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Article by Andrew J. Perez <anperez@ursinus.edu>
The Collegeville Italian Bakery is a very popular and well known spot amongst most Collegeville residents and students at Ursinus College. The bakery takes pride in its connection to both the Ursinus College community and Philadelphia sports teams by sharing their love through their menu items like the “Joel Embiid shake” and through social media posts of them providing catering to Ursinus’s many sports teams. They bring many iconic people in from all over the area to experience the bakery and take an iconic picture in front of the pizza oven, posting these pictures up on the walls of the inside of the restaurant. For example, they have pictures of coaches from Ursinus, professional sports players, and Joey Grazuadeu from Season 28 The Bachelor! The Collegeville Italian Bakery is a super supportive and fun restaurant all around, and their great food brightens the place up even more.All in all, I see the Collegeville Italian Bakery as the heart of Collegeville, so you definitely don’t miss out on what I have to say about it!
Before even getting to the sit-down portion of the restaurant, I started with the bakery and deli section, which has wide selections of goodies and treats that do not disappoint. For example, their mini donuts are amazing and undeniable. On the restaurant side, I think their food-ordering system is great. You pick a seat anywhere you want, ask for a menu, and when you’re ready to order, you bring it up to the cashier, pay, and they’ll give you a number to put on your table so they can bring out the food to you. This system allows you to take all of the time you need with zero rush.
The food menu at the bakery is gigantic. On the savory side, they’ve got breakfast sandwiches, wings, salads, burgers, sandwiches, and their famous pizzas. The list of their pizzas are ridiculous, as it takes up half of a page. While I have not had their pizza yet, I decided to grub out on their most famous sandwich, the “Bangin’ Cutlet Sandwich.” According to their menu, this sandwich includes “homemade rosa sauce and fresh burrata drizzled with Mike’s Hot Honey all piled high on…fresh-baked bread!” This signature sandwich is outstanding! The rosa sauce and Mike’s Hot Honey make it taste sweet and it all soaked nicely into the bread. The cutlet is lightly breaded and makes the perfect base for the sandwich. And of course, that fresh burrata cheese is milky and adds a nice complement to the sandwich. This sandwich is a stand out, so it is no wonder that it is listed as their most famous! I also had an order of french fries and mozzarella sticks which were pretty solid. The cheese within the mozzarella sticks had a great pull and the fries were very crispy. The only thing about my overall experience that bugged me was my sandwich coming out 10 minutes before the appetizer. Next time, I would suggest that they make sure to bring everything out in order instead of all at once.
This menu also has so many desserts like ice cream sundaes, milkshakes, açaí bowls, crepes, and even a nutella bar! I had their Moose Tracks ice cream last week and it was off the charts. It was super creamy and smooth with fudge swirls and some mini peanut butter cups. My first time out at the Collegeville Italian Bakery was fantastic and I can’t wait to come back to try so many more things off of the vast menu! I love the unique and friendly environment that it brings to the town of Collegeville, from their TV’s playing Philadelphia sports games to their signs welcoming different Ursinus teams. This place never fails to show off their positive spirit. If you’re looking to check out the heart of Collegeville for the first time, I would highly recommend taking my advice and testing out the Bangin’ Cutlet because it will make your experience at the Bakery go out with a BANG!
