I'm Donut? launched its first shop in Japan in 2022 by Chef Ryouta Hirako, since then it has taken the pastry world by storm with its viral, long-hours lines and daily sell outs. The brand has quickly expanded from its original Tokyo locations (like Shibuya and Nakameguro) to international hotspots, including New York City, South Korea, Taiwan and Malaysia.
This super famous "nama" (raw) donut shop - I'm Donut? from Japan has finally made its way to Kyoto on 13th September 2025. It is definitely a sweet new spot in Kyoto. The popular bakery team behind "Amam Dacotan" brought their famous treats to the Shijo-Kawaramachi area in Kyoto. This new shop is the very first "I'm Donut?" location in the Kansai region. The queueing system here that splits into 2 queues: takeout and dine-in options makes the queue very well controlled and organised.
The brand is famous for inventing the signature "nama" (raw-style) donut, which completely redefines the traditional, dense Western doughnut. Chef Hirako, who started his career as an Italian chef before moving into bakeries - developed a proprietary dough that blends a special selection of flours with Japanese pumpkin.
This unique recipe creates exceptionally fresh, light, airy, moist, bouncy and boasting a delightfully chewy, mochi-like texture donuts. The result is a cloud-like, melt-in-your-mouth texture that is so delicate it playfully challenges the very definition of a donut.
The shop sells about 40 different kinds of soft, melt-in-your-mouth donuts. The shop also offers about 10 brand-new donut flavours made only for Kyoto. The I'm Donut? original nama donut and the one with their original-glazed are always my top favourite. I will always go for it and also some seasonal limited flavours.
I'm Donut? pairs its revolutionary texture with a wide variety of creative sweet and savoury options like their signature sugar-dusted donut that perfectly showcases the ultra-soft, puffy dough, as well as their original glazed donut. Crowd favourites ranging from rich pistachio and matcha to decadent chocolate.
Bite into donuts infused with classic local favourites like matcha, houjicha and black sesame.
Pistachio donuts
Other than the classic popular flavours, there are also many delicate cream donuts to choose from such as the coconut warabi mochi with coconut cream donuts, super creamy coconut donuts, Rare donut with custard, Rare donut with choco cream, pistachio cream donuts, choco raspberry cream donuts and etc.
I love how the self-service setup that gives an ultimate joy of grabbing a tray and picking up the donuts from a massive, gorgeous displays that makes everything looks so tempting & delicious. I'm definitely having a hard time to decide from over 40 types of donuts to a dozen.
The vibe here feels like stepping inside a sleek, spacey, stainless steel aesthetic that feels totally out of this world, while the menu is into traditional local vibes. A futuristic, "spacey" design that completely flips the script on old-school Kyoto aesthetics. It's a super cool spot where old meets new, making it a must-visit for locals and travellers.
Knowing how notoriously long the queues can get, and I absolutely were not risking to miss this chance so I woke up extra early to beat the crowd. I did some read up with my Japanese friend on how their numbering system works as well, therefore, I was able to be the 4th person in the queue and successfully secured a dozen of their donuts and happily devoured every single one!
ごちそうさまでした. Thank you for the yummiest donut! This is definitely a place to step out from the daily life routine into a unique environment to unwind and relax for a truly special donut experience and savour the most fluffiest I'm Donut?. Also, there is always a line up of donuts for new discoveries and excitement in every visit. If you're heading to Kyoto soon, you've got to check out this awesome new donut spot mixing traditional Japanese flavours with a wild, futuristic vibe!
I'm Donut? 京都
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