9. “Cake Boss” centered on a Hoboken bakery
One of the most defining features of Washington Street is Carlo’s Bake Shop, the subject of the TLC series “Cake Boss.” The bakery is owned by Buddy Valastro, who features prominently on the show alongside many of his family members. Though the series has brought prominent attention to the bakery since it premiered in 2009, the bakery dates back a century earlier to 1910 when it was opened by its namesake Carlo Guastaferro. The bakery survived the Great Depression and remained within the family until 1964 when it was bought by Bartolo “Buddy” Valastro, Sr.
Valastro’s son took over the business and has run it alongside his four older sisters and other family members. The shop became a tourist attraction after the show popularized the bakery’s ornate cake designs. Lines would often stretch across the block. Following the show’s success, the bakery expanded to a new factory in Jersey City to produce greater quantities of baked goods to send across the country. Since 2011, the bakery expanded from its flagship Hoboken, New Jersey location and has opened up locations across the country, including in Times Square, Ridgewood, and Westfield in New Jersey, Las Vegas, Orlando, and São Paulo.