Better than expected and a great (now expired) deal
It’s been a couple of decades since I last ordered pizza from Domino’s, despite having an outlet not very far from my home. Domino’s is definitely not what I think of when I imagine quality pizza, and I had the vague memory I was boycotting it for some reason (apparently, its anti-abortion founder has long divested from the company, though there might be a grassroots boycott due to the behavior of Domino franchises in Israel). Still, I couldn’t remember why and when I saw an ad for large pizzas with up to 7-toppings for $10 ($11 here in the Bay Area), I was tempted. We have pretty much stopped getting take out due to the exorbitant prices, and I been on a cooking strike as of late.
We ended up getting Domino’s a couple of times while the promotion lasted. I was surprised to find that Domino’s pizza is pretty good. The pizzas are nothing to write home about, but they are pretty solid in comparison to other chains and mom & pop pizzeria pizzas – and at $11 while the promotion lasted, they were far, far cheaper. My only real complaint is that the pizzas could have stronger flavors, maybe some oregano would help.
We tried both the handtossed and pan pizzas – the handtossed are on the thin side, and pan are what used to be a normal thickness a few decades ago. The handtossed only comes in medium, which I imagine is a 12″ – the others come in 14″ / large size.
I wouldn’t order Domino’s at the regular price, but I just got a promo for a 2-topping large carryout pizza for $7, and given that I mostly buy pizza for my children and they prefer just cheese pizza, I’ll probably get these at some point. Hey, at that price they are competitive both with 7-11 and supermarket pizza.
I like that Domino’s lets you pay online when you order, or use cash and pay at the store and, of course, that it’s close enough that we can save all fees by walking to get them. Note that this is not a restaurant, there is nowhere to seat, just a kitchen with a counter to pick up pizza.
Domino's 1768 E 14th St San Leandro, CA (510) 351-3301 M-Su 10:30 AM - 12 AM
A visit to the Porter Ranch location shows how bad food dooms a restaurant
Once upon a time TGI Friday’s was a happening chain. It was cool, even somewhat hip, offering good burgers and cool drinks. I have a vague memory of going once or twice to the Jack London location (since closed) and not thinking too badly of it. But things have changed in the last few decades, and TGI Friday’s has now become a tired, unappealing chain only to be visited when you are stuck at the airport with no better choices. Indeed, I had an OK meal at the Miami airport location a few years ago.
Still, we were in LA visiting family, and my brother suggested we go to dinner there – he had a coupon. As he can be picky about what he eats, I figured we might as well and so we headed there a week night in March, 2026. It was even worse than I expected.
The restaurant itself doesn’t look too bad, but it’s just tired. It looks like it did back in the 90’s, but with the same wrinkles and sagging we acquired ourselves. It’s as low energy as it gets – pretty much the opposite of what it once signified. The service, however, was very good. Our waiter was extremely patient as my brother tried and failed, time after time, of applying the electronic coupon (here is a hint: order first, and apply the coupon after you get the bill).
I had the boneless wing basket ($11). I wasn’t very hungry, but I wanted to try their famous (as per the reviews I read) whisky sauce. You choose the flavor of the wings and a side – obviously, I went with onion rings.
The 8 “wings” (boneless wings are really just breast slices) were OK, a bit dried and overcooked but I did like the whisky sauce, which was sweet and not too intense. It reminded me of Jack Daniels BBQ sauce, but better. The onion rings were pretty standard. But it was a tired meal, the sort you’d expect from a diner anywhere in America.
My brother had essentially the same thing, only that instead of the “basket” he ordered the small appetizer of boneless chicken wings, as that’s what his coupon was for. Normally, this costs $14 and you don’t get a side, so check under “Meal Deals” to make sure you are not overpaying by ordering from a different part of the menu.
My husband went for the Friday Feast ($32), and it actually hurt paying so much for such a mediocre meal. He chose whisky glazed ribs (half a rack) and fried shrimp, with broccoli and slaw as sides. He thought his meal was just “fine,” – there just wasn’t anything remarkable about it. For the price, there should have been. Indeed, I think the ribs I had at the Miami airport a few years ago were better.
In all, we left unsurprised that TGI Friday’s went bankrupt. And while they have since announced a revamp, it seems to be at the planning stages only. Personally, if I had to go back to TGI Friday’s, I’d stick with the value menu (so at least I’m not paying too much for mediocre food) – but I’ll probably only go back if I’m stuck at an airport without better choices.
TGI Friday's 19855 Rinaldi St Porter Ranch, CA (818) 831-2324 M-Su 10:30 AM - 1 AM
A couple of weeks ago I saw a commercial for The Olive Garden‘s Never Ending Pasta Bowl and since then I’ve been obsessing about it. I’m not sure why. Maybe because I’ve been watching my carbs and avoiding pasta. Or maybe there is just something about the fantasies of limitless eating that appeals to human at an instinctive level. Olive Garden has been having this promotion for decades, so it’s obviously working for them.
I’m by no means a regular Olive Garden customer. I can count in one hand how often I’ve gone to the restaurant over the decades, with fingers to spare. Mostly I found it unmemorable, and with better Italian options around, often the same or more affordable prices, there has never been a compelling reason to go
I actually did a fair amount of reading on the Olive Garden and the Never Ending Pasta Bowl before my visit – such was my obsession. I learned that it wasn’t a particularly good deal for the customer, as most normal people can’t finish a single plate of pasta, much less have seconds. I also learned that you can take leftovers to go, and that you can order a serving of just the sauce. Finally, I learned that waiters hate it because they have to make multiple trips to the kitchen without the corresponding increase in tips.
