New Deluxe Bakery [[Hamtramck) closing.

[rjk]

This according to the owner of New Martha Washington Bakery.
Nov. 12th is supposed to be the last day.
Strange considering the holidays are coming up.

[jackie5275]

News to me, but I'll check it out tomorrow.

[313WX]

What type of bakery is it? Polish?

[WWJNewsradio950]

It's closing. Rose Gjorgjeski says business has declined some, but her husband's health issues pushed her into making the decision. She has plenty of friends/family tied to local bakeries so she's hoping to work part-time while caring for her husband.
http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2011/11/...kery-to-close/

[Detroitnerd]

But New Martha Washington is to stay open?

[RickBeall]

Another classic Hamtramck bakery is gone. The bars are sputtering out too, because of the changing demographic. They only thing that can save us are the Hipsters.

[antongast]

Another classic Hamtramck bakery is gone. The bars are sputtering out too, because of the changing demographic. They only thing that can save us are the Hipsters.

Do hipsters have good taste in bread?

[Detroitnerd]

Do hipsters have good taste in bread?

Even better: They like to make clothes out of bread.

[rjk]

NMW is staying open, but business hasn't been very good there either according to the owner.

Speaking of closed bakeries, when did the bakery just north of Celina's Sports Bar close? It looks like it was a pretty big place.

[Detroitnerd]

NMW is staying open, but business hasn't been very good there either according to the owner.

Speaking of closed bakeries, when did the bakery just north of Celina's Sports Bar close? It looks like it was a pretty big place.

Oaza has been closed for several years now. If the little bakeries are feeling the squeeze, imagine how Oaza felt it. The increasingly Middle Eastern and South Asian residents of Hamtramck usually go for flat breads.

[townonenorth]

Oaza has been closed for several years now. If the little bakeries are feeling the squeeze, imagine how Oaza felt it. The increasingly Middle Eastern and South Asian residents of Hamtramck usually go for flat breads.

I guess that you may as well look for another place to buy pastries, breads and cakes of the Polish variety. The demographic will continue to change, and probably within 5 years all of Hamtramck's meat shops and bakeries will have become decidedly non-Polish , for lack of a better descriptor.

Add to that the myriad bars which are hanging on by a thread, and Hamtramck becomes a completely different city, which has been happening since Hamtramck was invented. The Poles and other Slavs had a nice run, but now it is someone else's turn in Hamtown. Or should I say Halaltramck?

[rjk]

So based on a couple of post on this thread I take it that the Hamtramck bar scene isn't what it use to be? Is it the changing demographics or have the people who use to go Hamtramck bars moved on to some place else?

[jcole]

A lot of people with the little family run stores age out, so to speak, and don't have family who can or don't want to run stores. Their kids have gone to college and have other careers to think about or they never had any kids. It happens in all communities, not just Hamtramck.

[townonenorth]

A lot of people with the little family run stores age out, so to speak, and don't have family who can or don't want to run stores. Their kids have gone to college and have other careers to think about or they never had any kids. It happens in all communities, not just Hamtramck.

It sounds as if she didn't even try to sell the business to someone else. Or maybe there were no takers? I am sure that someone would have been able to step in and buy or lease the business with training.

[rjk]

It sounds as if she didn't even try to sell the business to someone else. Or maybe there were no takers? I am sure that someone would have been able to step in and buy or lease the business with training.

The above article states that she was trying to get her relatives to help out in the kitchen and her kids were already working double shifts. I doesn't seem like it was very profitable. This seems like a case of the owner doing everything she could to keep this place going because it was her baby so to speak. From a purely buisness standpoint it probably didn't make much sense to keep this place open for this long.

[townonenorth]

The above article states that she was trying to get her relatives to help out in the kitchen and her kids were already working double shifts. I doesn't seem like it was very profitable. This seems like a case of the owner doing everything she could to keep this place going because it was her baby so to speak. From a purely buisness standpoint it probably didn't make much sense to keep this place open for this long.

