We have supported this bakery for over 40 years, and it is time to offer a review…read more This Jay Street icon in Schenectady has the best Italian bread. It comes in round or loaf shapes and in one or two pound sizes. It is available in many local stores including the Niskayuna Co-op. True story: Jack Nicholson was filming in the area and found out about the delicious bread from his driver. He got the bread several times and thought it was great. He had it mailed to him. Photos of Nicholson and a related newspaper article are on display. The bread, rolls, and Tomato pie are baked in a coal fired brick oven from Italy. Besides the bread, there are other outstanding offerings including: Rolls! Breadsticks made at the bakery Bread Crumbs for cutlets and meatballs Tomato Pie -- so popular it often sells out Panini Sandwiches made fresh daily for grab & go. Italian olives and cheeses in the case. Italian cookies Parking in front and in a side lot shared with Cornell's Restaurant.

Perrecca's Bakery + More Perrecca's = Schenectady royalty…read more First things first: full disclosure -- my son is a server here. Yes, I'm biased. But also... facts are facts and the facts are DELICIOUS. It was a full-on snowstorm, the weird dead zone after Christmas where everyone else is like "nah, we're closing early," and Perrecca's was like: "We ride." Just me and the wife, snow coming down sideways, and this place is warm, welcoming, and absolutely cranking out hot food. And I mean HOT hot -- not "restaurant hot," but "careful-that-plate-is-trying-to-burn-your fingerprints-off" hot. Love to see it. Food? Super tasty. No notes. Service? Solid across the board. Bathrooms? Clean enough to eat off of (I didn't, but I could've). Parking? Plenty of off-street, no parallel parking Olympics required. Now let's talk about the hostess -- because WOW. She works the room like she personally built the place brick by brick. Touches every table, warm, friendly, checking in -- you'd swear her name was on the sign out front. Absolute pro. Hospitality Hall of Fame behavior. Between the legendary bakery, the attached restaurant, and the fact that they stayed open when the weather said "stay home," this place is a must-see Schenectady institution. Come hungry. Leave happy. Possibly leave with extra bread you didn't plan on buying but somehow needed. Would go back in a blizzard. Would go back tomorrow. Would go back just for the vibes.

Union Street in Schenectady, NY is honored to be home to this excellent bakery known for its French…read moremacarons. It also has blondies, brownies, and cupcakes with unique flavors like crème brûlée and bourbon. Bri Larsen, a pastry chef with a Culinary Arts degree from Schenectady County Community College is the creative owner. She offers options for custom cakes and macaron towers. The bakery also offers in-store pickup and online ordering. Specialties: --French Macarons: A wide variety of flavors, including gluten-free options. --Blondies & Brownies: Includes unique options like "the local blondie" with Saratoga Potato Chips. --Cupcakes: A selection of flavors like caramel, cotton candy, and confetti. --Cakes: Custom-order cakes in various sizes. I am not a Macaron lover, so I bought a key lime blondie, a lemon bar, a caramel drizzle cupcake, and a gluten free raspberry drizzle cupcake. I found the blondie to be rather flavorless, but the lemon bar made up for it by being exactly what I think of when it comes to a good lemon bar. Slightly tart, a nice crust, and just a touch of sweetness on top. The gluten free cupcake was enjoyed by my friend who said it was exceptional. The other cupcake is a treat for my husband. Overall, the beautiful variety of macaroons are the breadwinner for this bakery. Not many bakeries make or sell them. Service was great--welcoming, helpful, and patient. I will definitely return. Prices are moderate considering the expertise required and the quality of the ingredients used.

I miss when they were right in Rotterdam, but I've never tried anything from here that I didn't…read morelike. Everyone was always really friendly as well.

Best bakery in the NY capital region. During my time in Albany, I've been to a lot of bakeries. I…read morecame to Sweet Elevation 3 times in just 2 weeks. I don't remember when I had a more perfect chocolate cupcake, each time I've come here, the quality and service are perfect! Consistency and good service is what I look for. The attention to detail, hospitality, and kindness from Christian, the young man who works there, is exceptional. As I wrote before, the bakery shares the parking lot with the Yemeni coffee shop Shibam next door. The Yemeni coffee is just perfect with Sweet Elevation's treats, so don't miss this spot if you visit next door. I hope they can work out on doing something together. I've gotten hooked on Sweet Elevation's chocolate cupcakes. I'm having one as I write this review (these really are the freshest and best chocolate cupcakes) with some Yemeni coffee from next door - who knew how perfectly they go together. I'm very picky when it comes to cupcakes, and these are so soft, fresh, moist, fluffy, with perfect frosting with the sprinkles! Each time! It's really cute inside the cafe. What I'm most picky about is service, and I'm impressed with Christian, he's a respectful gentleman, knowledgeable, and really helpful with recommendations. Responsible, helpful, paying attention, intelligent. People my age often complain about the younger generation, they should meet Christian, our world's future is bright with young people like this. Good luck whatever you do Christian, and may you continue to shine as you do now always! Amen!

