Following in his family’s footsteps, Tom Forti continues the tradition of serving traditional Italian food at the Sunrise Market and Cafe. While the Grand Avenue location will be celebrating its first year in November, the original Sunrise Bakery in Hibbing has been serving Iron Range classics since 1913. Forti’s great-grandfather Giulio, a baker in Rome in the late 1800s, created the company after emigrating from Italy.
The Sunrise Creative Gourmet brand features wholesale traditional and gluten-free dry and frozen pastas, sauces and ethnic specialties sold to more than 300 grocery stores and available at the Saint Paul and Mill City farmers markets. The new market and café combines the packaged goods found in grocery stores with a made-to-order menu including pizza, sandwiches, salads, strudel, pasties and quiche.
Some of the specialty items are made the way you’d find them on the Iron Range, including the potica ($15.99), sarma ($7.99) and beef and pork pasty ($6.99). “We serve a lot of food that Eastern European immigrants ate growing up, and the Iron Range customers really cherish it,” Forti says.
Other dishes are inspired by the Forti family’s Italian heritage, including lasagna ($6.99, $14.99 or $28.99) They also offer gluten-free pastas, pizzas and breads made in the Saint Paul store.
The Sunrise Market and Cafe also features biscotti, cookies and coffee cakes from its sister company, Sunrise Bakery, and serves local and imported draft beer and Italian wine.