Yes, I suppose that's the case. I guess it's hard to base a business model on people coming back for one day a year to indulge in nostalgia of their youth and to stoke their cultural needs. Bakeries like that need a steady stream of people that use their services every week. Hard to do that if you aren't local.

[Danny]

NOOOOO!!!!!!!! Now I'm going to get to real polish made paczkis?

[Islandman]

So based on a couple of post on this thread I take it that the Hamtramck bar scene isn't what it use to be? Is it the changing demographics or have the people who use to go Hamtramck bars moved on to some place else?

A lot of the regulars still frequent the area. What I've notices is that a lot of people that used to reside in Hamtown that were regulars have moved to inner-ring suburbs and just don't come down as much. I think it's affecting all of the businesses in the area. The Belmont is now a sports bar. Ugh.

[EastsideAl]

Sad to see this place go. I remember it, and many of the other Polish bakeries, butchers, etc. from the old days. The last few times I was in there though it lookied like it was holding on by a thread, so I'm not all that surprised.

As the remaining Polish population ages out or moves away it is going to become increasingly difficult for the remaining Polish businesses to hang on, and unlike, say, Greek or Italian businesses, they really haven't done much over the years to appeal to outsiders, so they really can't hope to generate much new business from other sources either.

On the other hand, there's an increasing amount of delicious Bengali, Yemeni, and other new food available in Hamtown. I spied a place the other day that I believe to be run by Bosnians, or folks from some other nearby country. I'm planning to stop in very soon [[they have cevapi!!). So, as with all things, Hamtramck has changed. But it sure looks like better, more stable and hopeful, change that what has happened in the city that [[nearly) surrounds it.

[rjk]

http://www.wxyz.com/dpp/news/new-del...sing-its-doors

[trotwood]

This is such sad news to me.I've shopped at New Deluxe over the years and hate to see such a fantastic place closing.They have wonderful breads&pastries and great service too.
I just called[[hoping the news wasn't true)and the young woman on the phone told me the owner isn't well.That and other reasons made them decide to close.
I wish the owners&staff all the best in future and thank them for all the wonderful years of great service.
New Deluxe we'll miss you!!!

[Detroitej72]

Folks, This is what happens when people move out and fail to patronize the roots of their ancestry.

[Detroitnerd]

I know, it's kind of sad to see an old bakery go. But the good news is that Conant Avenue has more businesses opening on it than in decades. With the way things are going, this spot won't be empty very long. Long live Hamtramck's immigrants of all origins!

[rjk]

It's my understanding that they have someone lined up to purchase the building.

[dbc]

Sad to see it go, as that was one of my and my family's favorite bakeries. I was just in there about a month ago to pick up some kolaczki and paczki and brought my four year old daughter with me. I doubt she'll remember, but that makes four generations of my family that stood in that place. [[The same goes for Buddy's, which is where we ate beforehand. Damn, that place is good!)

I spoke with the daughter of the owners, who waited on us, and she said business is just not what it used to be, as the neighborhood has changed. That makes sense as people move out to the suburbs and out of state [[like me) and the Bengali and Bangladeshi people who live nearby are not familiar with primarily Eastern European pastries. [[That is not meant negatively, as I also can't imagine many babcias in babuszkas stocking up on samosas and Jilapi, the latter of which I had to find in wikipedia. Thus, making my point. ). Understandably, she did not mention any health issues.

Two interesting things. First, I believe that New Deluxe is actually in Detroit; the west side of Conant there is Hamtramck and the east side is Detroit. Second, the owners of New Deluxe, as well as Sunnyside - and, I'm pretty sure, New Polka and New Palace in Hamtramck and West Warren in Warrendale - are Macedonian, not Polish. [[Again, not meant as a negative, I just think it's interesting that that one ethnic group bought and carried on most of the Polish bakeries in Detroit/Hamtramck. Especially considering that the typical pastries you see in a Polish bakery look quite different from those you'd find in a Macedonian bakery. http://grabyourfork.blogspot.com/201...-rockdale.html)


Anyway, here's to New Deluxe and their many years of satisfying the area with their delicious pastries and breads. They'll be missed.