Maple City Bakery in Chatham is reporting record sales of Paczkis on Fat Tuesday.
Owner Joe Fanelli said the bakery sold more than 51,000 of the jelly-filled, powdered sugar-covered Polish fried dough treats. Fanelli said a few customers took some Paczkis home, froze them, and sent them to their friends as far away as Newfoundland, Quebec, and Barrie.
Fanelli said a total of 40 people worked in shifts throughout the day and all had a great time.
"We're power-washing all of our racks and trays and everything. Literally we have to power-wash, there's a lot of powder. I ordered 75 bags of 20 kilos each of donut sugar. Most of it went on the donuts but not all of it," said Fanelli.
Fanelli said it's the busiest day of the year for the bakery.
"Want to add a great big thanks to my staff and to the people of Chatham-Kent. They made this another great Paczki Day and we look forward to next year," he added.
Fanelli said, unfortunately, he doesn't think Paczki Day will ever catch-on outside of the Detroit, Windsor, and Chatham areas because other areas have their own Mardi Gras traditions.
"You know, I don't. I know there was a huge effort about 15 years ago to try and get it to take off in the GTA, all kinds of promotion and everything like that but it kind of gets swallowed up in that big town," Fanelli said.
Fanelli said custard and raspberry were the most popular Paczkis this year followed by lemon, cherry, blueberry, and chocolate.
He said the work began on Sunday at 3 a.m. to get ready for Tuesday.