Caruso's is the place to go for authentic Italian pastries. Their selection is huge. Picked up some cucidati - a fig filled Italian pastry and some almond paste cookies. Service is super nice and very helpful - even when you can't pronounce what you're looking for! Good prices, great selection and helpful friendly service. What's not to like! read more

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Very good Neapolitans. They said they do different cookies each day, so the variety of Italian cookies may change day to day. If you order ahead, they will make a specific type you'd like to get. read more

Wow! Stopped by to pick up a cake this morning and also grabbed some pastries. Lobster claw and pusties!! Amazing food. Nice service. Highly recommend read more

When in Utica - you must stop at bakeries. So I did. First stop in Utica was Caruso's. It's a local store and parking is on the street. Supplies during a pandemic I have found are very limited. I was able to secure a vanilla, a chocolate and a lemon Pustie. (It's actually a short name for Pastaciotti.) Items are labeled as the official name, but you ask for Pustie. I was also hoping to buy a rum cake slice. Unfortunately, none were to be found. Also purchased a sweet pastry filled with vanilla cream, and another with ricotta cheese filling (with a cherry on top). Both were delicious but I wish I had gotten the name of them! It is well worth the time to stop and buy a tasty treat or two for the trip home. read more

I read the reviews and was expecting great cookies. Overall the cookies and pastries were ok, I've had better.

Excellent pastries cakes cookies you can't beat this place if you need a cake they always have extra which is definitely a plus everything here is excellent yummy and the owners and staff the best thanks for this great place always clean and friendly !!! read more

Old time Italian bakery. It's got a great competitor just a block away, and other great bakeries in town, so they all I think benefit from the competition, I know I do. Get a small cannoli and a coffee...heaven. If you have never had, get a pustie, but you won't be hungry at lunch. read more

Amazing cakes and pastries, clean attractive showcase and environment, has a stellar twist to atmosphere. Best Chocolate Godiva cake I ever had. Truly Italian cookies and pastries at their finest. read more

OMG..... old school Italian bakery!!!!!!..... Amazing, delicious and friendly ..... we ordered a Cannoli frosted and filled cake for a birthday and it was nothing short of amazing..., you won't be disappointed read more

Dont waste your money!! I visited this place for the first time yesterday. The day was my birthday and I was on the hunt for good cake and/or pastries for myself. I have seen ads online since before Christmas for this place, so naturally I thought they must be the place to go. After circling the block 4 times before I was able to find a place to park, I went in with high expectations. Their cases were full of lots of cookies and pastries. It all "looked" great. I chose a few almond paste cookies, a coconutcream tart, a piece of chocolate cake, strawberry cream cake, a Lobster Tail, an eclair, a lemon pustie and a vanilla pustie. I spent almost $27 and the only thing that was halfway decent was the eclair. Both pieces of cake were old, hard on the edges and tasted like they'd been sitting in the fridge for a long time. The cookies were as hard as a rock. The lobster tail was tough, crunchy and soggy in the middle. (Kinda like trying to eat an actual lobster tail shell) They are supposed to be light, flaky and crisp. The filling of the vanilla pustie was very thick and had a brown tint. The lemon one was just ok. The cream in the coconut cream tart did not taste like coconut and tasty was really really hard. I am so disappointed in Sorenson money and wasting a trip 40 minutes away from home just to get terrible food. I think they need to cut back on making so much that it has to sit around too long before it gets sold. read more

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The pastries, the coffee, the people, the history... Nothing beats Caffe Caruso. It is a Utica landmark! We go every Sunday and have become friends with the regulars and have become "adopted" Italians. There is a table or two of old Italian guys who shoot the breeze and argue- I swear they sound like the male version of The View! The owners kids and grandkids are the servers. We usually have cappuccino, not brave enough to order espresso. I get the ricotta cheesecake and my husband gets a sfogliatelle or chocolate pasticcioti (nicknamed "pusties"). Sunday is not Sunday without a stop at Caffe Caruso before the Mass! BTW, they also make great cakes. They made our wedding cake! read more

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I honestly don't know what all the hype is about this place. This is the second time I've been here, and underwhelmed every time. How people rave about this place is beyond me. Maybe if this place was in Ohio it could be the best there. But in New York? No way. Stopped in last week, around 9am, so things should have been fresh. The canolis were soggy and flavorless. I've made better canoli cream at home. The puffs were decent, but the pastry part was hard, almost stale. The cheesecake tarts were dry, the sfogliatella were heavy and dense with chewy outer layers. Absolutely disappointed. $50 and an hour drive and I could have gotten the same from the bakery section in Walmart. Save your money. read more

My wife and I were visiting relatives in Utica. I asked for a recommendation as to where to get good cannoli. Caruso's was recommended and I am very happy it was. The cannoli we got was the best I have had. They were perfect! Well worth the trip! read more

I haven't been here in about three years, and I cannot tell you how disappointed I am. I don't know if there's a new ownership or a new baker, but I wasted a bunch of money. I should have known by just looking at the deflated pastries. they were absolutely inedible and went into the garbage. read more

This pastry shop takes great pride in their products and prices are reasonable. The lobster tails are great. Get the almond cookies. Purchase by the pound. The rum cake is also excellent. Many years in service. It's like a flash mob inside. One second you are first in line, then next, there are twelve people behind you. The neighboring shop, Florientine's is just down the street about 300 feet away. Go to both places. read more

