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Home › Donut Guides › Best Holiday Donuts & Baked Goods in Washington DC
Best Holiday Donuts & Baked Goods in Washington DC
Washington DC does the holidays in style, with bûche de Noël in Georgetown, stollen and panettone up Connecticut Avenue and festive doughnuts all over downtown. Here are the holiday treats we send friends to, grouped by neighborhood, and you can taste a few of them on our Downtown DC Holiday Donut & Walking Tour.
By the Underground Donut Tour team · Updated November 2026
Looking for year-round favorites? See our Best Donut Shops in Washington DC guide.
Want to taste the best of Washington DC with a guide? See our Washington DC food tours.
FOGGY BOTTOM / WHITE HOUSE
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Founding Farmers
Founding Farmers is a farm-to-table favorite steps from the White House, and the dessert menu gets extra cozy when the weather turns. Their warm coconut macaroons are the house Christmas cookie, and the beignets with dipping sauces are a treat any time of year. Grab a table after a stroll past the National Christmas Tree.
Donut Tour Recommends: Warm coconut macaroons, their house Christmas cookie
FOGGY BOTTOM / WHITE HOUSE
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Fresh Baguette
Website · Instagram · Facebook
This French bakery turns out crackly baguettes and buttery croissants all year, then goes full Paris for the holidays. Bûche de Noël arrives in flavors like chocolate and vanilla caramel, and a French king cake follows after Christmas. Order ahead for the big days.
Donut Tour Recommends: Bûche de Noël (holiday pre-order)
DOWNTOWN / PENN QUARTER
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● Latino-owned
Donisima
Donisima fills and glazes brioche doughnuts with flavors inspired by Latin American desserts, and the rich, cozy lineup feels made for chilly December days. The case rotates often, so there is always something new to try. A box makes an easy hostess gift.
Donut Tour Recommends: A filled brioche doughnut from the seasonal case
DOWNTOWN / PENN QUARTER
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Astro Doughnuts & Fried Chicken
Website · Instagram · Facebook
Astro pairs crackly fried chicken with creative doughnuts, and the holiday case is a highlight. Past seasons brought a Christmas cookie doughnut and Hanukkah mini boxes of jelly doughnuts with dreidels and chocolate coins. The classic crème brûlée doughnut is worth the stop on its own.
Donut Tour Recommends: Christmas cookie doughnut (past seasons)
DOWNTOWN / PENN QUARTER
Good Company Doughnuts & Cafe
Good Company makes fresh doughnuts with a cozy cafe feel, and December brings a full holiday lineup. Recent seasons featured flavors like peppermint hot chocolate and orange gingerbread. Grab a mixed box to share around the tree.
Donut Tour Recommends: Peppermint hot chocolate doughnut (seasonal)
GEORGETOWN
Pâtisserie Poupon
This elegant Georgetown patisserie is all French technique, from delicate macarons to glossy fruit tarts. At Christmas, its bûche de Noël comes in flavors like Grand Marnier, Black Forest and hazelnut. Pre-order early, because they go fast.
Donut Tour Recommends: Bûche de Noël (holiday pre-order)
GEORGETOWN
Boulangerie Christophe
Boulangerie Christophe is a Georgetown bakery with a playful streak and serious French pastry skills. Its holiday bûches have been decorated as Santa Claus and a Nutcracker, so dessert doubles as the centerpiece. Stop in for a croissant while you are there.
Donut Tour Recommends: Santa or Nutcracker bûche de Noël (past seasons)
GEORGETOWN
Baked & Wired
Baked & Wired is a Georgetown hangout known for big cupcakes and even bigger cookies. The holidays bring gingerbread cookies and peppermint-stuffed sandwich cookies to the counter. Grab a coffee and a treat on your way down to the waterfront.
Donut Tour Recommends: Peppermint-stuffed sandwich cookie (seasonal)
DUPONT CIRCLE / SHAW
Un je ne sais Quoi
This little Dupont Circle patisserie is famous for its merveilleux, airy meringue clouds coated in whipped cream and chocolate shavings. For the holidays, its bûche de Noël comes in flavors like Mandarin Noisette and Mont Blanc. Order ahead for Christmas pickup.
Donut Tour Recommends: Mont Blanc bûche de Noël (holiday pre-order)
DUPONT CIRCLE / SHAW
Seylou Bakery & Mill
Seylou mills its own whole grains in house, so every loaf and pastry has deep, nutty flavor. The holidays bring whole-grain pies and festive bakes that taste like nothing else in town. Pick up a loaf for the holiday table too.
Donut Tour Recommends: Whole-grain holiday pie (seasonal)
NORTHWEST DC
● Asian-owned ● Women-owned ● Viral on social media
Rose Ave Bakery
Rose Ave Bakery blends Asian flavors with American bakery classics, and the holidays are its showcase. Look for matcha wreath cookies and yuzu cupcakes at Christmas, then Lunar New Year sweet tins once January rolls around. It is a Cleveland Park favorite for good reason.
