The Original Tarantini Panzarotti Tart found it’s way to America with Pauline Tarantini, an immigrant mother of 10 who spoke very little english. Originally, from Brindisi, Italy, little Pauline learned how to make these unique delicious treats from her mother when she was seven years young.
In 1960, this very large family was going through tough financial times. Not to be dismayed, Pauline took to her frying pan and began to mass produce the tarts strictly from hand from her tiny home in Camden, New Jersey. Pauline, pictured above, gave the Panzarotti to her husband who peddled the tarts at gas stations and other local establishments for 25 cents each. They would give free samples to neighborhood kids whenever possible and the children would go home to their parents who would become intrigued with these amazingly tasty treats. Fact is that it became so popular, by just word of mouth, that by 1963 the Tarantini family were able to purchase their first store a few blocks from their home in East Camden. They obtained a nationally registered trademark and then started the process of getting specially designed equipment to mass produce their beloved tart. Pauline’s sons, Franco and Vincent Tarantini continued to grow the business by selling Panzarotti to local restaurants and having one of the fastest growing take-out only establishments in the area. They also opened their own individual restaurants featuring. what else, The Original Tarantini Panzarotti.
By 2002, they had outgrown the original location in Camden and it was time to hand the business down to their sons, Leo and Paul. The equipment was outdated and the production facility too small. Thus, Pauline’s grandsons moved the entire production facility to it’s new location at 2060 Springdale Rd. Cherry Hill, N.J. With the move, entirely all new equipment was purchased to increase production. The original Camden store was sold but continues to operate as it has for over 50 years. The new owners saw the success and kept it as is. In the meantime Leo and Paul expanded the delivery business by using their own distribution, with new trucks that cover three states. Panzarotti are found all over South Jersey, the Philadelphia region and Delaware. They also have local and national distributors they make Panzarotti for. They expanded the product line, thanks to the ingenuity of Franco, of adding the wildly popular Panzarottini. They also added the Junior Panzarotti, a smaller version of the Original size Panzarotti.
Now, in 2023, our company is celebrating it’s 62th anniversary. Pauline’s great grandson, Kevin, is now part of our team and he owes it all to a poor Italian immigrant and her frying pan.
Panzarotti are now found in San Francisco, South Western Florida and other areas. We continue to open new outlets in South Jersey as welI the Philadelphia and Delaware region. Due to frozen foods logistics and the cost of shipping frozen foods it is a difficult task to get the product into the hands of folks that love them. We continue to look for new avenues for distribution so that all the requests people have sent us from across our country will be able to enjoy The Original Tarantini Panzarotti. Pauline’s Parents featured below from the early 20th century when photography was still young.
