The Best Dessert Shops Near Picketpost Trailhead, by the Record

The giant rooftop donut made Randy's a Los Angeles landmark long before the chain showed up in the Valley, and the Gilbert shop carries the same energy: a bright display case packed with vivid, glazed options and a drive-thru line that moves faster than you'd expect. It's a classic donut shop, which means cheap, cheerful, and open early. The maple cake and cinnamon crumb cake are the regulars' picks, but the matcha raised donut is hard to walk past.

1. Phoenix New Times A delicious dozen: The 12 best doughnut shops in the Valley

The glazed donuts here come out warm if you time the drive to east Mesa right, and that detail explains most of what you need to know about this family-owned donut shop. The menu stays classic on purpose: pillowy raised donuts, apple fritters, old-fashioned buttermilk bars. No novelty toppings, no Instagram bait. Phoenix New Times named it Best Doughnuts in 2024, and the regulars in line at opening would find that completely unsurprising.

1. Phoenix New Times 2024 · Best Doughnuts · Best of Phoenix
2. Phoenix New Times A delicious dozen: The 12 best doughnut shops in the Valley

1. Phoenix New Times A delicious dozen: The 12 best doughnut shops in the Valley

Churros come in loops, bites, or sticks here, all fried to order, so you wait a minute and they arrive properly hot. Dulce is a dessert café in a Gilbert strip mall where the menu is essentially a build-your-own operation: pick a shape, choose a dip or glaze, add toppings if you like. The plain cinnamon sugar version makes the strongest case that the rest of the menu is just fun extras.

1. Phoenix New Times 2023 · Best Churros · Best of Phoenix
2. Phoenix New Times 2024 · Best Churros · Best of Phoenix