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Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
I live in the Philly suburbs and I don't see any shortage of bakeries at all. Around the corner from me is an Italian bakery in Collegeville, and there are at least two more that I know of in Norristown and one in Conshohocken. Thats just one strip of Montgomery county. I do have the advantage of being Ital-American and have grown up with knowing where they all are!
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Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
Jeez, Ed, I wouldn't know, but I would guess that there should be. I was just noting that within a short drive of my home, there are four Italian bakeries that I've been to. I didn't even consider the newer ones on the main line, and I am totally ignorant of the ones in philly. Like I said, I think there is no shortage of bakeries in these parts.
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
I live in the Philly suburbs and I don't see any shortage of bakeries at all. Around the corner from me is an Italian bakery in Collegeville, and there are at least two more that I know of in Norristown and one in Conshohocken. Thats just one strip of Montgomery county. I do have the advantage of being Ital-American and have grown up with knowing where they all are!
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
ed, i was actually googling Wall's bakery in hewlett, ny and came across your article. i grew up on long island and moved to south florida 17 years ago. needless to say, i have been missing a Wall's bakery pie ever since.
Wall's bakery made fruit pies that, as far as i'm concerned, have never been duplicated anywhere else! the crust was a heavier, cookie dough type and the top was always sprinkled with coarse sugar and toasted walnuts....mmmmmm! i have tried to replicate those pies without much success and can not find a recipe that even comes close.
when i was growing up, a pie from Wall's bakery was a treat that beat all others! how sad to hear that all the bakeries i grew up with are going by the wayside...my dad used to go to get the newspaper from the local candy store and he would always stop at the bakery and bring home fresh, warm french crullers on sunday mornings...memories i will never lose...
if anyone out there has ever had a pie from Wall's bakery and knows where i might be able to find one again, i will be forever grateful!!!!
that cookie dough crust and the crunchy walnuts covering the fabulous apple, peach, or cherry filling will be something i will never forget!
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
ed,
if you go to Trois Pommes, try the pumpkin cheesecake. i added some pictures of it to the SE flickr pool if you're curious.
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
Ed--As to Wall's Bakery, I haven't lived out on the island since 1980 and all of my friends and family have moved away from there too, so I don't know if Wall's is still open or what they are making now. But as to my favorites, in memory anyway...My birthday cakes (always the "Victory" cake of devil's food iced and filled with stabilized whipped cream, with devil's food crumbs pressed against the outside) came from Wall's every August, as did the seedless rye which we all loved, the fancy dinner rolls that Mom felt had to be passed at a dinner party, the crusty rye and pumpernickle rolls which my father demanded...not to mention fancy cookies for when my elderly aunts came over, babka for a "nosh" after the bridge game, brownies and black-and-whites for afterschool treats...the only things my family did not buy at Wall's were my brother's birthday cakes (he always demanded a Carvel ice cream cake) and our bagels (Dad picked them up at the bagel joint in Penn Station on the way home.) The only real rival for Walls' primacy was Peter Pan in Forest Hills.
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
Hey Mich23 - small world! The name is sugar + sunshine bakery and it will be located in the Plainsboro Village Center - the new retail/residential development near the Municipal Offices. I'm really excited to get open, but it's been going quite slooooooowly. I was hoping to be open for the holidays, but now I'm just hoping for a Valentine's Day launch.
If you want to email me at sugarandsunshinebakery@gmail.com, I'll let you know when we finally set a date for the opening.
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
Hi punkin712- I have a house in North Brunswick, so I am always going to Princeton. What is going to be the name and address of your bakery? When will you open? I will be there!!
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
klg19: If I may ask..around when were you going to Michelle's? It became progressively worse over the years. I have yet to try Silver Moon but it certainly sounds like it might be a destination spot. Too bad it wasn't around when I worked at Columbia.
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
Hi Mich23! I'm opening up in Plainsboro - just a short hop from Princeton. Are you nearby?
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
Billy's isn't bad - the cupcake prices are lower than most of the other high profile NYC cupcakeries - but the prices for cake and pie slices are ridiculous. They taste fine, but nothing I couldn't do (or better) at home. Also, since Billy/Lauren sold her share of the business, it isn't really "Billy's" anymore.
IMO, the worst NYC cupcake award has to go to Crumbs. The enormous size doesn't make up for the horrible taste. There is just more of it to hate. I think the highest price for a standard size cupcake must be BabyCakes at $3.50 a pop. In what warped universe do people spend $40+ on a dozen cupcakes?!
I think many of these places get so wrapped up in the PR and marketing they forget it's the product that makes people come back a 2nd, 3rd or 743rd time.
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
punkin712- Where are you opening a bakery in Central NJ? You are so right about it being a wasteland where there are very few good food places in general.
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
I totally agree with your sentiment. Bakeries are returning because of the experience, and the fact that most supermarket fare is bad to mediocre. I was thinking of opening a bakery, in Tribeca. I went to school, interned at Soutine, and then decided it was more work than I was willing to put in. I have been to Trois Pommes Patisserie in Bklyn. I was not impressed. The cookies were dry or stale. The cupcakes were not to my taste. Nothing there was even very good. To be fair, I went there the first week she opened with a friend who had worked with Emily. Maybe things have gotten better. I'm still contemplating doing a small business, as I bake and constantly have people try to order from me. We'll see. If I had to pick my favorite NY place, it would be Sugar Sweet Sunshine.
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
Ed -
Bea's is in Tarzana - a city in the west valley of LA. (And yes, named after Tarzan etc.) They supply the corn rye to langers for their pastrami sandwiches and their coconut bars (aka lamingtons) are supposed to be divine as well. (And Thesu, thanks for the headsup up on bea's babka!)
I confess to being lazy (it's a 40 minute drive even without traffic for me.) But, I take comfort in the fact that the brooklyn bagel bakery is only 15 minutes from me - traffic or not.
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
here in greensboro, NC, we have a little bakery buried down in the back of an alley, called "Simple Kneads." they make mostly bread, but i've had their fabulous cookies and my husband really enjoys their pastries. north elm street, next to the chakras spa - check it out.
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
I agree with you about Billy's. Buttercup has become too corporate for its own good. It's now officially a business concept instead of a bakery. Where is Bea's Bakery?
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
I'm all for bakeries, but I think that a lot of the New York ones aren't good. Billy's, Cupcake Cafe and Buttercup are blech. The average home cook can make better cupcakes. Then there's the price: $3 for a childhood treat? I don't mind paying that much if it's a multilayered work of art, but it's a cupcake...
Ohiogal, I love Bea's Bakery. Mmm, chocolate babka! They are really nice there, too.
Are Bakeries Making a Comeback?
benmoscia, aren't there also lots of good German-American bakeries on Frankfurt avenue in philly?
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Jeez, Ed, I wouldn't know, but I would guess that there should be. I was just noting that within a short drive of my home, there are four Italian bakeries that I've been to. I didn't even consider the newer ones on the main line, and I am totally ignorant of the ones in philly. Like I said, I think there is no shortage of bakeries in these parts.