Serving Since

Boston Area

Serving since

1926

100 years in Boston

Bova's Bakery

North End · Bakery

Go here for
Florentine cannoli · Rice balls · Rocky road brownies
Why go
A family bakery open 24 hours, at the corner of Salem and Prince since 1932.
Local character
Neighborhood regulars. On Salem Street, off the main Hanover Street strip; a neighborhood bakery that's open all night.
Directions Official website

The Bova family has baked in the North End since 1926. The bakery moved across the street to its current corner of Salem and Prince in 1932.

Why it matters

Antonio Bova, from Calabria, started selling bread door to door in the North End in 1926. In 1932 the family moved across the street to the corner of Salem and Prince, where the bakery still is. His grandson Ralph Bova runs it today.

Bread came first. Pastries and cannoli arrived in the 1970s, rice balls later. It is open 24 hours, and the Globe marked its 100th anniversary in 2026.

The story

  1. 1926Antonio Bova starts delivering bread door to door3
  2. 1932Moves to the corner of Salem and Prince3
  3. 2026Marks 100 years3
  4. TodayStill serving Boston

Notes on the record

  • One source dates the bakery to 1932, the year of the move to the current corner. The family, the Boston Preservation Alliance and the Boston Globe all give 1926.

Details

Address
134 Salem Street, Boston, MA 02113
Neighborhood
North End
Ownership
Family-owned
Status
Open · verified Sep 2026

OldScore

A secondary, editorial measure. The founding year above is the fact that matters most. How it works.

Age28/ 35
Continuity15/ 20
Local significance10/ 20
Local food culture15/ 15
Independence10/ 10
OldScore78/ 100

Local character: Neighborhood regulars. On Salem Street, off the main Hanover Street strip; a neighborhood bakery that's open all night. This is separate from OldScore: a place can be popular with visitors and still belong here.

More like this

Sources

  1. Bova's Bakery (official site) Founding year, Ownership, Current status
  2. Bova's Bakery, History (official) Founding year, Ownership, History
  3. Boston Globe, Bova's Bakery 100th anniversary (Aug 19, 2026) Founding year, History, Ownership, What to order, Current status
  4. Boston Preservation Alliance, Boston's Legacy Businesses: Restaurants & Cafes Founding year, Ownership
  5. Wikipedia, 'Bova's Bakery' Founding year, History · cross-check only