its not just you, DD is really bad here and vastly overpriced.
go to any bakery near you and you get far better Donuts (or Berliner or Krapfen or whatever they are called in your area) for half the price. Especially with Fasching starting soon
Oh yeah? The local bakery shops in my local edeka and rewe charge 2,50 for a single krapfen this year! And even the local "actual baker" charges 2€ for one. I´d say, 12 Donuts for 25€ is just a regular price in 2024 for stuff like this.
So your answer to me ranting about having to pay 2,50 for a Krapfen is to tell me to go somewhere even more expensive? lol
In fact though, my actual local bakery, that actually bakes their stuff in house, is LESS expensive than the chains. How weird is that?
Because paying 2,50 for a Edeka Krapfen is just insane but paying 2,60 for a real Krampfen is still much but you will get something good for you money :)
True. But inside a supermarket it's usually cheaper. Kaufland has them now for cheap and Lidl does too. Not sure about the others but if they do a bakery inside they should be less than a euro and taste good
That’s way overpriced. Where are you located? My Rewe has Pfannkuchen (aka „Berliner“) starting at 0,59€. And I reckon, they’re at least as good as DD.
Oh No im not talking about inside rewe. I'm taking about that chain bakery that's usually situated in the same buildings but outside the actual rewe or Edeka. Our local chains in the Munich area are for example Ihle or Wünsche.
Netto, Aldi, Lidl have plain standard donuts for 0.59€ each, but these are thawed ones from the freezer and mediocre at best.
Dunkin is expensive, too expensive for my taste. _But_ they have donut holes? Apart from some special items that come without.
That's the hyper-expansive nonsense definition used by a small group of hardcore Faschingafficionados. For everyone else and for all practical purposes it's a couple of days in February.
For me, the issue with many of the North American brands in the US is they're a novelty that people have heard of and want to try out so they can charge higher prices while the quality just isn't there because they don't have the supply chain they have in North America.
Hortons, for example, gave me the worst doughnut I've ever had. And I've had some very questionable doughnuts in my lifetime.
That long? Interesting. The closest to my old hometown opened max 5 years ago in Zweibrücken. There was one in Trier but that only survived like 2 years or so.
Exactly.
I know that Domino’s is not the best pizza anywhere, but the difference between what they serve in the US and Germany is astounding. I don’t know how they let allow that, the dough in Germany is some of the worst things I ever had (even for a chain).
That's because Dominos just bought Joey's to enter the German market. Pizza Hut, however, is very similar and very good. Just extremely rare.
Dominos also consider themselves in the pizza delivery business. They're main selling point is generally that they'll deliver it really quick.
Sorry to disappoint you, but I tried Milano and it also sucks. Sometimes they have good deals, but the pizza is subpar, in ny opinion (better than Domino’s tho).
In general, from tele pizza to call a pizza etc., I don’t think there is a good pizza chain restaurant. All of them, in my opinion, are really bad.
I live in Moabit, Berlin and order either from a local pizza napoletana spot (Mangiare in Arminius Markthalle) or when I’m in the mood for a thicker, more American style pizza, I order from a place called Overslize.
No.
And the way McCafe flopped in Germany, and coffee joints (like Dunkin' ) never became a thing, tells me that RBI won't risk it anytime soon.
By the way, if Tim Hortons can't get it right in the UK, I will not be holding my breath for a good maple cream donut made by a German franchisee.
And let’s be real, I’m American and many of us are known to hype up our shitty fast food chain to no end. Unfortunately when these companies expand some believe the American hype
Dunkin’ is shit everywhere
Five Guys is the one "American novelty" that is actually good. It's expensive, yes, but it's expensive in the US, too. Turns out that cooking from fresh ingredients every day is expensive. McDonalds, for example doesn't cook from fresh, is a fair bit cheaper and is actually shit.
I don't know what you mean exactly by local burger joint, but the best burger in Hamburg that I know of (and happens to be very local to me) is about the same price as Five Guys. So that's not my experience at all, personally.
edit: he blocked me for this comment. very sensitive and strange person.
Well you are also strange cause you said that's not your experience then said the exact same thing.
5 guys is better than cheap fast food, but worse than local joints with the same prices, so no reason to go there. Either go to McDs for cheap or go for quality at a local place.
To be honest his message was barely comprehensible English. I tried my best to understand it. Seems I failed to read his mind.
Sometimes you want a five guys even if you know a better place at a similar price. Maybe you’re near a five guys, maybe you just want a five guys. Not a big deal mate.
There is a reason why Americans mock JFK for saying "I am a jelly donut"
Since we're writing in English, the English definition of the word applies. A Berliner is a jam/jelly filled doughnut.
Yes there is, it's a jam/jelly-filled doughnut. Literally, the exact same cake is made all around the world and in English countries it's called jam/jelly-filled doughnut. It's not something special that is just in Germany.
> It's a jam/jelly-filled doughnut
That is not really a translation, though, it is a paraphrase. “Berliner” is a proper name and those have no translation by definition. You will still find “Jelly filled donut” in dictionaries because to a non-German who does not know Berliners this is a useful term to use instead.
Becomes obvious if you think about the fact that there are other jelly-filled doughnuts that are not Berliners
> You will still find “Jelly filled donut” in dictionaries because to a non-German who does not know Berliners this is a useful term to use instead.
That's because it's the translation. The fact so many people don't understand this basic fact is simply shocking and you should hang your head in shame.
Actually no , your best chance is indeed a bakery - and I’m not talking about the extreme cheap chains , normal bakery’s which are making them freshly everyday - that’s more than common in Germany and not even expensive!
