also got some specialty coffee that was delicious! Warning: you are paying for gourmet donuts here. $11 for 4 of them or $17 for 6!!!! Just a heads up so you're not surprised :) read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Awesome donuts - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

I love yeast donuts and these did not disappoint!! They offer a great selection of flavors and tons of vegan/gf options as well. And they're big donuts!There's a decent amount of seating inside and the line moved fairly fast. Still thinking about how good these were read more

Vortex Doughnuts - pumpkin spice, espresso, and blackberry coconut flavors - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

These doughnuts are incredible! The unique menu really delivers in flavor. The coffee is just as good as the doughnuts too- you can't get one without the other. I highly recommend this place BUT get there early!! We missed out on the yeast doughnuts because we got there too late, the cake doughnuts were amazing but next time we're getting there early to try the yeast doughnuts too. read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Strawberry sprinkle filled on the top right, mocha filled bottom right, chai on top left, and espresso on bottom left. Cake based! - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

Quick trip up north to Asheville, North Carolina! HAD to stop by @vortexdoughnuts of course. I loved that they had a separate case of cake donuts & yeast donuts but in the same flavors! The yeast donuts were super doughy and the cake donuts had the perfect slight crunch on the outside Honestly, this place gets rave reviews, but I've definitely had better. And I'm not sure I'd go back. But, it's worth it to try. Favorite: Espresso yeast (bottom right) & Cinnamon Sugar cake (third row center) I think I'm starting to realize that I like the more simple donuts better, but these two were deliciously simple. Least Favorite: Monster Mash (second row center) This was a Halloween special with gummy worms, pretzels, & marshmallow. The icing on this one just wasn't good which overpowered the toppings and the donut itself. Honorable Mention: The Vortex (right second and third rows) - this was their special cinnamon sugar with chocolate drizzle & Gotholate (bottom left) - this was an activated charcoal frosting donut which was super cool. It tasted like dark chocolate but was not bitter at all! read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Baker's Dozen - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

I had a honey cinnamon iced latte, cortex doughnut, vanilla cake doughnut for my husband, and a sample of my friends apple fritter. The doughnut I had was good, not too sweet and perfectly baked. The latte was delicious. And the Apple Fritter was by far my favorite with the huge pieces of apple in it. I really liked the look of the interior. Customer service was excellent! read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

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Must stop if you like donuts. Not exactly the most healthy snack, but man, these donuts are the best. I was able to try a pumpkin donut that was amazing, and another creme and chocolate that was also as good. I washed these babies with a cappuccino, unfortunately I hadn't seen they did pour overs, if not I would have taken one of those. The cappuccino was good though. Excellent doughnuts and pour over coffee. What else do you want? read more

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Great old fashioned donut and amazing coffee. Must stop in Asheville. Open earl, so perfect for young kids or a nice morning dog walk. read more

Sooo many options. If you like apple fritters, theirs is to die for! It's rare to see an apple fritter with big chunks of apple in it, and it was SO good! That being said, it was the highlight of the experience. The peanut butter chocolate glazed cake doughnut looked phenomenal but I couldn't really taste the peanut butter or the chocolate due to the overpowering doughnut flavor, it also left a slightly greasy flavor in my mouth which was not ideal. Very neat atmosphere inside with plenty of doughnut and drink options. Update: went back today and the strawberry lemon yeast was probably top 3 best doughnuts in my life. Very glad I took the servers suggestion when she said it was her favorite. read more

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I would have to be really upset and disappointed to actually take the time to write a negative review about a place. I needed to find a dessert type item to share with 10 or so people and I thought donuts would work well because it wouldn't involve having to cut slices and all that sort of thing. I wanted something different and was looking around on Google for local businesses I could support. I have tried duck donuts in the past and they're good but I wanted something different that wasn't the usual Krispy Kreme or Duncan or Ingles. So when I saw that vortex was open till 2:00 I hurried over there. Here are three adjectives that come to mind when I'm thinking of vortex: Unremarkable, stale, overpriced. I got a bakers dozen and an extra apple fritter and a coffee and it was like $44. I knew I was getting ripped off when I swiped but I wasn't sure about how badly until I tasted the apple fritter and realized I had been duped. How is this place in business serving up these types of items for these kinds of prices? Maybe Asheville's forgotten what real GOOD food tastes like? Never again. read more

