Florentine Pastry Shop — Restaurant in City of Utica

My grandmother and her sister, my great aunt, shopped here their whole lives, as did their parents when they moved here from Italy. At least once per summer they would make the trip to Utica to buy platters of Italian cookies, pasticciotti, and more from this shop. It reminded them of their childhood, they would always say.

Now I say the same thing. I will always feel nostalgic remembering the summer evenings of my childhood sharing cannolis with my grandmother and great aunt. Not just because the pastries are good (they are), also but because Florentine gave me memories: a sweet treat before catching fireflies, or a few cookies to relax after picking a garden full of rhubarb. Perhaps that's one reason why the shop has been able to stick around for such a long time. It doesn't happen like that anymore.

And stick around it has - Florentine opened the year after my grandmother was born, the year before my great aunt. It remained a staple for their entire lives, until they passed away last year, only months apart. Goods from the shop held such a formative role that every time I see a cannoli, I can't help but well up with tears remembering how well they treated me. And when I recall the happiest memories of my life, I remember their smiles as they cracked open a box of pastries.

I live several states away now, but I always remember where I come from. I'm returning to New York next month for my wedding, where I'll have a tray of Italian cookies from Florentine next to a photo of the women who so dearly enjoyed them. I hope that they inspire in others even a fraction of the joy they have...

Never will I ever order from here again. I called bc a week ago i called and put in an order for a naked cake, vanilla cake with cannoli and peach filling. I just opened the box and it’s frosted. I called to ask what went wrong when I ordered that the girl got it wrong. Regina then told me that the new Hartford and Utica bakery got my order down as buttercream frosting, no nuts on the side, vanilla with cannoli and peach filling. Never did I say buttercream and definitely didn’t say no nuts. So where did she find that order? Then she told me she doesn’t even think they did naked cakes. Odd bc I just went to a shower where they got a naked cake from them and that was why I put in an order for one. Then she said to me that what I wanted was a specialty cake so I should email them the order next time. Smh. I never asked for a refund or even another cake. I just didn’t understand how they got my order completely wrong. But after talking to them I’m even more annoyed that they pretty much tried saying I ordered wrong lol!! I’m pretty sure I know what I wanted and said....

Ahh... good ole`Florentines Pastry Shop!! A great holiday or special occasion memory always pops into my frame of mind when I hear this yummy bakeries name. My family and I have been utilizing this establishment for years whether it be a whole rum cake with whipped frosting for a birthday celebration or a canoli cake for the younger generation of our family tree w/ their special day, & last but not least I gotta mention the delicious holiday Italian cookie trays which are a staple item among most CNY homes during the holidays.....