Just as we went through a bewildering period last year when the city suddenly gushed with hundreds of milk tea shops, we are now withstanding another sugary onslaught: donuts. There are at least 41 donut vendors in Shanghai, according to online listings.

Hailing from Boston, the home of Dunkin’ Donuts, I first tasted the deep-fried dough when I was around four years old, so although I eat them rarely, I do have a picky donut palate. Struck by the proliferation of donut spots in the city, I recently launched on a taste test saturnalia to bring you the local standouts. I discovered that Asian-style donuts (airy, light yeast donuts) are the best tasting in the city, while authentic US-style donuts (either yeast or cake style) are yet to be found.

Donuts Hut; Horrid: a heavy, oily lump of poor quality dough. It's no wonder that in the jam-packed Raffles food court, this is the only stand with no line. I actually felt bad for the girls working the stand.

Café 85; This bread-like donut (¥4.5) is saved only by the crunchy bittersweet chocolate coating, but the pastry itself tastes like a soft bagel. This is not a real donut. I cannot fathom the popularity of this ubiquitous bakery. Their milk tea is crummy too.

Donut King; The Original Hot Cinnamon (¥6) is a bit too dense and oily. Although hot and fresh, it's more exciting to watch it come out of the display fryer than to eat it. The Double Chocolate Marble (¥12) has flavorless dough: the glaze is better than the donut itself. And this price is outrageous.

Donut Station; Donuts are made fresh at the shop, and served on a plastic tray with a fork. I didn't realize why until I forked out a bite: It's so soggy with oil, you wouldn't want to pick it up. The Oreo flavor (¥6) is tasty mostly thanks to the cookie crumb topping. But one bonus: the shopgirl is friendly and charming, best service out of all my donut destinations.

Yamazaki; Cake donut (¥3.5) is surprisingly good--I was genuinely shocked when I bit into it, as I wasn't expecting much from the looks of it, or the price. A very small, sugar-coated cake donut, somewhat similar to Entenmann's donuts, the packaged cake donuts sold in the U.S. A good deal for the price.

Paris Baguette; Get the cream-filled donut (¥4) only if it's fresh out of the fryer, then you can watch the assistant pipe in the cream, and sift powdered sugar over the top. The dough is greasy, but the silky cream balances it. It feels like an artery-clogger, but is tasty. Enough to wake me out of my donut-hating reverie to finish the entire thing. (You do realize I ate all these donuts in one day?)

Dunkin' Donuts; Mocha French Cruller (¥6) and Mochi Ring (¥6) had both sat too long and tasted of oil. I like the cruller's light, puffy dough, but it lacks the moistness of Mister Donut (below). If they were fresher, they might be just as good.

Dunkin', sadly, seems to employ their Taiwan branch recipes. (And funny how their donut menu seems so very similar to Mister Donut's). If they used U.S. recipes, they would easily blow other contenders out of the deep fryer. Oh, for an authentic Boston Kreme. And speaking of the Boston experience, the whole Dunkin' atmosphere in Shanghai seems off--the shops lack the cozy welcoming feeling of Boston-area shops. Instead it feels oddly perky, overly-bright, and almost cartoonish.

And the Winner Is...

Mister Donut; Pon de Cocoa (¥7) is chewy, moist, not too sweet and tastes of Coco Puffs. The French Cruller (¥7) has a delightful light eggy texture; it's both airy and extremely moist. Freshness is of the utmost importance in yeast donuts (not as important for cake donuts), and that's one of the reasons Mister Donut grabs the top spot in taste--the shops are perenially busy, I could barely make it to the counter to order during several visits--and that means their donuts are flying out of the fryer right into your take-away box. So, although Mr D's donuts still can't compare with Dunkin's original U.S. recipes, it ranks at the top for Shanghai donuts.

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