Formica Bros. Bakery
Formica Bros. Bakery, famous for its Atlantic City submarine sandwich breads, has diversified its business over the past century to find success in artisan baking, foodservice, co-packing and more.
For the complete story on Formica Bros. Bakery, see “Formica Bros. Bakery and the legacy of Atlantic City artisan bread.”
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Formica Bros. got its start in the back of an Atlantic City grocery store in the early 1900s, with the business formally organized in 1919, eventually building a dedicated bakery in 1928. Its sub sandwich bread was the first product out the door. Today, that sub bread is still its best-seller.
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“Francesco and Rosa Formica—grandparents of Frank D. Formica, the bakery’s current owner/operator—began the business after emigrating from Sicily,” says Michele D. Giampaolo, director, marketing & sales. “Francesco, when he first arrived to the U.S., worked on the railroads in order to save up enough money for his fiancée, Rosa, to come to the U.S. It took 12 years, and the day she arrived, they were married—and the next day, along with Francesco’s brother, Santo, they opened up a grocery store on Mississippi Avenue in Atlantic City in the Italian section known as Ducktown.” It wasn’t long after opening the grocery store that they started to bake bread.
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The star of the New Jersey sandwich scene is Atlantic City’s authentic Italian submarine sandwich, and the bread is essential to the sandwich’s success. White House Sub Shop has been serving up the subs since 1946, and Formica Bros. Bakery is a primary bread supplier to the business, conveniently located right across the street.
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“I grew up in the family business,” says Frank Formica. “The first job my grandmother Rosa gave me, at the age of 6, was to sweep out the bakery. In 1987, my uncles and father called me and said they were going to sell the family business.” In what he calls his “moment of insanity,” he bought the bakery. “There’s something important about carrying on a family legacy and keeping alive the Formica Bros. breads that so many families have grown up eating,” he says. “I wake up every day humbled to be contributing to the local economy and for having the opportunity to keep alive my family legacy and traditions.”
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Formica Bros. has expanded well beyond sub loaves through the help of a second bakery, Baker Boys, in Pleasantville, just a few miles northwest of Atlantic City. Its business model encompasses retail, foodservice and co-packing. The bakery’s artisan sense of flexibility is a hallmark of its approach.
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The Formica Bros. savory-sweet cranberry-walnut-raisin dinner rolls have become the bakery’s No. 2 best-seller. They’re sold to multiple restaurants throughout the area. “Our master baker, Chef John Sweeney, is really keen on savory and sweet,” says Frank Formica. “The cranberry gives it a little pungency—you get a little bit of that sharp taste. It was his recipe.”
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Formica Bros. recent invested in a new ciabatta line to modernize and standardize production within tighter specifications. Chef John Sweeney, general manager, Baker Boys, spearheads much of the bakery’s research, development and innovation.
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While Formica Bros. is undeniably known for its famous Atlantic City sub bread—accounting for more than 30 percent of the bakery’s business—the Formica Bros. catalog offers more than 300 different varieties of individually handcrafted breads, including artisan semolina breads.
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New Jersey is home to a fantastic array of sandwich diversity, including its neighboring state’s famous cheesesteak. And like any great sandwich, Philly cheesesteaks require just the right bread to make it a success.
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Formica Bros. has also seen considerable success from translating its hot-dog-style bun typically used for lobster rolls into a burger-style bun. “It has a very light, sweet flavor to it,” says Frank Formica. “And the crumb is almost pure white. It’s one of our best-sellers.” Frank points out that one of the bakery’s biggest accomplishments is its longevity: “After 100 years in the bakery industry, we have survived many twists and turns. We continue to enter into new markets, sign up new customers and create new breads—all while staying true to our traditions, not losing focus on where we have been and still looking to the future. We are rolling into the future and rising to the challenge, one loaf at a time.”