PARMA, Ohio — It wouldn't be a Fat Tuesday celebration without the annual paczki party at Rudy's Strudel and Bakery in Parma.
Lidia Trempe, owner of Rudy’s, says she has been planning for the 2024 paczki party since last year's ended.
“Well, I started preparing for paczki and thinking of ideas two days after paczki day 2023," she tells 3News' Austin Love.
She says prep for this year's dough, mixing and fillings began a month ago.
"Paczki are rich, deep-fried leavened dough pastries that feature a variety of fillings, and are eaten in the festive season of Carnival, approaching Lent -- culminating on Paczki Day or Fat Tuesday (also known as Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras)," according to Rudy's site.
Rudy's serves up a variety of paczki flavors, too, ranging from sweet to savory including apple, blueberry, cherry, lemon, pineapple, raspberry and strawberry.
The Fat Tuesday paczki party at Rudy's has become a tradition for decades -- and the event always starts extra early with people lining up well before sunrise.
You can soak in some of the fun we had at Rudy's throughout the videos below...