Top Pot Doughnuts

I like this location. It is fresh and it taste good ! Store is clean and Staff are kind and nice.

Seriously, what is all the hype? Read an article about the owners of the business, and how awesome their donuts were. So I saved the article and put it aside for my trip. But I was disappointed, at least with this location.
On a Sunday, it was dead inside. Only one guy sitting at the tables to the left, on his laptop. Visually, it’s a nice place to hang out — plenty of tables, chairs by the window, and it almost seems like a bookstore. Reminds me of a college bookstore café. Not a lot of personality or warmth to it, but more convenience and availability. A tiny cooler section where they had sandwiches and drinks. Mostly empty, so it looked like a sad display. Understandably people aren’t coming there for pre-​made sandwiches, so it’s not a big deal.
Staff was friendly — one young girl taking orders, and another guy making the beverages.
The display case was cute, but smaller than expected considering their online menu seemed so large and extensive. Saw a ton of cake donuts with frosting and glaze, something that looked like a cinnamon roll and a super large éclair, but their regular glazed donuts were all sold out! Couldn’t find a chocolate frosted one or a simple glazed one. All I was able to snag was the raspberry glazed one. While the frosting was light tasting and delicious without being overly sweet, that’s where the enjoyment ends. The donut was overly large, so I felt like I was eating a huge mouthful of dough without tasting enough glaze. Also, while it was technically soft, there was a subtle dryness or stale factor when you bit into it. It didn’t pull and tug with every bite, like something super fresh and pillowy.
And why have a billion cake donuts on display, as well as a stack of new ones waiting on trays to restock them when no one is clearly buying them? Meanwhile, all the glazed and chocolate covered ones are all sold out and no one is making any more of them. It’s not as if I came at night time, on a weeknight. It was 1:30 on a Sunday.
Disappointment.
No real parking here. Not sure how it is in the morning rush on weekends and weekdays, but it’s curb parking in front, but can only fit around 5 cars, more or less, depending how big and how close together. Plus, there are other businesses here competing for those spaces.

Not sure how this place is rated so-​so. The staff is super friendly, had donut recommendations and we’re pleasant to chat with while waiting for our drinks. Good coffee and good donuts. A fresh fluffy classic glazed donut? What’s not to like?
I’m a sweets kind of girl and will definitely be back to sample more donuts and say hello to the company. Ambience is nice. A chill spot to catch up, do some reading, or studying. A good find near the Bellevue Square for sure.

Our family loved Top Pot ! Even over ice cream as a treat. We would take all our visitors there. For months now their donuts have gone down hill. They are just like the ones they sell at the grocery store. The cafes stopped making them on site; now that they expanded they are mass produced. The fritters are small and bready with no crispy bits.

It’s alright, i like them Golden Tate maple bars. I like to go here on Sunday morning and get a large latte with a sweet treat them enjoy the Seahawks game.

I like Top Pot. I know there are many fancy bacon laced, jalapeño, flavored doughnuts that some bizarre places have. I don’t eat a lot of doughnuts because I am not a huge sweet food kind of person. But when I decide to eat a doughnut or get some for the work peeps I go to Top Pot. They are a crowd pleasing doughnut because they are fresh, they are consistent, and they are not psycho crazy. You know what you are getting. I don’t want to bite into a doughnut that is weird. I want consistency and that is what Top Pot brings. They make doughnuts like I had as a kid, there service is good, and I like their style. Thank you Top Pot for being who you are.

Went here on my last visit to Seattle.
They had 3 categories of donuts: Old Fashioned, Cake, and Yeast. I really liked this breakdown because I feel most laypeople would not know the difference
I had a glazed cake donut and chocolate yeast donut.

Felt like doughnuts at 4pm… bought a few for the family. These are some of the driest doughnuts I’ve ever had — really! They tasted 1 – 2 days old. My kids dipped theirs in milk.

Hand pulled espresso drinks made with care, real fresh-​squeezed OJ, and a great selection of awesome food. This is an example of what you miss going to a chain. The baristas are really well skilled and take the time to put some artistry into the milk pours. They also have 1 Gbs Internet if you are into that sort of thing :-)

Meh. There’s no other way of describing my experience here. Dropped in one morning and ordered a salted caramel donut (cake) and an iced mocha. The donut was okay but was a wee bit on the dry side. However the drink was horrendous, it was basically chocolate milk. There was little to no coffee in it. After stomaching a few sips, I tossed it out. Heck even a Dunkin Donuts regular coffee is stronger than that. Skip this place and just go to Starbucks.

The jelly donut is amazing with a cup of nice smooth latte!

I’m a hardcore Krispy Kreme fan but these doughnuts are DELICIOUS! Lots of flavors, fresh, something for everyone. I haven’t tried the sandwiches so I can’t speak to that, but the doughnuts are great. My favorite is the maple bar!

I love everything here. you can study here for a long time if you are used to wooden chairs (it can be uncomfy after sitting there for a while). However, the donut is like much more expensive than QFC… It’s like $ 2.51 vs $ 0.80. I’ve read somewhere that the donuts in QFC are smaller, but I’m sure 3 donuts at QFC would be much bigger than one donut in the store: P. Not saying it’s bad, but for take-​out orders, go to QFC.

Went here on a weekday morning and they were out of donuts. Your name has donuts in the title. It’s like going to Burger King and be like, «We are out of burgers» or Taco Bell and they’re out of tacos. Will never ever return. Bye bye repeat business, Top Pot. Good luck in the future.