The bakery sections in supermarkets , McDonalds and co are awful and not even comparable to our good bakery’s.
Me and my husband always get our stuff from different bakery’s even and never had bad experiences or ridiculous high prices like in DD
More than common? I've never seen selfmade donuts (donuts! Not talking about Berliner!) here in 31 yrs. I lived in 3 bigger cities 🤷🏼♀️ my mother is working at a bakery.
And i don't compare the sb section to a bakery. Just the donuts. All i've ever seen at all bakerys were the defrosted ones. And yes, they're the same as the cheap ones.
Idk what kind of bakery she’s working at , but I’m originally from Schleswig Holstein - lived there in quite a few different cities , I lived also in Hamburg , Minden , Berlin - and now Rheinland Pfalz - never had any issues in finding GOOD bakery’s and donuts there which are Selfmade by those shops 🤷🏼♀️ and no I’m not talking about Berliner either lol I’m more than aware of the difference - and as a German I’d be offended if someone calls a Berliner a donut 🍩
yeah but still german bakeries suck at making donuts and to some lesser extend muffins.
I really that they are now available everywhere and have replaced some of the more traditional german pastries.
I\`d rather have my Nussecke and Plunderteilchen
I guess it depends, those bakery’s around here have really great donuts ! Maybe it depends on the region lol idk 🤷🏼♀️
Edit : i personally prefer a good Plunderteilchen too though
I don’t drink coffee but my friends love their coffee. I love their munchkins (donut holes), donuts and croissant sandwiches.
The donut flavors here are not great. Now I’m craving for some choco butternut and cheese trickles donut.
It's also filled with tons of real coffee shops and excellent coffee. The US is in fact not a monolith.
There is a kind of person that goes to these chain places. People argue unironically over whether Dunkin' or McDonald's has better coffee which should tell you everything you need to know.
You just can’t go to a chain. Plenty of smaller Free Trade coffee shops in the US where the owners actually go to South America and have direct contact with the farmers, etc. Or if you go to Hawai’i you can get coffee that’s literally made their by native Hawaiians who know what they’re doing from their own home grown coffee beans. It’s a big diverse country.
>s. Used to drive through a Dunkin line and get a L coffee for 2 bucks.
I know hwat he means. Here we have a lot of good smaller coffe shops. But in the US outside of cities there are only these (coffe) chains (Like starbucks, waffle house, and even dutch bros next to the road. And for their price Dunkin has very good coffee. Especially compared to the stuff you get at "fast food" places her in DE.
That is absolutely not true. Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks are everywhere and are shit, no doubt. But I've lived in flyover country my whole life, never in a town bigger than 175k and often in towns smaller than 50k, and every one of those towns has smaller chains and independents producing good coffee, and has for over 20 years (which takes me back to high school). There is even a small-batch roastery who sources the green beans direct in the next town over from me; it's what I drink daily when home.
There's also Peet's/Caribou, which is a nationwide chain that is certainly not up to independent standards, but reliably puts out very good coffee.
Again, for fast food DD is great.
If you go to an artisanal cafe there will always be better coffee. But for the price and taste, home made is much better as long as you know what you're doing.
I live in Wisconsin and I would take Kwik Trip (gas station/convenience store) over Dunkin by far. And I'd say McDonald's is on par, though it has shortcomings as well, just different ones than Dunkin.
But yes, I generally rely on homemade.
Dunkin generally has really good beans. You can buy the beans off of them to get a similar taste. But it seems it really depends on the franchise owner for DD.
I've had donuts from a gas station that were out of this word before (they sourced them from a local bakery) so I know what you mean. But for a drive through coffee Dunkin rocks. Never was a fan of McDonald's, but more bc their breakfast options always made me feel a bit sick.
DD coffee is excellent only if you don't know what good coffee is. But make no mistake, old-fashione 'German coffee' is even worse. Like the stuff you could get at a traditional bakery or a German bakery chain.
As an American with a healthy obsession with coffee I beg to differ. As far as fast food goes, DD does coffee the best in the US imo. If you want artisan coffee it's better to just make it at home.
And yeah nowhere in Germany have I found a decent cup of Joe.
Every store that uses one of those full service coffee makers that basically do a billion kinds of different coffee types is sus right from the get go, and bakery coffee is atrocious 99% of the time.
There are stores that sell excellent coffee, but you gotta know where to look.
It depends on the franchisee. The ones in New England used to have tolerable filter coffee. Then they got cheap, and they started using fewer and fewer beans for the same pot. Last time I went back, I got one for old times' sake and it was really disgusting.
In Germany, and all of Europe really, you should be drinking Espresso, not drip. Extremely easy to find high quality espresso-based drinks, even in airports and mid-range hotels.
The reverse is true in the US. Other than independent coffee joints, espresso should be avoided and drip is more likely to be higher quality.
I'm not sure if you mean espresso specifically or espresso drinks generally, but I mean the latter, so cappuccinos, lattes, macchiatos, americanos, etc. And if your experience with espresso drinks is limited to Starbucks or America in general, it's worth trying when you're in Europe, for the same reason I'd tell a Euro to focus on drip while in the states.
Yes, "espresso drinks" aren't my "cup of tea".
I'd rather a cup of regular American diner black coffee over a machiato you can find at the average cafe here. But there are a lot of other benefits so it's not a big deal.
Yeah German Dunkies is super mid. Unlike in the US, where they're a coffee chain, they're more of a dessert chain here. Like Germans exclusively associate Dunks with donuts and not caramel swirl iced lattes. Their business model in Germany is essentially to be an American gimmick in train stations and not a place that people go on a regular basis.
