Bakeries
May 19, 2014

Frank’s Bakery on 30th Ave Closing May 24th

We’ve learned that one of the older businesses on 30th Avenue, Frank’s Bakery, is closing on May 24. Their goodbye sign was spotted over the weekend (click image above to (…)

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by Meg Cotner

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We’ve learned that one of the older businesses on 30th Avenue, Frank’s Bakery, is closing on May 24. Their goodbye sign was spotted over the weekend (click image above to (…)

by Meg Cotner

Share this Scoop

total shares!

franks-bakery-closing-astoria-queens

Photo credit: healthstudent on Reddit

We’ve learned that one of the older businesses on 30th Avenue, Frank’s Bakery, is closing on May 24. Their goodbye sign was spotted over the weekend (click image above to enlarge). It reads:

To all our customers,

After more than 50 years of business, we have decided it is time to retire. We will be closing our doors on May 24th 2014.

We want to thank you for your patronage and we appreciate your good wishes.

Thank you for all,
Frank and Family

I’ve had some delicious things from Frank’s, and I imagine anyone who has been in the neighborhood for some time has, too. The location is on a prime spot—the corner of 30th Ave and 36th Street. Back in 2009, Edible Queens ran a story called Lidia’s Astoria, in which Lidia Bastianich visited Frank’s Bakery and picked up a few things.

This particular morning, shopping bag in hand, she’s inspecting the semolina loaves at Frank’s Bakery on 30th Avenue for a good specimen to take home, while owner Frank Roscigno looks on. She asks Frank which loaf is freshest and he says, “They’re all baked today, fresh, fresh!” She peers at him over the rims of her eyeglasses and inspects a few more loaves before finally settling on one. Next, she turns her attention to the biscotti she always keeps on hand for unexpected guests.

The bakery’s aromas remind Bastianich of her grandmother’s pignoli (pine nut) cookies, a Frank’s specialty. When she was a child, back in Istria, baking was a communal affair with one oven servicing a whole village. While the village oven is a far cry from Frank’s noisy metal contraption, the borough does boast some of the most authentic Italian bakeries in New York, her favorites being Frank’s, St. Honoré Patisserie and D’Aquila Pastry Shop in Whitestone.

Goodbye Frank! We’ll miss you. Enjoy your retirement.

About Meg Cotner

Meg Cotner was trained as a harpsichordist and now works as a freelance writer and editor. She is the author of "Food Lovers' Guide to Queens," and is a skilled and avid home cook, baker, and preserver.

3 Comments

John

This is so sad. I can’t believe they didn’t leave any heirs to run the business. I wish my dad had a bakery/pastry shop for me to inherit! A little of piece of Astoria has died.

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