LAT: How long lines keep Porto's Bakery affordable — and growing

I stopped getting pies/cakes - the presentation is really sloppy now. The last crumb cake I got was way too sweet as well. Potato balls and meat pies I don’t love anymore due to taste of olives.

Raspberry kisses / clam chowder / cheese rolls still good though…

Olives has always been a part of Cuban Picadillo. Perhaps they are using cheaper ones or adding more to keep the costs low. For some reason our booker always schedules our focus groups near a Portos. So consistently over the years from the Burbank, Glendale and Downey locations, everyone still stops by with yellow boxes.

Best thing at Portos: Dulce de Leche Kisses. One of the best cookies in the city.

Best Cuban sandwich in L.A.: Del Rey Deli. Been to Miami, this monster blows 75% of those there out of the water.

https://twitter.com/Dommy_in_LA/status/367099718960041984/photo/1

–Dommy!

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That’s the point - when I first started going to Portos, I didn’t notice the taste of the olives. Now I taste the olives.

As an olive hater, this is now a problem.

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I guess either our tastebuds are fucked or nobody cares, because we were the only ones talking on that thread.

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With that bread?:unamused:
I’ll have to try it. Always on the hunt for a decent cubano in this city!

p.s. Tampa cubanos blow Miami out of the water :slight_smile:

Try this Cubano at Habana Vieja (Torrance)…

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With that bread?:unamused:

The bread looks thick, but is wonderfully CRISP and soft. Not 100% authentic, but the housemade fillings more than make up for it.

Tampa cubanos blow Miami out of the water :slight_smile:

And I’m not a fan of Tampa Cubanos. Pickles and Salami?!!. No.

–Dommy!

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Oh I have always liked the cheese rolls better then the guava cream cheese pastries. Always. So no shame there!

And belatedly I say - did you try the thanksgiving potato balls this year (17)? They were great!

Yes. Yes they were. A lot better than their current meat blend that’s for sure :slight_smile:

Pickles are a must. Salami on the other hand… I never noticed that at the Tampa spots. Most of them do offer the option of lettuce which is untraditional but adds a nice touch.

I cut way back on gluten. Porto’s guava cheese strudel is one item I miss the most, so it’s worth a cheat day occasionally.

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Porthos is a Musketeer. He’d probably like Porto’s.

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Stupid me outsmarted by funkied up autocorrect. :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes:

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Up against some serious competition…

–Dommy!

wtf…

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LOL no

to save everyone else the time:

All the finalist bakeries:

  • Pitchoun Bakery
  • Bakers and Baristas
  • Pascal patisserie
  • Farmshop
  • Renaud’s Bakery & Bistro
  • Porto’s Bakery & Cafe
  • La Tropézienne Bakery

I haven’t had a Porto’s croissant in years, but I can’t imagine that they’ve changed significantly. I guess it’s cheap enough and close enough to warrant another look…maybe.

One has to wonder what the criteria were. I’ve never found Porto’s to be supreme at anything that I’ve tried. The QPR is solid, but if I’m shoveling bakery calories in my belly, they’d better be FTC-acceptable - not just good for the money.

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According to Reddit, these croissants were made specifically for this event, i.e. Not the same ones available for sale.

I’m too lazy to read the article again to confirm.

These days the only things FTC acceptable to me from Portos are cheese rolls and clam chowder.

Their oatmeal raisin cookies are wonderfully good.

I used to get the chocolate chip cookies (his fav) for the hubster and the oatmeal (“Oh, you wouldn’t really like these…”) for me. And then one day he’d eaten all his cookies, and thus tried one of mine.

And my oatmeal cookies were never safe again!

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