Who has the best doughnut shop in Stanislaus County? Here’s how Bee readers voted
Whether you’re just picking up a sweet treat for yourself or buying them by the dozen to share, good doughnuts are in no short supply in Stanislaus County.
But who has the region’s best doughnut shop?
We asked readers to pick favorites, and boy did you ever. The results of The Modesto Bee’s recent poll are in, and the winner may surprise you.
More than 27,000 online votes were cast in the informal, nonscientific poll. Some 20 shops from Riverbank to Turlock, Oakdale to Newman were pitted against one another. After a full week of voting, the people have spoken.
And the winner is Patterson’s Sunshine Donut Co., a small, family-owned operation that has been in business for almost 30 years.
The Top 5 finishers of the online survey for best Stanislaus County doughnut shop were:
1. Sunshine Donut Co., Patterson
2. Salida Donuts, Salida
3. Doughchii Mochi, Salida
4. Mr. T’s Delicate Donut, Modesto
5. We Donut Shop, Modesto
Again, the poll is not scientific and people were allowed to vote more than once. Still, the enthusiasm of the area’s doughnut fans is hard to miss.
First opened in 1992, the Fourth Street shop has been churning out sweet treats just off the heart of downtown Patterson ever since. The shop was started by Cambodian immigrants, who came to America in the 1980s. The family still runs the small bakery, which has been in the same location from the start.
Patterson residents Lina Lam and her husband, Bunpaul Chuon, operate the shop with the help of their children and other family members. Since the pandemic started, they’ve also been the shop’s only bakers, starting around midnight each day to ensure doughnuts are fresh and ready by 4:30 a.m.
“We bake our own doughnuts, they’re made from scratch in house fresh daily,” Lam said. “During COVID, it was too hard to have (someone else) do the baking, so we started doing it all ourselves. It’s hard work, but it’s been good.”
The shop sells a wide variety of doughnuts, from glazed yeast to cake, bars to bear claws and more. Lam said glazed doughnuts are their best sellers. They often make special varieties for the holidays, like heart-shaped doughnuts for Valentine’s Day and turkey-themed doughnuts for Thanksgiving. Sunshine also offers a savory ham-and-cheese croissant that’s baked in house.
Lam said they’ve been grateful during the pandemic to keep their regulars, many who have been coming for years and some since the start.
“I appreciate the love and support from all of my valued customers. Everything is very family oriented. I am really happy and very blessed to have this (honor),” Lam said. “I did not know until my kids told me about it. Then some of my customers came in and told me about it. I am very happy.”
