Sidecar Doughnuts & Coffee: Fresh Hourly | Costa Mesa, California

Established in 2012 by a creative trio, Sumpter & Chi-Lin Pendergrast and Chef Brooke Desprez, Sidecar Doughnuts & Coffee serve fresh doughnuts every hour, signature coffee blends and free smiles. This trendy establishment's owners are a match made in heaven, the delicious recipes of Chef Desprez and beauty design details of the Pendergrasts have catapulted Sidecar to become one of the busiest doughnut shops in Orange County. They currently have two locations, their flagship store in Costa Mesa and another in Santa Monica.

I had heard of Sidecar for a long time but never knew it was so close to my house. I was craving donuts and french fries one day and tweeted about it, one of my friend's replyed to my tweet saying we should grab doughnuts at Sidecar. The big California storm caused us to reschedule but we finally tried these delicacies on a Thursday morning.

» Food & Drink «

Their famous doughnuts are made from scratch, use only the finest ingredients and are baked in small batches every hour to ensure each customer bites into a warm and fresh treat. They have a constantly changing menu. Sidecar offers a daily flavor menu, a monthly flavor menu and a weekly Gluten Free option that changes every Monday. The current menu is available on their website. The price of each doughnut vary from $2.50-$5 a piece.

What better beverage to pair doughtnuts than coffee! In collaboration with Portland's Stumptown Coffee Roasters, Sidecar has two signature blends, Forty Winks and Colt's Tooth. Forty Winks is described as a "blend that mixes chocolate and raspberry, medium bodied and well balanced." They recommend pairing it with Huckleberry and Cinnamon Crumb. As for Colt's Tooth, it is their expresso blend that is more "bold and complex." The recommended pairing is the Madagascar and Vanilla Twist doughnuts.

*I ordered the Passion Fruit Paviova ($4.50) and it was AMAZING! I love passion fruit and this doughnut is perfect! It has a dollop of cream and fresh passion fruit on top and has a cream filling. The cream is light and not too sweet. I would recommend if you want a fruity doughnut.

» Aesthetics & Vibes «

The aesthetics of Sidecar is impeccable! The whole rustic, hipster, newspaper room vibe is apparent from their logo, to the dark woods interior of the shop. You can watch them make the doughnuts right in front of you. These morsels are photogenic, don't forget to take out your camera. The white marble tables are a perfect backdrop.

» Service «

When I first walked in, I felt a countless pairs of eyes staring me. They have a lot of people working behind the counter probably because during peak times they have a long queue. In one Yelp review, they said there was a line forming outside before the store even opened! All the employees were friendly and gave great recommendations.

There is no seating inside but they have a few tables right outside the shop, maybe 5 or 6 small round tables. If you are going during peak hours you'll probably have to take it to go, the beach is just a few miles away so you can always drive their to eat your treat.

» Parking «

Sidecar is located in a busy plaza on 17th street. Don't be surprised if you'll have to circle the parking lot during daytime hours and vulture people for their spot.

OVERALL

Sidecar is not your cheap local donut store or a Krispy Kreme. It is a premium doughnut and a great treat yo self item. I would recommend getting one or two doughnuts since they are pretty filling and are expensive. Definitely coming back! I saw a pie place next door that I want to try too.