A hot and fresh battle is cooking in Santa Clara.

People are calling it doughnut wars. Dueling doughnuts.

Randy’s Donuts, the famed doughnut shop started in Inglewood in Southern California and known for its iconic 32-foot doughnut-shaped rooftop sign, has expanded into Northern California, with a grand opening event held for its first Bay Area franchise on Friday in Santa Clara.

The mood was celebratory at Randy’s at 2595 Homestead Road, with hundreds of customers lining up in the early morning hours to partake in the festivities, which included some free samples, swag giveaways and music, under the shadow of an inflatable giant doughnut.

Doughnuts are seen in the glass display case at Randy’s Donuts in Santa Clara on July 31, 2026. (Joseph Geha/KQED)

The bright orange shop is offering about 50 varieties of handmade doughnuts, including classic glazed raised, chocolate or maple Long Johns, and other spins such as mango Tajin and matcha tea, while some have toppings like Oreos, Fruity Pebbles, and s’mores.

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Ausaf Masud, one of three co-owners of the new franchise under a company called Sweet Rings LLC, said his partners hope to open about five total Randy’s locations across the Bay Area in due time, and the opening on Friday was a good start.

“The line is across two blocks right now. I think we have 400 people right now waiting in the line,” Masud said. “It’s amazing to see the love.”

But it’s the location of Randy’s that has caused a yeast-like raising of eyebrows among armies of local doughnut eaters. It’s just across the street from Stan’s Donuts, a Santa Clara staple opened in 1959, still run by the family of the original founder.

Shawn Lemelle and his aunt Sheila Lemelle proudly display their Randy’s Donuts purchase during a grand opening event at the brand’s new location in Santa Clara on July 31, 2026. (Joseph Geha/KQED)

Shawn Lemelle and his aunt Sheila Lemelle proudly display their Randy’s Donuts purchase during a grand opening event at the brand’s new location in Santa Clara on July 31, 2026. (Joseph Geha/KQED)

The cash-only establishment also makes its doughnuts by hand, many of which are formed right in front of a large plate-glass window in view of customers.

Their most popular offering is a raised glazed, along with their rotating selection of buttermilk doughnuts and old-fashioneds. The shop offers counter service for those who have a little time to sit and enjoy a pillowy pastry and a coffee on site.

The shop is regularly bustling, and often has a line that starts along the wall inside and wends its way down the shopping center sidewalk.

On this particular Friday, a very popular day for the business typically, owner Julie Clark said the line was four to five times as long as usual.

“It’s so heartwarming; it’s overwhelming, actually. And it just makes us so happy as a staff and as a business to see all the regulars, and we’ve seen so many today, as well as new people that we’re getting all the time,” Clark said. “It’s just been the biggest blessing. We are so fortunate.”

Julie Clark, the owner of Stan’s Donuts in Santa Clara, poses for a photo in front of her shop and a long line of customers on July 31, 2026. (Joseph Geha/KQED)

Clark said her shop’s menu is a bit smaller on purpose.

“We’re old school. We stick to the classics,” she said.

Some longtime customers of Stan’s showed up on Friday just to ensure the shop was busy on the day of Randy’s grand opening.

James Stewart lives nearby and said he comes to Stan’s about once a week, and has been a customer for about 40 years.

“It’s just kind of a more mom-and-pop shop. I think Randy’s choosing that location was strategic, so I’m here to support Stan’s,” he said.

He said he hopes people will try out Stan’s and Randy’s to make a comparison.

“Stan’s will win every time,” he said.

Masud, of Randy’s, insisted he wasn’t trying to start a doughnut standoff. He said he and his partners chose the location for the size of its kitchen, as they plan to make doughnuts for future locations at the Santa Clara shop, and its drive-thru, which is planned to open later this year.

Masud even said he and his family live in the area and have been fans of Stan’s before getting into the doughnut business themselves.

“There’s nothing against anyone. It’s a business. You know, once in a while you do get competitors,” he said. “It’s just like Shell and Chevron having stations next to each other.”

Perhaps no one was more excited than Avery St. Lawrence, who said she loves waking up early, waiting in lines and sweet things.

She just moved to Santa Clara a week ago from Michigan, and plans to attend Santa Clara University School of Law soon.

On Friday morning, she waited in two long lines to try both Randy’s and Stan’s for the first time, and did a taste test.

“This feels a lot fluffier,” she said outside of Stan’s, holding one of their glazed raised doughnuts.

Avery St. Lawrence makes doughnut decisions while ordering at her doughnut order during a grand opening event at Randy’s Donuts in Santa Clara on July 31, 2026. (Joseph Geha/KQED)

One bite later: “This one is better. This one’s way better.”

Mark Kelegian, the CEO of Randy’s Donuts brand, said the company is not targeting Stan’s or its customers.

“No, that’s all manufactured. There’s no doughnut war,” he said. “The fact that there’s a doughnut shop across the street or a block away or two blocks away, there always is…There’s generally enough business for everyone.”

He said many people might initially find out about Randy’s because of its giant doughnut sign, which was prominently featured in the Iron Man 2 movie and other media, but they come back for the brand’s sweet treats.

A Stan’s Donuts employee forms doughnuts in the front window of the shop during a busy Friday morning in Santa Clara on July 31, 2026. (Joseph Geha/KQED)

A Stan’s Donuts employee forms doughnuts in the front window of the shop during a busy Friday morning in Santa Clara on July 31, 2026. (Joseph Geha/KQED)

“Our doughnuts are unique, and we think they’re the best in the world,” he said.

Some customers on Friday said there is room in their hearts for doughnuts from both operations, and were celebrating the increasing number of purveyors in town.

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“It’s just doughnuts,” Crystal Camarena, of Sunnyvale, said. “Be happy, eat doughnuts, all the doughnuts.”

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