Biscotti Cafe: 5 secrets to success as North Side bakery celebrates 20 years (2018)

Published: Mar. 12, 2018, 7:19 p.m. by Syracuse.com (read full article here)

Syracuse, N.Y. – When Biscotti Cafe first opened two decades ago, Geoff Camire tried to talk his wife, Debbie, into putting just 12 cookies in the bakery’s display case.

He was afraid if they made too many, they’d have to throw some away.

“I just hoped we sold the dozen,” Geoff Camire said.

Twenty years later, the Camires and their staff of about 15 make so many Christmas cookies each year, they’ve started counting by the thousands, in pounds. And as the season wears on, they invariably lose track.

Tuesday marks Biscotti’s 20th anniversary. To celebrate, the Camires are offering pastries and glass mugs to customers who stop by. The bakery first opened in March 1998 on Butternut Street. A fire destroyed that place five years later. After a couple of years on South Geddes Street, the bakery reopened on North Salina Street in 2004.

The cafe serves sandwiches, soups and salads for lunch. But the bakery is better known for its Italian and European-inspired pastries, cookies and cakes. Some customers have been coming so long, they’ve ordered graduation, engagement, wedding, baby shower, birthday and confirmation cakes – all for the same family.

“It’s quite humbling,” Debbie Camire said, “being a part of people’s families.”

The Camires talked Monday about what’s kept their bakery going for the last two decades.

Every slice of cake could convert a future customer
Geoff and Debbie both studied at the Culinary Institute of America. They met as pastry chefs at the Four Seasons in Boston.

At Biscotti’s, they oversee a bustling cake business that ranges from layered sponge cakes to multi-tiered wedding gateaus rich with chocolate mousse or lemon chiffon with raspberry. One cake can feed dozens, even hundreds. And every person who gets a slice could be a future customer, Geoff Camire said.

“Word of mouth is huge,” he said.

Put the gelato out front
“We’re always looking for ways to improve,” Geoff Camire said.

So a couple of years ago, they decided to wedge a giant gelato cooler in between the baked goods and cake cases. Even though they’d made gelato for years, it never sold like it could have, Camire said. Some longtime customers didn’t realize the house-made frozen treat was available at Biscotti’s.

So they rearranged the bakery to put the gelato in the front row, with the cakes and pies. “It’s really selling,” Camire said. “Even in the winter.”

Pick a central location

After their first location was destroyed by an electrical fire, the couple thought about whether to reopen. And when they decided to keep going, they thought about moving outside the city.

“We looked at so many places,” Debbie Camire said.

They decided to stay in Syracuse, on the North Side, because so many customers came from different parts of the region. “If we’d have moved to Fayetteville, we would have lost Cicero,” Geoff said. By staying in the city, their loyal customers still come to them.

Stick to what you believe in
For the most part, the lobster tails, cannoli, pasticciotti, half moons, tarts, eclairs and cream puffs are the same as they were 20 years ago.

Yes, Biscotti’s makes more cup cakes than they used to – even for weddings. And their specialty cakes range from images of Spider-Man to a frosting-encased Death Star.

But most of their customers want the classics. When asked about the most popular items, Debbie Camire says: “The chocolate mousse and the Christmas cookies.”

Take Mondays off
Debbie Camire grew up in a restaurant family. Her father, Dominick Tassone Jr., founded Dominick’s Restaurant on Burnet Avenue. Her uncles and grandfather also ran restaurants and bakeries, including the former Modern Bakery on Park Street. “I grew up there playing,” she said. “And eating the frosting.”

She also learned that running a daily business takes its toll. It was her idea to close on Mondays. “That was a must,” she said.

At first her partner and husband, Geoff, wasn’t convinced. But after sleeping a few early nights at the bakery – waiting for dough to rise and treats to bake – he quickly saw her point.

They’ve also followed her vacation rule: “At least one week of family vacation a year,” she said.

Biscotti Cafe is at 741 N. Salina St., Syracuse NY