Voodoo Doughnut Taiwan
*CLOSED*
It's OK ☆☆☆
Taipei shop/cafe offering: Doughnuts / Coffee / Espresso Based Coffee / Ice Cream / Doughnut Burger / Beer / Tea / Slushies / Custom Birthday Doughnut Cake / Catering
Address:
No. 28, Ln. 553, Sec. 4, Zhongxiao E. Rd., Xinyi Dist., Taipei City 110
台北市信義區忠孝東路四段553巷28號
Phone: (02) 2763-5593
Hours: Open 24 Hours, except:
Sun: Closes at 10pm, Mon: 12pm - 10pm, Tue: Opens at 12pm
Last Reviewed: 8 December 2015
Taipei was lucky enough to be the first international location for Voodoo Doughnut. I went during their soft opening and was completely disappointed, as were some other people I had talked to. However, I'm happy to say that the Doughnut Barons, Kenneth "Cat Daddy" Pogson and Tres Shannon, flew Michael Metzner, the Duke of Doughnuts, from their Portland, Oregon, headquarters to Taipei in order to make their first international location function like their American branches. I have visited their original location in Portland, and after visiting VD (Voodoo Doughnut, not venereal disease) in Taipei several times after the Duke of Doughnuts whipped it into shape, I'm very happy to say that it's now delicious. So if you went during their soft opening or even during the beginnings of their regular opening before the Duke of Doughnuts arrived on the scene, please give them another visit; you won't regret it. I'm also happy to report that VD is still running smoothly weeks after the Duke departed back to the land of doughnuts and honey. I haven't ate a doughnut at VD that was disgusting or not fresh enough after my first visit.
They have doughnuts for the Westerner’s sweet tooth and the Taiwanese's non-sweet palate. Don't be shy to ask the staff in order to be directed to the level of sweetness that you're looking for when ordering their doughnuts. The menu is nicely designed with the different types of doughnuts grouped together: plain cake, old fashioned cake, devil's food cake, cruellers, filled doughnuts, fritters, raised bars, raised rings, and specialties. Many of their creative and splendidly vulgar doughnut titles might leave one feeling confused as to what the item actually contains, and that's why there are three color laminated sheets of paper displaying the doughnuts' pictures by their title, and there are also two large rotating glass cases with numerous doughnuts displayed.
I'm not going to critique every doughnut that I've tried because it's all a matter of preference. However, I will say that the old fashioned cake doughnuts at VD Taiwan were a huge disappointment for me. I never had them in Portland, but I've had them at many other places in America where they were all sinfully delicious; especially the old fashioned donuts made by Franz. I would kill to eat those again. VD's Banana Hammock is definitely my favorite item at their shop; it's one of my favorite desserts in Taipei. I like very sweet doughnuts and will list off my favorite VD doughnuts:
1. Gay Bar (NT$65): It's probably their sweetest doughnut. It's filled with cream and has a sweet frosting cover with a rainbow of sprinkles. Even after hearing in detail why this doughnut is called a Gay Bar, I'm still not hesitant to swallow it. There have been nights where I have dreamed of the next occasion in which I could slip a sweet Gay Bar down my throat.
2. Taipei Cream (NT$55): This doughnut includes the best of both worlds for me, as I love maple frosting and cream filling.
3. The Loop (NT$52): It has a sweet white frosting and is covered in crunchy Fruit Loops (an iconic American sugary breakfast cereal). The gooiness of the frosting and dough mixed with the hard, crunchy cereal is a nice combination. It's the only doughnut that isn't priced at an increment of NT$5, just to mess with your head and make you go fruit loops.
4. Bacon Maple Bar (NT$75): Classic raised maple bars were always my favorite donut whilst growing up. I can remember biking with my friends to the closest grocery store a mile away from my house in order to eat a maple bar or an old fashioned donut. VD has raised this old classic -- maple bar -- to another level by adding salty, crispy bacon on top. The match is made in heaven. Too bad all the bar doughnuts are noticeably smaller at the Taipei shop compared to the American VD shops -- this is a bummer man, that's a...that's a bummer.