Food: 3
Service: 4
Ambience: 3
Top Pot is just one block from our apartment but strangely we had never tried it before. As we were driving by the store this morning, my wife suggested to have a doughnut. We chose to park in our own apartment’s parking garage; although I think they validate if you park in the garage next to the store.
It was a Sunday morning and the store was not crowded. We could order almost immediately and got our foods in a few minutes.
I had a cinnamon raised ring and chai. My wife had a chocolate bar and hot chocolate. The doughnuts were fresh, but to be honest my expectations were higher. The texture was not the way I like, and the taste was a bit ordinary. The hot chocolate was very good, not too sweet or too strong. The chai was also decent but I do not know why the taste was a bit strange for me.
The staff were all friendly. The atmosphere was nice, although the décor lacks colors.

My boss requested I pick up some croissant for a store meeting this morning, so I decided to try Top Pot since it was on my way to work. I parked underground as they offer validation. The lady who helped me said they do not carry croissant or any other baked goods except donuts. I said «Oh, okay» and asked if she could stamp my parking ticket. No, she could not do that without a purchase. I asked for the manager and she said she was the manager. I asked her again to please stamp my ticket and again she said no we have to pay for that. Okay I’ll have a small coffee, now will you stamp my ticket? No response. She billed me ran my debit card and grudgingly stamped my parking ticket. I didn’t stick around for the coffee nor did she ask me about waiting for it.
Terrible service and a bad attitude. The doughnuts are good, but I won’t be returning after this experience.

An awesome little shop and conveniently located by car or on foot, if you happen to live nearby.
The staff is friendly and fast and I have never felt rushed when attempting to choose what I would like. Doughnuts and refreshments are on the spot. Their coffee doesn’t hit the spot for everyone as there is a distinctly different flavor to it. Doughnuts are quite fresh but make sure you get there before 9AM if there’s something particular that you want; or call it in the night before.
Overall, love it!

Sadness. There is perhaps no disappointment like that of the first bite of a hyped up donut that lacks freshness. I had quite literally been on a donut quest, trying virtually every place within a reasonable distance, when it suddenly occurred that there was an untested Top Pot within walking distance!
So this location is totally cute, couple of tables outside, lots of seating inside; plus it’s bright yet cozy feeling– complete with a library wall for style points. Counter help was super friendly, willing to discuss her favs, greeted several customers by name and knew their order (I love a place that does good by their regulars) AND she was super sweet about my order… which included all types of specific foolishness about a to go purchase for later and a to be eaten now combination on a plate… blah blah blah. Customer service here was fantastic and they’re busy!
So the deal breaker? The donuts:(
They all looked so pretty too, but do not be fooled. All four of my donuts were dry and stale tasting, my blueberry fritter had an unpleasant heavy grease taste and was waaaay overdone. Shockingly, I didn’t finish it. That’s dramatic for me, a pure sugar fiend. My glazed twist thing was a little better, but still not the light pillow of sweet glazed freshness that makes me want to holler. I think the cake based donuts were the best bet, not because they were any fresher, but because the staleness went a little bit better with the tasty coffee and the grease factor was reduced. I was saddened this visit. I can’t imagine how much worse it would have been had I come by in the afternoon! I didn’t finish any of the donuts I selected.
People LOVE this place though… so much business! It really looked like everyone in the downtown area came by to snag a dozen for the office. Pretty donuts, ugly taste. Even if someone swore that I had somehow managed to choose the four WORST donuts on the menu, I still wouldn’t really be interested in a repeat visit. Oh well.

Nicest doughnut shop I’ve ever been to.
Has the vibe of a hipster coffee shop but there’s tons of doughnuts displayed at the glass counter!
The original glazed was delicious.
They have many other unique flavors to try as well.

I’m not from Seattle, but even on my first visit I could tell that this coffee and donut shop on the Northeast corner of NE 9^th St. and 108^th Ave NE is quite the community gathering place. They advertise that they make hand forged doughnuts; I don’t know what that means, but all the donuts I tried were fabulous so maybe it does make a difference.
There is an entire wall of bookshelves filled with books along the back wall. Most of the people hanging out here were talking with friends or working on their computers, but I was dreaming about curling up with one of their books. Unfortunately for me I was here on a working weekend and had to grab my donut and coffee and get back quickly. Nonetheless, I managed to stay long enough to feel a certain sense of community surrounded by conversations of others like little windows into people’s lives. I won’t repeat any of them as I think I owe them a wee bit of privacy, but it created a warm atmosphere.
On my first visit, I ordered an English Toffee Latte and a chocolate sandcastle donut. The coffee was an excellent quality and even had a little heart pattern on top made of the coffee and steamed milk. My latte loves me a lot :). The chocolate sandcastle donut was easily the best donut I’ve ever had in my life. It was dense and chocolatey yet still amazing. And I have a thing about donuts. I even have a whole Unilocal list dedicated to donuts so I think I know what I am talking about.
On my next visit I believe I had a salted caramel donut which was also amazing. On my last morning in Seattle I picked up a piece of their harvest bread to eat on the plane that was beyond amazing. Seriously, If I lived anywhere near this place I’d be here every day.
The prices for the standard donuts are reasonable. The price on the premium donuts is high, but I promise you the taste and texture of these truly unique donuts are worth every penny.
I walked here from the hotel across the street, but if you’re driving here there you can get one hour retail parking free with validation in the parking structure with an entrance off 106 Ave NE. Who could pass up that deal?