A long-standing Detroit-area bakery known for its hot dog buns has expanded, boosting its production capacity and hiring 25 more workers.
Hamtramck’s Metropolitan Baking Company says its recently completed expansion project added 37,000 square feet of state of the art facilities to its original location, growing its capacity by nearly 40%.
The 80-year-old business is known for providing steamed hot dog buns to local coney island restaurants. It now provides buns, rolls, and other bread products to restaurants and schools across the U.S. Its hot dog buns are even served in New York City’s Yankee Stadium.
The family-run company was founded in 1945 and originally operated out of two Hamtramck homes.
“My father, Jim, had the vision to more fully automate the plant and is now beaming with pride,” MBC president George Kordas, who is the grandson of the company’s founder, said in a statement. “I wish my grandfather could see this moment — the shiny new state of the art facilities and our reach across the country would certainly impress him, but what would matter most is knowing that Metropolitan still carries forward his passion for quality baking and his respect for the people who make it possible — our employees and our loyal customers.”
Kordas said the expansion includes a new break room and lockers for its staff, most of which come from the community and live within five miles of the bakery. The expansion also features new shipping docks that will lessen the impact of trucks on neighborhood streets, he added.
“We have an incredible, dedicated team, which is why we were confident in this latest expansion,” he said.
According to Kordas, the bakery produces 240 dozen buns per minute and roughly 140 loaves of bread per minute, working nearly round the clock six days a week and using roughly 800,000 lbs of flour.
Its products are primarily sold under the Kordas brand name. In addition to hot dog buns, its products include Pullman breads, brioche buns, Kaiser rolls, and more.
Kordas said the company is debt-free and has “a conservative attitude,” declining grants and other opportunities on principle — including a potential incentive from the Michigan Agriculture Commission.
“Our view is that a financially stable city can do more for its people and infrastructure, better schools and improved public safety,” Kordas said. “Hamtramck has been good to us — it’s a wonderful community — and the last thing we want to do is slow down progress. Instead, we want to grow opportunities and take our Detroit pride to customers across the country.”