Live in or near in Escondido? Lucky you: it’s home to Peterson’s, the no-frills, top-quality doughnut destination in North County since 1981. For everyone else, Peterson’s old school doughnuts are worth the day trip. Hopefully they will continue to be, even after the new owner takes over. (The family recently sold the business.)

Move over cronuts. Mochinuts, which mix the shape of doughnuts with the rice flower and texture of mochi, are the new hot hybrid. The chain has locations in South Korea, Thailand and the U.S., including several around San Diego. Two more are planned for Del Mar and National City.

Toppings range from restrained to extravagant (caramel, M&Ms, sea salt or chocolate, graham crackers, marshmallows, caramel drizzle). The “vlugan” menu (with gluten free and vegan items) is inclusive of all kinds of dietary restrictions. They also have beignets and other yeasty goodies.

Whether you go classic (cinnamon crumb or vanilla glazed) or seasonal (recently: huckleberry, blueberries and Champagne), Sidecar’s small-batch, handcrafted, perfectly warm doughnuts, part of a small Southern California chain, are a new and very welcome player in San Diego’s doughnut scene. (They have good coffee, too.)

Mary’s has been an East County — and, really a San Diego County — institution since it was opened in 1984. Plentiful flavors (plus sandwiches and muffins — they have a broad menu) and a 24/7 schedule means no doughnut emergency will go unaddressed.

This vegan doughnut shop offers a broad variety in bases and glazes. Some are delicate (rose cardamom), some are bold (sprinkles). Suggestion: sample the classics and a few atypical varieties before declaring a favorite.

Rose’s doughnuts — fluffy, puffy, gleaming — remain a go-to for a reason. This shop, with locations on opposite ends of Linda Vista Road, has sandwiches and other savory breakfast options, too. Cash only. 

The amazing thing about Dark Horse — beyond their beans, which make them one of San Diego’s best roasters — is that one can always claim one is stopping by for coffee. But what one is actually doing is eyeing the menu of daily specials from Skinny Donuts (their in-house doughnut maker) and deciding which variety to commit to. (The answer is always: one of each.) Locations in central San Diego and La Mesa.

As its name suggests, Nomad tops its doughnuts with creative fruit and spice flavors from near and far. Keeping things consistent, their savory breakfast option has the same shape: bagels.

With a weekly rotating menu of doughnuts (recently: tres leches and guava cream cheese) this is an optimal place to stray from any diet or indulge in the sin of gluttony. They source their coffee from stellar local roaster Cafe Virtuoso.

Featured by multiple local and national media outlets, Donut Bar delivers crowd-pleasing, brightly frosted treats at several locations around the region. When a simple glazed doughnut won’t do, this spot has many changing varieties that are as cheerful as they are sugary.