Very disappointed. I stopped in last Sunday. The selection was lacking, but I bought some pusties and other pastries. The pusties were mushy and then when I opened the box at home, I found the lady had put a pusty on top of a chocolate eclair. What a mess. I,m staying with the Florentine bakery were I usually go. read more

A local Italian bakery. The pusties are the best! But you really can't go wrong with anything they make read more

Caruso's Pastry Shoppe - Delicious Italian pastries! The pusties are the best! - Bakeries Near Me - Utica, New York

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If I could give 10 stars I would!! Always a special treat, but even more on the holidays! Thank you Carmi, thank you Mike, thank you Franny! For the Struffoli they where delivered to me in Florida perfectly delicious! read more

Caruso's Pastry Shoppe - Struffoli special delivery - Bakeries Near Me - Utica, New York

Caruso's. Best cannoli ever. If ONLY there could be a Caruso's in California. I may actually ask mom and dad to ship me a care package from Caruso's one of these days, I miss this place so much. You can tell where all the real Italian-Americans live by how loyal everyone is to the food! read more

I can not tell you how wonderful this pastry shop is! We loved it! Wonderful owner who had the time to talk to me about the history of this beautiful gem in Utica NY. The cannolis were out of this world and the espresso perfect! Will be back again when we're in town. Love it:) read more

Homely cafe but the desserts were delicious...we had cannoli's and eclairs...I liked that the cafe displayed works of arts for sale by the locals... read more

Caruso's Pastry Shoppe - Cannoli's - Bakeries Near Me - Utica, New York

If you are looking for the best Sfogliatella this is your bakery. I find it to be more charming than their competitors although the pastry selection is similar, I always have a better experience here. read more

What a great authentic Italian pastry shop! I know it's been a staple of Utica forever. But it was only my second time there. So impressed with the delicious pastries, great cappuccino and very friendly owner! Loved it! read more

Caruso's Pastry Shoppe - Bakeries Near Me - Utica, New York

The pustys are better than florentine. Oops did I say that out loud... read more

Beautiful pastry and cookies...and marzipan. Beautiful, authentic Italian delectables! Try the pasticciotte. The friendliest proprietors with 60 years of serving folks. Great history. read more

We were visiting in the area and my wife asked "where can we get the best cannoli?" More than one person told us Caruso's Pastry Shop. We drove to Bleeker St and stopped in. It's a quaint little place with 5 or 6 tables. There were several locals sitting there talking about there week. Michael Paniccia (the owner) greeted us and made sure we got a couple of cannolis. I've never had one before and this thing was delicious. In fact...we ordered a couple more! They offer cappuccino and many other pastries as well. We're heading out today, and you can better believe we're stopping there on the way out! read more

Caruso's Pastry Shoppe - Bakeries Near Me - Utica, New York

Best authentic Italian bakery in the area. It has been around for a very long time and any local will vouch for it! Always a warm welcome and friendly service. It is a very sweet, quaint, and charming cafe inside with family pictures and history on the walls. Their cakes, pastries, and espresso are delicious. I've seen them make beautiful platters for parties and great gifts boxed up. If you have the time, I would recommend stopping in for a few minutes with friends/ family to sit and enjoy. The cannoli cake is the absolute best! A friend had it as her wedding cake and it did not disappoint! read more

Second to none for pastry's and Florientines for Tomato pie, both are my favorite. And a must stop when in Utica or on the way to Albany. Very reasonable price's in both place's. Service Fast and Excellent. read more

I've been a costumer of Caruso's for 12+ yrs and it's hands down the best bakery and shop..the service is always excellent and greeted with a smile after smile.. and the best Rum cake around.. can't ask for anything more!! read more

This place is amazing! I didn't get the pleasure of being able to sit down and enjoy a coffee here with the amazing pastries I purchased, but rest assure next time I will. Everything I bought tasted fresh and authentic. Just a wonderful pastry shoppe! read more

If you speak Italian, love Italian pastry, or want to experience an authentic Italian neighborhood bakery ambiance, this is the place to go. Don't ask for any foo-foo drinks; they just have expresso and cappuccino and no skim milk. And a wide variety of superb Italian pastries. There ate pictures of "the old man", the kids, the grandkids on the wslls. While you are there some of the neighnors will stop in and get a cske or pastries. They will know all the regulars holding forth at the front table. Neighnorhood life as it should be. read more

*3.5/5 First I should say that I'm very dessert picky. The dessert were very pretty and I really appreciated that they weren't overly sweet as so many desserts are these days. However, they were not good enough to make me want to frequent the venue often. If I was in the area I would be willing to give it another try, but I wouldn't go out of my way. read more

I've been ordering pastries from this place for years. This years Christmas party pastries just didn't cut it. Shells seemed old with no crispness to any. Flavors lacking and bland. Sorry it just was not a hit this year. read more

Wonderful family run cafe and bakery. Delicious espresso, amazing pastry called sfogiatelli. Very friendly place with photos of the family going back 60 years or so. Just about a mile walk from Hotel Utica. Highly recommend a visit. read more

Caruso's Pastry Shoppe - Sfogiatelli and cappuccino. - Bakeries Near Me - Utica, New York

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Best cannolis in town! Amazing cakes, and fantastic Italian pastries. I LOVE this place!