{"id":425590,"date":"2026-08-06T17:30:20","date_gmt":"2026-08-06T17:30:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/425590\/"},"modified":"2026-08-06T17:30:20","modified_gmt":"2026-08-06T17:30:20","slug":"in-santa-claras-donut-wars-both-sides-are-proving-victorious-with-long-lines-at-newcomer-randys-and-south-bay-institution-stans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/425590\/","title":{"rendered":"In Santa Clara\u2019s \u2018Donut Wars,\u2019 both sides are proving victorious with long lines at newcomer Randy\u2019s and South Bay institution Stan\u2019s"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"From top left clockwise, jelly-filled doughnut, maple-iced cake doughnut, apple fritter, lemon old-fashioned doughnut and Texas glazed doughnut from Randy\u2019s Donuts in Santa Clara. Photo by Adrienne Mitchel.<\/p>\n

Social media is calling it the \u201cDonut Wars,\u201d but the opening of Randy\u2019s Donuts<\/a> near Stan\u2019s Donut Shop in Santa Clara has had an unexpectedly positive result \u2013 booming business for both shops and an outpouring of support for the 67-year-old Bay Area institution.<\/p>\n

The iconic LA chain Randy\u2019s Donuts made its Bay Area debut on Friday \u2013 and in a bold move, it chose to open across the street from Stan\u2019s, a beloved longtime mom-and-pop doughnut shop. Randy\u2019s has cemented itself in pop culture with cameos in \u201cIron Man 2,\u201d \u201cThe Simpsons\u201d and more, and now it\u2019s making its mark in the Bay Area with four more locations in the works, according to Ausaf Masud, one of the owners of Randy\u2019s Donuts Santa Clara.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c(There\u2019s been) amazing response and love from Santa Clara, so that tells us that there\u2019s no such Donut Wars, actually. We are here to coexist,\u201d Masud said. \u201cWe are two different businesses, have different tastes, different proprietary dough and mixing recipes.\u201d<\/p>\n

On opening weekend, Masud estimates that Randy\u2019s went through about 6,500 doughnuts a day, running out hours before closing at 9 p.m. Because of customer demand, Masud said he\u2019s had to reduce operating hours until the team is able to optimize production.<\/p>\n

While the choice of location for the chain\u2019s Bay Area debut has been controversial, it has resulted in some of the longest lines that Stan\u2019s owner Julie Clark has ever seen.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we went through COVID, we saw how much people appreciated us. But that\u2019s nothing compared to now,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"\"The exterior of Randy\u2019s Donuts, which made its Bay Area debut July 31 in Santa Clara. Photo by Adrienne Mitchel.<\/p>\n

Clark, the youngest daughter of founder Stanford Wittmayer, noticed a slight increase in business the week before Randy\u2019s debut, but on the day of Randy\u2019s grand opening, business \u201cexploded,\u201d she said. The majority of those in line for Stan\u2019s were longtime customers, but many others had heard about and queued up for Stan\u2019s because of the controversy.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re so thankful. It\u2019s just so heartwarming to see,\u201d she said. \u201cThere\u2019s just nothing better than seeing people come out to support you and really appreciating what you do and really rooting for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Handpainted menu signs still hang at Stan\u2019s Donut Shop in Santa Clara. Photo by Adrienne Mitchel.<\/p>\n

On Monday, lines were out the door for both Stan\u2019s and Randy\u2019s. Standing in line for Stan\u2019s was Evan Forest, who has been frequenting the doughnut shop since high school. His girlfriend had heard about Randy\u2019s opening on social media and wanted to check it out \u2013 he vetoed that idea.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was all like, \u2018No, we\u2019re going to Stan\u2019s Donuts because that\u2019s the local spot,\u2019\u201d Forest said. \u201cOne of my best friends\u2019 dad, he showed me this spot \u2026 these are the best doughnuts out here.\u201d<\/p>\n

While he lives in San Francisco now, he said he makes sure to stop by Stan\u2019s and grab a classic glazed raised when visiting family in the area.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve only seen Randy\u2019s Donuts in LA. I\u2019m like, \u2018Come on. We\u2019re from the Bay. We got to support Bay Area businesses,\u2019\u201d Forest said.<\/p>\n

\"\"Stan\u2019s Donut Shop in Santa Clara has received an outpouring of support as a result of Randy\u2019s Donuts opening across the street. Photo by Adrienne Mitchel.<\/p>\n

