13 International Dunkin' Donuts You Can't Find In The US
Dunkin' Donuts, which changed its name to just Dunkin' in 2018, has come a long way. It began as a simple coffee shop and bakery in Quincy, Massachusetts in 1950 and has since expanded its footprint worldwide. Its signature orange and pink logo is instantly recognizable and can be found in bustling city centers and quiet suburban neighborhoods alike.
Despite its humble origins, Dunkin' is not just an "American thing." Its diverse menu offerings, including donuts, sandwiches, and an array of hot and iced beverages, are central to its success in all corners of the world. Although American consumers might experience the same menu in stores nationwide, going overseas is an entirely different story. The company has adapted its menus in each country to cater to local palates. We've curated a list of some of Dunkin's most unique donut offerings to showcase the diversity of flavors and regional fusion that the chain offers at some of its locations.
Mochi waffle donut, Indonesia
Donuts and waffles are common American breakfast foods, so why not combine them into one glorious waffle donut known as a ddoffle? One of the first Dunkin's to capitalize on this breakfast hybrid was in Indonesia, where the franchise offers waffle donuts in a variety flavor of combinations, including cinnamon, plain, or cheese with a chocolate, hazelnut, or strawberry topping.
What makes this donut more Asian than American, though, is the use of mochi. Mochi is a typical Japanese snack or dessert made by pounding cooked glutinous rice flour into a dough. It's important to note that glutenous rice is not the same as regular rice. The former has a distinct chewy texture, which makes for a unique texture when it's integrated into a recipe like donuts.
Mochi can also be used for a variety of desserts outside of donuts, including the popular mochi-wrapped ice cream. Despite being a Japanese ingredient, it has made its way into other countries across Asia (including Indonesia) due to migration and popular culture.
Baklava donut, Switzerland
Baklava is a typical Mediterranean dessert that is associated with countries like Greece and Turkey. So, it may seem surprising that Dunkin's elusive baklava donut is available in Switzerland. But the palate wants what it wants, and the Swiss apparently have a soft spot for this dessert. And with the promise of delicious chopped nuts, phyllo dough, and sweet syrup, who wouldn't?
Don't be fooled, though; this particular baklava donut is layered to make it look like it's made with sheets of phyllo dough. Then, it's topped with a sugary glaze and a sprinkling of chopped pistachios. While this donut doesn't really look or taste like traditional baklava, it uses enough of the same ingredients as the famous Mediterranean dessert. Indeed, while baklava can be made with many different types of nuts and fillings, including chocolate, walnuts, and even cream, the pistachio variety is perhaps the most well-known internationally.
Lotus Cheesecake Twist donut, United Arab Emirates
Based on the name alone, you might think that this donut is made with some form of lotus leaf or lotus-derived ingredient. But this treat is actually made with Lotus Biscoff cookies: a brand of cinnamon-spiced speculoos cookies popular in some northern European countries. The cookies are crushed into crumbs and sprinkled on top of this donut as well. The filling contains a cheesecake-flavored base, which is complemented by a drizzle of white chocolate on top. The chain has also offered several other Biscoff-inspired products to its customers in the United Arab Emirates, including a Lotus frappe and Biscoff Crunch donut — which comes with a whole biscuit and cookie butter topping.
Biscoff donuts are equally as beloved in America, so we're perplexed why Dunkin' has denied American customers this delicious-sounding donut. Its competitor, Krispy Kreme, even brought three Biscoff donuts to participating locations in the U.S. in 2023, though the special donuts only appeared on menus for the month of January.
Boston Manjar donut, Chile
The Boston Manjar, available in Chilean Dunkin' locations, may look like the American Dunkin's Boston Kreme donut, but there are some significant differences between the two. Both have the same chocolate coating on top, but the Boston Manjar isn't filled with the creamy vanilla custard found in American donuts. Instead, it's filled with manjar, a Latin American milk-based caramel sauce that resembles dulce de leche. Although some claim dulce de leche and manjar are the same, others note that the consistency of manjar is much thicker and richer and has darker caramel flavors than the other popular milk-based sweet.
This sauce is quite popular throughout much of Latin America, though its exact origins are murky. In this region of the world, manjar is a popular accompaniment for cookies, cakes, and more. This donut is one sweet way to enjoy this delicious, sugary, and buttery caramel sauce.
Rocky Road donut, United Kingdom
Rocky Road is a popular ice cream flavor in the U.S. It's made with a decadent chocolate ice cream base embellished with swirls of nuts and marshmallows. But when it comes to donuts, you'll have to go to the United Kingdom to get this variety, which is made with a creamy hazelnut filling and topped with chocolate icing, marshmallows, caramel fudge, and crumbled cookies. While it's not an exact copy of the beloved ice cream flavor, it certainly pays homage to it.
The donut's origins also likely differ from the lore surrounding the American Rocky Road ice cream. Dreyer's, the company credited with inventing the flavor in 1929, initially marketed it to boost morale during the tough times (or rocky roads) people faced during the Great Depression. Ice cream and donuts won't solve anyone's financial problems, but they might make someone's day a little more pleasant.
Pork floss donut, China
The food you order from your local Chinese takeout joint in the United States may not resemble the dishes found in China. Rather, many of them are variations designed to please the American palate. Now, it appears that Dunkin' has been pulling a similar trick by making donuts that are not necessarily American in flavor but are more appealing to the average Chinese donut eater.
One particular donut that stands out in this department is the pork floss donut. It's one flavor you are not likely to see on American Dunkin' shelves — now or ever. The flavor came about after Dunkin' unsuccessfully tried to launch the chain in China in 1994 and 2008, only to find that many Chinese people do not enjoy sweet things, like donuts, for breakfast. The solution of making pork floss and other savory donuts seems to have worked, though, because the chain has been serving this meaty donut since 2012, and it's still going strong.
