Clam chowder and chili were the staple soups.
I don’t even want to go into the Blues Festival days. Drinking age was dropped to 18; I remember seeing Johnny Winter and Luther Allison jam together at a bar on Ashley. It might have been Mr. Flood’s Party.
You’re right though. We should quit hijacking the thread. Great to reminisce with you, @secretasianman and @helper_monkey at any rate.
No need to end the party here - Take it to the USA Midwest Board!
Randomly, Portos does a great clam chowder Friday’s. Is there a better clam chowder in the city for $4?
Philippe’s the Original.
Well, you asked…
I will work on it.
Ok seriously is Portos cutting their ground beef with olives? There is a distinct taste of olives IMO.
They changed several of their recipes in the last couple years. I posted about it on the old board a while back. The potato balls aren’t as dense, with more peppers and olives in the filling (it’s looser too), and the ham croquettes are more of a coarse grind ham mixed with mashed potato, not a smooth mix like it used to be.
We don’t get as much stuff from them as we used to.
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!
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.
I guess either our tastebuds are fucked or nobody cares, because we were the only ones talking on that thread.
With that bread?
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 
With that bread?
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
And I’m not a fan of Tampa Cubanos. Pickles and Salami?!!. No.
–Dommy!
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
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.
Porthos is a Musketeer. He’d probably like Porto’s.
