Cacia's Bakery in South Philadelphia continues decades-long tradition cooking up Thanksgiving turkeys

Despite the rain, dozens of people lined up outside Cacia's Bakery in South Philadelphia early Thursday morning to ensure their turkeys had a spot inside the bakery's famous brick oven.

The family-owned business has been helping cook up Thanksgiving birds in the city for more than 70 years.

"It looks like everything is running nice and smooth," said bakery owner Joey Cacia. "That's all that counts."

Once inside the bakery, customers passed their prepared poultry off to staff, who wrapped and tagged the birds before putting them into the oven for three to five hours.

"I got in from work at like 11 o'clock last night and then decided to take the turkey out, clean it out, dress it up and then come out here at 3:30 this morning to come out here," Angela Saltzer said. "It's going to be a great time and something new to try."  

This year, the staff cooked 118 turkeys, which beat last year's total. Back in 2015, the bakery marked a poultry milestone when they roasted 141 birds.

"It's my second year here and it's like a tradition for me," Jumbo Eaniels said. "The turkey is 20 pounds. It's for six people, my wife and my family."   

Cacia's Bakery also offers many other treats and fixings to complete customers' Thanksgiving feasts, including their well-known pizza and cannolis. 

To prepare for the influx of business on the holiday, staff baked 2,000 pounds of rolls and bread.

In:
• Pennsylvania
• Small Business
• Food & Drink
• South Philadelphia
• Thanksgiving
• Philadelphia