After having made multiple trips to Asheville, finally got a chance to grab some yeast doughnuts at Vortex. Tucked in downtown Asheville, Vortex Doughnuts serves delicious cake and yeast doughnuts, coffee, and other breakfast items (multiple vegan doughnut options). Went here on a lazy Sunday morning and enjoyed the doughnut and toast. I was contemplating which doughnut to pick (cake vs yeast) and went with the salted caramel yeast doughnut. Definitely super high quality and so well done! The salted caramel on it was absolutely limp smacking. I also shared the kale pesto-cream cheese toast. Loved the flavor but would have enjoyed a little bit more pesto on it. Overall, a solid place to grab breakfast and total value for your money! read more

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Vortex Donuts has been one of our regular stops after dropping our son off to camp for a while. Sometimes you just need a cup of coffee, and for me, if it has some "latte art" as well, that's a big win! Their coffee is delicious and they have several fun and original concoctions. It is usually pretty crowded (even on a weekday morning), so we will often have one person scout a table while the other orders. They have a vast selection of donuts and they are all unique in their own way. The Vortex Donut (cake donut with a delicious dark chocolate drizzle) is the one they are "known" for and makes a great match with their Cafe Mocha. read more

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Vortex Doughnuts was a place that I'd read about in a few guides about "must visit" places to hit up in Asheville, so we decided to give it a try before continuing on with our road trip. They have a nice location, with outdoor seating that seemed to share patios with a nearby brewery. We had our pup with us, so after pressing my face up against the glass like a 5 year old at a candy store (so I could see the menu,) I sent Lee in to make our selections and to grab some coffees as well. They were totally cool with filling our reusable mugs with their coffee, which is excellent! They offer all their flavors in two varieties in doughnuts: Yeast and Cake. I got a salted caramel in yeast, and the Lavender in cake. Lee got both cake, with salted caramel and chocolate glazed. Honestly? The yeast doughnuts are the better of the two, the cake doughnut seemed a bit on the dry side to me. Also, the glazes were a little bit on the *too* sugary/goopy side. Don't get me wrong, they are absolutely superior to the donuts you can get at Dunkin' or Tims, but I really wished I had a tall glass of milk to cut the sugar. Thankfully I don't sugar my coffee, so that helped. read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Chocolate glazed and lavender cake doughnuts - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

We decided to try this donut place during a recent trip to Asheville because of other reviews, and of course, IG photos. The shop itself is very cute, with lots of artwork from a local artist available for purchase. Staff was friendly and very helpful since it was our first time there. They offer yeast and cake varieties and almost all of the donuts are vegan. For what they are, they were decent. I found them to be very dry with not a lot of flavor. It's a good option with lots of variety for a very specific group of people. I, however, am not a part of that group. We also got a couple of lattes, and those were lacking flavor as well read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Cinnamon Sugar, Salted Caramel, PB&J, Apple Caramel (all yeast donuts) - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

A unique doughy donut with a soft yet crispy glaze. We had only ordered their yeast batch donuts in Cranberry, Pumpkin Chocolate, and Vanilla. Worth a visit! read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

This place was great with two different option of donuts either yeast or cake. Personally I liked the yeast a bit more than cake as it was very heavy. The yeast was a bit chewy. The staff was great our donut assistant was awesome and made my day by calling me "hommie" which I haven't heard in a long time! One complaint would be the coffee I was so excited because they make their own caramel sauce but upon getting my drink it was too hot for consumption and watery. I ordered an americano and it tasted more like water than coffee. For their coffee they need to check temperature of their hot water as it was scorching even after 15 minutes with lid off. So overall donuts are lovely blueberry lavender, caramel cream cheese and blueberry cream cheese were the best donuts there! read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Strawberry sprinkle donut - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

Vortex is a great place to stop for some good coffee and donuts! They have a nice selection of both cake and yeast style donuts. The holenut is a neat idea and is great for sharing! read more

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Vortex is a regular of mine. I get an old fashion donut here one to three times a week. It's a simple, not too sweet, not too expensive, donut that goes great with my morning coffee. I also enjoy their other topped and glazed donuts from time to time. Vortex is definitely a place worth visiting in Asheville and their donuts are great. I also find the atmosphere inside their dining area very nice for lounging with a book or a friend. They have lots of nice wood that gives it a natural ambiance. The last few times I was there they were playing some jazzy swingy music. This happens to be one of my favorite genres. read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Peanut butter chocolate chip donut. It's one of the specials this week. - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

