Georgians get a taste of Tastykake

George Elmore, food safety and quality assurance director at Flowers Foods bakery in Thomasville, Ga., checks out a Butterscotch Krimpet.
George Elmore, food safety and quality assurance director at Flowers Foods bakery in Thomasville, Ga., checks out a Butterscotch Krimpet.
By Harold Brubaker, Inquirer Staff Writer
Posted: April 17, 2011

THOMASVILLE, Ga. - It was the moment of truth Thursday morning. Managers at the Flowers Foods bakery in Thomasville were about to have their first Tastykakes.

Tastykakes, beloved in Philadelphia, were mostly unknown in Thomasville before Flowers announced last week that it planned to buy Tasty Baking Co.

Given a choice of Butterscotch Krimpets or Peanut Butter Kandy Kakes, the managers - Mickey Miller, Roger Lane, and George Elmore - opted for the Krimpets. They were clearly curious about the snack cakes that are going to be part of their future.

"It's actually got a rich taste to it. It's good, really good," said Elmore, food safety and quality assurance director, after his first bite.

All three described the Krimpet as "not too sweet" and soft, which they liked.

"It's really to me more like homemade," said Miller, president of Flowers Baking Co. of Thomasville L.L.C.

Flowers Foods Inc. has received a crash course in Tastykake fanaticism since the announcement of the deal.

Through Thursday, Flowers had heard from 39 Tastykake fans, urging Flowers to take care of the brand, thanking them for buying Tasty Baking to keep the brand alive, or to ask if they might soon be available in some part of the country where Tasty Baking does not distribute.

In Thomasville, snack-cake sales are dominated by Little Debbie, Hostess, and Blue Bird, a Flowers brand.

Melody K. Porter's eyes lit up when she heard that a sampling of Tastykakes was in town. She had eaten them as a child, when her father brought Tastykakes home to Texas whenever management-consulting assignments took him to Philadelphia.

"You've made my day," she said after eating a Peanut Butter Kandy Kake.

Contact staff writer Harold Brubaker at 215-854-4651 or hbrubaker@phillynews.com.

 

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