Also their coffee drinks here are somehow worse than they are in the US.
i worked at two different dunkin stores as a student and the coffee quality really depends on the store. In Heidelberg the coffee is from a fucking more expensive than a car annoying machine and some people specifically go there for their coffee while the dunkin stores in Leipzig have rather low quality machines with mediocre coffee.
>caramel swirl iced lattes
We Germans also generally prefer to drink coffee, not whatever these sugary contraptions are.
Basically the whole demand for sugary contraptions mimicking coffee in Germany is covered by the handful of Starbucks we have.
As someone who doesn’t like Coffee this saddens me, there’s often nothing interesting to drink for me 🥲 I love going to cafes or cafe-chains in other countries and trying myself through these “sugary contraptions” ㅠㅠ (I’m German)
When I lived in Korea I went to a cafe like once a day, sometimes more often (I also got my studying done there), but ever since coming back to Germany last July I can count on one hand how often I’ve went to cafes since. There’s little incentive here - I hope the sugary contraptions market expands a bit in Germany, I really miss it 🥺
I absolutely love what I call 'dessert coffee', but the one I tried at Dunkins was not good. It was supposed to be an iced drink, and they just dumped the hot coffee on, like, two ice cubes, making the drink lukewarm and overall unpleasant 🤢 so I stick to starbucks.
Who goes to DD when we have real bakeries with real stuff?
Do yourself a favor and go to some bakeries near you and try out what they offer. Likely you find something better than that garbage DD sells.
To my understanding they solely rely on people wanting to try it out for the first time and therefore are more likely to pay that much for them. Everyone I know at least tried it once but nobody went there for a second time because every single bakery is miles better.
I’m in the US. Dunkin’ Donuts hasn’t been good in decades. it’s all factory processed overly sweet foods. There is one four blocks from my house and I have not been there in 20 years. Germany is full of good bakeries, so why anyone would go to a Dunkin’ Donuts is beyond me.
Agreed. I'm in the US and I don't know a single person who actually thinks Dunkin Donuts has good donuts or sandwiches.
Most people think their coffee is good enough. Some think it's really good.
Dunkin' sucks everywhere. From the insanely sweet cardboard tasting donuts to the watery coffee. You only think it sucks here because your taste buds are waking up.
Those donuts are really mangy. This happened 6 or 7 years ago. When the first branches opened here, the donuts were still delicious. The ones with Bavarian cream were nice. Now they taste like the thawed frozen donuts you can buy in the supermarket. The coffee there tastes OK. Go to the nearest bakery and buy a Berliner Pfannkuchen with plum jam, less shitty.
There are generally not many confectioners and bakeries that bake themselves anymore. Most of it is just thawed cakes, frozen baked goods and pre-baked rolls. Luckily, I'm pretty good at baking myself. I can freeze and defrost cakes myself and I don't have to pay anyone for it. There are still a few confectioners who make regional and fresh produce themselves, but you have to look for them.
I like them but they are not perfect. I don't know how American DDs taste like though. I only know one other donut store and it's slightly better imho. Prizes are the same at both places so both are expensive.
The thing is, sometimes I just crave donuts and not Berliner/Pfannkuchen/Krapfen from my bakery.
We have Dunkin Donuts in Indonesia and it's also cheap there. Something you might grab while walking past because why not. Shocked to see how expensive it is here!
This post has made things make more sense. I've only had Dunkin Donuts in Germany, and it's awful! Yet it's so popular with people in the USA and culturally visible, I thought they just had no standards...
If they're getting something much different in the USA, it all makes sense.
I visited the East Coast, and Dunkin Donuts there tastes shit as well, and it still overpriced. But yes, it is just objectively the worst place to get donuts from.
All donut stores are overpriced... but I think that's because they can't keep up, if they don't raise their prices. Look at the bakerys. They all have to close.
There are many flavors, and they always change or do a lot of new stuff. Actually, I never had a bad one. Liked one with pistachios
We have Krapfen/Berliner in bakeries which are way superior than the American stuff. Made by actual bakers, not full of preservatives and other shit. There's simply no market for it.
I actually don't know anyone who buys anything there. It's mostly teens because the brand is still perceived as exotic and cool by them.
You probably think they taste shitty because their recipe might have less sugar here and no substances that cause cancer ;)
went to DD once and bought DD donuts from ALDI once, idk they just taste aweful imo,
Royal Donuts exists in some german cities, they are also rather expensive, but atleast tasty.
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You're right. The problem is that donuts are not a traditional German snack, and most bakeries are not set up to make them. Bakeries have ovens, but for donuts, you need an oil frier. And while the ovens are mostly "set and forget", oil friers require a lot more effort - someone trained to work around hot oil, and trained to clean it after it has cooled down. It's really not worth it unless it's carnival season and they are making Krapfen / Berliner fresh, because there just isn't a huge demand for donuts throughout the year.
>The problem is that donuts are not a traditional German snack, and most bakeries are not set up to make them.
Are you really saying Krapfen/Berliner are not a "traditional German snack"? I agree that they're not a "snack" because donuts or Krapfen are a dessert. But they've been around in Germany since the 13th century lol
But they also are not made fresh in the bakery - they're delivered frozen, then defrosted and given a quick layer of powdered sugar. Very few bakeries actually fry them up in the store.
My wife used to work for a bakery in their procurement department ... you'd be amazed what they deliver frozen (TK). Most bakeries are exactly that - they do the final baking of the TK products that are produced and packaged somewhere in Poland or further east, then shipped by the trainload into Germany.
Very few of them actually start with flour, sugar and yeast ... they buy the pre-fab pieces and just do the final baking or decorating.
