These Incredible Donuts from an Airstream Trailer in Austin Blew Me Away

I love food trucks and trailers and carts, and I also love donuts, and even though I'd already eaten far more meals than I should have in three short days in Austin, when my travel companion told me about Gourdough's, I mentally made room in my belly for even more treats, and we drove right over there. Donuts? Fancy donuts? Out of an Airstream trailer? Sign me up! Yes, please.

Fortunately, this place wasn't too far from our hotel because I knew I was going to be very full, indeed, after visiting a donut food truck, and that I was probably going to want to go back to the room and relax a bit after - and I was right. But our time at Gourdough's was awesome, and I recommend a stop at this sweet treat spot to anyone visiting or living in Austin.

Austin is full of food trucks, and I love that about it. If it wasn't already abundantly clear from the paragraphs above, I love the food scene in Austin in general. It's amazing. Food trucks, in general, are especially cool, though, for a lot of reasons. I love that they're mobile kitchens (even though many of the food trucks in Austin don't often relocate at all). I love that they make so much magic in such a small space. I love that they have such a casual vibe and that I automatically get to eat outside after ordering from one. And I love that because they are small, they have to choose one type of food or cuisine and specialize in it and they have to perfect each item on their menu since their offerings must be limited. If a food truck doesn't do whatever they do very well, then it won't last very long.

Keeping that in mind, any food truck that's managed to stay open for longer than a year or two - especially in an area with high competition for food trucks like Austin - is bound to be pretty darn good.

Gourdough's is a shiny Airstream trailer that's parked long-term in a parking lot off South 1st Street in the Bouldin Creek neighborhood of Austin, south of downtown. The proprietors have set up a bright, pleasant, and colorful seating area outside, offering plenty of space for patrons to enjoy their donuts casually. It was a bit overcast on the day we visited, but it was warm enough to sit outside to eat, and we did exactly that.

The menu at Gourdough's is vast, and deciding what to order was hard. Everything listed sounded fantastic, and it made me wish that this place was in my hometown of Denver so I could try everything over several visits. Gourdough's menu is divided into four sections: chocolate donuts, cream cheese donuts, specialty donuts, and savory donuts. The first two sections include either chocolate icing or cream cheese icing along with other creative toppings, and the specialty donuts include even more enticing flavors like maple icing, Nutella, peanut butter icing, glazed cherries, strawberries, blueberries, and more.

The savory selections were also calling my name, but alas - I'd already eaten too much already that day to dive into a donut with an Angus beef patty, house battered fried chicken strips, or maple sausage and eggs, but I hope to try one or all of those on my next visit.

On this visit, we decided to go the route of sweetness. My companion loves bananas and chose The Puddin' as his first selection. This donut was covered with cream cheese icing, vanilla pudding, fresh bananas, and vanilla wafers. He devoured it so quickly that I only got one bite - but the bite I had was excellent, and I almost wished I'd ordered that one, too.

I chose Blue Balls because rather than a single donut, this menu item was a dozen donut holes filled with blueberries and covered with blueberry icing. I figured I'd eat a few and could then easily save the rest for later - but they were so good that I ended up eating them all right then and there.

My travel companion went back for more, and this time, he chose The Fat Elvis. This donut had bananas on it, too - grilled this time - plus peanut butter icing, honey, and a hearty serving of bacon. Although he liked The Puddin' a bit better than this one, he really enjoyed this one, too.

Our visit to Gourdough's was a huge success. I was so impressed with this place that we almost returned the following day to try even more donuts, but we had many other places still on our list to try instead. Still, I certainly plan on returning to Gourdough's on future trips to Austin, and I recommend it to anyone living in or visiting the area. As the Airstream's tagline says, "Try one, they're delicious!" - they really are, indeed. Buy a donut - or two, or three - relax at a table, and enjoy!