Living and working in SOMA provides one with a myriad of options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Personally, I’d love to eat at Basil Thai and Rocco’s everyday because the food is delicate and tasty in both spots, but I would be so broke that I couldn’t afford to live here. In this neighborhood, it’s always handy to have an inexpensive eatery to fall back on a couple times a week, and if your stomach can take it, Allstars Donuts is just the place.
Walking into Allstars is not unlike entering a dilapidated Chevron station in Indio California: it is hot, stinky, and surreal. I don’t scare easily and had been given an insider tip that the chicken teriyaki bowl isn’t a good choice, so I ordered the 1/3 lb. burger special for $2.99. A cheeseburger, fries, and Coke came to $5.25. The burger was pretty good and definitely worth the price. Make sure you don’t show up before 10:00 AM or after 10:00 PM because you will have missed the burger special, and you and your date will be sad.
The regular clientele that fill Allstars’ dining room mostly come from the St. Vincent de Paul’s homeless shelter down the street. There is always some extracurricular activity afoot in the ordering line. When a babbling and bleeding man who ran through the door needed to order immediately, I shared a commiserative wink with the employee behind the counter and let him step in front of me. After all, his needs were more pressing than mine. While I was there I also saw one patron pull a vodka bottle out of his boot and start chugging. The lady who works there politely asked him to please put the bottle away instead of kicking him out. I thought that was nice.
So, if you are looking for good company, a cheap meal, friendly service, and a barely clean enough spot to eat, run down to Allstars Donuts. Your pockets will be happy, unless they were just picked by the guy behind you in line.
Allstars Donuts is located at 399 5th Street. Open 24 hours a day. Cash only, no pets, no open vodka bottles.