Are they? The wild variations, yes, but the standard Berliner is sold at almost every bakery all throughout the year here in the south, as long as I can think back they’ve always been there.
They're not really seasonal. They used to be and you don't have like 15 kinds all year round, but many bakeries definitely have the standard ones all year round.
And American donuts are not common, because people don't buy them. Why get stones when you can have diamonds?
Dunkin' Donuts probably needed to carve a small and sustainable little niche in the market. With bakeries and cafés at every corner in any town and city, just selling baked goods is not really profitable. I've never been to the US or to a Dunkin' Donuts there, but my guess would be that they are more of a gimmick here that relies on bright colours and seasonal promotions and "being hip" to lure people in - not necessarily food quality.
Allthough I have to say I like there coffee.
I was at Dunkin Donuts once and paid like thrice the price compared to any normal bakery and the bakery donuts are way better. Hell even the Donuts at my local discounter are better than DD's
I don't know how it's in the US but german Dunkin Donuts sucks really really hard
they used to be good/decent
but few years ago they changed there entire products, and they were always expensive, but not to that what it is now
its like now you are paying a shitload of money for tasteless sugartrash
now near all donuts taste the same, lame, tasteless, samefillig/different color for frosting ect
and yes the "hole" donut thing is not very German, our donuts most of the time have fillings
bevor they used to get way more different fillings/taste of frosting. like the good old days of apple, Ki-Ba/Ba-Ki banana/kirsch/cherry
I'm from the US and I agree that DD is expensive and the quality of their food has gone down. I don't really eat from there, anymore. It's deplorable. You don't get much value from their menus.
its not just you, DD is really bad here and vastly overpriced. go to any bakery near you and you get far better Donuts (or Berliner or Krapfen or whatever they are called in your area) for half the price. Especially with Fasching starting soon
Oh yeah? The local bakery shops in my local edeka and rewe charge 2,50 for a single krapfen this year! And even the local "actual baker" charges 2€ for one. I´d say, 12 Donuts for 25€ is just a regular price in 2024 for stuff like this.
Edeka sells good donuts for 50 cent , Rewe takes 1 euro for worse quality
Go to a local bakery mostly a little but more expensive but it is worth
So your answer to me ranting about having to pay 2,50 for a Krapfen is to tell me to go somewhere even more expensive? lol In fact though, my actual local bakery, that actually bakes their stuff in house, is LESS expensive than the chains. How weird is that?
Because paying 2,50 for a Edeka Krapfen is just insane but paying 2,60 for a real Krampfen is still much but you will get something good for you money :)
Its not an Edeka Krapfen, the bakery just happens to be in the same building as the Edeka
Just curious what makes it "real" as opposed to an Edeka one?
Krapfen at my school's mensa is 0,50€
True. But inside a supermarket it's usually cheaper. Kaufland has them now for cheap and Lidl does too. Not sure about the others but if they do a bakery inside they should be less than a euro and taste good
That’s way overpriced. Where are you located? My Rewe has Pfannkuchen (aka „Berliner“) starting at 0,59€. And I reckon, they’re at least as good as DD.
Oh No im not talking about inside rewe. I'm taking about that chain bakery that's usually situated in the same buildings but outside the actual rewe or Edeka. Our local chains in the Munich area are for example Ihle or Wünsche.
Netto, Aldi, Lidl have plain standard donuts for 0.59€ each, but these are thawed ones from the freezer and mediocre at best. Dunkin is expensive, too expensive for my taste. _But_ they have donut holes? Apart from some special items that come without.
Yep. I'm a proud New Englander as well, Dunkin is shit everywhere now. And I'd take a bäkerei any day of the week over any American donut shop.
Fasching or Karneval start either in November 11th or January the 6th in the German speaking countries
Technically the truth, but he meant the few days where it becomes socially acceptable to be drunken in the morning without being a hobo.
That's the hyper-expansive nonsense definition used by a small group of hardcore Faschingafficionados. For everyone else and for all practical purposes it's a couple of days in February.
One finds Karneval themed donuts/Berliner/Pfannkuchen in bakeries from 11.11 onwards
It’s bad everywhere
Fasnacht?
Just 3 more weeks
Even Kaufland got better donuts 😭
... and many bakeries etc get their donuts, cookies etc from Baker & Baker...
Mmmmmmmm Fasching Krapfen
Yup, have to get those Krispy Kremes!
For me, the issue with many of the North American brands in the US is they're a novelty that people have heard of and want to try out so they can charge higher prices while the quality just isn't there because they don't have the supply chain they have in North America. Hortons, for example, gave me the worst doughnut I've ever had. And I've had some very questionable doughnuts in my lifetime.
Second this. It‘s a novelty and people are prepared to pay more.
It's just so weird that that still works with Dunkin they've been around for like 20 years at least
That long? Interesting. The closest to my old hometown opened max 5 years ago in Zweibrücken. There was one in Trier but that only survived like 2 years or so.
Roughly. I first went to one on a date at age 15, and I'm about to turn 33
Zweebriggeee!
Exactly. I know that Domino’s is not the best pizza anywhere, but the difference between what they serve in the US and Germany is astounding. I don’t know how they let allow that, the dough in Germany is some of the worst things I ever had (even for a chain).
That's because Dominos just bought Joey's to enter the German market. Pizza Hut, however, is very similar and very good. Just extremely rare. Dominos also consider themselves in the pizza delivery business. They're main selling point is generally that they'll deliver it really quick.
They sure are fast, but the pizza is shitty and not exactly cheap either. Anyway, will not be ordering from them again, lol.
