Ferndale's Apple Fritter Gets Ready for Paczki Day

Certain businesses have their money days: The malls have Black Friday. Bars have Thanksgiving Eve. The government has April 15. Ferndale's  has Paczki Day.

"It's our biggest day by far. We make in one day what we'd make in about two months," said Josh Urban, whose father Stephen owns Apple Fritter.

Paczki (poonch-key) is plural for paczek, a Polish pastry, like a donut, deep fried and filled with a jelly or custard. Paczki Day is related to Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras, which comes before Ash Wednesday, which is the beginning of Lent – a time during which some churchgoing folk give up something they enjoy for 40 days. As with any good religious holiday, food takes center stage, this time in the form of a paczek.

For Apple Fritter, Paczki Day is a good day for business. "It's the one day of the year we make money," Urban said.

Last year Urban said Apple Fritter deep fried 501 dozen paczki. "This year we're looking at 600-700 dozen," he said.

Do your math correctly and that could be 8,400 paczki and a whole lot of calories.

"We already have a box full of tickets and tomorrow the phone won't stop ringing," Urban said. "And Tuesday... the door won't stay closed."

Apple Fritter has been around for 23 years and, according to Urban, has been making paczki all 23 years. The Urban family isn't Polish, though he believes Apple Fritter's paczki recipe did come from a Pole at some point in time.

What about that recipe?

"We can't give it out, it's a secret. It's a passed-down recipe," Urban said. He did, however, say that what makes paczki so fattening is the fact that they drop butter, sugar and eggs into them, "and depending on what you fill them with could be anywhere from 700-1,500 calories."

Apple Fritter is supplying Ferndale's , the , and the with paczki. The donut shop is also shipping 80 dozen paczki to MGM Grand in Detroit plus all the paczki for paczki eating contest Tuesday.

Urban said he is anticipating a long two days for Monday and Tuesday. "Last year I worked 42 and a half hours straight," he said. "All for paczki."

And though Apple Fritter could churn out more than 8,000 paczki on Tuesday; they're not changing the shops name to paczki. "Apple Fritter is my dad's specialty, that's why it's named Apple Fritter," Urban said.

Apple Fritter sells one paczek for $1.25 or a dozen paczki for $14. The shop opens at 4:30 a.m. Monday-Saturday and it's closed Wednesday. Call 248-545-7295 to place an order.

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