Rocco’s Village Bakery has found a second lease on life on South Meriden’s Main Street. The bakery, which occupied a location in New Haven for 40 years, closed in June after the owners Antonio and Anna DiBenedetto decided to retire, unable to keep up with the work demands at their age. 

Their son Ferdinando DiBenedetto, the lead baker in the establishment for 30 years, however, saw the opportunity to continue the family business in a new location — 121 Main St. in South Meriden. Having planned to open the location just before the pandemic, DiBenedetto and his family had to delay their launch until July just after the New Haven location’s closure, bringing the same Italian-style pastries back to Meriden.