Italian bakeries have been part of Philadelphia's culinary scene since the turn of the century. Most are found in and around the famous South Street Italian Market and are third or fourth-generation family-run businesses.
Here, we’ve rounded up three of the most iconic and retro South Philly Italian bakeries to get your festive treats.
From chocolate rum balls to Italian rum cakes, cannoli to ricotta cookies, you’ll find something for everyone at your holiday table in this historically Italian American neighborhood. Each of the bakeries listed are unique and special, with something different to offer their guests—especially during the holidays.
Varallo Bros. Bakery
At 44 years old, Varallo Bros. Bakery is the youngest on our list. One step into Varallo Bros. Bakery and you will instantly feel the warmth and charm of an old-school pasticceria: a wall nearly covered with a collage of black and white family photographs through the years, different statues and mementos of Padre Pio and other saints, Italian music playing in the background, and the warm glow from a signature pink neon light.
One of the great things about Varallo Bros. (aside from chocolate rum balls) is the indoor and outdoor bistro tables that allow you to sit and stay a while. With a state-of-the-art espresso maker, you can sip a warm drink along with your cookies or pastries and appreciate the ambiance and family atmosphere overseen by the establishment's matriarch, Rosa Varallo.
On a recent trip, Rosa insisted on making us cappuccino, and if Rosa asks you if you want a cappuccino, the only acceptable response is if you prefer chocolate or cinnamon on top (cinnamon for us). Since they are open until 9 p.m., it’s the perfect spot for dessert or a date. Or get there early to start your day with an espresso, a sfogliatelle, and a copy of the Italian American Herald. Come for the cannoli, stay for the company.
Isgro Pastries
Mario Isgro started his baking journey in Sicily, perfected it by going to culinary school in Vienna, and first opened the Isgro Pastries doors in 1904 on Christian Street in South Philadelphia. The shop is now in its fourth generation of a family-run bakery. Chances are, there might be a line spilling onto the sidewalk when you visit. But it moves quickly, in delicatessen-style, as you’re asked to take a number. The wait is worth every moment, plus it gives you much-needed time to narrow down to what you want to order (because it will be a tough decision) when your turn is up.
The Isgro crew keeps to the traditional methods of baking, and over 120 years later, they still use a copper kettle to boil sugar and honey for their signature Torrone, use hand-carved molds from the early 1900s to make Easter candy, add a splash of homemade wine to their cannoli shell dough, and prepare the cannoli on an authentic Carrara marble table from over 100 years ago.
Stop by to try their award-winning ricotta cookies!
Termini Bros. Bakery
If you are from Philadelphia, or just visiting, chances are you will have experienced the famous blue and white box of Termini Bros. Bakery. Getting its start in 1921, Termini Bros. Bakery now has five locations around the city.
In what has become a South Philly tradition, each year on Christmas Eve, lines gather outside their flagship 8th Street location as early as one o’clock in the morning for customers to get dozens of cannoli, chocolate chip pound cake, Italian cookies, and more. The same people gather outside under heaters, with coffee in hand, year after year, decade after decade, to catch up with friends while waiting for the bakery doors to open. What from the outside might look like people tailgating for an Eagles game, Philly fans bring that same heart and passion to show up for what is known as the Super Bowl of the year for Termini Bros. Bakery.
