Bakery
 

I am surprised there isn't a bakery in the Villages. If I had the money I would love to open an Authentic Italian bakery - I think it would do very well here!!!

Please do!

I also think it would be wonderful to have those small town stores like I had in Secaucus, NJ when I was young. I worked in the deli. My friend's dad owned the flower shop. We had a German bakery, hardware store, jewelry store, barber shop, dry cleaner, drug store, candy store, a place to get your shoes repaired or shined and a butcher. All that faded away with one stop shopping at supermarkets and Walmart where the prices are much lower.

I don't think anyone could compete with the big stores. I hope I am wrong.

If you are new here there is a wonderful baker at the Brownwood Market on Saturdays.

I was here on closing time on their first day not minding my own business and eavesdropping on a conversation she was having with a customer. If it's the same couple the wife was crying [happy tears] because they were not sure how they were going to make ends meet. Her husband baked night and day that week and she said they sold everything out. She was young and feeling so good about their future because [she said] of the generosity of their village customers. It was a feel good moment.

I would love an Italian bakery. I am used to German ones like the WONDERFUL Resch's in German Village in Columbus when I was a kid. I have learned so many wonderful things about Italian cooking since I moved here. I bet Italian baked goods are YUMMO. HOWSOMEVER...when you set up shop, the overhead makes specialty bakeries pretty expensive. Case in point is Yahala.


I guess I will have to just survive on Publix Bakery which isn't too shabby. I think I will have a piece of that Pecan Roll for lunch. WHERE is VPL to look at me askance????

I suspect he is offline, but enjoying a nice piece of Publix key lime pie.

I remember a couple of years ago that there was a TOTV thread about a bakery that was about to open in Wildwood. Some posters knew the owner and what a wonderful baker she was. The bakery opened late and only stayed in operation about 6 months before closing. Obviously, not enough business to keep it open.

Bakeries are very hard to operate since the baker has to get to the store in the middle of the night to bake the goodies for the next day. As we know, bakery goods are not kept for more than a day or two.

Lots of overhead involved, too.

Publix has very good bakery goods. Gracie's pecan roll is an excellent choice. Can I come over for some?

I wish the Villages would have a van/bus for a weekly trip to Mazzarra's in St. Pete-the Italian meats, cheeses and especially the BREAD are unbelievable-this place is a real eye opener for you Villager's who think the Italian restaurants in TV are good.

It would take a location with a lot of daily foot traffic to support a bakery of any kind.

I just went to their site. It does look great. Mazzaro's Italian Market
A day trip to St. Pete's does sound like fun. I drive a smartcar and I'm not too comfortable driving outside the bubble. It's too small.

Let me know if you find public transportation.

Honestly, you can buy Italian specialities from their fresh section that put the best Italian restaurants in The Villages to shame-take it home & nuke it or freeze it-nuke it late-unbelivabally good.

That poor bakery in Wildwood (which was very good) opened just as 466A to 301 was being shut down, thus preventing a left hand turn. The bakery was on the right hand side. Very bad timing.

As for a good Italian bakery - I drove with friends to Inverness to an Italian bakery/deli, and the cookies were very good. The cannoli are filled to order. Didn't taste the Italian bread, as it has to be ordered the day before. Doesn't look like they do too much baking during the summer (understandable) but I will definitely check them out for my Italian cookies and pastries as the weather gets cooler. I'm tired of ordering my cookies from Circo's in Brooklyn. The shipping is more than the baked goods! As for good pastries at Publix...

The supermarket bakeries are not very good and Fresh Market baked goods are a little better. But as one poster mentioned you cannot beat Mazzaro's since it takes you back to great east coast city bakeries/Italian markets.

Yep, the word is Great, stop praising mediocrity ,because its the only show it town-demand excellence--you get get what you are willing to pay for

I think AAA has bus trips to Mazzaros.

sadly there was a very good bakery near the high school in the villages that had some loyal customers
9 me included) but not enough to stay open beyond about 6 months. word had it that the 50 cents above publix pricing for a loaf of bread, turned to many villagers away.

Driving to Mazzara's takes about an hour and 15 minutes. Not a bad drive. I do it every 6-8 weeks and think that it is time well spent. I put a carrier with cold blocks in my trunk and bring home meats, pastries, bread and lots of cheeses that you can't buy here. Take a friend and make a day of it!

MMMMMMMMMMM...Mazzarro's. We have been known to make the trip down just to satisfy our craving for their incredible biscotti! A veritable wonderland of delectable temptations! :icon_hungry:

You don't like Publix pastries? I think they are yummy. Italians don't have the market completely cornered on yummy baking and food. Bet you have NEVER been to Resch's Bakery in Columbus, Ohio or had cold cuts from Thurns..or their German Potato Salad.... or ever tasted Donato's thin crust pizza with pepperoni slightly crispy on the top.

Columbus Bakery, Resch's Bakery, One Hundred Years Making Weddings Cakes, Birthday Cake, Donuts and Every day special. They made our wedding cake half a century ago and still making wedding cakes. And their Marzipan....mmmm.

Mazzara's is available almost here-There is nothing that comes close--Graciegirl-that a ride , it will be well worth it.