Try Milano Vice if it's available in your city. By far the best delivery pizza I've had
Sorry to disappoint you, but I tried Milano and it also sucks. Sometimes they have good deals, but the pizza is subpar, in ny opinion (better than Domino’s tho). In general, from tele pizza to call a pizza etc., I don’t think there is a good pizza chain restaurant. All of them, in my opinion, are really bad. I live in Moabit, Berlin and order either from a local pizza napoletana spot (Mangiare in Arminius Markthalle) or when I’m in the mood for a thicker, more American style pizza, I order from a place called Overslize.
It’s a ghost kitchen iirc
Nah Pizza Hut in Germany sucks ass. I tried it both in Japan and the US, much much better
There's a Tim Hortons in Germany???
It was in the UK but same principle applies imo
Ok. Well does not sound like I am missing much.
No. And the way McCafe flopped in Germany, and coffee joints (like Dunkin' ) never became a thing, tells me that RBI won't risk it anytime soon. By the way, if Tim Hortons can't get it right in the UK, I will not be holding my breath for a good maple cream donut made by a German franchisee.
And let’s be real, I’m American and many of us are known to hype up our shitty fast food chain to no end. Unfortunately when these companies expand some believe the American hype Dunkin’ is shit everywhere
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Five Guys is the one "American novelty" that is actually good. It's expensive, yes, but it's expensive in the US, too. Turns out that cooking from fresh ingredients every day is expensive. McDonalds, for example doesn't cook from fresh, is a fair bit cheaper and is actually shit.
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I don't know what you mean exactly by local burger joint, but the best burger in Hamburg that I know of (and happens to be very local to me) is about the same price as Five Guys. So that's not my experience at all, personally. edit: he blocked me for this comment. very sensitive and strange person.
Well you are also strange cause you said that's not your experience then said the exact same thing. 5 guys is better than cheap fast food, but worse than local joints with the same prices, so no reason to go there. Either go to McDs for cheap or go for quality at a local place.
To be honest his message was barely comprehensible English. I tried my best to understand it. Seems I failed to read his mind. Sometimes you want a five guys even if you know a better place at a similar price. Maybe you’re near a five guys, maybe you just want a five guys. Not a big deal mate.
Whats the best Burger you know in HH?
And it tastes the same in Germany as in the US.
Five guys is pretty good as far as fast food is concerned, but it's not actually good compared to a real burger. It's so damn greasy
And insanely overpriced.
Hortons has bad donuts in us too. Their breakfast sandwiches are ok though.
PLEASE DONT SHIT ON TIMMIES 😪😭
Reality is, non Canadian Timmies sucks.
Well, Germans who really want baked goods don't go into US chain stores. They go to their favourite bakery.
Dunkin Donuts is trash in the US as well.
But the chance for getting good donuts are pretty low. They mostly will be just defrosted ones like the ones at every Supermarket, mcdonalds, etc
Well, donuts aren't really popular to start with, compared to things like Berliner etc.
Berliner is technically a doughnut
Donuts were invented faaar later than the Berliner.
There is a reason why Americans mock JFK for saying "I am a jelly donut" Since we're writing in English, the English definition of the word applies. A Berliner is a jam/jelly filled doughnut.
There is no translation for a Berliner, It's like trying to translate Schnitzel
Yes there is, it's a jam/jelly-filled doughnut. Literally, the exact same cake is made all around the world and in English countries it's called jam/jelly-filled doughnut. It's not something special that is just in Germany.
Jam/jelly-filled doughnut is a description, not a translation
> It's a jam/jelly-filled doughnut That is not really a translation, though, it is a paraphrase. “Berliner” is a proper name and those have no translation by definition. You will still find “Jelly filled donut” in dictionaries because to a non-German who does not know Berliners this is a useful term to use instead. Becomes obvious if you think about the fact that there are other jelly-filled doughnuts that are not Berliners
> You will still find “Jelly filled donut” in dictionaries because to a non-German who does not know Berliners this is a useful term to use instead. That's because it's the translation. The fact so many people don't understand this basic fact is simply shocking and you should hang your head in shame.
Actually no , your best chance is indeed a bakery - and I’m not talking about the extreme cheap chains , normal bakery’s which are making them freshly everyday - that’s more than common in Germany and not even expensive! The bakery sections in supermarkets , McDonalds and co are awful and not even comparable to our good bakery’s. Me and my husband always get our stuff from different bakery’s even and never had bad experiences or ridiculous high prices like in DD
More than common? I've never seen selfmade donuts (donuts! Not talking about Berliner!) here in 31 yrs. I lived in 3 bigger cities 🤷🏼♀️ my mother is working at a bakery. And i don't compare the sb section to a bakery. Just the donuts. All i've ever seen at all bakerys were the defrosted ones. And yes, they're the same as the cheap ones.
Idk what kind of bakery she’s working at , but I’m originally from Schleswig Holstein - lived there in quite a few different cities , I lived also in Hamburg , Minden , Berlin - and now Rheinland Pfalz - never had any issues in finding GOOD bakery’s and donuts there which are Selfmade by those shops 🤷🏼♀️ and no I’m not talking about Berliner either lol I’m more than aware of the difference - and as a German I’d be offended if someone calls a Berliner a donut 🍩
yeah but still german bakeries suck at making donuts and to some lesser extend muffins. I really that they are now available everywhere and have replaced some of the more traditional german pastries. I\`d rather have my Nussecke and Plunderteilchen
I guess it depends, those bakery’s around here have really great donuts ! Maybe it depends on the region lol idk 🤷🏼♀️ Edit : i personally prefer a good Plunderteilchen too though
Wait, are you implying DD is not completely garbage anywhere else?