5. Mango Tango (NT$70): This doughnut is filled with mango jelly and topped with vanilla frosting and tang. I was surprised at how much I liked this doughnut. The mango jelly filling was key in its success, but the tang topping kicked it up to another level of yumminess.
The fact that Dunkin' Donuts couldn't make it in Taipei means nothing to Voodoo Doughnut. There is no other doughnut shop like Voodoo; in my opinion, they make the best doughnuts in Taipei. Krispy Kreme is delicious in America where you can eat them hot and fresh, but they're never hot and fresh in Taipei, making them not nearly as tasty. Microwaving doughnuts when you get home just freaks me out -- anyway, I haven't owned a microwave for a long time for intelligence reasons. OK, I know there are no nutrients in donuts to be destroyed in the microwave, but you're probably creating a super-hybrid chemical strain that is going to mess up your chi big time, buddy. Mister Donut is ... whatever, who cares. Voodoo Doughnut is open 24 hours except for Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday (check out the hours I listed). Their location, across the street from Songshan Cultural and Creative Park (松山文創園區), is nicely placed for capturing the outflow from the exhibition crowds, but there is no night life at all in that area to warrant being open 24 hours. If it was in the ATT 4 FUN area or close to any nightclub, being open 24 hours might have been very profitable. Unless enough night owls become aware of VD's 24 hour night lounging and are willing to travel to the shop's location, they're going to have to reduce their hours to a normal shop's opening hours.
One last thing to add. About three weeks ago I was informed that a new rule had popped up at VD: one must order a drink in order to dine-in. The rule was never actually enforced upon me and my crew upon our two visits after the creation of this rule, but that might have been because we purchased many doughnuts and it was very late at night when the shop was virtually empty. Personally -- and my friends agree -- I think this rule is completely stupid. Some people only want doughnuts. A shop should never force people to buy a particular thing on the menu; and Voodoo Doughnut is not one of those anal Taiwanese cafe's that enforce that one-drink-purchase rule. If needs be, a healthier alternative would be to make a minimum purchase or a dining time limit; however, both of those could also hurt business, and aren't necessary unless business is being turned away due to full seating.
*UPDATE: Upon my last visit (Dec. 22nd, 2015), the apple fritter literally tasted like soapy water, without sweetness or any other flavor, and the dough was mushy -- NT$115 down the toilet. We didn't even want to eat it after everyone took one bite to experience the horror. I've never had a worse doughnut in my life. It was similar to a disaster I experienced when ordering their Memphis Mafia, another fritter, during their soft opening; except that time, the fritter solely tasted of old grease. I'm afraid that Voodoo Doughnut's quality has already fallen since The Duke of Doughnuts left. The other doughnuts we received were quality, but you never know what you're going to get when the reliability has been broken. Definitely stay away from their fritters, as they seem to be the hardest thing for them to make properly. I very well can't give Voodoo my highest rating when they're inconsistent, or possibly worse, so I have lowered their rating to four stars. As their quality possibly lowers over time due to poor management, that rating might even prove to be generous. Taiwan Voodoo would've stayed marvelous if The Duke of Doughnuts was made manager and stayed to insure that the two words "quality & consistency" would've kept describing Taiwan Voodoo Doughnut's productivity.
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Address:
No. 28, Ln. 553, Sec. 4, Zhongxiao E. Rd., Xinyi Dist., Taipei City 110 台北市信義區忠孝東路四段553巷28號 Phone: (02) 2763-5593 Hours: Open 24 Hours, Except: Sun: Closes at 10pm, Mon: 12pm - 10pm, Tue: Opens at 12pm Chinese & English Menu Average Doughnut: NT$55 Cash Only Free Wi-Fi No Stupid 10% Service Charge Reservations Accepted Delivery Catering Custom Doughnut Cake Ordering Click on the link below for their Google Map page for the street view and/or other visitor's photos. Afterwards, you can click the dedicated back button on Google Maps to view the destination on a full-screened Google Map for directions. Voodoo Doughnut Taiwan |
The two founders of Voodoo Doughnut, Kenneth Pogson and Tres Shannon, talk about their beginnings and ideas. Many different doughnuts are shown in this video.
Kenneth "Cat Daddy" Pogson is slashing doughnut prices like a car salesman.
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