It’s that time of year again. A time to celebrate with lights, dreidels, gifts, and extremely high-calorie desserts that we can justify eating by claiming it is tradition.
Yes, it’s Hanukkah, and that means donut time.
For the uninitiated into Judaism’s traditional holiday treat, here’s the rundown. Yes, Jews have a real and documented religious excuse – I mean, tradition – to eat a lot of donuts during the winter. This tradition is linked to Hanukkah, a holiday about the Maccabees’ victory over the Greeks and the threat of Hellenistic assimilation, and about one small amount of oil in the Temple miraculously lasting for eight days.
This somehow is connected to doughy fried pastries with sweet toppings and delicious filling – and if your donuts do not have filling, then you are simply doing it wrong.
Now, I am obligated to mention that donuts are not the only traditional Hanukkah treat, the other one being the humble potato pancake, aka latke. But here, we shall delve directly into donuts.
The donut most commonly associated with Hanukkah is the jelly-filled donut, also known as the sufganiya, but many in Israel call all donuts sufganiyot.
We’ve reviewed Hanukkah jelly donuts before at The Jerusalem Post, but this year we chose a different theme: the cookies and cream donut, also known as the Oreo flavor.
This may seem niche, but it’s actually far more widespread than many sufganiya purists might expect. Oreos are the most popular cookies in the world, and their distinct flavor can be seen in everything from chocolate bars to cereal. So it’s no surprise that these kinds of donuts will exist as well.
Having said that, not every place we visited had them, so we sampled the next best thing to even the playing field. But regardless, the winner of this donut survey may surprise you.
The two of us brought the donuts to the office, tasted them in our recording studio, and ranked each one in a high-stakes journalistic endeavor. To see the full video, keep an eye out on the ‘Post’ social media platforms. Thanks to studio manager Shifra Jacobs for her help in this regard.
We reviewed eight places, and we include our personal comments as well. We took a number of factors into consideration for this list, each of which has its own score.
So without further ado, on to the donut list. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did – and eating donuts certainly helps with that.
Oneg
The Oneg Patisserie is a bakery known for very pretty and Instagrammable delights. It is frequently patronized by Americans in the city, who are drawn to its hipster and quaint café vibes. And, of course, it has donuts. But how are they?
As it was the first donut we sampled, we tried to keep an open mind. After all, every donut we ate going forward would be measured against it.
Outwardly, the small donut was certainly aesthetically pleasing, boasting a little cookie on top. Cutting it open revealed a generous amount of filling. After taking a bite, it became clear that Oneg’s success is not solely due to aesthetics. The donut tasted good, featuring a surprising but certainly delightful coffee filling.
But the sticking point was the dough. It was very breadlike.
Dough quality is one of the two major problems Israeli donuts usually face. The other one is the filling-to-donut ratio. That second factor wasn’t an issue here, but that was due in part to the donut’s smaller size.
Ultimately, the donut was far from the best, but it was a good benchmark.
SHIR: “It’s very average. If I’m really craving a donut, this is going to satisfy my craving for the coffee cream. Really nice. You can definitely taste the coffee, and it’s not overtly bitter. And you’re getting some filling in every bite, which is very nice.”
SCORING:
Shir: 7/10
Aaron: 6/10
Ne’eman
Ne’eman is an institution. One of the most popular and widespread bakeries in the country, with multiple locations on Jerusalem’s Jaffa Street alone, and a history dating back to 1944, Ne’eman is a staple, and it has donuts for days.
The nicest thing about Ne’eman’s donuts every year is the packaging. Most places put their donuts in small paper bags or disposable plastic containers. But Ne’eman has always stood above its competitors in this regard. It provides beautiful red cardboard boxes that are handy, easy to carry, and aesthetically pleasing.
But how are the donuts themselves? The Oreo donuts certainly looked nice, with little flags and generous elaborate toppings. So it was time to take a bite. Right away, we could see a difference compared to Oneg’s.
SHIR: “Unlike with the Oneg donut, the cream doesn’t go everywhere. But it matters a little bit less because you’ve got the toppings.”
AARON: “So you still get some creamy goodness in every bite.”
Taking a bite, however, it became apparent that the bread-like texture of this dough was even worse than Oneg’s. Not only that, but the cream and toppings couldn’t make up for the difference. Overall, they were decidedly average.
AARON: “Here’s the thing about Ne’eman. Yes, it is an institution; yes, it has consistent donut quality every year; and yes, it has nice boxes. The fact is, the boxes are usually the nicest thing about its donuts.”
SHIR: “In the words of Gen Z, it’s pretty mid. I mean, if someone gave it to me for free, would I say no? Absolutely not. I’m going to eat a free donut, of course. But I’m not going out of my way to find a Ne’eman for it.”
SCORING:
Shir: 5/10
Aaron: 5/10
Roladin
There is no brand more synonymous with donuts in the Israeli public consciousness than Roladin, where sufganiyot are an art form.
Every year, the bakery chain churns out the most aesthetically pleasing donuts, with elaborate toppings that make it look almost like an expensive delicacy.
But this year, it stood out in a different way as well: the packaging. This time, the donuts came in a convenient lavender cardboard box with colorful stylish writing that read “Happy Ness Hanukkah.”
AARON: “They really upped their box game this year.”
