Yeasted, deep-fried Polish jelly doughnuts eaten on Fat Tuesday, the day before Lent begins; rich, eggy and slightly boozy. Cleveland's Slavic parishes line up at dawn for the once-a-year batch.
Polish parishes brought paczki to Slavic Village and Parma from the 1880s, eating them on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday to use up rich pre-Lenten ingredients (eggs, butter, sugar). Presti's, Corbo's and Rudy's Strudel still queue around the block on Fat Tuesday every February. Rudy's in Parma is the most-photographed line in Cuyahoga County; Colossal Cupcakes and a handful of newer bakers run year-round versions for the homesick.
3 editor picks for Paczki in Cleveland, ranked by editorial score. All Cleveland signature dishes · Paczki across every city.
Also in: Gdańsk, Buffalo, Detroit.
Presti's Bakery ★ 4.7
little-italy · 12101 Mayfield Rd, Cleveland, OH 44106
Presti's Bakery on Mayfield Road in Little Italy since 1903, one of Cleveland's oldest bakeries, anchors the Cleveland-style cassata cake tradition.
Corbo's Bakery ★ 4.6
little-italy · 12210 Mayfield Rd, Cleveland, OH 44106
Corbo's Bakery on Mayfield Road in Little Italy since 1958, the family-owned bakery known for cassata cake and cannoli, has expanded to a full Italian menu.
Michael Angelo's Bakery ★ 4.4
broadview-heights · 8035 Broadview Rd, Broadview Heights, OH 44147
Michael Angelo's Bakery on Broadview Road in Broadview Heights, an Italian-American bakery since 2000, runs cassata cake, cannoli and a 2026 spring food menu.