You can buy Polish bread and paczki in Mount Pocono at Krakus Deli, 22 Sterling Road. Bread, rolls, paczki (Polish doughnuts) and babka come to the store from bakeries in New Jersey and New York, including Syrena Bakery. The store is open seven days a week.
Once you are used to Polish sourdough rye, soft sandwich bread from the supermarket is hard to go back to. In the Poconos, bread like that is not always easy to find.
The solution is simpler than it sounds: baked goods from those bakeries reach the shelves in Mount Pocono. Below are answers to common questions about Polish bread, paczki and babka in the Poconos.
Where does the bread at the Polish store in Mount Pocono come from?
From Polish bakeries in New Jersey and New York. One of them is Syrena Bakery in New York City, which supplies the store with bread and pastries.
That means Monroe County residents do not have to drive to New York for bread that tastes like home. A stop at the store on Sterling Road is enough.
Ask at the store which days fresh bread deliveries arrive. That makes it easier to plan shopping for the weekend, a birthday or Sunday dinner with family.
What baked goods does the store carry?
- chleb (bread), for everyday meals and sandwiches;
- bułki (rolls), for breakfast and school lunches;
- paczki (Polish doughnuts), not just for special occasions;
- babka, a sweet yeast cake that is a Polish Easter tradition.
The types of bread and cakes depend on deliveries. If you are looking for something specific, call ahead.
When is Fat Thursday?
Fat Thursday (Tłusty Czwartek) is the last Thursday before Lent. In Poland, people eat paczki that day, and tradition says that skipping them brings bad luck. In many parts of the U.S., especially the Midwest, a similar custom is known as Paczki Day and falls on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.
Either way, it comes down to a paczek from a Polish bakery. Since demand is higher that day, it is worth asking ahead whether and when paczki will be in the store. Ask about paczki for Fat Thursday: 570-839-3605.
What is babka, and when is it served?
Babka is a tall yeast cake, often baked in a ring-shaped pan and dusted with powdered sugar or glazed. In Poland it is one of the symbols of Easter, and a slice also goes into the święconka, the Easter food basket blessed on Holy Saturday.
Keep babka covered or in a container at room temperature so it does not dry out. A yeast cake tastes best within a few days, and a slice that is getting stale can be warmed up briefly.
For what to put in the basket and what to buy for the holiday table, see our guide to Polish holiday shopping in the Poconos.
How do I keep Polish bread fresh longer?
Store it in a bread box or wrapped in a linen towel at room temperature. The refrigerator is bad for bread: it goes stale faster in the cold, even though it molds more slowly.
If you buy bread to keep, slice it and freeze it in a bag. Then take out a few slices at a time and put them straight in the toaster. In short: no fridge, yes freezer.
Polish paczki differ from American donuts: they have no hole, are usually filled and are dusted with powdered sugar or glazed. They taste best on the day you buy them. They are still good the next day but lose some of their fluffiness.
What goes well with fresh bread?
Polish bread is best with Polish cold cuts. The store carries kielbasa (Polish sausage), kabanosy (thin dry-smoked pork sausages), ham, boczek (smoked pork belly) and fresh cold cuts, plus Polish groceries. Learn more in our guide to Polish cold cuts and kielbasa in the Poconos.
While you are there, you can also ship a package to Poland through Polamer, buy a phone card and Polish newspapers, and pick up a free copy of the Polish Pages directory book.
You can buy Polish bread and paczki at Krakus Deli Polish Specialties, 22 Sterling Road, Mount Pocono, PA 18344. Staff speak Polish and English. Call to ask when fresh bread arrives: 570-839-3605.
Store details and contact information are listed in the Krakus Deli profile in the Polish Pages directory.
This guide is for informational purposes only. The bakery selection depends on deliveries; please confirm the availability of specific items by phone.
Syrena Bakery and Polamer are trademarks of their respective owners. All trademarks belong to their respective owners. Polish Pages and Poland.us are not affiliated with or endorsed by these companies.
