It’s my birthday month so Pip’s Doughnuts was at the top of my list of places to write about! This place has such a special place in my heart. I have had so many fond memories made here. Pip’s is one of the main Portland birthday stops to go to on your birthday! They offer a free dozen of their doughnuts on the day of your birthday! To busy celebrating on the day of your birthday? No worries Pip’s extends the free dozen of birthday doughnuts to be claimed up to seven days after your birthday. I started going here a couple years back when some of my closest friends expressed how much they loved this doughnut shop and they would always go on their birthdays! From there we started a tradition of going all together on each other’s birthdays.
Pip’s hours are eight am to four pm every day of the week. I personally typically go early in the morning. In the past Pip’s has been known to sell out. So the sooner you go the higher chance you have to choose from their whole selection. Over the years they have done a really good job having enough product to consistently stay open for all their hours. Selling out just shows how popular they are among Portlanders as well as tourists. If you try to visit their store front location after four pm unfortunately you’re out of luck. However Pip’s has evolved over time and has become mobile as well! Find Pip’s doughnuts in their mobile food truck. You can spot there mobile truck at various events throughout Portland. Having a late night doughnut craving as well as find a cool Portland night scene. Once every couple months The Portland Night Market occurs and you can find their mobile truck in the heart of the food hub there.
Doughnuts Mural
Other than their famous doughnuts Pip’s is well known for their chai. The chai and doughnuts go hand in hand together for a very perfect pairing of flavors. There are a lot of places around Portland that are very good at specialty coffees and drinks. There is not many places around Portland that really focus on specialty chai other than Pip’s. Pip’s offers chai mug sizes from small, medium, large, as well as a whole tasting flight of chai one of each of their offered flavors. I highly recommend trying their chai The King and I. This is my favorite chai that I always order. This chai is unique because it is a blend of chai and thai tea. Chai not your thing? No worries Pip’s maybe well known for their chai but the have a selection of other warm beverages such as coffee, green tea, hot chocolate, and hot apple cider.
Pip’s offers a small but diverse selection of their doughnuts. Their doughnuts are made ready by order. All doughnuts have the same base of the doughnut its self and variations of the doughnut are created by the different topping the put on them. You can find flavors, Cinnamon Sugar, Raw Honey, Nutella and Sea Salt, Candied Maple Bacon, and Dirty Wu (cinnamon sugar, nutella, and sea salt) all year around. Pip’s is known to have a seasonal rotating flavor for their doughnuts and a few secret underground flavors as well. You can order them in a set of six, eight, or twelve with whatever flavors you like. Don’t be intimidated to order a whole dozen of doughnuts, these doughnuts are bite sized you can eat them in one to two bites. When ordering a dozen of doughnuts I recommend ordering two of each flavor for there is always six featured flavors. A dozen of doughnuts can easily be consumed by one to two people depending on how hungry you are. Both chai and doughnuts are available for dine in if your planning on hanging out at their location. You can also take them to go if you’re in a hurry but still need to get you doughnut and chai fix.
Pricing for both chai and doughnuts are reasonable. The larger amount of doughnuts you order the cheaper price per doughnut gets. For a batch of four doughnuts you will be paying about one dollar per doughnut compared to ordering a dozen you will be paying closer to fifty cents per doughnut. Chai prices are the price you would pay anywhere else for a specialty drink.
Customer service at Pip’s is very impressive. The whole environment embodies a very welcoming and friendly ambiance that is cultivated from the workers there. They way the workers treat the customers with positive interactions and respect really gives you that feeling of wanting to return back. Service is also very quick so you don’t have to wait long to receive your doughnuts and chai.
Pips has been very vocal on their social media platforms about being #communitynotcompetition. They’re very caring towards their employees making sure to ensure that they have a good work environment. Things that I have heard that they have done for their employees is pay them higher than minimum wage, make a lot of benefits available, as well as putting their employees safety first by being reasonably cautious when it snowed.
The business attracts a very diverse audience. You can find mom’s with their children, families, young adults, people from various ethnic groups and backgrounds. Reason being is because of the vision Pip’s has established as a business.
Pip’s is located in the in North East Portland in the Beaumont District. Found among small business buildings with a nice residential area surrounding it. Street Parking is available up and down Fremont Street for free parking up to one to two hours. Otherwise you can also park on small street sides close by with no parking limits. Either way its pretty easy to find parking. Most people only spend between thirty minutes up to an hour at Pips anyways.
If you really fall in love with this place like I have I encourage you to start up a punch card with them. For every visit you get one punch if you buy either a chai or a dozen of doughnuts. Once you get six punches you will receive a free chai or dozen of doughnuts. If you would like to represent a small business like this two you can find various Pip’s doughnuts merchandise found at their brick and mortar store front.
So stop by Pip’s during your birthday month to receive your free dozen of doughnuts! I know I’ll be back in the next few days. Order their seasonal flavor, try a chai, and take a picture at their famous mural when you stop by.
Until Next Thyme,
Tahni Warner
