Randy's Donuts

Last updated
Randy's Donuts
Randy's donuts1 edit1.jpg
Randy's in 2005
Randy's Donuts
General information
Type Restaurant, doughnut shop, bakery
Architectural style Novelty architecture
Town or city Inglewood, California
CountryUnited States
Coordinates 33°57′42″N118°22′13″W / 33.9618°N 118.3703°W / 33.9618; -118.3703
Opened1953 (1953)
Design and construction
Architect(s)Henry J. Goodwin
Website
randys-donuts.com

Randy's Donuts is a bakery and a landmark building in Inglewood, California which is near Los Angeles International Airport. It is built in a style that dates to a period in the early 20th century that saw a proliferation of programmatic architecture throughout Southern California. This style had its heyday from the mid-1920s to the mid-1930s. By the 1950s however, the trend of designing structures in the shape of the product sold there had changed to focus on signs rather than architecture itself. Randy's is represented by a giant doughnut on the roof of an otherwise ordinary drive-in that is a dedicated doughnut bakery. The building was designed by Henry J. Goodwin. [1]

Contents

Colossal donut signs atop Randy's stores vary in size. Most locations use a 32 ft 6 in (9.91 m) diameter version that sits atop the building and faces an intersection. In Roadside Giant by Brian and Sarah Butko, the Weintraubs climbed on top of the doughnut with a tape measure and confirmed the measurements for the authors. The Bellflower location, however, features a smaller version of the doughnut on top of a pole in front of the building. This may be 23 feet (7.0 m) in diameter, as is widely reported.

The 24-hour drive-in is at 805 West Manchester Boulevard and it intersects with La Cienega Boulevard. It is near the Manchester Boulevard off-ramp of the San Diego Freeway (I-405).

History

In the late 1940s, doughnut machine salesman Russell Wendell founded a chain of drive-in doughnut shops named Big Donut. The first location opened in 1951 in Westmont. The second location which is now a Randy's Donuts, was opened in 1952. [2] [3] Designed by architect Henry Goodwin and structural engineer Richard Bradshaw, the rooftop doughnut is constructed out of rolled steel bars covered with gunite. [1]

In 1976, after shifting focus to his Pup 'N' Taco chain (bought by Taco Bell in 1984), Wendell sold the Big Donut Inglewood location to Robert Eskow who renamed the location "Randy's Donuts" after his son. In 1978, Eskow sold the shop to Ron and Larry Weintraub, who decided to retain the name for the business. [2]

In 2015, Randy's Donuts was purchased by lawyer and entrepreneur Mark Kelegian. [4] Since that time, the brand has added franchise locations in Southern California, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Las Vegas, and the Philippines. [5] [6] [7] [8]

Randy's Donuts opened a location at Los Angeles International Airport in 2023. [9]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doughnut</span> Sweet food made from deep-fried dough

A doughnut or donut is a type of pastry made from leavened fried dough. It is popular in many countries and is prepared in various forms as a sweet snack that can be homemade or purchased in bakeries, supermarkets, food stalls, and franchised specialty vendors. Doughnut is the traditional spelling, while donut is the simplified version; the terms are used interchangeably.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inglewood, California</span> City in California, United States

Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County, near Los Angeles International Airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cuisine of California</span> Culinary traditions of California

The cuisine of California reflects the diverse culture of California and is influenced largely by European American, Hispanic American, East Asian and Oceanian influences, and Western European influences, as well as the food trends and traditions of larger American cuisine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winchell's Donuts</span> American doughnut shop chain

Winchell's Donuts House is an international doughnut company and coffeehouse chain founded by Verne Winchell on October 8, 1948, in Temple City, California. Currently, there are over 170 stores in 6 western states, as well as Guam, Saipan, and Saudi Arabia. Several stores also operated in Nagoya, Japan in the past, with most stores located inside Uny supermarkets, as Uny Co., Ltd. was the master franchise holder in Japan. It is headquartered in the City of Industry, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interstate 105 (California)</span> Auxiliary Interstate Highway in Los Angeles County, California, United States

Interstate 105 (I-105) is an east–west auxiliary Interstate Highway in the Greater Los Angeles urban area of Southern California. It runs from State Route 1 (SR 1) near El Segundo and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to I-605 in the City of Norwalk. It is commonly known as the Century Freeway after Century Boulevard which it parallels, and also officially known as the Glenn Anderson Freeway after the late congressman Glenn M. Anderson who advocated for its construction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Westchester, Los Angeles</span> Neighborhood of Los Angeles in the United States

Westchester is a neighborhood in the City of Los Angeles and the South Bay Region of Los Angeles County, California.

