Catania Bakery

This place is great. I try to make it a point to stop for breakfast here after night shifts on days they’re open. The people are really nice and all the products I’ve tried taste fabulous. And what else could you ask for?

I am absolutely obsessed with Catania Bakery and I absolutely love the lovely woman who owns it. There, I said it. And while anyone living in DC still has a chance, you need to stop by, grab some delicious bread, cannolis, and bags of almond cookies while learning some serious history about DC and hell, perhaps even about yourself. The various types of bread have a beautiful outer crispness followed by a warm softness in the center with the just a slight saltiness upfront and then a smooth sweet finish. I once got an entire loaf of bread and finished it before I got back home which was only three blocks away. It’s heaven when it comes to bread and you can tell she has been doing this for a very long time. The cannolis are stunning — there is that delicate brittle crispiness of the pastry and a slight sweetness of the cream. It’s the perfect cannoli. Other cannolis can be way too sweet and way too overpowering. And those almond cookies are decadent as the batter is mostly made up of crushed almonds, a little sugar, and some hints of butter followed by a whole almond on the top. They melt in your mouth. It’s pure bliss. The window is very small as she is open only once per week on Saturday morning until about noon so make sure to get there. Plenty of parking around with very little risk of getting a ticket — only watch out, this is a rough neighborhood.
This is no cute boutique, and certainly isn’t a pretty place and I suspect its heyday expired literally about a half-​a-​century ago as it turns out, all of the North Capitol Street Corridor, some of H Street and much of what we consider NoMa was a thriving Italian community which could have survived as DC’s own ‘Little Italy’ had it not been for the wholescale corruption, the numerous fires, and systematic neglect that plagued the city for decades to come which effectively turned the entire area into a huge slum which is only now recovering. And Catania Bakery is the only surviving evidence of that as very little has been done with the interiors and the exterior and the equipment is literally the same used fifty years ago. You will hear many stories from the owner and she will keep you standing on your feet for a long time giving you plenty of history. And it turns out, she knew family of mine who lived in the neighborhood about 40 years ago when I gave her my last name — I was shocked as I knew exactly the family member she referred to but had no idea they lived only three houses away from mine. She will talk your ear off and tell you about everything and anything and for these super low prices for legendary bread and pasties, it’s absolutely worth it.

A visit to Catania’s is perhaps best described as a cultural experience.
Open 2 days per week now – Fridays 7:30 AM to 10:30 AM and Saturdays 7:30 AM to 12:30 PM – this is actually a huge improvement from the «Saturday only» of the past.
My advice? Look at what’s available on the baking sheet trays that are shelved on carts. Those carts possess the most recent of Catania’s output – been wheeled straight from the oven into the counter area to cool off. Nothing could be fresher.
My favorite item: fruit croissants. However they are not actually croissants. They are more like turnovers. They come in apple, blueberry and strawberry. Not many are produced and if you can snag one, consider yourself a very lucky person indeed. I have been known to park my car at 7:00 AM right in front and wait until the doors open at 7:30 AM (and it’s never at 7:30 AM – always late) just to get an apple one. And just so you know, Catania’s does make a plain croissant that is a true croissant and yummy.
There isn’t a huge assortment of baked goods, but what is offered is quite agreeable.
The prices are extremely reasonable for DC.
This throw back bakery is one-​of-​a-​kind. Been there since 1932. It bills itself as an Italian bakery and it is, but it also supplements with some French and hybrid things.
It supplies restaurants, churches, small markets, etc.
It’s as crazy as the block in which it is located.
It fascinates me.

We had been looking forward to trying this place and finally had a chance to make it out one morning. Since it was snowing, we called ahead and were told they’d be open until noon. When we got there, the door was locked even though the Open sign was lit up and no one was inside. Very disappointed that we drove across town in the snow for nothing.

Go early on Saturday… well worth the effort.
Had to drive to Union Station, finding myself in DC early enough on a Saturday to finally find Catania’s open.
You wouldn’t think this little shop on a busy street could have real italian bread and you would be wrong. I’ve read about Cantania’s for years and have always wanted to stop by but I’m usually in the city on weekdays. I’ll pick up some rolls from I Litteria’s but here there are so many things to choose from.
I got one of each of the pastries and some amazing hoagie rolls. They are the hard rolls, the kind that soak up whatever sauce you’ve got. Would be perfect with soup or just dipping in oil. I got a large loaf and already made grilled cheese sandwiches, perfect after shoveling today’s snow.

This is a true neighborhood gem! My fiancé and I stopped by this morning, and we stayed for a good 20 minutes chatting with the owners who are very welcoming and nice. The bread is phenomenal, and the blueberry croissants were out of this world! The prices are much lower than anywhere we’ve ever been in DC.

Catania Bakery has been around forever. They supply the bread to all of the functions at the Italian Holy Rosary Catholic Church on 3^rd and F St NW, including the Annual Lasagna Dinner on Apr 6, 2014, which I attended for 25 years before moving out of the area.
My mother always told me the secret to Catania’s bread is that the yeast now permeates the air in that place since they’ve been there so long and, at least in my estimation, the city water in Washington DC is some of the best tasting anywhere.
I think you’ll agree — the bread from Catania Bakery tastes wonderful… I have yet to find one that matches it… perhaps only Labriola in South Chicago.

Awesome bread and croissants. Very friendly people there. They sell bread wholesale to delis and restaurants in the area but are open on Saturdays from 7:30am-11:00am to sell to people. Definitely worth trying.

An incredible secret for locals in Bloomingdale.
This little place on North Cap. is only open Saturdays from 7:30am-Noon (or when they sell out). My advice, plan your Saturday around this place.
Grub:
Crescent ($ 1.40): A+
Best crescent I’ve ever had. Period. I know, hard to believe but trust me, this place knows how to make them right.
Chocolate Crescent ($ 1.60): A++
Skip the regular and go for the chocolate. It’s a unique Italian chocolate that is strong and bold along with the perfect bread texture. Make sure to heat it up before you eat.
85 years of baking bread is only the beginning. =v)

The Anise Biscotti was great. And the price is right too!

A truly great Italian bread bakery that makes the BEST Italian bread in town bar none.
Forget what you’ve eaten at these other places, this place is the real deal.
The taste of this bread brought me back to my childhood where my Italian Grandfather would go into Chicago and pick up a couple of loaves and this was it.
No kidding; they do Italian Bread and they do it right.

Living in the neighborhood, I do wish they had retail hours outside of Saturday mornings, but I’ll take what I can get! Their baked goods are tasty, although I wouldn’t put them in the same league as Pain Quotidien. They do make a fine canoli, but I’m rather partial to their chocolate croissants. Stop by early enough and you can get them straight out of the oven, but take care or that molten chocolate will burn the roof of your mouth.
PS: You can find their products the rest of the week at the nearby A. Litteri in the Florida Ave. Market.