Where To Find Paczki, King Cake Around Chicago's North Shore

EVANSTON, IL — With Fat Tuesday just around the corner, bakeries along Chicago's North Shore are gearing up for the holiday with their own special offerings of paczki and king cake.

Mardi Gras ("Fat Tuesday" in French) is also known locally as Paczki Day, thanks to the Chicago area's historically large population of people of Polish descent.

Originating in Poland, paczki — pronounced "punch-key" — are a richer, denser kind of jelly donut, traditionally fried and filled with various fruit flavors. They began as a practical way for Catholics to use up lard and eggs ahead of the Lenten season.

The tradition of king cake dates back to pre-Christian celebrations of the winter solstice, but it has since been adopted for the Carnival season, starting with the Epiphany on Jan. 6 and concluding on Mardi Gras with the start of Lent.

The circular cakes historically contain a small figurine of a baby, which represents Jesus Christ, and it is considered good luck for the person who finds it in their slice.

Paczki and king cakes are available this week at several North Shore and North Side bakeries ahead of the holiday, but customers are encouraged to get their orders in early to ensure a taste of the sweet seasonal tradition.

Here's where to find paczki and king cake specials around the North Shore ahead of Paczki Day 2023:

Bennison's Bakery
1000 Davis St., Evanston (847-328-9434)

Evanston's renowned 85-year-old family-owned European-style bakery sells thousands of paczki every year leading up to the Lenten season.

The bakery's 11 flavors of paczki went on sale Monday and will remain available until Feb. 24, the Friday following Fat Tuesday. New for 2023: blueberry, which replaces prune. As for king cakes, Bennison's offers plain, apple, cherry, cream cheese and praline pecan filling on its New Orleans-style cakes, as well as a traditional Galette des Rois in the French style.

This year, the bakery is reviving its traditional paczki eating contest following a pandemic-induced hiatus. The 12th annual paczki consumption competition takes place at 2 p.m. Saturday, and the winner will receive $200 cash as well as a $75 gift card to the bakery.

Hewn Bakery
1733 Central St., Evanston (847-869-4396); 348 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville (847-281-7050)

Paczki and king cakes are available from the nationally recognized Evanston bakery, but all orders must be placed by 8 p.m. Thursday. Hewn's Evanston and Libertyville retail locations area closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

Hewn's paczki are baked instead of fried and available only in chocolate pastry cream flavor. They come in packs of four. And the bakery's king cakes come with a baby figurine on the side for customers to hide inside if they so desire.

Deerfields Bakery
813 N. Waukegan Road, Deerfield, and 201 N. Buffalo Grove Road, Buffalo Grove (847-520-0068)

Although it's normally closed Mondays, Deerfields Bakery locations in Deerfield and Buffalo Grove are opening on Lundi Gras, the day ahead of Fat Tuesday, for Paczki Day purposes.

Paczki are available at the bakery nearly two dozen flavors, including peanut butter, salted caramel and mango. The last day to place orders online is Saturday, but paczki will be available in store until Tuesday. Deerfields Bakery also offers king cakes with either almond or chocolate fillings.

Delightful Pastries
5927 W. Lawrence Ave., Chicago (773) 545-7215

The Jefferson Park bakery has more than a dozen flavors available, including three types of drunken paczki — moonshine with lemon, Jameson Irish whiskey with chocolate custard and Vodka with vanilla bean custard.

Online preorders are due in by Friday, with a minimum order size of one dozen. On Saturday, the Delightful Pastries is hosting a 14-person paczki-making class for $85. Participants will also be making angel wings, or chrusciki, a type of fried cookie. And the bakery will be open its doors on Sunday, when it is typically closed, ahead of Paczki Day, operating from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Smack Dab
6730 N. Clark St., Chicago (872-241-9111)

The Rogers Park breakfast cafe sold out of its supply of paczki two weeks before Paczki Day, but it is offering other traditional Mardi Gras treats.

Smack Dab is also offering mini king cakes filled with cream cheese and cinnamon filling, although they do not include baby figurines. And 32-ounce servings of both red beans and rice or jambalaya are also available. It will be open Tuesday for pickups from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.