Donut Tour Recommends: Matcha wreath cookies (holiday season)
NORTHWEST DC
Bread Furst
Website · Instagram · Facebook
Mark Furstenberg's neighborhood bakery is a DC institution, and December is its time to shine. Stollen and panettone fill the shelves, and sufganiyot show up for Hanukkah. Get there early on weekends.
Donut Tour Recommends: Stollen
NORTHWEST DC
● Women-owned
Baked by Yael
Across from the National Zoo, Baked by Yael is a nut-free kosher bakery known for cake pops, bagels and rugelach. Its big holiday menu covers both Christmas and Hanukkah, with festive cake pops and rugelach for every gathering. It is a sweet stop before or after ZooLights.
Donut Tour Recommends: Hanukkah and Christmas cake pops
NORTHWEST DC
Call Your Mother Deli (Park View)
Call Your Mother's Jew-ish deli draws lines out the door for its wood-fired bagels. Come Hanukkah, it fries up sufganiyot, with past flavors like raspberry guava. The Park View shop is where it all started.
Donut Tour Recommends: Raspberry guava sufganiyot (Hanukkah, past seasons)
UNION MARKET / CAPITOL HILL
Sweet Crimes Bakery
Sweet Crimes is a dedicated gluten-free bakery, so everyone at the table gets a holiday treat. Festive cookies, cakes and seasonal pastries take over for the holidays, all made without gluten. It is a Capitol Hill gem for anyone who usually has to skip dessert.
Donut Tour Recommends: Gluten-free holiday cookies
UNION MARKET / CAPITOL HILL
● Women-owned
Pie Shop
Pie Shop is an H Street favorite that pairs sweet and savory pies with live music upstairs. The holiday season brings festive pies, with past flavors like winterberry crumble. Grab a whole pie for the table or a slice for the road.
Donut Tour Recommends: Winterberry crumble pie (past seasons)
UNION MARKET / CAPITOL HILL
Apapacho Taqueria
Apapacho is a Union Market taqueria that bakes a beautiful rosca de reyes for Three Kings Day. Choose the traditional ring or one filled with dulce de leche. Order ahead in early January.
Donut Tour Recommends: Rosca de reyes with dulce de leche (Three Kings Day)
UNION MARKET / CAPITOL HILL
Cocolita Kitchen
Cocolita Kitchen is a cozy Edgewood spot with homestyle cooking and sweets. Around Three Kings Day it bakes rosca de reyes, the festive sweet bread ring topped with candied fruit. Check their social for pre-order details.
Donut Tour Recommends: Rosca de reyes (Three Kings Day)
NORTHERN VIRGINIA
Heidelberg Pastry Shoppe
Heidelberg Pastry Shoppe has been baking German classics in Arlington for 50 years, and Christmas is the main event. Stollen, yule logs, German Christmas cookies and gingerbread houses fill the cases. Bring a list, because you will want one of everything.
Donut Tour Recommends: Stollen
NORTHERN VIRGINIA
Bayou Bakery, Coffee Bar & Eatery
Chef David Guas brings New Orleans flavor to Arlington, from beignets to biscuits. The holidays bring a Creole Kringle Crunch Cake, and king cake takes over in January for Carnival season. Pair it with a chicory coffee.
Donut Tour Recommends: Creole Kringle Crunch Cake (holiday season)
NORTHERN VIRGINIA
Gustave Boulangerie & Brasserie
Gustave brings a Parisian boulangerie to Del Ray in Alexandria, with crusty bread and flaky pastries every morning. Its bûche de Noël comes in vanilla, chocolate and pistachio raspberry. A lovely finish for a holiday dinner.
Donut Tour Recommends: Pistachio raspberry bûche de Noël (holiday pre-order)
NORTHERN VIRGINIA
The Happy Tart
The Happy Tart is a gluten-free French-style patisserie in Falls Church, and its holiday menu is a treat for everyone. Look for a gluten-free bûche de Noël and stollen, plus macarons in festive colors.
Donut Tour Recommends: Gluten-free stollen (holiday season)
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Downtown DC Holiday Donut & Walking Tour →
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Washington DC Donut FAQ
Are these holiday spots ranked?
No. Every bakery and donut shop here is one we would happily send a friend to, so we list them by neighborhood instead of ranking them.
When can I find these holiday treats?
Most holiday specials show up from late November through New Year's, Hanukkah treats arrive with the festival, and rosca de reyes and king cake appear around Three Kings Day in early January. Menus change every season, so check each shop's site or social before you go.
Can I taste some of these on a tour?
Yes. Our Downtown DC Holiday Donut & Walking Tour visits Founding Farmers, Donisima, Fresh Baguette and Astro Doughnuts & Fried Chicken, with festive landmarks along the way. Lineups can vary by day and season.
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