Patti's Pasticceria bakery in White Oak moves to larger location
Patti Fiasco worked at the former Feig’s Bakery in White Oak while she attended college at nearby Penn State McKeesport, now Penn State Greater Allegheny.
She manned the counter at the shop known for its specialty egg buns and bread and learned to bake and decorate cakes.
Four decades later, she is in that same building surrounded by baked goods — it’s the new home to the bakery she owns with her son, Andrew Macey.
Patti’s Pasticceria relocated to the Feig’s building from across the street. A pasticceria is an Italian shop selling pastries and cakes.
“This was meant to be,” said Fiasco, of White Oak. “I loved working at Feig’s because I have always loved baking.”
The new location is double in size from the original. The business has been growing steadily since it opened in 2012. Everything is made from scratch, and they use real butter and the freshest ingredients. On average, the bakery goes through 12 cases of eggs — there are 15 dozen per case — 10 to 12 cases of butter and eight 50-pound bags of flour a week.
A big part of the business is wedding and special occasion cakes.
“We could have moved to another neighborhood, but this is home to us,” Fiasco said. “We love being part of the White Oak community. We have amazing customers.”
One of those customers, Josh Alfer of McKeesport, a friend of Macey’s, recalled sampling cookies Fiasco made at her house.
Fiasco began the business in her home as a way to make money while she was raising three children, Andrew, Brittany and Jenna. Transforming her basement into a bakery, her sweet treats became popular.
“A great family equals a great business,” Alfer said. “Everything is really good here.”
It was Macey’s idea to open a bakery. A college student at the time, he noticed the lack of good coffee shops where students could study, so they created a full-service bakery and coffee shop with trained baristas.
The motto is “La Familia Sempre,” an Italian phrase that means “family always.”
The family connection is embodied through a wall of photos of relatives, some more than 100 years old.
“We don’t want to be a factory,” said Macey, of North Huntingdon. “We want customers to say the baked goods taste like something their mother or grandmother made. One customer said the bakery reminded her of a wedding cookie table.”
Cookies are popular. The top selling are thumbprints and chocolate chip. Carrot cake is the No. 1 cake flavor with triple chocolate, banana pudding and cannoli cake not far behind. They also serve breakfast and pepperoni rolls daily and make Italian bread on Mondays and offer homemade soup on weekdays.
The cannoli recipe is from Fiasco’s father, Anthony Fiasco. He learned how to make it from Mustacchio’s, a McKeesport bar whose owners are cousins of the Fiascos and came over from Sicily with Patti Fiasco’s mother’s family.
Her late mother, Patsy Jordan Fiasco, made a cream icing. Her nickname was Queenie so they call it “Queenie icing.”
Patti Fiasco’s great-grandmother Mildred Yester worked at Mustacchio’s and helped with the cannoli recipe. The biscotti, pizzelle and Italian wedding cookie recipes are from Patti Fiasco’s grandmother Angeline Fiasco, who taught the family about the passion for food.
The lemon and orange ricotta cookies came from Patti Fiasco’s time working on “At Home with Arlene Williams,” a culinary show on Cornerstone Television Network.
“People are gone, but they are still with me in these recipes,” Fiasco said. “I also have family, not by blood but by heart, whose recipes I still use.”
She asked her son if he will do something to honor her when she’s gone.
“I definitely will,” he said. “Everything we do at the bakery will honor you and your recipes.”
Patti’s Pasticceria is located at 1501 Lincoln Way, White Oak.
Bakery hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday .
Details: pattispasticceria.com
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region's diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of "A Daughter's Promise." She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com.
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