SHIR: (rolls her eyes)
The donut was large and covered in toppings, with the cream inside pure white, looking almost like cream cheese. But when we took a bite, something became apparent.
The filling was not a proper Oreo-esque cream. It was whipped cream, which was a decidedly unwelcome surprise.
It was very jarring. While the donut certainly looked nice, the cream was a huge point against it. Not only that, but there is the price to consider, being the most expensive donut on our list by far at over NIS 20.
And lastly, there’s the mess.
This is a very messy donut. You wouldn’t be able to take it places without making a mess with every bite. And forget about sharing it – toppings, cream, and crumbs would fly everywhere. The JPost studio was a mess after we sampled them there. (Sorry, Shifra).
SHIR: “Maybe this is a once-in-eight-days treat. This isn’t the type you’re bringing home for your family, unless you want to take out a second mortgage.”
Shir was more generous with scoring than I was, giving points for dough quality and aesthetics. And for some reason, Shifra absolutely loved it, though I don’t judge. Much.
SCORING:
Shir: 7/10
Aaron: 4/10
Yotam’s Donuts
The returning and defending champion two years running. Yotam’s is a small, unassuming store at the top of Ben-Yehuda Street in Jerusalem. However, it has the distinction of being one of, if not the only, full-time donut shops, selling donuts all year round.
They are amazing, but also are the stuff of absolute nightmares for donut purists.
AARON: “Traditionally, Yotam’s only does ring donuts. However, they decided to do the filling in the most blasphemous way possible.”
Yotam’s cuts their donuts like bagels, slicing them in half and then smearing the filling on the inside. But I will say that despite the fact that this goes against all laws of God, man, and nature, it actually really works in their favor.
This is the perfect way to ensure that the filling-to-donut ratio is perfect. Every single bite provides the same amount. Not only that, but it has good structural integrity, keeping its shape and stability, unlike many of its competitors. And the fact that it’s cut like a bagel brings to mind the sandwich cookie nature of Oreos, which is the theme anyway.
Taking a bite, we are reminded once again why Yotam’s has won two years in a row. Everything about it is phenomenal, and it deserves praise for its unorthodox approach, doing what no one else had the courage to do.
SCORING:
Shir: 9/10
Aaron: 10/10
Gagou de Paris
Another staple in Jerusalem, this French bakery is always amazing, whether it’s sandwiches or éclairs, donuts or cheesecake. The items might sometimes be pricey, but their reputation is solid enough that it’s worth it.
In all my years of living and working in Jerusalem, I have never seen Gagou de Paris during winter without an absolutely packed line of customers. And who can blame them?
Sadly, they didn’t have any Oreo donuts when we were able to get there. Instead, they had a cream-filled donut with chocolate topping and sprinkles.
So how was it?
Well, this donut had the opposite issue of some others regarding filling-to-donut ratio. Rather than there not being enough, there was actually too much. Overflowing. It was so overpowering that it was hard to taste the dough – though it did feel excellent. And it was so overflowing that eating it was extremely messy.
SHIR: “ In the privacy of my own home where no one can see me, then I wouldn’t mind getting my hands a little dirty or getting it all over my face. But we’re in a professional work environment. You can’t bring these donuts into the office.”
So until eating a donut is an acceptable reason to take off work, this will lose points.
SCORING:
Shir: 6/10
Aaron: 7/10
Kazze
Kazze is a gluten-free dining establishment, and it normally just isn’t fair to rate that with gluten-full donuts. But since Kazze ranked so high last year, we gave it a try.
The donuts are enormous and hefty, with condensed but heavy amounts of filling.
While their quality is not as good as in 2024, they are still fantastic, even if they fall short in the dough department. Rather than having an Oreo filling, there was tasty caramel. And we both agreed about the quality.
SCORING:
Shir: 7/10
Aaron: 7/10
Marzipan
Marzipan is a beloved bakery among Anglos in Jerusalem. It is fantastic. It is most famous for its rugelach, which may well be the best in the world – in my humble, unexaggerated opinion.
And its donuts are widely liked as well.
The Oreo donuts were small, but at NIS 10 they were also the least expensive. And they looked very pretty as well.
Taste-wise, they fulfilled the promise that Roladin’s made us believe: a cream cheese filling.
A surprise, somewhat jarring, but overall very good. The dough quality also has improved in recent years, losing the bready texture.
Still, if you’re looking for a donut this Hanukkah, you can’t go wrong with Marzipan.
SCORING:
Shir: 9/10
Aaron: 8/10
Goldy’s
And now for something special.
Goldy’s is a haredi bakery and catering establishment, and it often has delicious and elaborate donuts. But this year, Goldy’s decided to do the unthinkable. The second we were told about it by our Editor-in-Chief Zvika Klein, we knew we had to try them: meat-filled donuts.
A number of options were available, but we selected the pulled beef, held together in donuts cut in half like burger buns.
Due to the unorthodox nature, the filling is one thing, but the dough would really need to carry extra weight.
So did it taste?
Better than we ever could have imagined.
The meat was phenomenal, perfectly savory and sweet with a bit of a kick. And the dough’s sweetness perfectly complemented the meat.
Could it still be improved? Yes. We both thought that some added maple syrup could go a long way here. But it was so good, nonetheless, and is the undisputed winner of our ranking this year.
SCORING:
Shir: 10/10
Aaron: 10/10