Dough Joy to open brick-and-mortar donut shop in former Cupcake Royale space on NW Market St

Meghan Walker Ballard

The whimsical vegan donut shop Dough Joy is opening its third location in Ballard.

The owners Christopher Ballard and Sean Willis announced the news on Instagram, showing a short video of their new space—the former Cupcake Royale at 2052 NW Market St. Cupcake Royale closed just last month in Ballard after two decades on NW Market St.

Dough Joy got its start as a donut food truck back in 2021. They parked it in Ballard when they first opened, right across from the now-shuttered Cycle Dogs on 17th Ave NW.

Since the launch of their food truck, Dough Joy has opened two brick-and-mortars: One in Capitol Hill and the second in West Seattle.

Ballard and Willis started Dough Joy with little more than an insatiable love of donuts. Collectively, they had “zero baking experience” when they came up with the idea, but spent months trying out different recipes and having friends and family taste their creations.

And now, three years after its humble food truck beginning, Dough Joy is becoming a household name in Seattle.

The new Dough Joy hasn’t yet opened, but we’ll update you as soon as we know their plans.

Photo: Dough Joy