COMING IN HOT — Sagan Smarella helped Matthew Belardine unload Italian loaves from the oven at Steubenville Bakery. -- Christopher Dacanay

STEUBENVILLE — Steubenville Bakery is a staple in the Ohio Valley. The modest store on South Street has been supplying devoted residents and businesses with fresh, handmade Italian bread and rolls for nearly a century.

Originally located on South Seventh Street, the business was acquired in 1937 by the Tripodi family. Louis Tripodi owned and operated the store for 50 years until 2015, when his health issues temporarily halted activity.

A year later, business owners Bill Mitchell and Dean Ferguson arranged with Tripodi to take ownership and re-open the store. That kept Steubenville Bakery’s traditions alive for another seven years.

The Belardine family became Steubenville Bakery’s newest owners in the summer of 2024. But a change of hands won’t spell changes to the store and its long-held heritage, they say. Rather, the Belardines are devoted to upholding the store’s original craftsmanship and continually putting out an exceptional product.

Matthew Belardine grew up in Steubenville and graduated from Steubenville High School in 2006. He’s well acquainted with the food business, being the owner of the Italian carry-out restaurant Josephine’s in Mingo Junction.

The opportunity to take over Steubenville Bakery came through Belardine’s friendship with Ferguson, he recalled. When that opportunity arrived, Belardine and his wife, Kristen Belardine, “definitely wanted to do it.”

“It was a process trying to figure it out, but we’re definitely grateful to have the opportunity,” Matthew Belardine said. “The standard that Louis set was second-to-none. You can’t duplicate it, and that’s why they’ve had so much success down here … This product has been on people’s dinner tables every Sunday since 1937. Dean upheld that tradition, and we have the opportunity to do that (too).”

Belardine admitted he gets a “a little emotional” when considering the years of hard work contributed by the late Louis Tripodi, whose photograph remains in the store.

Belardine also is proud to be part of the robust community of food businesses in Steubenville’s South End. Those business owners’ tireless efforts are an inspiration, one that Belardine hopes to imitate with Steubenville Bakery.

“All the businesses in town — in particular Naples, Capris, Gina’s, Steve’s Fish and Chips, Mario’s, Spot Bar — these are people that I have a lot of respect for because these are establishments that started in our community, that I don’t think they get the credit that all of them deserve sometimes. These are people who came before us, woke up every day to create a product that’s really good. We look forward in the future to do exactly what they did.”

After the Belardines purchased Steubenville Bakery in July, they received mentorship for about four months from Ferguson, who helped make the transition “very smooth.” Ferguson continued to instill a family atmosphere in the business while he was owner, Belardine noted, adding that Ferguson will continue to be a source of advice going forward.

Steubenville Bakery is run by a small team, among which are Belardine and his wife; his father, Tim Belardine; Sagan Smarella and Frank Clark. The latter has been working at the store for 32 years and is “the heartbeat” of the operation, Matthew Belardine said.

Baking bread is no walk in the park. It begins early, with Clark arriving between midnight at 1 a.m. on open days to mix the dough. Once the dough comes out of the industrial mixer, it’s weighed and rolled by hand into loaves.

The dough may also be cut on presses, raised, smashed and raised again before being baked into hard rolls. Belardine emphasized that every product is handmade, with each being touched three or four times before it enters the oven.

Speaking of the oven, it’s gas-fired and made of brick that “holds the heat for days.” Originally coal-powered, the oven is perhaps one of a small few like it still around today, Belardine said, estimating that it could hold more than 200 loaves at a time.

An early morning is no problem for Belardine, who called it “the most peaceful time of the day.” He enjoys the bread-making process, fraternizing with his coworkers and “giving customers a product that they’ve been getting since 1937.”

The store itself is open on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bread is shipped to many local restaurants like Naples Spaghetti House, Mario’s Restaurant and Lounge, Capris Sausage and Meatball and Gina’s Meatball Shop, as well as some small delis and convenience stores.

Some individuals walk into the store to buy Italian loaves, hard rolls or any of the various specialty breads. Greeted by a tantalizing smell, they traverse the same side hallway that customers have traversed for years — that’s another tradition Belardine has no intention of changing because “it means a lot to people.”

Steubenville Bakery’s bread is good enough to warrant a line, with customers waiting in their cars or outside the door just before it opens.

“This is a little line. Sometimes it’s down the block,” said Kathleen Fellows, who was the first to arrive on Dec. 29. “There’ll be more people coming.”

Picking up a loaf for a family get-together, Fellows recalled how she’s been getting Steubenville Bakery bread since she was young. She and her friends would play in the alleyway nearby, and when the store opened, they’d munch on a loaf while seated on the curb.

Her favorite part about Steubenville Bakery bread is the crunchy exterior and soft interior. Although other local bakeries have good bread, Fellows said, “Nobody has the hard crust like this one.”

Belardine said he looks forward to making the store something positive for his two children — Birdie and Mya Belardine — and the people of Steubenville in general.

The store was originally open six days a week, Belardine recalled, but it decreased to three when it changes hands from the Tripodis. In the future, Belardine hopes to open the bakery six days a week once again.

Belardine repeated that he’s grateful for the opportunity to take over what others before him have poured their sweat and tears into.

“Our main goal is to uphold the tradition that Louis built, Dean continued and we’re gonna continue through hard work, treating people good and putting a good product on the table.”