Three-hour line at Carlo’s? Fuhgetaboudit!

HOBOKEN AND BEYOND — Is waiting in a three hour line to see Buddy Valastro or other workers from Carlo’s Bakery for suckers?
As the line to purchase canolis and cupcakes stretched passed the site of the former Barnes and Noble on Monday afternoon, there was a different, perhaps more shrewd group of fans of TLC’s show Cake Boss gathering elsewhere. Approximately 30 people convened behind the bakery on Court Street, waiting to see some cast members of the show try to sneak out the back or actually deliver one of their famous cakes. After all, they are running a business.
Melinda Simerley, a visitor from Tennessee, waited behind the bakery on Monday afternoon with family members hoping to get a glimpse of some of the stars of the TLC reality show Cake Boss.
Simerley said she hadn’t heard that Buddy comes out this way, but saw a crowd of people and decided to try her luck. Simerley, with a camera around her neck, was visiting New York City and decided to take a day trip into Hoboken.
Emery Tedesco, 13, of Stamford, Conn., said she was hoping to see some of the cast members from the show.
“I like them all,” Tedesco said. “I like their work, but I was hoping to see Grace.”
Grace Faugno is Buddy’s sister.
Many in the back said in a rather matter-of-fact way that Buddy wasn’t at the bakery, but was instead at the new warehouse that the bakery purchased in Jersey City.
Another family from Massachusetts was in the back just hoping to get a glimpse of some cakes as they are carried out the backdoor to a nearby van. They were treated to one cast member carrying a specialty cake with a motorcycle on top of it.
For those thinking of trying to enter through the back door, think again. The door is locked by an electronic keypad.
The line for the bakery was especially long today, but some kids in line said that they’re on spring break from school this week. So, Hoboken, expect some large crowds on Washington Street this week, mostly filled with polite out-of-towners just hoping to grab a bite to eat. – Ray Smith