Naugles was a Southern California fast-food Mexican restaurant chain that existed from 1970 to 1995. A revived Naugles chain was established in 2015 by entrepreneur Christian Ziebarth, after it was ruled that the trademarks had been abandoned by the original company's successor, Del Taco.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mister Donut</span> Fast food doughnut chain

Mister Donut is an international chain of doughnut stores. It was founded in the United States in 1956 by Harry Winokur. Primary offerings include doughnuts, coffee, muffins and pastries. After being acquired by Allied Domecq in 1990, most of the North American stores became Dunkin' Donuts. Outside of the United States, Mister Donut maintains a presence in Japan, El Salvador, Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Taiwan, and Singapore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pup 'N' Taco</span> Fast food restaurant chain

Pup 'N' Taco was a privately owned chain of fast-food restaurants in Southern California; the chain's headquarters were located in Long Beach, California. The business was begun by Russell Wendell in 1956 as a drive-in restaurant that served tacos, hot dogs, and pastrami sandwiches. Russell already owned Big DoNut, a chain of successful doughnut stores in Los Angeles that featured gigantic doughnuts atop a drive-in bakery. The first officially branded Pup 'N' Taco was opened in Pasadena, California in 1965.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">California State Route 42</span> Former highway in California

State Route 42 (SR 42) is a decommissioned state highway in the southern region part of the U.S. state of California, running along Manchester Avenue, Manchester Boulevard and Firestone Boulevard in Los Angeles and the cities south of it. In its final official routing that lasted from 1968 to 2000, SR 42 ran from State Route 1 west of Inglewood east to what was then a direct interchange with Interstate 5 in Norwalk. Though signed as SR 42, it was officially Route 105 until it was replaced by the parallel Interstate 105 on October 14, 1993. The entire route was deleted from the California Freeway and Expressway System in 2000, with the remaining portion of SR 42 being relinquished to local jurisdictions in that year. The direct interchange with I-5 was later demolished in 2013 in favor widening that portion of the Interstate. However, some SR 42 signs may still remain along the route.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hartfield-Zodys</span> American department store chain

Hartfield-Zodys was an American retail corporation begun in 1960. It operated the Hartfield chain of women's ready-to-wear apparel in the Los Angeles area, and starting in 1960, the Zodys chain of discount retail stores (1960–1986), which operated locations in California, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, and Michigan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Donut Hole</span> Landmark bakery in California

The Donut Hole is a bakery and landmark in La Puente, California. An example of programmatic architecture, the building is shaped like two giant donuts through which customers drive to place their orders. The bakery is one of the most photographed donut shops in the United States.

Aviation Boulevard is a major north–south thoroughfare in western and the South Bay region of Los Angeles County, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oldest McDonald's restaurant</span> United States historic places

The oldest McDonald's restaurant is a drive-up hamburger stand at 10207 Lakewood Boulevard at Florence Avenue in Downey, California, United States. It was the third McDonald's restaurant and opened on August 18, 1953. It was also the second restaurant franchised by Richard and Maurice McDonald, before the involvement of Ray Kroc in the company. The restaurant is the oldest one in the chain still in existence and is one of Downey's main tourist attractions. Along with its sign, it was deemed eligible for addition to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984, although it was not added at the time because the owner objected.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">El Pollo Loco (United States)</span> Restaurant chain

El Pollo Loco, Inc., is a restaurant chain based in the United States, specializing in Mexican-style grilled chicken. Restaurant service consists of: dine-in and take-out, with some locations offering drive-through options. The company is headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, and operates about 500 company-owned and franchised restaurants in the Southwestern United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">General Porpoise</span> American doughnut chain

General Porpoise is a chain of doughnut shops in the United States. The business has multiple locations in Seattle and previously operated in Los Angeles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big donuts of Southern California</span> 20th-century U.S. vernacular architecture

The big donuts of Southern California in the United States are frequently photographed examples of 20th-century vernacular roadside novelty architecture. They are landmark oversize donuts designed to attract the attention of potential customers on nearby roadways. In their heyday, according to one critic, the giant donuts were "one of many signs in Los Angeles that bordered on pop art, celebrating the effusiveness of life in the years after World War II. To many Americans, Southern California acquired the image of an orange juice stand shaped like an orange, or a hot dog stand shaped like a hot dog."

References

  1. 1 2 "LA Conservancy, Randy's Donuts" . Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  2. 1 2 Harvey, Steve (2009-08-30). "The numbers have fallen, but giant doughnuts are still around" . Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
  3. Nichols, Chris (2021-06-04). "Randy's Donuts Says It's Been Famous Since '62. History Tells a Different Story". Los Angeles Magazine. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
  4. "Randy's Donuts is coming to Costa Mesa, but its iconic sign may crumble city's design standards" . Los Angeles Times. 2020-10-14. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
  5. "Don't be jelly: Randy's Donuts is on the rise in the hands of a Newport Beach family" . Los Angeles Times. 2021-02-27. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
  6. "LA's iconic Randy's Donuts opens first location in the San Fernando Valley". FOX 11. 2022-06-01. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
  7. "Randy's Donuts to roll into Las Vegas on August 16". 12 August 2022.
  8. Arnaldo, Steph (February 26, 2022). "LA's Randy's Donuts to open first branch in Metro Manila". Rappler. Manila, Philippines. Retrieved May 27, 2023.
  9. Harden, Olivia (23 August 2023). "Beloved Randy's Donuts opens LAX location". Travel. SFGATE. Retrieved 7 February 2024.