Donut King II

The Building Tells You Everything

Pull up to the corner of South Western and Marine avenues and the giant donut on the roof makes the destination obvious. The structure dates to 1954, when it opened as the third location in Russell C. Wendell’s Big Do-Nut Drive-In chain — the same small-footprint, drive-thru-focused concept that produced Randy’s Donuts in Inglewood. The Gardena location uses the same design: a 32-foot donut built from gunite (a sprayed cement-and-sand mixture over a steel frame), angled toward the intersection to catch drivers’ eyes. Wendell was capitalizing on Southern California’s postwar car culture, and these giant donuts functioned as advertising and architecture simultaneously.

Of the original ten Big Do-Nut Drive-In locations Wendell opened between 1950 and 1960, five remain standing. Kindle’s Do-Nuts in Westmont holds the original 1950 location. Randy’s in Inglewood took over the 1953 second site and became a film location icon. Dale’s in Compton and Bellflower Bagels (which repainted its donut to resemble a bagel) round out the survivors. Donut King 2 draws the fewest visitors of the four active donut shops, which works in your favor: there’s usually parking, and the sign is easy to photograph without anyone in the frame.

One practical note: the giant donut is not illuminated at night. If you’re coming for the architecture, daytime visits give you a better view.

What You’ll Find Inside

The shop itself is exactly what it looks like from the outside: a no-frills neighborhood donut counter with a drive-thru window and a straightforward menu. Fresh glazed, maple bar, chocolate twist, blueberry, apple fritter, jelly-filled, Nutella, and cinnamon roll are the core options. Donut holes come by the bag. The Mega Donut is roughly four regular donuts worth of dough in a single piece — worth ordering once just to see it.

Made-to-order breakfast sandwiches come on croissants (bacon is the default) with melted cheese, and they’re assembled to order rather than sitting under a lamp. Drinks include milkshakes, Thai tea, passion tea, lemonade, and iced coffee. Prices are low across the board — a baker’s dozen runs just over $20.

Most reviewers describe the donuts as soft, fresh, and lighter than chain shop versions. A small number of reviews have mentioned occasional freshness concerns, so it’s worth a quick look before you order. That’s a minor note on an otherwise well-regarded neighborhood shop, not a reason to skip it.

The 24-Hour Reality

The shop runs around the clock, and the drive-thru makes it a workable late-night option when most of the south side of the city is closed. Whether you’re finishing a late shift or just up at odd hours, Donut King 2 covers that window reliably. Delivery is available through Uber Eats and other platforms if you’d prefer not to make the drive.

Worth Pairing With Nearby Stops

If you’re interested in seeing more of LA’s surviving giant-donut architecture, Dale’s Donuts in Compton is roughly 3 miles east, and Randy’s in Inglewood is about 5 miles northwest. Doing all three in sequence makes for a manageable half-day through the South Bay — and gives you a concrete sense of how much of the city’s mid-century roadside built environment has quietly disappeared. Donut King 2 is the least-visited leg of that route, which makes it the most interesting stop for anyone who already knows Randy’s well.