Help Save Tastykake!
How can we let Philly's landmark snack die on the assembly line?
Help Save Tastykake!
Ronnie Polaneczky, Daily News Columnist
NOOOOOOOOOO!
Our very own snack-food powerhouse, Tastykake, announced today that it might merge with another company or sell itself, thanks to miserable finances.
It's a shock to the system, isn't it? Like the shock you'd get from washing down a pack of Peanut Butter Kandy Kakes with a bottle of Jolt?
The company 's move to the Navy Yard was supposed to bolster Tasty's bottom line by improving production efficiency. But CEO Charlie Pizzi says that commodity costs - you know, flour and eggs and such - are higher. Plus the company's biggest buyer is in Chapter 11 and not purchasing as many krimpets, cakes and pies as it used to.
Please.
Folks I know say sales are off because Tastykakes just aren't as good as they used to be. I haven't recently purchased anything other than Krimpets (do NOT get between me and that butterscotch icing...), so I'm dying to hear your thoughts about Philly's home-grown junk-food company.
What do you think of Tastykakes these days? The ingredients, the taste, the packaging, the overall quality - anything at all having to do with the quintessential Philly experience of inhaling a locally baked combination of sugar and fatty goodness?
From a customer's point of view, what do you think Tastykake can do to save itself?
How can we Save Our Snacks?
If Tasty Baking is sold to a certain manufacturer/distributor in Pennsauken, NJ, that will most certainly be the death knell. Said manufacturer produces an inferior product in deplorably unsanitary conditions. Should this happen I will never again purchase another crumb from Tasty Baking.— Jon Corleone- TastyKake is the victim of an MBA culture that is incapable of recognizing value. People are right. The products have been cheapened and muted down in quest for expansion; I cannot even eat them anymore. What the TK management cannot understand is that people would pay a much higher price for the quality and memory of the great product they once had.
They don't need a merger, they need new leaders.— Dukejantorno - Abraham Lincoln once said "Better to be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt." You might want to think about that before you speak, bub. — frenchbulldog2010
- We LOVE Tastykakes. We travel from Little Rock to Philly quite frequently and getting Tastykakes from WaWa is always on our list of "must haves" while in Philly. We have friends that beg us to bring them back to Arkansas for them because you can't get anything like them here. I think the pies have changed over the past few years, but are still pretty darn good - especially when you consider the alternative. The tin in the box actually makes them better for traveling! I hope they figure this out. We love Tastykakes!— fanfromARK
- Interestingly enough people talking about lack of management have hit the nail on the head...except for one slight issue. There was no lack of management - there is one specific person leading the big TK that is almost done running your once-beloved snack food into the ground. Nothing gets past the Big P - literally. Not his idea - not happening. Doesn't like you - regardless if you can figure out how to dig the company out of a hole - doesn't want to hear it. Anyone who challenges said "king" - off with their heads...at least with their TK heads. Amazing how the upper management of last year looks completely different this year. Amazing that the sales people that hit their targets are no long with the company - instead heading up other such wonderful salty snack company. One might think that this was someone's plan all along, especially when you've got the right connections in government, finance (cough cough...Citizen's Bank pres...cough cough), and a potential buy out from a friend. Never trust anyone who treats their employees and customers like anything less than gold. Not in this economy, not ever.— TheRealTruthTK
- You Tastykake critics need to get a grip. My work added a huge Tastykake display last Fall and people grab krimpets, candykakes and pies at a rapid-fire pace. My favorites are chocolate-filled chocolate cupcakes and the seasonal item lemon cupcakes with butter cream frosting. The other cupcake brands are filled with junk. If you want some delicious and authentic Philly goods, go buy a few cases of Tastykakes. Your belly will thank you.— lilboo
