Since 1960...

Porto's Bakery & Cafe has been a favorite in Southern California. Porto's traces its origins back to Rosa and Raul Sr. Porto. The family emigrated from Cuba to California after both of them became unemployed. When they arrived in America, all they really had were the clothes on their backs...and Rosa Porto's baking talent. Rosa began baking and selling delicious cakes to their neighbors and soon enough, her home was not large enough to accommodate the increased demand. They opened the first bakery on Sunset boulevard. Similar moves continued as popularity increased over the years and before they knew it, Porto's had become one of the most unique bakeries in Southern California. Now there are three locations: Burbank, Glendale and Downey.

My very first encounter with Porto’s was actually through Yelp. When searching for red velvet cupcakes, Porto’s came up as one of the best matched choices. I didn’t go to Porto’s that night I yelped it but I drove past it the next weekend, not knowing it was Porto’s. I remember wondering why this restaurant was so crowded. I heard about it again a week later from a friend who is from Southern California. She and I, along with two other friends decided to brunch there the next weekend.

We got to Porto’s around 12:30 pm and it was jam packed as usual. If you decide to come eat here at peak brunch/lunch hours, you’ll most likely have to find parking on a nearby street and walk a bit to the restaurant.

From the exterior, there’s nothing much about this place that will catch your eye. It’s a simple yellow cement building. The inside is PACKED. They hand you a menu when you walk in so you can look at the menu while you’re in line. The menu has many, many choices such as appetizers, sandwiches, breakfast foods like omelets, house soups and salads. And of course, a large selection of baked goods.

I basically ordered what Yelp told me were the most popular things here. Stuffed potato ball, Cuban sandwich and an iced green latte.

The stuffed potato, what the bakery and café is most famous for, was my favorite. A single, little deep fried potato brought so much happiness to my taste buds. Perfectly fried, golden and crispy. Hot and steamy inside. Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside. The stuffing inside is seasoned beef. The beef wasn’t chunky and the taste of the herbs and seasoning complemented the starchy taste of the potato.

The Cuban Sandwich (Cubano) was a little disappointing. I had high expectations for it because there was so much talk about it and it sounded so much better on paper. This sandwich had slow roasted pork and ham, Swiss cheese, pickles, butter, mustard and mayonnaise on Cuban bread. The bread was nicely toasted, crunchy on the outside and warm and fluffy on the inside. The meat however, lacked taste. It didn’t really taste like much more than deli meat to me. I’m sure the quality itself was better but the taste, not so much. The sandwich was huge though so it definitely fills you up. Sandwiches also come with plantain chips. I’ve never been a fan of plantains. I’ve had various forms of it but haven’t developed a liking for it yet.

The iced green tea latte was delicious, but a little too sweet for my taste. It actually tasted better when I was halfway through it because the ice had melted a bit and it diluted the drink.

The atmosphere of this place is loud and fun, a great place for friends to gather for lunch or brunch. The dining area is like a cafeteria, a huge room with a lot of tables.

The potato ball upped my rating for this place. 3.75/5