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"Price wise, you don't have to take that trip to the Bronx, you can get it local," said co-owner, Rocco Scaglione.
Villa D'Oro's full service bakery has specialties such as the "famous" chocolate babka and hard-to-find Italian treats, like sfagliatelle. However, one of two in-house bakers, Kari Capetola, said Christmas butter cookies are the most popular treat of the season.
"That's what has stood the test of time," said Capetola, who measures butter cookie dough in thousands of pounds during the holidays.
The bakery is conjoined to a deli where customers can purchase prepared meals, imported olive oil, nuts in bulk and sandwiches. Specialty sandwiches have personality- they're named after gangsters, movies and family members. See the Bugsy, Dr. Hannibal and Soprano (co-owner Anna Scaglione's grandmother's maiden name). The storefront also has some convenience store items, such as lottery tickets and a small grocery.
The Scaglione's and two other partners purchased the business in May. Since the spring, they said they've built a loyal following of customers.
"It's not gray anymore, they say it's lit up," said Anna Scaglione about customer comments.
Nicole Selvaggi, teacher at Peggy Izzo's The Dance Workshop, said the storefront has changed, "for the better in all areas. The kids come down here for dinner. We find ourselves coming down here for dinner. It's such a family-oriented business."
Villa D'Oro is open Monday through Friday, from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday, from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Villa D'Oro will also be open Christmas Day from 8 a.m. to noon, but owners ask that Christmas orders be call in ahead of time. There is a $15 minimum order for deliveries. Call 914-862-0684 for more information.
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