EAST VAN
EAST VAN
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“The customers that come weekly, daily some of them, you really get to know them and I think they love that too — as soon as they walk in, we know what they want.” You’re stranded on a deserted island, but you have a month’s supply of one of your pastries. Which one is it? That is a great question… haha! I have never been asked that one. But I know my answer. It would be our eccles and biscotti. They both keep well and don’t need refrigeration. So being stranded, it’s a perfect treat that will keep me satisfied!
THE DRIVE’S SOULFUL START
Opening day: March 1st, 1997
In Conversation With Fratelli’s Bakery THERE’S NO SUCH THING AS TOO MUCH BISCOTTI Meet Owner Marco Cornale
We have been here for 28 years in March, so I have seen three generations of some of my customers. It is so nice to see so many familiar faces weekly here. The customers that come weekly, daily some of them, you really get to know them and I think they love that too — as soon as they walk in, we know what they want. Something you don’t get shopping in big box stores. I have had the same staff for years — some since the beginning — so we get to really know our customers. What makes Commercial Drive special? As I’ve said above, the community surrounding the Drive is what makes it special. Like JNZ Deli that’s been around for over 35 years — two sisters who are keeping the legacy their parents built. Giancarlo’s Cafe serves up some delicious coffee and food. Continental Coffee across the street is another community hot spot for people to gather and have coffee. It’s an honour being amongst these great businesses.
Commercial Drive has been a hub of activity for over 100 years — the community first blossomed when a streetcar from New Westminster connected to the area in 1890. But it wasn’t until the 1950s, after World War II, that Commercial Drive truly flourished as a multicultural neighbourhood. Italians had been flocking to Vancouver since the 19th century turned into the 20th, but they arrived in great, tumbling waves in the 1950s. Their lively (and tasty) culture stretched east, and Commercial Drive, now known as Little Italy, came to be one of their centres.
More cultures caught on. Portuguese, South East Asian, and Caribbean immigrants were drawn to the area, adding to the mosaic of colours and flavours. And then came the artists and musicians, energizing the neighbourhood with creativity and activism from the 1980s onwards. Commercial Drive has been built by locals, which you can still see in the mom-and-pop shops that have served the community for decades.
Tell us about the history of your bakery. I opened the bakery on March 1st, 1997. Seems so long ago now. We opened with the idea to have customers come in for one thing, and leave with many more. That is pretty well what’s been happening for the last 27 years. As soon as you walk in, our showcases are always full of a variety of baked goods. Our customer favourites are assorted pastries, especially the cannoli and eclairs, our assorted biscotti, and, for cakes, our Saint Honoré is by far the most popular. What do you love about having a business here? The thing I like about having the business here on the Drive, Little Italy, is the community.
A CURIOUS NOTE Long before shops and cafes lined the street, Commercial Drive (Park Drive back then) was a route used to drag logs down to the harbour.
08 RENTEASTWARD.COM
09 RENTEASTWARD.COM
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