Joe Cugliari, owner and president of Prantl’s Bakery, issued a statement following the Allegheny Health Department’s consumer alert regarding the bakery’s Walnut Street location in Shadyside.
According to the department’s Thursday report, the bakery had a presence of rodent droppings on multiple surfaces, damaged exterior walls, soiled food equipment, old food debris and accumulated non-essential items.
The report called the pest management violations “high risk” — and claimed the space was not being properly cleaned.
Cugliari said in a Friday Facebook post on the bakery’s social media page that the citation involved rodent activity and droppings in an empty basement of Prantl’s building and in areas it no longer uses for baking or storage.
“We moved all baking out of our Shadyside location some time ago and now operate primarily as a retail store,” the post said. “Custom cake decorating is done upon request; however, most custom cake orders are completed in Greensburg, and all baking is produced at our main bakery there.
“We made these changes to maintain the highest standards in our kitchen, prep and customer areas.”
Cugliari said even though the basement is empty, “we recognize that rodent control can be difficult in an urban area.”
“Our bakery is next to restaurants and several other food businesses, which creates a shared environment where these issues can arise despite strong preventive efforts,” the post said.
He said a licensed exterminator has been coming in for scheduled monthly service for the entire property to address this.
“We will continue that work while coordinating with the health department on any additional recommendations,” the post said. “We want to be clear: this issue has not affected the safety or quality of the products we bake and serve each day. Our kitchen, display cases and all customer-facing areas continue to meet or exceed health and sanitation standards.”
To have the alert removed, the entire facility needs to be cleaned, according to the health department. All old food debris must be removed from all surfaces, rodent droppings need to be removed from the facility and affected areas need to be cleaned and disinfected. All non-essential items in the basement and storage closets must be removed.
If the violations are not corrected within 10 days, the facility will be ordered to be closed.
“We take food safety and cleanliness extremely seriously and appreciate the opportunity to address this matter,” Cugliari said. “We are grateful for the support of our community and are committed to resolving this fully. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to us directly. We are always happy to talk.”