“Let’s get this bread!” While this quote is meant to describe putting in work or getting money, who says we can’t also use it literally?! Nothing beats some homemade, fresh-baked bread that can be used for plump French toast, a crispy grilled cheese, or even just toasted with some jelly. These are just some of the awesome bakeries in Pittsburgh serving up the freshest loaves and rolls that you need to order from next!

Mancini’s

Image via: Mancini’s Bread, Instagram

If you’ve never had Mancini’s bread from down in the Strip, let me tell you that you are missing out! This bakery has been open for nearly 100 years, first opening in 1926. Its location in the Strip is perfectly placed for you to pick up a loaf or some rolls during your weekly shopping trip to get fresh meats, cheeses, and more from local shops on Penn Ave. Their homemade bread loaves are incredible as thick-cut slices to accompany breakfast. You may have even seen Mancini’s bread called out on local restaurant menus because of its well-known nature. American Natural flaunts Mancini’s on its menu with their Bacon Melt.

Go with the classic loaves or grab some of their dinner rolls like their petite round rolls or Italian club rolls. If you’re looking to host, Mancini’s has hoagie sticks and sandwich rings available to create your own sandwiches for your guests. Some of their specialty items that are great for entertaining are their Pepperoni rolls, Sweet Pepper spread, and pizza sauce. One of my favorite specialties is the soup bowl so you can make your own bread bowl at home!

Oakmont Bakery

Image via: Oakmont Bakery

While Oakmont is widely known for their sweet treats, they also have a large selection of savory, sweet, and classic bread. They have freshly baked bread available daily on their grab and go racks in their bakery. Some of my favorite savory loaves of bread available are the Everything bread and Hot Pepper bread. The Everything bread is perfect for an appetizer because of its heartiness. This bread is filled with ham, pepperoni, broccoli, hot peppers, mozzarella, provolone, cheddar, garlic, and onion mixed in with Italian bread dough and topped with parmesan cheese, YES PLEASE. In obvious Oakmont fashion, they of course offer the yummiest sweetbreads as well. Cranberry Walnut, Cinnamon, and more are on their menu. One of the most fun is the Razzleberry bread with multiple different berries mixed in with a streusel topping. 

Of course, fun loaves are favorites, but don’t let those outshine the classics like sourdough, multigrain, and Italian. As mentioned before, the Italian is the base for the Everything bread so don’t sleep on that! Another cool thing about Oakmont is they have a cafe where you can order breakfast or lunch sandwiches on all of their fresh bread. You can also order prepared sandwich rings or just the sandwich ring bread so you can create your own at home! 

Cellone’s Italian Bread Co.

Image via: Cellone’s Italian Bread Co., Instagram

Baked fresh daily, Cellone’s is most well known for their Italian bread. Available in grocery stores including Walmart, Giant Eagle Market District, and more for your convenience, Cellone’s has been a Pittsburgh staple for over 100 years. Kaiser rolls, Hearth Baked rolls, and Honey Whole Grain sliced bread are some of their offerings. A lot of restaurants include Cellone’s on their menu such as the Bob’s Sub chain which uses only Cellone’s Hoagie rolls. 

As the name suggests, Italian bread is their focus, however, that’s not all they do well. They offer a lengthy menu of bread available for restaurants to purchase and serve up with their menu items. Three of their specialty items available to the general public are their 12” pizza shells, homemade croutons, and frozen garlic bread. These items are perfect for a little at-home Italian-inspired meal!

Mediterra Bakehouse

Image via: Mediterra Bakehouse, Instagram

Mediterra Bakehouse is located west of Pittsburgh and is fairly new, comparably, to the Pittsburgh bread game. Established in 2002, this Bakehouse brings French tradition to our little city in western PA. Using levain instead of commercial yeast, their sourdough has a bit of a different taste than the typical sourdough. All of their orders ship on Tuesday if you’re looking to place an online order. Scrolling through their site, the options are ENDLESS. Sunny Flax Keto bread, English muffins, 8 Grain 3 Seed, Rosemary Olive Oil, Ciabatta, Chili Cheddar, the list goes on! If you’re looking to score some loaves at a grocery, they have a store locator on their site. East End Food Co-op and Market Street Grocery downtown are two spots where you can find this fine artisan bread. 

Similar to Oakmont but on a much larger scale, Mediterra has a cafe associated with their Bakehouse that is located in Mt. Lebanon. On this menu, you will find their fresh bread highlighted in dishes such as the Breakfast Sammie on their English muffin, Baked French Toast with Challah bread, and Mushroom Melt on Sesame Semolina bread. 

This content was provided by a local, independent contributor to Made in PGH, a lifestyle blog.
Francesca Ferrante

Francesca Ferrante aka The412Franimal is a Blogger/Influencer for travel and ALL things Pittsburgh. Typically you can find her all over the US exploring the best food, views and adult beverages, or at a local PGH brewery watching whatever sport is in season. Passionate about helping others make the best memories, she loves sharing recommendations and tips for restaurants, events, happy hours & more!

1 Comment
  1. Unfortunately most breads in Pittsburgh are made using a sourdough base. A sour dough base is not necessarily bad but you can’t call it Italian or French!

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