(PHOTO
- Mario and Crucificia Isgro behind the
pastry case) |
Founder
Mario Isgro learned his baking secrets as
a young boy in Messina, Sicily where he
worked as a stable hand for a Baron. At
night, Mario would climb out on the roof
and peek into the Baron's kitchen, intrigued
with watching the chefs prepare meals. |
One
night, the Baron noticed young Mario's interest
and put him to work in the kitchen. He was then
sent for formal culinary arts training in Vienna
and additional studies in Palermo, which is where
Mario met his wife, Crucificia. After working
for the Baron for several years, Mario and Crucificia
journeyed to America where the "streets were
paved with gold." The couple ended up in
Philadelphia, as did many other Sicilian immigrants.
In 1904, Mario Isgro purchased 1009 Christian
Street from which he would operate his pastry
shop, Isgro Pasticceria. Running the business
was truly a family affair, with Mario and Crucificia's
extended family brought over from Sicily, as well
as their own four children, dedicated to the craft.
In fact at one point, the family owned a farm
in Mercer County, N.J., where they milled their
own flour and made their own butter, ricotta and
pasteurized cow's milk.
Because
the Isgros lived behind the storefront, the
Pasticceria was open 365-days a year, from the
time the family woke up, to the time they went
to bed. The dining room, in which the family
would gather to watch Ed Sullivan at night in
between customers, is still intact. And because
Christmas morning was so busy, the children
weren't able to open their presents until night,
after the customers had been served.
At
the age of 29, Mario's daughter Mary married
Elmo Sarno, a police officer. Elmo had to move
to the store because Mary refused to leave the
bakery that had become her life. Mary and Elmo
had two sons, Mario and Augustine "Gus."
Just like his grandfather, Gus Isgro (Sarno)
had baking in his blood. He started working
in the bakery when he was five years old. For
Gus, it was a way of life. When Gus Isgro took
over in 1978, he was in his late 20's. He later
married his wife and business partner Lucille,
whom he met at a shore house in Ventnor, N.J.
Gus's mother still works in the bakery, as do
16 employees and his two sons Michael (26) and
A.J. (14).
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