Paczki Day: Donut Den's Busiest Day Of Year Is Here

JOLIET, IL — At 4 a.m. Tuesday, there will be a line of Joliet area residents braving the cold outside Joliet's Donut Den at 3043 Theodore St. It's that way every year for Paczki Day.

"They will be in line when we unlock the doors, the smart ones," Aronson said. "The majority of people take a dozen. It's an event."

Donut Den's busiest day of the day has arrived: Paczki Day.

Aronson and his employees are taking turns working about 30 hours nonstop baking the assortment of Paczki in the kitchen. There are trays and trays filled with Paczki.

"I think we did around 15,000 last year," Aronson told Joliet Patch's editor Monday. "I don't know what to expect for turnout, A, with the pandemic and B, the weather. But we're going to go for it and hope they come. Joliet people are pretty hardy."

What flavors can you find at Donut Den starting at 4 a.m.?

There's custard, French silk, cheese, apple, cherry, lemon, apricot, blueberry, fresh strawberry and strawberry, Aronson said.

A word of advice: don't try calling in an order, Aronson said.

Donut Den stopped taking phone orders Sunday afternoon after accepting 350 prepaid orders.

If you call Donut Den on Tuesday, the business phone will ring and ring and go to voicemail, Aronson said.

In other words, if you want your Paczki, you better head to Donut Den in person.

Some grocery stores start selling Paczki about a week before Fat Tuesday, but Donut Den and many other area bakeries make it a one-day affair.

"It's one day," Aronson said. "It's total chaos, but then it's over."

Paczki Day coincides with Fat Tuesday, the day before Lent officially starts on Ash Wednesday. But you don't have to be Catholic — or Polish — to enjoy the pastry treat.

Paczki — pronounced "puhnch-kee" — are traditional Polish doughnuts and are a once-a-year delicacy, traditionally made by bakers trying to use up all their eggs and lard before Lent begins.

And for Donut Den, it's a huge boost in business.

Aronson told Patch that business, overall, remains strong even though Donut Den, like most local restaurants, has been negatively impacted by the coronavirus crisis.

"It has hurt me some, but the majority of my business is takeout," he said, "so we're rolling along."

Donut Den is open from 4 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 5 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday.

To learn what other businesses in Illinois are selling Paczki, read this Patch article here.