I ordered custom cookies for a bridal shower and they turn out even better than I couldn't…read moreimagine. Not only were they beautiful but also delicious.

Delicious strawberry cream cake! J and S never disappoints. Every cake of theirs is wonderful!read more

I found this place online trying to find a cake for my boyfriend, I have always been hesitant on…read moreplaces because the few I did go to done a bad job on the cakes and have been rude, but when I got to this place it was clean, the women who bought the cake out was very kind, and at first sight the cake looked amazing, and I was very pleased! Highly recommend this place I didn't exactly know what I wanted and they were so patient on the phone and with giving me many options that I could pick from, it was so nice, they bought what I had in mind to life and I definitely will be coming here for all future cakes !!!

A friend turned us on to italian pastries from this shop. Took my son out to Albany to catch a…read moreflight and had time to kill before heading home and decided some pastries would be a nice little treat after a stressful day of flight cancellations and delays. The pastries did not disappoint as they were as good as the ones we had several months ago that my friend brought back. This is a quaint quintessential Italian bakery with cases filled with goodies. Staff were helpful and kind and provided some great recommendations.

Is there any cake decorated more beautifully than a custom cake from this longtime popular bakery…read morein Schenectady? I do not think so. The cakes are made fresh and not frozen. Today, we had a 10" Carrot Cake for an 18th birthday party. It not only looked picture perfect, it tasted great. The website describes the many flavors of cake available in different sizes in round or sheet cake style. When you call to order, you speak to a knowledgeable staff person to select a flavor, size, frosting, and filling. Then you select the decorations and colors you would like. The signature iconic script handwriting of their decorators is attractive and distinctive. You know it is a Villa Italia cake when you first see it. However, always check a custom order cake before you leave. When we picked up the Carrot Cake, the worker did not open box to show us the cake. They should be trained to show the costumer the cake before checking out! Fortunately, I did open box and saw a pink frosted cake saying HB Jackie. My cake was for an 18 yr old grandson. They fixed it so it looked nice, but it was not quick. Please check out my photos to see a few of the cakes we have ordered and enjoyed!

They have so much to choose from. My favorite is their rice…read more(white) bread in frozen section. Best GF bread ever.

I have had the privilege to experience the bake goods at this bakery a few times now. I do not have…read moreceliac disease, but if I did, this would be my second home. You would never know that these desserts are made without gluten in them! Everything is beautifully prepared and absolutely delicious! I look forward to coming back again and again, and I hope you do too! Please come help support local businesses!

Not being from Albany I searched on line for a Bakery in the area to make our son's Graduation cake…read morefor his dinner celebration after graduation at MVP. We sent in a design that we wanted. When we picked it up it was Beautiful just like we asked for Now for the taste test .. oh my gosh!! It was wonderful melted in your mouth the flavor was great, fresh very happy everyone loved it. Thank you for doing an awesome job for us .. If you live in the area or needing to find a great bakery in the area give them a call. Definitely recommend.... We were not disappointed at all...

I've gotten two cakes for events we've hosted and they were absolutely amazing! They taste great…read moreand the service/ communication was fantastic.

Went to the Blue Ribbon on a Saturday, late morning for brunch. It wasn't too busy and the food…read morecame out SO fast. There wasn't a single thing that we didn't enjoy. The ham wasn't too thick and had a lot of flavor. The hashbrowns were crispy and the eggs were cooked to my satisfaction. The staff were attentive and friendly. We will be back!

What do you do when your wife has a craving for a piece of carrot cake from the Blue Rose…read moreCheesecake & Bakery Shop on a Sunday, and when you look online you see that it closes in fifteen minutes and you are thirty minutes away? You go to plan "B." The Blue Ribbon Restaurant and Bakery is a "sister" to the bakery next door and is open on Sunday for five hours after the bakery shop closes. We might as well have dinner too while we are at the restaurant. Starting with cups of better than average diner coffee ($2.99/bottomless cup) my wife chose a Reuben with coleslaw and pickle wedge ($14.99) and added fries ($3) while I decided to have the Shredded Short Rib Sandwich ($14.49) which included fries, coleslaw, and a pickle wedge. We both agreed the fries were best while they were nice and hot but otherwise typically average once they cooled. Our respective sandwiches, however, were outstanding. The Reuben was the traditional corned beef on grilled rye with sauerkraut and melted Swiss cheese. It was large enough that half came home for the next meal. My Short Rib sandwich was too full of meat in a fresh and soft bun for me to chance picking it up to eat by hand, so I resorted to using a fork and knife. Regardless, it was really tasty. Now we were ready for the main event. My wife got her slice of Carrot Cake ($7.49) while I selected the Italian Rum Cake ($7.25). We both left totally satisfied and smiling, but on overload. This diner is very clean and staff are efficient.