Dough Nguyener’s is quite new on the king cake scene. I’m not positive, but I think last year may have been the first year they were available. I’m a sucker for a pun (Dough Winners? Get it?) so I gravitated toward this immediately.

Dough Nguyener’s is a Vietnamese bakery that, according to their website, specializes in classic Vietnamese breads and is about to open a storefront in Gretna on the Westbank. They currently offer Traditional, Cream Cheese, and, wait for it… Cafe Sua Da (Vietnamese Iced Coffee filled) king cakes. The Vietnamese Iced Coffee filled king cake was one of my favorite king cakes of 2022, and I apologize for not telling y’all about it sooner. It’s a real star.

As the store front is not yet open, you have to track them down on their Instagram, @doughnguyeners, which is updated quite frequently and advises that Dough Nguyener’s slings their cakes out of a variety of locations on both the Westbank (Huey P’s Pizzeria and Thanh Thahn restaurant) and Eastbank (Huey P’s Pizzeria in Midcity, Adams Street Grocery uptown, and Rock N Bowls in Metairie).

Side note for you non-New Orleanians, New Orleans has a large Vietnamese population which has developed over the last several decades. As a result, New Orleans has, in my humble opinion, some of the best Vietnamese food you can find on this side of planet Earth. As we’ve already learned in this series, Dong Phuong is, if not the oldest, one of the oldest Vietnamese bakeries in the city (and the most storied), but it’s not the only amazing one by a long shot. It’s very cool to see how the Vietnamese food culture has merged with New Orleans culinary traditions to make food that is unique to this area (and time, quite honestly, as this has all happened post-1975). Those of us who live here know that some of the very best king cakes come from the Vietnamese bakeries and I find it fascinating and wonderful. Yet another pro tip for you out-of-owners, their Instagram has also advised that on February 15 ONLY, they are offering next-day shipping (traditional cakes only) if you order by January 31. You’re welcome, non-Louisiana friends!

I’ll also mention here that, within the past few days, their Instagram has also been advertising a limited edition “Parisian King Cake,” only available at limited locations, which my friend pointed out is a dead ringer for a Dong Phuong. Imitation is the highest form of flattery, after all. These appear to be selling out quickly and are only available at the two Huey P’s locations, but it’s probably easier than a trip to Dong Phuong. Just saying.

Although not listed on their Instagram, my friend happened upon a traditional cake by chance while eating at Pho Bistreaux in Harahan on a Friday afternoon. She saw a sign on the door (so look for one everywhere they sell authentic Vietnamese food, I guess?) and snagged one for us since it was one of our favorites from last year.

I didn’t get to eat this until a day or two after purchase (because, you know, I had to eat vegetables and stuff) and stored it on the counter in Tupperware until then. It held up remarkably well (I suspect it was baked fresh on the Friday morning of purchase) and fully came to life after a quick five seconds in the microwave.

The brioche dough is lightly sweet and PERFECTLY baked. Like, seriously, no notes. It has a really bready quality to it, which is unsurprising, given the bakery’s focus on classic Vietnamese bread. It has a lightly brown, yet very thin crust and it’s very yeasty. I love the consistency of the baked dough and I found it HIGHLY traditional with one caveat—not heavy on the cinnamon (although the cinnamon is there… sort of).

My friend and I agreed that their traditional cake is reminiscent of Manny Randazzo’s in term of the flavor profile. The white icing is quite traditional in terms of what I’ve come to expect from a “traditional” iced king cake but comes with sprinkles instead of granulated sugar. This cake had quite a generous amount of icing that was applied in a thick layer. As is true of most traditional white king cake icing, it is very sweet but it actually works really well here contrasted with the more savory dough. Personally, the icing was a little heavy for me, not to mention that I kept thinking about the Vietnamese Iced Coffee filling from the cake I had last year and which I’ll definitely have to get before the end of the season. But if your king cake preference skews traditional and you love the combination of perfectly baked savory dough with sweet, traditional white icing, this is a cake you should definitely check out. 4 stars.