Tag Archives: King Donuts

Community

Catching Up With Rainier Beach’s King Donuts

The beloved donut spot serves up ‘magic and excitement’ at its new location in the former Beach Bakery

by Amanda Ong

In September 2022, Rainier Beach landmark King Donuts moved into Beach Bakery’s former location at 7820 Rainier Ave. S. The beloved family business has been a longtime community favorite, easily memorable for its joint operation as a donut shop, laundromat, and teriyaki counter. Though it has been in existence for decades, the Chhuor family has run King Donuts since 2017. Reopening after a break in 2021, the family dropped teriyaki from the menu, and they haven’t had laundry service since 2019. The recent move also solidifies a new direction for King Donuts. 

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Community

King Donuts Takes a Much-Needed Break and Unveils Plans for the Future

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by Mark Van Streefkerk

When it comes to Rainier Beach landmarks, King Donuts is one of the most easily identifiable. Located in a bright blue-and-pink shop at the southwest corner of the Safeway parking lot on Rainier Avenue South, King Donuts houses a laundromat, a teriyaki kitchen, and a donut shop. 

It’s a unique and ambitious business model for a relatively small space. Almost as if to reassure passersby, the sprinkled, crowned King Donut mascot painted on the side of the building exclaims, “It’s a Real Place!” from his perch atop a washing machine, a bowl in one hand and chopsticks in the other. 

Owned and operated by the Chhuor family, King Donuts will continue to be a special place in the community far into the foreseeable future, but after weathering a pandemic and assessing what they can realistically sustain long-term, the family had to make some hard decisions. 

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Community

Intentionalist: Celebrate ASIAN AMERICAN-Owned Businesses

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by Kristina Rivera

Intentionalist is built on one simple idea: where we spend our money matters. We make it easy to find, learn about, and support small businesses and the diverse people behind them through everyday decisions about where we eat, drink, and shop. #SpendLikeItMatters

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and it’s time to celebrate.

During the pandemic, we’ve seen local businesses scramble and adapt to the ever-changing conditions around them, with recent research showing Asian-owned small businesses have been disproportionately affected. But, despite this, we’ve also seen countless local businesses step up in so many ways to help the communities around them.

And we at Intentionalist think that’s a cause for celebration.

We believe AAPI Heritage Month isn’t just about supporting the AAPI-owned businesses in our neighborhoods — it’s about celebrating them and all the character, culture, and vitality they bring to our communities.

To kick off AAPI Heritage Month, here are three businesses you can support:

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News

Community Safety Requires All Of Us: Rainier Beach Safeway Update

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by Mark Van Streefkerk

In January, the Rainier Beach Safeway parking lot saw several shootings — including one incident in which two people sustained non-life threatening injuries. In response, the community organized a series of Town Hall meetings, parking lot improvements, and an organically-driven “Action Team” that included Safeway employees, Rainier Beach Action Coalition (RBAC), Southeast Network Safe Passage at the Rainier Vista Boys and Girls Club, and Urban Family. Since then, business owners say the area is safer, with no reported incidents of violence to date. 

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Community

Rainier Beach Eyes Multifaceted Solutions to Ending Violence in the Safeway Parking Lot

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by Ari Robin McKenna

After a late-January in which three, high-volume shooting incidents in or near the Rainier Beach Safeway parking lot left almost 100 bullet casings scattered about — and fortunately no one injured or killed — there appears to be a broader sense of community purpose around preventing further gun violence. 

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Voices

Eating Well in Crisis, Part 2

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by Sharon Maeda

Medical experts and nutritionists alike emphasize that eating the right foods is essential to staying healthy during this pandemic: more fruits and vegetables, fewer fried foods. You know the drill. This is especially true for anyone with underlying health issues, and medications that suppress or compromise our immune systems, including asthma, diabetes, heart conditions, HIV/AIDS, obesity and smoking — as well as people over 65. How many seniors do we know that have at least one of the above conditions?

Food deserts and poverty, not to mention lack of will power, often keep us from eating healthy. So, in this week’s list of community restaurants open for take-out and/or delivery, I’m going to emphasize healthy eating. Every menu has some healthy options that are still delicious ways to support community businesses and get out of making dinner at the end of another tough week.

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Community

Tears, Laughter and Nostalgia as Rainier Beach Says Goodbye to Beloved Donut Shop

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by Marcus Harrison Green

There were tears, laughter ricocheting from the walls, sing-alongs to 70’s funk music, a kaleidoscope of memories, and an endless supply of hugs Saturday afternoon as King Donuts said farewell to the Rainier Beach neighborhood it has served the past 28 years. Continue reading Tears, Laughter and Nostalgia as Rainier Beach Says Goodbye to Beloved Donut Shop →

Community, News

In Wake of Attack, Community Rallies Around King Donuts’ Business Owners

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by Marcus Harrison Green

The heinous assault and robbery that left the two owners of one of the Rainier Beach area’s most beloved businesses brutally beaten has resulted in an unprecedented outpouring of support from the local community for the two victims and their family. Continue reading In Wake of Attack, Community Rallies Around King Donuts’ Business Owners →