Walking into Giuseppina’s Italian Bakery on Sullivan Avenue, the aroma of freshly-baked cookies, pastries, and danishes wafts through the door, inviting guests to come in and try a bite of something sweet or savory. “We’ve been really busy the last four or five months with people going out,” owner Jenny Beaurivage said. “We’re getting a lot of larger cake orders. We’re getting a lot of wedding cake orders. It’s like we’re just opening the store. It’s a good feeling.”

It’s a lot of work, Beaurivage said, since business has picked up. “We’re always short-staffed in the kitchen,” she said. “Since the pandemic started, we’ve been really busy in the kitchen. We try to keep up with the demand, but it’s been unbelievable.”