Hippo Berry donut, Germany
Some donut flavors, like vanilla almond or salted caramel, are pretty descriptive and leave little doubt about what you're going to bite into. The Hippo Berry donut in Germany is a little more mysterious. To be clear, it doesn't involve either hippos or berries. Instead, it is made of a custard-like filling with chocolate and vanilla cream topping and a Kinder Happy Hippo accessory. This tasting topping is the candy version of this donut: chocolate and vanilla cream encased in a thin wafer.
It's not surprising that this donut flavor is popular in Germany. Although Kinder products are made by the Italian company Ferrero, the word kinder means "child" in German. You'll find an array of Kinder chocolates in Germany, including a Kinder bar donut topped with a milk chocolate glaze and garnished with the company's famous chocolate bars and white chocolate. These donuts are undoubtedly sweet, whimsical, and perfect for young donut lovers.
Cheezy Cheese donut, Malaysia
When you think of a country that might use cheese as a topping for a donut, France, Italy, or another notable cheesemaking country might come to mind. Or you might look to the Americans, who seem to love putting cheese on everything from burgers to apple pie. But the Cheezy Cheese donut is actually found in Malaysian Dunkin' stores. It's a plain donut topped with sweet frosting and shredded cheese.
While some Dunkin's around the world have opted to cater to a local preference for savory breakfast foods, as is the case with China's pork floss donut, it's a little harder to explain the reasoning behind the Cheezy Cheese, which is both sweet and intensely savory. But maybe they have a point. After all, there are plenty of great cheese and chocolate pairings out there, some of which are as surprising as they are delicious.
Choco Mandarin donut, India
The Choco Mandarin donut, available at Dunkin' locations in India, may sound like a simple donut that you might be able to find anywhere — including in American franchises. But you'd be hard-pressed to find mandarin as an ingredient in the American fast-food scene or in restaurants as a whole.
Yet this flavor combination also makes perfect sense, considering that chocolate and citrus are pretty common pairings in desserts, including recipes for tarts and cakes. The richness of the chocolate easily subdues the acidic tang of the citrus and makes for a more balanced bite. The mandarin is an even better pairing than the standard orange because it is very sweet, which works well in desserts and breakfast foods like donuts. Plus, the fruit grows plentifully in India. Try this donut variety and see for yourself whether the burst of mandarin filling works well with the rich chocolate topping.
Unicorn donut, Germany
Similarly to how Germany's Hippo Berry donut doesn't contain hippos or berries, the country's Unicorn donut does not contain unicorns. But if you see one of these baked goods, you'll instantly see where it gets its name. The treat is the stuff of a little girl's dreams, complete with strawberry frosting and colorful bouncy mini marshmallows on top. We wonder why there aren't any princess gowns or tiaras in sight.
One reporter from Mass Live bravely sampled this mythical mess of a donut so that we didn't have to and called it "silly and unwieldy." In other words, it may be overly sweet for some, with nothing but a small amount of brightness from the strawberry icing to offset the copious amounts of sugar in the marshmallows and the sprinkles. But if lots of sugar is how you like to start your morning, this donut may be the perfect one for you.
Salted caramel donut, India
Salted caramel is such a popular flavor in American desserts, so it seems odd that American Dunkin' locations haven't jumped at the opportunity to make this donut flavor a reality. It seems like everywhere you go nowadays, you are met with an array of salted caramel ice creams, chocolate bars, or even Dunkin' cold brews, so why hasn't the company made this donut available in the U.S.?
It may seem like a salted caramel donut should be available at least in some locations across the nation, but the national U.S. Dunkin' website makes no mention of it. So, if you do happen to wake up craving a salted caramel donut one morning, you may have to fly all the way to India to get one that is topped with a sweet glaze and a drizzle of salted caramel. If a flight is out of reach, you can always take matters into your own hands and make your own salted caramel sauce to drizzle over a Dunkin' donut of your choice.
Choco Butternut donut, Singapore and the Philippines
Dunkin' locations around South Asia, including in Singapore and the Philippines, offer a Choco Butternut flavor to customers. It's essentially a chocolate cake donut that has been covered in butternut dust. Besides the whole donut, Dunkin' locations in the Philippines also offer a Munchkin version of the popular donut, made with either a vanilla or a chocolate cake base covered in glaze and colored butternut crumbs.
And if you can't get to South Asia anytime soon, don't worry because this particular donut is unlikely to go out of fashion anytime soon. It's so popular that when Dunkin' made an April Fools' Day Facebook post in 2019 announcing it would phase it out, a slurry of panic ensued from donut lovers across the region. Luckily, this was only a joke, and the Choco Butternut is here to stay. There must be something seriously moreish about this flavor combination and its crunchy shell that donut lovers enjoy.
Kunafa Bliss donut, United Arab Emirates
Adapting a traditional dessert into a donut is one of the best ways to make a food item that appeals to both locals and international eaters. That is what's happening with the Kunafa Bliss, a donut available in the United Arab Emirates. It's made with a popular Middle Eastern treat known as kunafa or knafeh.
Kunafa is a dairy-based pudding delicacy surrounded by phyllo pastry, kind of like a filled donut, so it's easy to see how the brand adapted this recipe into a new donut flavor. The treat is filled with ashta, a Middle Eastern clotted cream, and then topped with kunafa, chopped pistachios, and more ashta. The pistachios provide a nutty reprieve from the sweetness of the donut, which makes for a balanced yet decadent bite. Kunafa is often served after sundown during Ramadan, which may be why the Kunafa Bliss has found its way onto Dunkin's Ramadan menu collection.