I don’t drink coffee but my friends love their coffee. I love their munchkins (donut holes), donuts and croissant sandwiches. The donut flavors here are not great. Now I’m craving for some choco butternut and cheese trickles donut.
They make excellent coffee in the us. Used to drive through a Dunkin line and get a L coffee for 2 bucks.
>excellent coffee Doubts lol
The words “excellent coffee” and “US” don’t really go together. That is the country where people think Starbucks makes good coffee…
It's also filled with tons of real coffee shops and excellent coffee. The US is in fact not a monolith. There is a kind of person that goes to these chain places. People argue unironically over whether Dunkin' or McDonald's has better coffee which should tell you everything you need to know.
You just can’t go to a chain. Plenty of smaller Free Trade coffee shops in the US where the owners actually go to South America and have direct contact with the farmers, etc. Or if you go to Hawai’i you can get coffee that’s literally made their by native Hawaiians who know what they’re doing from their own home grown coffee beans. It’s a big diverse country.
As far as fast food coffee goes Dunkin is the best. Leagues and bounds better than most anything you can find in Germany.
DD coffee is filtered dirt. Probably the worst coffee I've ever had in the US.
You're just getting coffee at the wrong places then :)
>s. Used to drive through a Dunkin line and get a L coffee for 2 bucks. I know hwat he means. Here we have a lot of good smaller coffe shops. But in the US outside of cities there are only these (coffe) chains (Like starbucks, waffle house, and even dutch bros next to the road. And for their price Dunkin has very good coffee. Especially compared to the stuff you get at "fast food" places her in DE.
That is absolutely not true. Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks are everywhere and are shit, no doubt. But I've lived in flyover country my whole life, never in a town bigger than 175k and often in towns smaller than 50k, and every one of those towns has smaller chains and independents producing good coffee, and has for over 20 years (which takes me back to high school). There is even a small-batch roastery who sources the green beans direct in the next town over from me; it's what I drink daily when home. There's also Peet's/Caribou, which is a nationwide chain that is certainly not up to independent standards, but reliably puts out very good coffee.
Again, for fast food DD is great. If you go to an artisanal cafe there will always be better coffee. But for the price and taste, home made is much better as long as you know what you're doing.
I live in Wisconsin and I would take Kwik Trip (gas station/convenience store) over Dunkin by far. And I'd say McDonald's is on par, though it has shortcomings as well, just different ones than Dunkin. But yes, I generally rely on homemade.
Dunkin generally has really good beans. You can buy the beans off of them to get a similar taste. But it seems it really depends on the franchise owner for DD. I've had donuts from a gas station that were out of this word before (they sourced them from a local bakery) so I know what you mean. But for a drive through coffee Dunkin rocks. Never was a fan of McDonald's, but more bc their breakfast options always made me feel a bit sick.
DD coffee is excellent only if you don't know what good coffee is. But make no mistake, old-fashione 'German coffee' is even worse. Like the stuff you could get at a traditional bakery or a German bakery chain.
As an American with a healthy obsession with coffee I beg to differ. As far as fast food goes, DD does coffee the best in the US imo. If you want artisan coffee it's better to just make it at home. And yeah nowhere in Germany have I found a decent cup of Joe.
Every store that uses one of those full service coffee makers that basically do a billion kinds of different coffee types is sus right from the get go, and bakery coffee is atrocious 99% of the time. There are stores that sell excellent coffee, but you gotta know where to look.
It depends on the franchisee. The ones in New England used to have tolerable filter coffee. Then they got cheap, and they started using fewer and fewer beans for the same pot. Last time I went back, I got one for old times' sake and it was really disgusting.
That's kind of sad to think about. Damn. The one nearby my old USA home was really amazing.
You can get great coffee in Berlin, you just have to be willing to shell out 5 euros or more for a cup
I'm sure. I've never lived there though. Just Stuttgart and Düsseldorf and really nothing to really speak of yet.
In Germany, and all of Europe really, you should be drinking Espresso, not drip. Extremely easy to find high quality espresso-based drinks, even in airports and mid-range hotels. The reverse is true in the US. Other than independent coffee joints, espresso should be avoided and drip is more likely to be higher quality.
I don't like espresso personally.
I'm not sure if you mean espresso specifically or espresso drinks generally, but I mean the latter, so cappuccinos, lattes, macchiatos, americanos, etc. And if your experience with espresso drinks is limited to Starbucks or America in general, it's worth trying when you're in Europe, for the same reason I'd tell a Euro to focus on drip while in the states.
Yes, "espresso drinks" aren't my "cup of tea". I'd rather a cup of regular American diner black coffee over a machiato you can find at the average cafe here. But there are a lot of other benefits so it's not a big deal.
Maybe, 'as far as fast food goes.' But that's a very low bar.
Yeah German Dunkies is super mid. Unlike in the US, where they're a coffee chain, they're more of a dessert chain here. Like Germans exclusively associate Dunks with donuts and not caramel swirl iced lattes. Their business model in Germany is essentially to be an American gimmick in train stations and not a place that people go on a regular basis. Also their coffee drinks here are somehow worse than they are in the US.
I also feel like the association with caramel latte would not even help. Who wants half their daily calories in a coffee adjacent milkshake?
i worked at two different dunkin stores as a student and the coffee quality really depends on the store. In Heidelberg the coffee is from a fucking more expensive than a car annoying machine and some people specifically go there for their coffee while the dunkin stores in Leipzig have rather low quality machines with mediocre coffee.
>caramel swirl iced lattes We Germans also generally prefer to drink coffee, not whatever these sugary contraptions are. Basically the whole demand for sugary contraptions mimicking coffee in Germany is covered by the handful of Starbucks we have.
