Site Name: Tonalli's Doughnuts & Cream
Site Address: 503 SE Dorion AvePendleton, OR 97801
This was a long time coming. Tonalli's has been an important part of Josh and Lorna's life. Their courtship took place just down the street from Tonalli's and many a late-night snack were giggled over by younger, rosier-eyed Keelings.
Tonalli's has been an anchor of the Alberta community for awhile. It's right on the corner, with big windows for people watching. They serve ice cream and burgers and have a super friendly staff.
Figure 1. Site Exterior
As is the case with many shops, timing is everything. At least in our younger days, you could get super fresh doughnuts here if you showed up around ten o'clock at night. Mmmm... fresh buttermilk bars...
Lorna sampled a Boston creme while Josh had an apple fritter. Lorna reported the cream-filled was alright, though nothing noteworthy. The cream and frosting were both fairly standard.
Josh noted the glaze was quite heavy on the fritter that he had. This is a point of taste for fritter lovers. Josh prefers his fritters to be fluffy and fruity, while some fritter-ers prefer a a heavy glaze that dominates the flavor. For you glaze lovers, Tonalli's is the place (close second goes to Donut Queen on Burnside). For you fluff-fans, go to Honey Jar.
That said, we know from past experience that where Tonalli's really stands out is with their old-fashioneds and buttermilk bars. These denser delights are creamy on the inside and crisp on the outside; an absolute treat. Few other shops come close to Tonalli's in this regard.
Figure 3. Samples
The nice thing about Tonalli's is the atmosphere. There are always people coming and going and you get to see all kinds of families walking through. A particular vocal child gives a running commentary on the environment in the recording below.
The counter is the perfect spot to hang out and people-watch. Come by in the evening and you might catch the guys from a nearby AA meeting as they feed their sugar fix and unwind. Bum them a cigarette and maybe they'll tell you where to get the best candy in town (ex-drunks are the best sugar hounds). Suffice it to say, everyone is super friendly.
Figure 4. The View
And they clearly love their doughnuts, as evidenced by the shrine built in doughnuts' honor (after seeing a couple of these, we're starting to feel like all doughnut shops should be required to have some sort of alter to the doughnut gods).
Figure 5. Doughnut Love
If you're in the neighborhood, Tonalli's is a great spot to take a load off and feed the need for a little doughy goodness. They tend to err on the sweet side and there are certainly better doughnuts in town, but few shops have the friendly, community vibe you get at this shop.
Years ago, it was enough to help two aspiring doughnut researchers fall in love...
