By Jon Campisi
Times Staff Writer
It’s a small shop located in a strip mall on a stretch of Castor Avenue in Rhawnhurst.
It goes by one name and specializes in one product.
But the excitement surrounding the Italian bakery known as Gaeta’s, and the distance that some patrons travel just to get a taste of its famous tomato pie, say a lot about the business that has been a staple in the Northeast for many years.
Gaeta’s originally went by the name Scalea’s and was located in Germantown for a good 40 years before it was sold to the Gaeta family and moved to the Northeast in 1976.
Today, Gaeta’s is owned by Frank Straface, himself an Italian immigrant who came to this country when he was 10 years old. Straface purchased the business two years ago.
For Straface, the chance to operate such a popular bakery has been interesting, to say the least.
In addition to inheriting a well-loved establishment, Straface inherited an extended family of sorts, regular patrons who, despite where they may live now, make sure to stop in and pick up a red pie whenever the urge strikes.
Count Valerie Potero among the Gaeta’s fans who have moved out the neighborhood but still stop at the bakery from time to time.
"I grew up in Oxford Circle, but we still came down here for a tomato pie," Potero said while picking up a large red pie during a warm afternoon last week.
Potero, on her way to visit her father in Mt. Laurel, N.J., couldn’t pass up a chance to bring her favorite food across the river. The Somerton resident’s plan was to not eat the whole pie with her father, but rather save some slices for the family’s shore outing during the Fourth of July weekend.
Potero also wasn’t worried about the pie getting cold on the way to the Garden State; some, like her brothers, enjoy their tomato pie this way. For Potero, however, the only way to enjoy a Gaeta’s tomato pie is warm and crisp, so she makes sure to heat hers up in the oven.
Straface laughs while Potero tells her story, since, as he puts it, he gets to hear dozens of tales every time he comes to work.
"Every day is a different story," he said.
Straface said some customers are those who used to frequent the shop when it was at its Germantown location.
Others are children and even grandchildren of former Gaeta’s patrons who passed down an affinity for the Italian bakery throughout the generations. Then there are those whose tomato pie cravings lead them to cross state lines, from the likes of New Jersey and Delaware, to get their fix.
Why all the fuss?
"It’s something nobody else has," Straface said. "The sauce, the crust. It’s something nobody has been able to duplicate."
And Straface should know. In buying the business, Straface inherited the secret, and probably coveted, recipe that makes Gaeta’s pies the envy of other Italian bakers. Even the owner himself can’t get enough.
"I’m here every day and I have to have a couple slices," he said. "I don’t know what it is. You don’t get tired of it."
Straface remembers visiting Gaeta’s, (then Scalea’s), when he was a kid growing up in East Falls, something that he said could explain why customers feel a certain connection with him. While the owners of Scalea’s were well-liked by the Germantown community, they hadn’t lived their whole lives in the neighborhood where they built their business. Straface, on the other hand, basically grew up in Philadelphia, except for those first 10 years. While he grew up in East Falls, his wife grew up in Germantown.
"I can relate to these people," he said.
But it’s not just regulars who patronize Gaeta’s; a celebrity or two have been known to stop by. The walls of the small bakery are filled with autograph-signed photographs depicting the likes of Ed Rendell in his pre-governor days as Philadelphia’s mayor and district attorney, and local sports favorites such as the late Richie Ashburn and Rod Brind ’Amour.
The caliber of the clientele just goes to show that Gaeta’s has become a local gem.
Of course there are new faces that stroll in and out from time to time. Take the couple from Florida who discovered the Gaeta’s allure after visiting relatives from the area. Now, whenever they come to Philly, their first stop is not the home of their family members, but rather the little Italian bakery they have come to know and love.
Again, it comes down to the secret recipe. During an interview with the Times, Straface even had to step away for a moment to take a phone call from someone asking if he still uses the same recipe for his pies that the owners of Scalea’s used many years ago. His response, of course, was that he does.
For Straface, who counts himself in among the Gaeta’s fans, there is nothing like a Gaeta’s tomato pie.
"Other people have tomato pies, they call them tomato pies, but it’s really a snack," he said. "I’ve tasted a lot of pies, but nobody has ever come close to it."
The only downside to being in the food business has to do with product pricing. With a recent spike in the cost of ingredients, such as the increase in the price of flour, running a bakery has been made more difficult. But Straface isn’t going to let this stop him. He plans to keep doing what he’s been doing for the past couple of years. He hasn’t really even raised his own prices to compensate for his increased overhead, except for maybe a small hike of maybe a dollar or so in the past year.
"It really took me a while to think about raising the prices because people struggle," he said. "I really hate to do it, but I don’t have much of a choice."
As for the idea of retirement, Straface doesn’t really have plans to stop working anytime soon. Business is good, moving around the kitchen helps to keep him fit, and he gets to interact with good people. And then there’s the economic factor — it’s simply not feasible for the 65-year-old to quit now.
"This is five days a week," he said. "It’s not really that bad."
Perhaps the most rewarding part of the day for Straface is to see the pleased looks on the faces of those who stop in to pick up their favorite food.
"It’s just amazing that people" take such a liking to it, he said.
In addition to their famous tomato pie, Gaeta’s sells homemade breads, such as steak bread, pepperoni bread and broccoli and cheese break, as well as white pies and cheese pies. ••
Gaeta’s is located at 7616 Castor Ave. For more information, call 215-745-2262.
Reporter Jon Campisi can be reached at 215-354-3038 or jcampisi@phillynews.com