Piedigrotta
Tiramisu
Ricotta Cannoli
Sfogliatelle
Lobster Tail
Diplomatica
Located in Baltimore’s Little Italy and home to Carminantonio Iannaccone who, according to some, invented the Italian classic Tiramisu in his native Ponte di Piave Italy over forty years ago it was with heavy hearts that my sister and I entered Piedigrotta Bakery on October 12th, the last stop on a truly epic trip that had led us from Manhattan to DC and back over the course of nine days and although disastrous delays caused by the Baltimore Marathon beset us on both sides of our visit the experience proved every bit worth the effort. Truly a “mom n’ pop” establishment with the maternal role played by the gracious and smiling Bruna who helped to guide us through a multitude of Italian classics it was with a great deal of difficulty that we eventually trimmed our order from a dozen to five and opting to have each of the items plated as opposed to boxed we took a seat and eagerly awaited what would come; a flurry of butter, flour, milk, eggs, sugar, chocolate, cheese, and cream every bit as good as the rumors and perhaps even better given the lack of pretense and delightful decor. Rustic but beautiful and traditional yet refined our tasting of Iannaccone’s wares obviously began with a slab of the dense, creamy tiramisu alongside an equally hefty yet booze balanced diplomatic and clearly showing his skills with cakes the meal would only improve with the pastry, a trio of filled to order cannoli, shattering lemon tinged sfogliatelle, and puffed lobster tail filled with pastry cream all ranking amongst the best to ever cross my path.
