When it comes to old school Italian bakeries in New York, Brooklyn takes the cake. For this list, we've narrowed it down from the two dozen-plus choices across the Big Apple's most populous borough to a pastry-centric group of bakeries with that cozy neighborhood institution feel.

Each one is slightly different in terms of what's popular, café or takeout only, and their surroundings. But they all have one thing in common: more often than not, the staff will know the customer(s) by name along with what they tend to order.