Such a cute place in Asheville. We got a dozen. 6 cake donuts and 6 yeast donuts. They had a good variety of donuts and the workers were great! I particularly enjoyed the cake donuts more than the yeast donuts. My favorite is the vanilla cake and the salted caramel cake . The cold brew is also great!!! read more

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Absolutely the best doughnuts I've ever had. I knew I would like them but this is exactly how a doughnut should feel and taste. Not only are you enjoying the pleasure of watching the employees fry and prepare the doughnuts right in front of you, you are getting the freshest most perfectly textured doughnuts ever. Crispy on the outside and soft/fluffy on the inside. Pretty airy, but in a good way, not like there was missing doughnut or anything. These are not melt in your mouth kind like Krispy Kreme. These are not like the cakey/old fashioned style doughnuts they have at Duck Donuts. These are INCREDIBLE. read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Sesame seed cinnamon sugar doughnut - I prefer just glazed but this is good too! - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

Vortex is obviously more of a tourist attraction than a legitimately good doughnut shop. I've been three times in two years, each time was on a different visit to see my family in a nearby town. The only reason I went back a second and third time was because I was with someone who had heard of Vortex Doughnuts and wanted to try it. Ive tried several types of their doughnuts. They just aren't that good. read more

COVID precautions are good, all complaints are completely donut based. My girlfriend got the chocolate cake donut. Since it is cake and not yeast, it sits heavier in the stomach. The dark chocolate was too bitter and did not taste good. Imagine the yeast one is better. Girlfriend didn't want to eat hers it was so bad but it was our breakfast so she did anyways. I got the blueberry lemon waffle cone yeast donut. Blueberry glaze tasted like something but it sure wasn't blueberry and it sure wasn't good. The lemon was only noticeable on the waffle cone pieces. Visually the large pieces made the donut look nice but you couldn't fit it in your mouth to eat so I had to eat it separately. Would've been more intelligent to crumble it to allow the flavors to mesh. Overall fairly bad first visit IMO. Ive found few places 4.5 stars and up on Yelp where I was this disappointed. Will give it another shot next time I'm in AVL but as of this minute, I'd just suggest you head to Duck Donuts read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

It's nice to have a vegan donut. Friendly staff. Good coffee. Nice cafe. Poor parking options!! Make sure to pay your parking app the crazy person will tow you. read more

Huge donuts, great coffee, fun and unique flavors, and a trendy interior. If you're visiting downtown and want a delicious "pick me up" this is a great spot just off busy streets. This place is great and offers a great selection of coffee and donuts (the flavors rotate regularly). Personal Recommendation: Nitro Cold Brew with the Blackberry Streusel read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Front sign - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

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YUM!!!! I ordered the Vortex yeast doughnut (cinnamon sugar with a choco drizzle) and it was so tasty! I saved my Raspberry Lemon Cake doughnut for the next day and it was still absolute perfection. It was so good! I'd say I recommend the cake over yeast but also I think you should just try both of em :) I ordered some gluten-free doughnuts for my friend and they were much smaller than the regular doughnuts but she said they were good too! Their Nola coffee bev was also fire. I was not disappointed with anything I ordered here! read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Vortex Yeast Doughnut and Raspberry Lemon Cake Doughnut with a Nola Coffee - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

Every time I travel to a new city, I always seek out vegan donuts. Usually I'm disappointed. Not this time. Vortex has so many flavor options. The donuts are fluffy and delicious. The balance of them was perfection, sweet but not too sweet. I also go an americano which was very good. I highly recommend vortex for anyone who likes a good donut. read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Donut selection - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

Fantastic glazed espresso doughnut with a good cup of drip coffee. The store is downtown Asheville by breweries and has good service in a modern environment. Appreciate they have a hand washing station as your hands can get sticky with how good the food is. Will recommend and return again. read more

Vortex Doughnuts - Coffee & Tea Near Me - Asheville, North Carolina

Omg I see this place one tick-tock & found it on yelp & had to come they are one of the best donuts I have ever had. Also got ice latte with oat milk so good. read more

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