Korean Doughnut Chain Knotted Lands in Australia With Matcha Cream and Banana Lattes

Can any doughnut really top a hot cinnamon from Donut King? Sydney’s current doughnut landscape proves yes. Easily. Our offering stretches far and wide, with sprinkle-covered classics from Grumpy and jam-stuffed numbers from Donut Garage. There are fat cinnamon-crusted rings at Two Chaps and fluffy sugar-covered beignets at the new Happy Shop, and this writer’s still mourning the loss of the crispy, twisted sesame doughnut from the now-closed Soul Deli. But we have a newcomer: Knotted. 

The pastel-toned sweet treat spot’s just hit Burwood Road, and is the first Australian location for the South Korean bakery chain. Since its launch in Seoul in 2017, over 40 stores have opened in Korea, as well as two new openings in LA.

The Aussie debut is a sizeable flagship. A sea of doughnuts lines the display cabinet, piped full of cream flavoured with anything from matcha and Earl Grey to lemon curd and roasted sweet corn. A long standing-only communal table sits in the middle of the room, there are sun-soaked spots in the windows up front, and there’s a second dining space behind the counter with a view of the bakers at work.

Knotted’s doughnuts are of the filled variety. If you’re a keep-it-simple dessert person, the milk cream and classic vanilla flavours are uncomplicated favourites. Raspberry is for the jam doughnut lovers out there, and there are plenty of more adventurous options, like Earl Grey or roasted sweet corn, tiramisu, strawberry matcha, Dubai chocolate and strawberry milk cream. There’s filled salt bread, too.

Drinks stick to the same brief. Multiple iterations of matcha (what’s new?) join a signature range of creamy iced lattes. Atop the banana latte is a thick layer of rich banana cream that’ll have you running your finger around the side of the glass when you’re finished. There’s a classic milk cream too, and even a corn cream version.

Beans from Bassett Espresso – an Australian coffee company founded by Paul Bassett, the winner of the 2003 World Barista Championship – are in all the coffees. Bassett also lends his name to a chain of high-end cafes in Korea.

Rounding out Burwood’s Knotted are shelves lined with merchandise brought over from the Korean stores. Among branded plush toys and tumblers, the highlight is a Knotted-meets-Pyrex collaboration – measuring cup and mixing bowl sets adorned with adorable pastel bears and bunnies.

This won’t be the only Knotted in Sydney. An outpost in the CBD’s Pacific Power Building – a 1978 skyscraper being refurbed as 201 Elizabeth Street – has already been promised for April, and with the number of locations in South Korea nearing 50, there may be more to follow. Honestly, the more places to get your hands on a Knotted vanilla cream doughnut, the better.

Knotted
Shop1/24 Burwood Road, Burwood

Hours:
Daily 8.30am–4pm

@cafeknotted_au