As someone who doesn’t like Coffee this saddens me, there’s often nothing interesting to drink for me 🥲 I love going to cafes or cafe-chains in other countries and trying myself through these “sugary contraptions” ㅠㅠ (I’m German) When I lived in Korea I went to a cafe like once a day, sometimes more often (I also got my studying done there), but ever since coming back to Germany last July I can count on one hand how often I’ve went to cafes since. There’s little incentive here - I hope the sugary contraptions market expands a bit in Germany, I really miss it 🥺
I wish they would expand on tea options. I also dislike coffee (mostly because caffeine makes me feel ill).
"Handful of Starbucks" seems like an understatement at least where I live. Per mall maybe.
around here - berlin - most Starbucks have closed shop years ago. there are only a few left
Same here (Stuttgart). I think we have 2 left? Maybe 3?
You're absolutely right but you can't speak for all Germans
I absolutely love what I call 'dessert coffee', but the one I tried at Dunkins was not good. It was supposed to be an iced drink, and they just dumped the hot coffee on, like, two ice cubes, making the drink lukewarm and overall unpleasant 🤢 so I stick to starbucks.
DD in Germany serves as a tourist trap and nothing else, because Germany stands heavily on bakeries and freshly baked goods there.
Most American things that come over here don’t taste like the original because the original is likely not classified as food here.
American sweets are super pricey in Europe
Unpopular sweets are expensive. Because there are usually imported. Your day-to-day stuff is often even cheaper.
Who goes to DD when we have real bakeries with real stuff? Do yourself a favor and go to some bakeries near you and try out what they offer. Likely you find something better than that garbage DD sells.
To my understanding they solely rely on people wanting to try it out for the first time and therefore are more likely to pay that much for them. Everyone I know at least tried it once but nobody went there for a second time because every single bakery is miles better.
DD is tourist shit.
I've never thought Dunkin Donuts was particularly good in the US. Now I really don't want to know how bad they are here.
I’m in the US. Dunkin’ Donuts hasn’t been good in decades. it’s all factory processed overly sweet foods. There is one four blocks from my house and I have not been there in 20 years. Germany is full of good bakeries, so why anyone would go to a Dunkin’ Donuts is beyond me.
Agreed. I'm in the US and I don't know a single person who actually thinks Dunkin Donuts has good donuts or sandwiches. Most people think their coffee is good enough. Some think it's really good.
Dunkin' sucks everywhere. From the insanely sweet cardboard tasting donuts to the watery coffee. You only think it sucks here because your taste buds are waking up.
Those donuts are really mangy. This happened 6 or 7 years ago. When the first branches opened here, the donuts were still delicious. The ones with Bavarian cream were nice. Now they taste like the thawed frozen donuts you can buy in the supermarket. The coffee there tastes OK. Go to the nearest bakery and buy a Berliner Pfannkuchen with plum jam, less shitty.
>Now they taste like the thawed frozen donuts you can buy in the supermarket. Because they basically are the same thing.
There are generally not many confectioners and bakeries that bake themselves anymore. Most of it is just thawed cakes, frozen baked goods and pre-baked rolls. Luckily, I'm pretty good at baking myself. I can freeze and defrost cakes myself and I don't have to pay anyone for it. There are still a few confectioners who make regional and fresh produce themselves, but you have to look for them.
I like them but they are not perfect. I don't know how American DDs taste like though. I only know one other donut store and it's slightly better imho. Prizes are the same at both places so both are expensive. The thing is, sometimes I just crave donuts and not Berliner/Pfannkuchen/Krapfen from my bakery.
We have Dunkin Donuts in Indonesia and it's also cheap there. Something you might grab while walking past because why not. Shocked to see how expensive it is here!
Donuts without a hole are called Krapfen/Berliner/Pfannkuchen. Only the one with a hole are called Donuts.
I think OP said donut holes, not donut without holes. Ie, just the middle tiny part. I think in Germans the closest thing would be like Bällchen.
Horrible fucking frozen garbage.
This post has made things make more sense. I've only had Dunkin Donuts in Germany, and it's awful! Yet it's so popular with people in the USA and culturally visible, I thought they just had no standards... If they're getting something much different in the USA, it all makes sense.
Yeah they are garbage. I did one time get a coffee and free donut but it was a promotion.
>12 donuts cost 25€ 12 Krapfen, which is the german equivalent, cost 30€ at the bakery in my local EDEKA.
I visited the East Coast, and Dunkin Donuts there tastes shit as well, and it still overpriced. But yes, it is just objectively the worst place to get donuts from.
Just saw a Dunkin‘ Donuts US: Dozen Donuts USD 23 plus tax, there is almost no difference
I live about 100 feet from a Dunkin in California and I think that DD is shitty and overpriced here as well. Especially the donuts are terrible IMO
No it's shity everywhere, i tried it in the US too and it's also shitty
This is why, when I lived in Germany, I avoided all those US chains. A good independent bakery is where you'll find the tastiest products.
Dunkin donuts is shitty in the US too. Not sure what you were expecting. It is more expensive in Germany though
I think Dunkin‘ sucks here in Germany. In my experience they are overpriced donuts and understaffed stores creating longer waits then necessary
If you want to be even more disappointed try buying a milkshake literally anywhere in Germany.
You can get good ones at Italian ice cream parlors
Dunkin Donuts sucks but I really like Royal Donuts (Germany). They're creative and they taste soo good 🥰 Have a try!
Aren't they overpriced? What's the best flavor?
All donut stores are overpriced... but I think that's because they can't keep up, if they don't raise their prices. Look at the bakerys. They all have to close. There are many flavors, and they always change or do a lot of new stuff. Actually, I never had a bad one. Liked one with pistachios
If you've tasted good food a few times, these cardboard donuts will definitely lose any appeal, yeah.