What else do you do while in St Pets? I'd like to make a day of it with friends

In the slightly cooler months (not the summer with crowds), we drive to St. Pete Beach for the day. We spend a couple oof hours on the most beautiful beach you can imagine, have a late seafood lunch, and drive back to The Villages.

There is a great beach bar called The Undertow that is directly on the beach and they have free parking.

Add a stop for your favorites at the Italian grocery and you have a great day.

The Hurricane Bar and Grill is a great place to go. You can watch a beautiful sunset on the open upper level.

I read somewhere in that Forbes story on business that we now have a population of 114k+. If that number is true I find it hard to believe The villages cannot sustain a very good bakery or a butcher shop. With people traveling to St Pete for bakery I see no reason why Villagers would not drive from 1 end of the Villages to the other to get great bakery and meats. I grew up in the Cleveland area and we had 2 great bakery chains (Hough Bakery and Kaase's Bakery) They are both gone now and replaced by big box grocery chains like publix (Sorry their bakery is only good if you have nothing to compare it too!) . I would gladly pass up Winn-Dixie or Publix to go into a bakery for a hot loaf of Jewish rye (you know...the smell that knocks you off your feet) or fresh kalachi's that melt in your mouth. Or how about Fat Tuesday, there is no grocery chain that can compare to a local bakery for paczki (pronounced puunch-ki). Don't get me started on butcher shops. I travel 45 minutes to Peter's meat market just for heir homemade polish kielbasa with garlic when I'm at our home in Ohio. To our wonderful developer's that gave us a great place to be....These are the things that Villagers really want!!!

But....they would still be considered "niche" businesses. Wanting them and sustaining them are two different issues. Ah...I am so glad I don't have to explain that to potential accounts anymore. The simple answer lies in WHAT PERCENT of the over 50K HOMES are willing to pay a considerable amount MORE for baked goods on a REGULAR basis.

Have you ever been here?
Polish Delicatessen
1322 W N Blvd Leesburg, FL 34748
(352) 365-1747
Deli
Today 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
I think it's the best around. Tell me what you think?

How about recreating the West Side Market in TV? :icon_hungry:

How do niche business' stay in business in other communities. Sure everyone wants to save a buck but the real question is are you willing to pay for a quality product.

To tell you the truth...I wasn't impressed! I bought their stuffed cabbage. I then bought stuffed cabbage from Toojays and then compared one of each at the same meal. It was Toojays by a long shot! My mother was great at making stuffed cabbage but unfortunately, I never got the recipe before she passed. One thing I do remember is that she used barley instead of rice. Try it sometime.
:a040:

If that did happen....Publix would become no more than a convenience store!! For all the good people of The Villages, please google the West Side Market in Cleveland Ohio. When any chef comes to the area to visit "The Iron Chef" Michael Symon they get a real treat as he takes them to The West Side Market to go shopping. This establishment reminds me of The Villages, you can talk about or try to explain it but, unless you experience it is very difficult to describe the ambiance.
:mademyday:

Best place ever and their butcher section can't be beat! We go several times a year and load the car with coolers for the trip back. Love that place. Nothing around here comes remotely close!

It's ok. Polish sausage is decent but the pierogis come from Chicago and the same ones at Mazzaro's n St. Pete are almost $2 cheaper. Yes the Italian place has pierogis in their freezer section LOL

I mentioned The West Side Market and the ambiance. There is a vendor in he market by the name of the "Pierogi Palace". They offer over 150 different varieties of homemade pierogi (I prefer sauerkraut) along with stuffed cabbage and different varieties of cabbage and noodles. Geez! I started out talking about a good bakery and have somehow evolved to homemade pierogi!

You're so correct, they even sell aged beef-unbelievable

///

My 2 cents!! I too would love to have good bakery in TV. Preferably Italian or French, but I would easily frequent Polish or German, or any other ethnic good bakery, but there are none. In my humble opinion, Publix is ok, winn-dixie banana walnut is better than Publix's everything else is back and fourth, Fresh market is better than both and better than Too Jay on most things but not on danish and that type of pastry.

None of them are great. The old fashioned bakery may be dead at least in this area.

A great Italian bakery would be great but the majority of people in TV has shown a tendency, not to pay higher prices, associated with quality food. I would use it infrequently, as the calorie count is too high for me, and my diabetes.

I have seen many times people paying $80 to $100 to buy pastries, for their large family. Maybe, it's only a NY thang!!!!

I would love to have one but I think it would not be able to sustain, an ongoing profit. IMHO

The truth is that I have never lived near a Polish deli so I have nothing to compare it to. What I have bought there tasted great.

Pecan roll? Key lime pie? I am going to have to shop Publix more often! :coolsmiley:

We just came home from visiting our old stomping grounds in Northern Illinois and Eastern Iowa. We went to Le Claire, Iowa for lunch. The town has been improving over the years and now it's a quaint, fun little place to visit with lots of small shops and restaurants, a distillery and a brewery.

I was thinking while we were there that Wildwood is trying to become such a "destination" town. But they don't have a "hook". Le Clair is on the Mississippi River, Tarpon Springs has it's Greek influence, Mount Dora has it's lake and antique shops and Eustis has it's brick streets and lakefront park.

I just noticed the Mason City, IA on your post. We're from Lake Mills, IA