The New York Bakery Frank Sinatra Loved Is Still Serving Up His Favorite Pastry

It's fair to say that legendary singer and entertainer, Frank Sinatra, was particular about what he ate and drank. He liked his martinis dry, on ice, and garnished with a lemon twist. And, when he was in New York City, he always ordered veal Milanese at Patsy's Italian Restaurant. But when the craving for something sweet hit him, Sinatra liked to stop by Veniero's Pasticerria, an old-world Italian bakery in lower Manhattan's East Village that has been open since 1894. There, the crooner's confection of choice were Sicilian Regina cookies. He also had a favorite cake that you can find at many grocery stores.

Also called Reginelle, or simply Italian sesame seed cookies, Regina cookies look like small log-shaped biscuits rolled generously in sesame seeds before baked to a golden brown. In the Sicilian dialect, the cookies are called ca'giugiulena, which originates from the Arabic word for sesame seeds, "gialgiala." In fact, it was the Arabs who brought the ingredient to the Italian island. The toasted seeds give Reginelle not only crunch, but also a wonderful nutty flavor that Sinatra, for one, loved. The biscuit itself is made from a simple dough of flour, baking powder, salt, butter, sugar, vanilla, and milk. This is just one of dozens of Italian cookies Veniero's makes every day.

Founder Antonio Veniero was born in the town of Sorrento, south of Naples, in 1870 and immigrated to New York City in 1885 where he found work in a candy factory. Branching out on his own, he purchased a building and storefront where he made his own confections, espresso, and biscotti at what became a sort of Italian social club. Hiring his fellow countrymen to increase his product inventory, Veniero's eventually became a full-blown bakery offering cookies, pastries, cakes, and other baked goods, similar to what it still is today. On any given day, you can find over 150 desserts on display and for sale, not to mention seasonal and holiday specialties.

Currently, Veniero's is co-owned and managed by Robert Zerilli, who is Veniero's great-nephew; the business has been family-owned and run now by four generations in the same storefront. It's unknown when Frank Sinatra discovered the bakery, but the shop boasts a photo of the singer posing with Frank Zerilli (Robert's father) from 1979, holding none other than one of his favorite Regina cookies and a cigarette. In 1984, the Veniero family purchased a neighboring space and expanded the shop to include a warm, cozy café space for sitting and enjoying the pastries. Today, you don't even have to visit New York to enjoy Veniero's offerings, as they ship their sweets nationwide — including those Italian sesame seed cookies, which appear to be included in the company's assorted biscotti tray.