The biscotti from Formica's grandmother's recipes - key lime, cranberry nut and chocolate orange among them - are still there, as are the cannolis that have warmed Ducktown neighbors' hearts for three generations.
Now, though, instead of dim lighting and old glass-and-stainless-steel cases, there are designer chairs, caf tables, artisan breads and espressos and lattes.
"I invested $11,000 in the best espresso machine; if you are going to compete with Starbucks, you had better have the best," said Formica, who is also president of the Ducktown Revitalization Association. Ducktown - which got its name from some long-gone duck farms, and is historically known as Atlantic City's Little Italy - is nestled behind Boardwalk Hall between Florida and Mississippi avenues.
"We have a chance to be a showplace neighborhood now," Formica said. "This is just a part of the transformation."
Formica Brothers has long been a successful Atlantic City business. Francesco Formica (pronounced "four-mee-kah," not as is the floor covering) brought hand-crafted bread recipes from Italy and settled in Ducktown in 1919. His three sons took over after World War II. Formica, who had tired of being a casino executive, bought his father and uncles out in 1987.
While the bakery has always had that little shop, it has mostly been known as the area's biggest purveyor of sandwich rolls. The White House, the hoagie mecca of Atlantic City, is right across the street and a prized customer, but Formica Brothers also supplies the casinos and 300 groceries and restaurants.
"I'm proud that we put out 25,000 to 30,000 pieces a day, but I knew there was a whole market I was missing," said Formica. "The demographics of the area had changed."
As casinos expanded in the 1990s, he said, more and more people came to Atlantic County from elsewhere.
