I Can't Stop Ordering These Cuban Pastries for Myself and Everyone I Know

Every time I walk into a location of L.A.’s belovedPorto’s Bakery,the huge line makes me smile. Porto’s is, in fact, the only place I’m happy to wait in line, because there's no restaurant like it. It's one of those magical places where you can easily put together a $4breakfastor a $6 lunch and treat yourself to an extravagant but affordable dessert.

Porto’s, famous for both sweet and savoryCubanfood, has two greatest hits: guava-and-cheese strudels and picadillo-filled potato balls. These strudels are perfect: flaky and airy and fruity and sweet, but not too sweet. The potato balls, which are coated in panko and deep-fried, are pure comfort, filled with mashed potatoes, ground beef, peppers, onions, and spices. These potato balls are exactly what I want to eat right now, for lunch or for breakfast or for late at night when my mind is wandering and I can't remember what day of the week it is.

During this extremely weird andunsettling moment in timewhen there is no line at Porto’s because no customers are allowed inside Porto’s, you should be pleased to hear that Porto’s hasbake-at-home itemsthat can be shipped nationwide.

像波尔图的所有内容一样，烘焙订单是一个令人难以置信的价值。十几个瓜瓦和奶酪的痕迹或十二个土豆球为$ 16.99。同样的价格也可以为您带来十几个肉馅卷饼或十二个肉馅饼或15个饼干。波尔图喜欢保持简单和负担得起的事情。

The refrigerated shipping varies, but you can, for example, pay a $24.99 shipping cost for four dozen pastries sent to Brooklyn. Factor in a $10 discount for your first order, and that means 48 items in Park Slope for about $80.

你们中的那些人仍然可以开车去拿起新鲜出炉的波尔图的物品。我一直告诉朋友，波尔图的路边皮卡与专门计划的军事行动一样有效。您会期望一群像飞机机库一样广阔的面包店，每年为数百万客户提供服务。

在创始人罗莎·波托（Rosa Porto）去年下半年去世后，Los Angeles Timespublished a piece that called Porto’s’ “the most beloved bakery in Los Angeles.” It was a truth that was self-evident.

Porto’s has helped define Los Angeles food for more than four decades. It’s crossed cultures in a way few things have: I remember talking to Chase and Chad Valencia at modern Filipino restaurantLasanearly three years ago. They told me they grew up thinking Porto’s pastries were Filipino food because they ate so many guava-and-cheese strudels and potato balls at family parties.

Porto’s is in the business of selling great food, but you also get indelible memories. So when I go there, I think about how my son stuck his finger in his Lightning McQueen birthday cake from Porto’s before we could take a picture of it. I think about how I took my parents to Porto’s not long ago and how they flipped out and said they preferred Porto’s to any Chinese bakery. I think about how they’ve insisted on getting guava pastries every time they visit L.A. I miss the line at Porto’s a lot right now.

A few days ago, I posted some photos of my most recent Porto’s order on Instagram. A friend who had recently left L.A. and moved out-of-state DMed me and asked me to send him a potato ball. I told him that he could now easily get a dozen shipped to his house. I’m pretty sure I’ve changed his life.