As a fun little gimmick for the opening of Tracy Letts' Superior Donut (Alison's review here), Artists Repertory Theatre held an event last Saturday called "Most Superior Donut," a contest wherein "celebrity judges"—Chef Laura Widener of Pastry Girl, Bomb Shel Bailey aka Charlie Girl of 97.1 CharlieFM, Master Carpenter Jason Sipe, Show Sponsor Darci Swindells, blogger Byron Beck, and Portland Police Detective Jeff Sharp—determined which local doughnuttery cooks up the best in three categories: round, bar, and specialty. The competing shops were Voodoo Doughnut (of course), Acme Donuts, and Coco Donuts.

Unfortunately, I was unable to attend this event (wild horses actually did keep me away... long story), but you can check out photos and a summary of the event over at Byron's blog.

As for the results, in an adorably fair turn of events, each shop won a prize:
Best Round: Coco Donuts (with an impeccable glazed)
Best Bar: Voodoo Doughnuts (bacon maple bar would tough to beat)
Best Specialty: Acme Donuts (some berry-almond butter thing)

I wish there was a "best overall" award. But still, I'm happy to see non-Voodoo donut shops getting some attention for once. I was totally rooting for the underdogs on this. I discovered Coco Donuts this summer, and not only are the donuts and espresso drinks tasty, but the guy in charge is super nice. I confess I've never tried Acme Donuts, but that specialty donut is definitely going to get me there soon.

Thoughts on these results? A buddy of mine tells me Delicious Donuts on Grand & Burnside has the best in town. Any other faves that weren't represented here?