- It's awfully easy to quickly rush to judgment and offer simplified, surface commentary on products, company leadership and pricing. It takes more time and true interest to read up on the challenges the company is facing and think more critically about this difficult chapter in the history of Tastykake. Prices for sugar, butter, eggs and dairy are at all-time highs. We're still in the midst of recovery from one of the worst recessions in U.S. history, which has not only affected Tastykake, but the grocery stores, drug stores, mass merchandisers and convenience stores that sell Tastykake products. To blame a leadership team for these market conditions is wrong. To attempt to boil down today's news to one singular cause is ludicrous. This step, while difficult, is the right one. And it's only a matter of time until that's proven with positive outcomes.— thetruthwillsetufree
- Ronnie, you don't need to save Tastykake. This brand is LEGEND. This too shall pass -- they will emerge stronger and better than ever before.— eatyourspinach
- I have to respect a guy named "eatmyspinach" supporting Tastykake - well said - Philly is a town of comebacks - Maybe Cliff Lee can help :-) - hopefully it all works out - I LOVE MY 2PM PIE BREAKS!!! — JamesFord
- I think Ronnie's claim that she heard Tastykakes weren't as they used to be is suspect and likely to produce the very negative feedback written here on her blog. Tastykakes are the best snack desserts out there. They should go national. I used to live in Chicago and my friends there always wanted me to bring them back. I just took a few boxes there over Christmas to put in people's stockings. They chose tastykakes over homemade cookies.— esfoodie
- Ronnie - get a clue. Tastykake has been around for 100 year. It's not going anywhere!— Vis4Visitor
- Tell that to Pontiac! — psu_ce94
- My father worked for Tastykake as a salesman for 35 years. I was raised on the stuff. The changes have been AWFUL. I have posted photos of their lousy pies on their Facebook page, many of us have pointed out the difference in taste and quality in many of their cakes and pies (especially the pies...BAD). All they reply with is "we will pass your photo/comment on to our quality control..." blah blah blah. It's terrible to see a great product ruined, but the yo-yo's running the company into the ground are getting what they deserve. Tragic.— GeoSports
- Oh man. I so can't believe Ronnie trashed my favorite cupcakes. They get me through my study sessions and are simply awesome with a big glass of milk. I've been eating them since I was a boy in grade school. Philly peeps need to show some Tastykake love too.— tjonez
- This is a sad day. I love Tastykake so much. The Tastyklair pie is the best pie they make! Have one every day!— burrrningman
When my phone rings here at the Daily News, nine times out of ten the caller begins the conversation with, “Yeah, so what happened was…”.
Because this is Philly, the caller doesn’t say, “My name is Bob” – or Mary – “and I wonder if I could have a moment of your time?” Philadelphians are too direct for that. They just say, “Yeah, so what happened was…”, and then tumble into a tale they think oughta be shared with a wider audience. I love getting these calls (even the ones where it becomes clear, after 30 seconds, where the caller sowed the seeds of his own misery), because they give me chance to connect with fellow citizens in a way that no other job allows. Well, okay, no other job for which I’m remotely qualified.
That’s why my blog is titled “So What Happened Was…”. To me, it’s the quintessentially Philly way of saying, “Once upon a time.” When I hear it, I know a good story is coming. And I can’t wait to see how it turns out.
Ronnie Polaneczky has been an award-winning columnist for The Philadelphia Daily News since 1999, offering a front-steps perspective on every aspect of city life, from the sublime to the stupid. In her past life, she was the editor-in-chief of Atlantic City Magazine, associate editor at Philadelphia Magazine and a fulltime freelancer published in Ladies Home Journal, Good Housekeeping, Redbook, Reader's Digest, Men's Health, MarieClaire and others. She lives with her husband, daughter and various pets in the city's Fairmount section, where she dreams of one day singing The National Anthem at an Eagles game. In addition to her column and blog, you can enjoy Ronnie's musings in podcast form here.
Read more from Ronnie Polaneczky at Earth to Philly, the Daily News blog on anything and everything "Green
Reach Ronnie at polaner@phillynews.com.
