Bob’s Donuts Moves to Hole New Location

If you’ve ever stumbled drunk down Polk Street, chances are you wandered into Bob’s Donuts on your way. How can you not? You can pick up the sweetness of vanilla and cinnamon from a block away. Is there a line out the door? Probably. Good thing you’re wasted. You have time to make your selections, forget them and make them again as your friends prod you along. 

In a market so precarious as San Francisco, one cannot trust that even hallowed institutions like Bob’s Donuts are safe. Indeed, after rumors that the Cinch Saloon is closing (which a bartender has allegedly disavowed), I got concerned. Is Polk Street dying, I wondered? The Cinch holds a special place in my heart as my first gay bar, but these places cannot thrive on memories. They need you getting drunk on the patio, then stopping in for apple fritters and cinnamon rolls. If you haven’t strolled the backside of Nob Hill lately, you ought to. 

Polk Street is special.

One of SF’s first gayborhoods of which the Cinch is a holdout, Polk Street is on 24 hours a day. We can thank Bob’s Donuts for staying open all night, there for us anytime a hankering strikes. I live within walking distance and have managed to stay only slightly overweight. “I’m excited,” San Francisco resident Steven Sessions told ABC7. “It’s closer to my house, so I’m happy with that. And someone said it’s a lot bigger space too. They have places to sit down which should be nice. It should be good.” 

Polk Street is one of San Francisco’s most underrated corridors. That’s why when I heard Bob’s was moving, I feared their absence would burn a hole in its tapestry. Polk Street is special, and Bob’s Donuts knows that. After all, they’re part of the reason why. It’s why when it came time to move, the 24-hour donut shop didn’t move far. Their new location at 1720 Polk Street stands a few hundred feet away. 

That was my only gripe with the OG Bob’s location—not enough places to plop down and house your sweet treats. I can easily picture seating becoming coveted as that of Swan Oyster Depot, another Polk Street landmark. Thank heavens the line moves faster. Hot glazed donuts, let me at ‘em let me at ‘em. 

Why Bob’s is moving shop

Bob’s Donuts has been regarded as San Francisco’s best donut shop. The original location on the 1600 block of Polk Street first opened in the 1960s. A symptom of the city’s silent struggle between landlords and tenants, a sensible lease renewal ultimately proved unfeasible. But the shop’s co-owner Aya Ahn says the new spot is larger and offers more seating space. Ahn’s daughter Rebekah said, “It’s definitely bittersweet, but we’re really excited to be here in this new location.”

I’m glad that Bob’s didn’t give up on Polk Street. In championing their neighborhood, they set an admirable example for other local businesses to follow. 

The Ahn family made the transition seamless by keeping their original location open while softly launching their new store. Until the lease expires on the OG spot, they will start trimming hours. The 24-hour feature is still being worked out, but the Ahns promise the new shop will expand to all-night service. ABC7’s Gloria Rodriguez says the shop sells “thousands of donuts a day, [they they’re] “constantly making fresh donuts all day long with them never being more than eight hours old.” 

My usual order consists of two classic glazed donuts (coffee dip optional), a cinnamon roll and a maple bar. The owners say customers love their apple fritters. Bob’s offers wacky cereal-topped donuts for the Voodoo Donut-heads out there and the classics for secretly old men like me. Get stoned with a friend and satisfy your munchies at Bob’s. Watch them hand-make your donuts in front of you. Let the sugar flow through you. 

The new location hosted a soft open last Friday. As of then, a grand opening date is yet to be announced. For the time being, their present location at 1621 Polk will operate as usual.