Across Homestead Road in the Randy\u2019s line stood mother and daughter Gigi and Saira Sambrano. Both are loyal Stan\u2019s supporters, but they wanted to see for themselves if Randy\u2019s was worth the hype.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are native Santa Clarians and we wanted to see what it\u2019s like to have another doughnut shop that\u2019s in competition \u2013 there is no competition,\u201d Gigi Sambrano said with a smirk.<\/p>\n

\"\"Stan\u2019s maple-iced cake doughnut ($1.25), left, and Randy\u2019s maple-iced cake doughnut ($2.75). Photo by Adrienne Mitchel.<\/p>\n

For Stan\u2019s owner Clark, she maintains that there truly is no competition \u2013 Randy\u2019s and Stan\u2019s are very different businesses.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re old school, classic. It\u2019s kind of the In-N-Out of doughnuts. We don\u2019t change a lot. \u2026 We don\u2019t bring in trendy flavors,\u201d Clark said. \u201cRandy\u2019s has their own style where they do have different things going on and just different flavors than we would have.\u201d<\/p>\n

Randy\u2019s menu is considerably more extensive than Stan\u2019s, with raised doughnuts in flavors such as mango Tajin, matcha tea, Fruity Pebbles, s\u2019mores and Nutella. Randy\u2019s also offers Texas doughnuts (giant raised doughnuts) and Crondies (croissant doughnuts). But these specialty doughnuts come with a higher price tag: A single doughnut at Randy\u2019s goes for $2.75-$4.55, while one at Stan\u2019s is $1.25-$3.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"The doughnut case at Randy\u2019s Donuts in Santa Clara. Photo by Adrienne Mitchel.<\/p>\n

Clark explained that their business models are also different.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re a volume shop. We get dozens and dozens ordered at a time,\u201d she said. \u201cI think more specialty doughnut shops, they might do more like half a dozen, and their fancier doughnuts are a little bit more exotic. Where we\u2019re doing dozens for meetings or events, family gatherings, things like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Notably, Stan\u2019s is a cash-only establishment and intends to stay that way. Clark explained that being cash-only helps the line move faster during peak periods and it cuts costs so that Stan\u2019s can keep the prices of its doughnuts down.<\/p>\n

\"\"Stanford and Florence Wittmayer pose for a photo with their eight children. In this photo, Florence is pregnant with their ninth child, Julie. Courtesy Julie Clark.<\/p>\n

\"\"Stanford Wittmayer, founder of Stan\u2019s Donut Shop, walks out of his shop. Courtesy Julie Clark.<\/p>\n

Not much has changed since Stan\u2019s founding, Clark said. The doughnut recipes are the same \u2013 still hand cut and hand glazed. And even the menu signs are more than 50 years old,\u00a0 handpainted by artist Luis Filipe Villafuerte<\/a>. If you squint, you can see the guidelines he sketched to keep the words straight, Clark noted.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI want somebody to be able to come back and visit that place (they visited) when they were 6. They come back and they turn 6 again. In their mind, they\u2019re back to their childhood,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Stan\u2019s will never franchise, Clark said, but she wouldn\u2019t completely shut down the idea of opening another shop. While the third generation of the Wittmayer family isn\u2019t expressing interest in taking over the family business, Clark said they\u2019ll definitely keep it in the family.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of the employees have been there almost 25 years, and their children work at the shop, and they have other family members that work at the shop,\u201d she said. \u201cSo it\u2019s this extended combined family, and so we\u2019re going to keep it in that family.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Stan\u2019s jelly-filled doughnut ($2.50), left and Randy\u2019s jelly-filled doughnut ($3.65). Photo by Adrienne Mitchel.<\/p>\n

The core of Stan\u2019s is her parents\u2019 legacy, she said, adding that her goal is just to continue doing what her parents loved.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur parents, Stan and Tina, were some of the best people you could ever meet, and the community loved them,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd none of this, not one bit of this, would be possible without their hard work and getting through hard times and building this business so that we can continue it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stan\u2019s Donuts<\/a>, 2628 Homestead Road, Santa Clara; 408-296-5982, Instagram: @stansdonutshop<\/a>. Open daily from 6 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.<\/p>\n

Randy\u2019s Donuts<\/a>, 2595 Homestead Road, Santa Clara; 650-503-6688, Instagram: @randysdonutsbayarea<\/a>. Open Monday to Thursday from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.<\/p>\n

Dig into food news. Follow the Peninsula Foodist on Instagram<\/a> and subscribe to the newsletter<\/a> to get insights on the latest openings and closings, learn what the Foodist is excited about eating, read exclusive interviews and keep up on the trends affecting local restaurants.<\/p>\n

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