The History of
Blue Star Donuts

From a home kitchen in Portland to a CBD chocolate fountain at Kim Kardashian's baby shower to the launchpad at NASA to the pop-ups in Japan, our story has never been boring. Here's how we got here, one glaze at a time!

2012: It All Started

Long before Blue Star had a storefront, founder Katie was already testing recipes in her home kitchen, and that's where our Blueberry Bourbon Basil donut was born. Once we finally opened our doors, we learned a few lessons the hard way. Case in point: during opening week, we tried glazing donuts to order right at the counter. Customers walked out covered in glaze from head to toe. That experiment didn't last the week!

2013: Building the Lineup

Our Buttermilk donut joined the case this year, adding a whole new texture to the lineup. Come July, Willamette Week named us Best of Portland, our first taste of local love. And when the holidays rolled around, we went all in with the Chocolate Peppermint Pinecone, a brioche pinecone stuffed with chocolate peppermint mousse and dusted in peppermint sugar!

2014: Expanding Our Footprint

Two new shops opened their doors this year, SE Hawthorne and N Mississippi, bringing Blue Star into new corners of the city. We also struck up one of our first real collaborations, teaming with Portland Cider Company to work their Kinda Dry Cider right into the glaze on our Hard Apple Cider Fritter. Thrillist took notice too, naming us one of the Best Donut Shops in America, and we were also featured on an episode of the Food Networks’ Unique Sweets!

2015: Going Global (and Getting a Cease & Desist)

We packed our bags for Tokyo, creating our first matcha donut for pop-up shops in Japan and marking our first steps outside the U.S. Back home, things got a little more dramatic: Krispy Kreme sent us a cease-and-desist over our use of the trademarked name "Original Glazed." Rather than sulk about it, we turned it into a party, running a fan renaming contest that landed on "The O.G." (short for Orxata Glazed)!

2016: National Recognition

A blind taste test led to a real friendship this year: we partnered with Coava Coffee to create the Blue Star Blend, built specifically for donut dunking. Then our Blueberry Bourbon Basil donut landed on the cover of Bon Appétit, putting Portland's donut scene on the map for the whole country to see!

2017: To Infinity and Beyond

NASA invited us to watch the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch in person, a trip none of us will ever forget. Back on Earth, we celebrated the Great American Eclipse with the Eclipse Donut, a strawberry custard donut finished in dark chocolate glaze and edible gold, timed perfectly with the big event in the sky. And closer to home, we built a custom-flavored donut wall for Chrissy Teigen's makeup line launch with Becca Cosmetics!

2018: New Digs, New Flavors

Our new flagship store opened its doors at SW 12th and Morrison, giving us a home base to be proud of. We teamed up with Ruby Jewel to create donut ice cream sandwiches, and welcomed a new fall favorite to the family: Apple Brandy Crumble, a vanilla cake donut glazed in tart Granny Smith apple and Clear Creek Distillery apple brandy, finished with salted marcona almonds!

2019: From Senators to Celebrities

Senator Wyden and Congressman Blumenauer stopped by to celebrate our CBD donut launch, honoring Wyden's role in passing the first legislation to legalize hemp production. We partnered with Grön Chocolate to bring that CBD donut to life, and later that same donut made its way to Kim Kardashian's baby shower as part of an elaborate chocolate fountain, with our mini donuts standing by for dipping!

2020: Adapting Through the Pandemic

This year asked a lot of everyone, and we weren't spared. At the start of 2020, we temporarily closed all 8 Portland locations and 3 LA locations due to COVID-19. We found our way back open with 3 Portland stores, and got creative to keep reaching our customers. We started shipping donuts to Oregon and Washington, then kept expanding, eventually reaching Idaho, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, Arizona, Nevada, and both Dakotas. We also landed on grocery shelves for the first time, with mini donuts and donut bites at New Seasons Market.

2021: A New Home

We settled into a new home this year, moving into the former Oregon Culinary Institute building in Goose Hollow and opening our retail space there later in the year. Our airport location took a brief pause for a terminal renovation, then reopened in a new kiosk in Terminal E. And our friends at Portland Cider Company paid tribute to where it all began, releasing a limited-edition Blueberry Bourbon Basil cider inspired by our original flavor, sold in stores and bars across the country!

2022: Meeting the President

We were asked to serve donuts at a special fundraiser for Governor Kotek with President Biden, and somehow found ourselves shaking hands with the President of the United States. We also joined forces with Uncle Herm of Dilla's Delights to create the Brewster's Banana Pudding donut. And this year marked a milestone that's rare in the food industry: our 10-year anniversary. We celebrated with a Once-In-A-Decade donut and threw an epic party for our staff and vendors!

2023: Fan Favorites and Firsts

We partnered with Argyle and used their sparkling pinot for the International Pinot Noir Festival, creating the Strawberry-Rhubarb Rosé Fritter. We also ran our first-ever Fan Collab Flavor Contest for National Donut Day, crowning two winners: Tangerine Tequila Tarragon and Can You Tell Me How to Get to Sesame Street. And after years of everyone asking for it, our first-ever Maple Bar finally made its debut!

2024: Racing, Reopening, Refueling

We partnered with Andretti Formula E to create a limited-edition donut for their race right here in Portland. Our brand-new airport location officially reopened, right before Terminal D. We launched our Portal Tea partnership, bringing their tea, chai, and matcha to every location. And we revamped our Coava Coffee blend, dialing in consistency across cold brew, espresso, and drip coffee!

2025: The Recognition Keeps Rolling In

We teamed up with Toasted S'mores to create our first-ever Toasted S'more Donut, and rolled out Energy Drinks at all locations. The recognition followed close behind: USA Today named us Top 10 Best Donuts in America, Willamette Week ranked us Top 3 Best of Portland, and The Oregonian placed us Top 5 Donuts in the State!