Business & Tech
It's Fat Tuesday, So Get Your Pączki On
Rosmart Deli bakes 3,000 pastries for Fat Tuesday, known in the Polish community as "Pączki Day"
Editor's Note: This article was orginally published March 8, 2011.
While some people celebrate Fat Tuesday with colored masks and partying, many Algonquin residents celebrate by treating themselves to pączki (pronounced “pounch-ski”) traditional Polish pastries with jelly fillings.
Anyone hoping for a sweet taste of Polish culture flock to Robert Rosinski’s Rosmart Deli every Fat Tuesday, often buying the delicious doughnut-like pasties by the dozen.
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“We sell 2 to 3,000 pączki on Fat Tuesday,” said Rosinski, who has owned and operated Rosmart Deli with his wife, Dorota, for the past seven years. “We make them the old-fashioned way, handed down from generations,” he said, and the recipe is top-secret.
Rosinski came to the United States from Poland 20 years ago. “It was very stressful coming here,” he said. “I didn’t know any English, I didn’t know the culture.”
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But after settling into Algonquin, he decided to open a Polish deli and grocery store. St. Margaret Mary’s Catholic Church attracts a considerable Polish American population, and Rosinski decided to follow suit.
When he first opened the Deli, Rosinski was nervous about keeping up with the demand for pączki on Fat Tuesday. But with a few years under his belt, he looks forward to the chance to share his culture with local residents.
“On Fat Tuesday, we can bring in new customers,” Rosinski said. “We have people who come once a week, once a month, and those who come for the first time. Sometimes they become regular customers, too.”
Even though Fat Tuesday one of the busiest days of the year for Rosmart Deli, Rosinski said that in Poland, they actually celebrated Fat Thursday. The last Thursday before Lent is a traditional Polish feast very similar to Mardis Gras, but the focus is more on eating sweets and celebrating with family.
However, Rosinski certainly does not mind celebrating both.
Rosmart Deli sell pączki in seven varieties, all for 99 cents. Rose and plum are the traditional (and most popular) flavors, and they can be purchased at the Deli all year. For Fat Tuesday, Rosmart Deli also offers strawberry, blueberry, raspberry, custard, and apricot. All pączki are baked in house.
Rosmart Deli opens today at 6 a.m. and it located at 128 Eastgate Court.
