​Paczki Day in the South Suburbs: Where to Get Your Fat Tuesday Treat

ORLAND PARK, IL - What many Americans know as “Fat Tuesday” is now better known as “Paczki Day” in Chicagoland. There’s no shortage of places to find the delicious Polish treat in the area on the day, which is Tuesday, Feb. 28 this year. But you may want to plan ahead because everyone else also has paczkis on the mind this time of year.

“It has become a tradition around Chicago that our customers look forward to each year,” said Dan Major, owner of Orland Park Bakery - where “Paczki Day” has turned into not only the busiest day of the year, but an event of its own.

“Working at Orland Park Bakery on Paczki Day can certainly be described as crazy,” he said. “We add nearly 75 temporary employees Monday night and Tuesday, many of them friends and family. Orders are packaged on one of 5 ‘order assembly lines’ where boxes are passed down and filled by employees who are each in charge of a few flavors.”

The bakery at 14850 S. LaGrange Road in Orland Park is ranked by Yelp users as the best spot in the area for paczkis.

Major says the bakery has made paczkis ever since opening in 1969 and has used the same recipe since 1978. The bakery will offer all of its 18 paczki flavors on Paczki Day and will feature a “flavor of the day” throughout Lent. Salted Caramel Pretzel, Reese's Peanut Butter Cup and Atomic have been favorites in previous years.

Also on Patch: Share Your South Suburban Fish Fry With Us

Despite the day before Ash Wednesday easily being the biggest day of the year at Orland Park Bakery (about 36,000 paczkis were sold at the retail store on that day alone last year), Major says the operation there is down to a science.

“Our bakers work nonstop mixing, scaling, frying, cutting and filling,” he said. “Our store clerks work fast and furious helping the nonstop stream of customers from 5 a.m. to 6 p.m.”

Most pickup orders last year took less than 15 minutes and walk-in customers only waited an average of 30 minutes.

Orland Park Bakery may be rated as the best spot on the Southland to pick up a paczki, but it certainly isn’t the only one. The entire region is covered with places, so no one should miss out on the fun.

Here are other highly rated places for paczkis, according to Yelp.

Creative Cakes Bakery & Cafe, 16649 Oak Park Ave. in Tinley Park
On Patch: Tinley Bakery Ranked Among Best in State
Doughs Guys Bakery, 12248 S Harlem Ave. in Palos Heights; 13545 S. Cicero Ave. in Crestwood
Iversen’s Bakery, 12948 Western Ave. in Blue Island
The Velvet Bakery, 5168 W. 95th St. in Oak Lawn

Tuziks's 95th Street Bakery, 4955 W. 95th St. in Oak Lawn
Pearson’s Bakery, 1 W. 16th St. in Chicago Heights
Witek’s Bakery, 8807 W. 95th Street in Palos Hills
Pearson’s Southgate Bakery, 18670 Dixie Hwy. in Homewood
Kirby’s Korner Bakery, 165 S. State in Manhattan

Visit Chicago Southland has also listed a bunch. Additional ones found here include Sweet Annie’s at 1050 Sterling Avenue in Flossmoor, Fleckenstein’s Bakery at 19225 South LaGrange Road in Mokena and Calumet Bakery at 18349 Torrence Avenue in Lansing.

Also: New Vitality Health Foods, Inc. Now Offering Delicious Gluten Free Paczki Pastries

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