Prato Bakery is taking its Italian bakery talents and expanding its business yet again — by opening its third location — back in Jersey City. You probably have already been acquainted with this delicious local eatery in Hoboken {201 Washington Street} and Jersey City {371 4th Street}. But now, Prato will be opening another location in Downtown Jersey City.
Taking over the same spot where Bucket & Bay Craft Gelato Co. used to be, Prato Bakery will be located at 150 Bay Street in Jersey City. Right now, Bucket & Bay’s sign is still up and from the look of it, the furniture is still outside from when they offered outside dining, but the windows are completely closed off from the public’s views {see below}.
Sadly, Bucket & Bay was one of the businesses that closed during the pandemic. They were known for having some of the best gelato in town {made with grass-fed cows, farmers market produce, and fair trade chocolate}. The owners, husband and wife Boris and Jen, posted a good-bye message on their Instagram on September 30th saying, “COME & GET YOUR LAST SCOOP. It’s the LAST BUCKET & BAY DAY!” and in another post, that same day, “Thank You, Jersey City. It has been a pleasure serving you Craft Gelato for the past 5 years. We will miss you.”
As the saying goes: when one door closes, another door opens. An insider who has the scoop on Prato Bakery’s third location tells Hoboken Girl that they’re hoping to open its doors in January.
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Additionally, the shop will be offering the same menu, however, they might have some new items, especially since the kitchen space is larger than the other locations.
The new location will have the same owner, Simone Bertini, who also is a baker. Simone and his wife opened the 4th Street Jersey City location in 2015 after being in West Village in New York City for four years. The name of the bakery derives from Simone’s hometown of Prato – a province in the Tuscany region of Italy.
Per the website, “The goal has always been the same: to bring the Italian and Tuscan authentic baking tradition to the US…when you step inside our bakeries you feel like you’re in Tuscany.”
Prato’s mission is to give those who enter an authentic Italian experience, and there’s no doubt it does just that. Once you enter, you’ll see biscuit after biscuit after biscuit, and bread after bread after bread. And it’s not just your ordinary bread.
Prato serves various focaccia {a flat oven-baked Italian bread}, such as one made with olive and tomatoes, one made with potatoes and rosemary, one made with zucchini, and so forth. There are also different kinds of cantucci, which is the name for the typical biscuits you can find in Prato. Expect to find a variety of these like almonds, chocolate, figs, apricot, and prunes. The la secca {sold $15 per lb} is crunchy handmade focaccia with Tuscan extra virgin olive oil, salt, and rosemary.
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They’re also known for its famous sandwiches {served on the Focaccia} with original Italian imported cold cuts – and interesting names. The manhattan consists of prosciutto di parma, tomatoes, and mozzarella cheese. The Jersey contains roasted eggplants, buffalo mozzarella, and prosciutto di parma. The spicy porchetta is made up of roasted pork, handmade spicy sauce, and arugula. The sandwich options are endless.
If you’re more in need of a coffee pick-me-up, Prato has a variety of hot and cold coffee and tea drinks, as well as a selection of sweets to go along with it. The pancioc is round soft bread with big chocolate chunks.
There’s also Nutella’s focaccine, which is little round focaccia filled with Nutella, and pan di ramerino, which is soft bread with rosemary and raisins. For more on what you can expect from the menu, visit the website here and check them out on Instagram to see photos of what you can expect to see at 150 Bay Street.
