Millersville Family Nears 100-Year Mark Of Beloved Italian Bakery

By John Singleton

For Italian bread lovers, each loaf is a work of art. Best consumed right out of the oven, the Italian connection to bread has always been a deeply personal one. For the Maranto family in Millersville, who own F&S Maranto Italian Bakery in Baltimore, this connection is a very familiar one.

In the old days, Maranto Italian Bakery baked loaves as big and round as truck wheels along with dozens of Sicilian specialty breads. Today, there’s not quite as much room for creativity, but Bill Maranto, co-owner of F&S Maranto Italian Bakery, still satisfies the public’s yearning for something that strikes a deeper chord.

“We deliver fresh bread to more than 350 restaurants, sub shops, and grocery stores in the Baltimore area,” he explained. “We’re a business that does things the old-fashioned way. Our ovens run all night and our trucks roll out at 4:00am so our clients can have the freshest Italian bread in the city.”

For the Marantos, the ‘bread of life’ is the family’s everyday work and has been for almost 100 years. If you’re a fan of the sub-rolls at Jeno’s in Severna Park, the authentic Italian bread sold daily at Fishpaws, or the hot dog buns at Ann’s Dairy Cream in Glen Burnie, then you have an appreciation for some of the hearth-baked products sold by Maranto Bakery. Family-owned and operated since 1914, the business has grown since brothers Frank and Sam Maranto started delivering fresh bread door-to-door within Baltimore neighborhoods. Today, the third generation of Marantos, Bill and Steve, oversee business operations.

“It will be a challenge to make our 100-year anniversary in 2014,” noted Bill’s wife, Chris Maranto. “There used to be hundreds of small, independent bakeries in Baltimore. We’ve survived wars and depressions, but the economy we’re living under right now is slowly undoing years of hard work.”

To cope with a slow business environment, hours have been cut back. For the Marantos, the priority has always been taking care of longtime employees while producing a high quality product. Maranto Bakery currently employs just over 30 people.

“It’s a source of pride and responsibility to be working in the same business as my father,” added Bill Maranto. “The tradition of a family business can’t be replaced. The amount of work we put into producing a quality product, one that we are proud of, is enormous.”

Today, Maranto Bakery is the only family business left in its Baltimore neighborhood. One by one they’ve all closed their doors, succumbing to the heavy regulation and high taxes on private enterprise. Located at 244 Pearl Street, every building on the block is now owned by the state-run University of Maryland system. When it comes to facing future business challenges, Steve Maranto, Sal’s son, manages the daily baking operations, making him the fourth generation of Marantos to work in the family business.

“It’s difficult and it hasn’t gotten any easier running a small family business,” added Bill Maranto. “It seems like the state of Maryland adds new obstacles and requirements every year. For a small business with very few resources, it’s a very difficult situation.”

Bill and Chris Maranto have three children – Jennifer, 27, who lives in Severna Park with her husband, Mike Osborne; Lauren, 25, who graduated from Severna Park High School in 2004 and recently became engaged to Matt Blanchet; and Brian, 21, who is studying law enforcement. The Marantos are members of Our Lady Of The Fields Catholic Church and currently reside in Shipley’s Choice.

For more information on their family-owned bakery, visit www.marantobakery.com.