Rose & Joe's Italian Bakery

Quality bakery and the pizza at the back counter is good too.

Rose & Joe's is a place I've wanted to try for a long time. It is an old school Italian bakery underneath the end of the N train in Astoria-Ditmars. The place doesn't look unique at all outside of its depth, with it occupying a long, hallway-like space with light colored walls and plenty of display cases. In the front is where you pay for everything, except for the pizza counter which is all the way in the back. They're cash only as I found out, as I had to run across the street to an ATM in order to buy what I had at the counter; they weren't particularly nice about it either, but whatever. You try baking stuff all day while not eating any of it and see how happy you are. First off, I had to try the pizza. Rose & Joe's serves one of the few bakery-style slices in NYC, and very cheap too at a little over $2. They even have a little oven where they heat it up. If you're unfamiliar with the style, it is somewhere between a grandma and a sicilian slice, and traces its roots back to Sicily as sfincione. This was strictly a tomato sauce and cheese version, and while it was a bit greasy I enjoyed it! I thought the sauce was a bit overspiced, but the tomatoes they used were definitely good stuff. The cheese was also sparingly applied which I appreciated. My issue was the crust, which did not get crisp enough and was pretty unremarkable for something made by a bakery. As the whole it was a good slice I'd be happy to have every day, but not something worthy of more than a footnote in the catalog of NY pizza. After the pizza, I bought some sesame cookies and a sfogliatello: two of the main bell weathers I use for Italian bakeries. The cookies were a little dense (not overdone) but otherwise fine. Nothing special really. The sfogliatello was good, but the pastry or filling wasn't particularly impressive.

Call me spoiled when it comes to pizza, but if you're not a fan of home fashioned sicilian slices for less than three bucks, then who is? This is where Rose & Joes Italian Bakery comes in: a small little bakery not to far from N station, Ditmars Boulevard, is located.

Walk all the way to the back of the bakery and you'll be smelling fresh bread baked on a daily basis, and fresh sicilian slices (2.50 regular, 2.75 for toppings) and focaccias to go. Not only are there pizzas, but they have a grand selection of breads, cookies, and seasonal sweets to make the little ones begging for another bad for grandma (hey, it's all in the family if you love something sweet to eat, right?). Also, come Easter, they have a grand selection of Easter bread, plus cookies in both Italian and Greek fashion, plus coffee for those that need something to perk them up during rush hour. Professional ladies will help you on your selection and can even give you deals on bagles, small sandwiches, and crunchy garlic bread per pound. And who could forget about the pound for pound salty/non-salty breadsticks? Surely a classic from Rose & Joes, and they're always delicious to try no matter what day it is. Recommended: for the hungries like yours truly, five buck will give you two nice sicilian slices (7.50 for 3) to go, plus toppings and the works, and always ask them to heat it up before packing it in. Highly recommended for the classic sweet eaters out there without travelling far.

$ - Rose & Joes is first and foremost a bread bakery. If you are looking for different types of italian breads (especially southern Italian ones), Then this is the place you want to find them. They do a fantastic job of breads, especially their different types of olive breads and prosciutto bread. Over the years they've added pastries and pizzas. Personally I don't think they do a very good job of either, except maybe their pound cakes (though my wife swears they make the best black and white cookies in the city). Go for the bread and you will never be disappointed.

I just bought a whole wheat bagel with cream cheese...as I was breaking of a piece to try to spread the cream chees as it was only put on one section of the bagel I found a full roach baked on to the bagel, as I looked closer I also saw an embedded hair in the bagel. I have a pictures.