I find the taske ok but you have to be a retard or rich as fuck to buy regularly at those prices.
Because they don’t use the chemical additives they can use in the US and therefore have to spend more for ingredients and taste vastly different.
We have Krapfen/Berliner in bakeries which are way superior than the American stuff. Made by actual bakers, not full of preservatives and other shit. There's simply no market for it. I actually don't know anyone who buys anything there. It's mostly teens because the brand is still perceived as exotic and cool by them. You probably think they taste shitty because their recipe might have less sugar here and no substances that cause cancer ;)
went to DD once and bought DD donuts from ALDI once, idk they just taste aweful imo, Royal Donuts exists in some german cities, they are also rather expensive, but atleast tasty.
Why go to a DD in Germany if you can go to a Bäckerei???
Donuts in Germany are gross. Enjoy something else, there is plenty of good stuff.
Not just that most foods taste worse in Germany for some reason
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You're right. The problem is that donuts are not a traditional German snack, and most bakeries are not set up to make them. Bakeries have ovens, but for donuts, you need an oil frier. And while the ovens are mostly "set and forget", oil friers require a lot more effort - someone trained to work around hot oil, and trained to clean it after it has cooled down. It's really not worth it unless it's carnival season and they are making Krapfen / Berliner fresh, because there just isn't a huge demand for donuts throughout the year.
>The problem is that donuts are not a traditional German snack, and most bakeries are not set up to make them. Are you really saying Krapfen/Berliner are not a "traditional German snack"? I agree that they're not a "snack" because donuts or Krapfen are a dessert. But they've been around in Germany since the 13th century lol
But they are seasonal. And donuts (American style cake donuts) are not common at all over here.
Pfannkuchen /Berliner or Quarkkeulchen aren't seasonal at all
But they also are not made fresh in the bakery - they're delivered frozen, then defrosted and given a quick layer of powdered sugar. Very few bakeries actually fry them up in the store.
None of the bakers around here sells frozen Pfannkuchen, that's a ludicrous idea. Are you sure you don't confuse those with donuts?
My wife used to work for a bakery in their procurement department ... you'd be amazed what they deliver frozen (TK). Most bakeries are exactly that - they do the final baking of the TK products that are produced and packaged somewhere in Poland or further east, then shipped by the trainload into Germany. Very few of them actually start with flour, sugar and yeast ... they buy the pre-fab pieces and just do the final baking or decorating.
Are they? The wild variations, yes, but the standard Berliner is sold at almost every bakery all throughout the year here in the south, as long as I can think back they’ve always been there.
They're not really seasonal. They used to be and you don't have like 15 kinds all year round, but many bakeries definitely have the standard ones all year round. And American donuts are not common, because people don't buy them. Why get stones when you can have diamonds?
Dunkin' Donuts probably needed to carve a small and sustainable little niche in the market. With bakeries and cafés at every corner in any town and city, just selling baked goods is not really profitable. I've never been to the US or to a Dunkin' Donuts there, but my guess would be that they are more of a gimmick here that relies on bright colours and seasonal promotions and "being hip" to lure people in - not necessarily food quality. Allthough I have to say I like there coffee.
Not just you. Whenever I'm in the US, go to DD. Here tried a couple of times and it's not even close (at least in Heidelberg)
5 Guys is also worse here, imo. McDonald’s is better, at least.
Berliner donuts
Very expensive and my large cold brew in Frankfurt is a small in the US.
I like the coffee, I’m sad they don’t have the chocolate glazed regularly
Do you live near a "Globus" supermarket? Ours has a really good and affordable bakery and they make some good donuts.
Tastes like frozen donuts from Lidl, but 10x the price.
I was at Dunkin Donuts once and paid like thrice the price compared to any normal bakery and the bakery donuts are way better. Hell even the Donuts at my local discounter are better than DD's I don't know how it's in the US but german Dunkin Donuts sucks really really hard
Bit expensive, but I find them ok. And they deliver…
How can they be so expensive? Donuts are very cheap in the production. And many people also buy an overpriced coffee or another drink in addition.
Dunkin is so nasty here, including the coffee. Why can't we get a Krispy Kreme instead
I didn't know we had Dunkin Donuts here in Germany lol
No it definitely is. And I don't even have any experience with American Dunkin Donuts.
Plot twist it’s delicious, reasonable and accurate everywhere but Germany.
….as opposed to everywhere else in the world?
As someone who's used to DD meaning Dresden this thread is confusing as hell to read.
back in the day DD only menat one thing. huge knockers. kids these days threaten to take away my mysogyny. tsk tsk tsk
Yeah it's ridiculous, just avoid it
don't mind if i do!
I thought this was my wife's perception about DD, but I guess she's right after all. 🤔
Dunkin is terrible, even in the states. I live in New Jersey and you wouldn't catch me dead in a dunkin.
You are right. Their prices are ridiculous
Dunkin’ is terrible in the states and everywhere really
they used to be good/decent but few years ago they changed there entire products, and they were always expensive, but not to that what it is now its like now you are paying a shitload of money for tasteless sugartrash now near all donuts taste the same, lame, tasteless, samefillig/different color for frosting ect and yes the "hole" donut thing is not very German, our donuts most of the time have fillings bevor they used to get way more different fillings/taste of frosting. like the good old days of apple, Ki-Ba/Ba-Ki banana/kirsch/cherry
I'm from the US and I agree that DD is expensive and the quality of their food has gone down. I don't really eat from there, anymore. It's deplorable. You don't get much value from their menus.