We visited the Hayward location for lunch a Friday in October. I remembered the restaurant looking cuter back when I last went, this time it was just utilitarian. We were seated near the bar – and the kitchen – in a room without any decorations at all. Given that the food is not that cheap, I expected better.
We went there a little before noon and the place got fairly busy as the lunch hour came, though it was never really full. The restaurant is rather large, with good distance between the tables.
As the entrées all come with soup or salad and breadsticks, we didn’t bother ordering appetizers. My husband and daughter had the salad which they found to be unremarkable. It wasn’t good, it wasn’t bad, it was just a salad.
The breadsticks, on the other hand, were delicious. They are served warm, have garlic flavor, and have a soft interior. They are a tad dry, so they’re great for dipping. They were our favorite part of the meal – though I only had half of one, as I didn’t want to get full on bread (plus I’m watching those carbs).
Olive Garden has four soups, and I’d read that the Chicken & Gnocchi soup ($10, if ordered on its own) was particularly popular, so I ordered that. It was OK. I did like how soft and pillowy the gnocchi were, but there were relatively few of them in the soup. The chicken cream base wasn’t my favorite, but I’m not a fan of cream soups (or soups) in general. I did like it as a dip for the breadstick, however.
I got a second portion to go, as part of the Never Ending Pasta Bowl promotion (which gives you never ending soup or salad and never ending breadsticks as well), and I was surprised at how small it was. I think it had all of two gnocchi.
My daughter had the chicken parmigiana ($21.3). It was a large portion but not a particularly successful one. My daughter compared it to the frozen chicken parmesan we buy at the supermarket.
Mike had the seafood alfredo ($23.5) and he was equally unimpressed. He found the alfredo sauce to be thin and not particularly tasty, and the seafood just OK. He wouldn’t order it again.
In both these cases, you can get a much better plate of food for a similar price at a mom & pop’s Italian restaurant.
I, of course, ordered the Never Ending Pasta Bowl ($16) with a side of protein ($5). The protein this time around are meatballs, Italian sausages or “crispy chicken fritta”, which I think are breaded and fried chicken slices. You are given a choice of four pastas (fettuccine, spaghetti, rigatoni and angel hair) and six sauces (garlic herb, alfredo, marinara, five cheese marinara, creamy mushroom and meat sauce).
For my first plate I had the fettuccine with half mushroom sauce , half meat sauce and meatballs. The plate was rather generous and definitely enough for a lunch entree, particularly after eating the few gnocchi from the soup. The fettuccine itself was rather bland (but it’s pasta) and a little past al dente – with some parts that were on the rawer side. I don’t think I’d order it again. I did like the mushroom sauce, particularly when I got a mushroom. It was creamy, mushroomy and very tasty. The meat sauce, on the other hand, was a disappointment. It had very small and scant pieces of meat and tasted like jarred sauce. I definitely wouldn’t order it again. The meatballs weren’t bad. They were light, and tasted like the meatballs you get in pizza joint and sandwich places – which I, personally, like. The first order came with three meatballs.
For my second plate, which I took home, I had the angel hair pasta with the five cheese marinara sauce. I liked the angel hair better, but the sauce – a mixture of marinara sauce with alfredo sauce – tasted like supermarket vodka sauce, basically, a creamy tomato sauce. It was too acidic. I would not order it again. This second portion of pasta was also pretty small, and it came with two meatballs.
I also had a bowl of alfredo sauce, as I wanted to try it. As Mike noted, it was on the thin side, and it also didn’t differ much from the jarred stuff. It wasn’t bad as a dip for the breadsticks, but I also wouldn’t order it .
I had water with dinner, Mike had a soda ($4), and my daughter had the raspberry lemonade ($4.50). She really liked it. They come with unlimited refills as well.
Service was fine, a little bit rushed but that’s to be expected.
In all, it was a mediocre and yet pretty expensive lunch – though we all took some leftovers home. I can’t imagine rushing back to the Olive Garden.
Olive Garden 24688 Hesperian Blvd Hayward, CA (510) 782-6385 Su - Th 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM F - Sa 11:00 AM to 11:00 PM
This Greek fast food chain serves authentic souvlaki pitas!
I have written before about how my first introduction to Greek food was during a trip to Greece while doing my year abroad in Egypt. I was a starving student and Greece seemed expensive compared to Egypt back then, so my diet while there consisted pretty much only of souvlaki pitas. These sandwiches of sliced lamb and beef, with tomatoes and onions, French fries and tzatziki sauce were absolutely delicious. I had the opportunity to try them again when we travelled back to Athens, right before the pandemic. They hadn’t changed.
The gyros that Greek and Mediterranean restaurants in the US were different, and not just because they lacked French fries. I could never really tell why, but the flavor was just not there. Thus I was surprised that Nick the Greek – a chain of all things – has managed to approximate them so well.
Nick the Greek opened a location in San Leandro in the last couple of years, and we’ve been regular costumers since. They have a pretty limited menu, however, of pitas, plates and a bowl.
I usually get the Beef/Lamb Gyro Pita ($12.50). I’ve now learned that the difference between a gyro and souvlaki is that the former consists of meat shaved off a chunk of meat cooked in a rotisserie, while the latter refers to meat cooked in a skewer. I could have sworn that the souvlaki pitas I had in Greece were cooked in a rotisserie, but I could be wrong. I do prefer the taste of texture of meat cooked in skewers, as it turns out.
I like how soft and spongy the pita is. The meat is a little too salty by itself, but it mellows out within the pita. By itself, the lamb has a very intense flavor – you can tell it’s lamb -, while the beef is softer. I like having fries in the pita, though these could be a bit crispier, you don’t really notice them while you eat. The whole combo just works together well, though the predominant flavor is that of onion, when you get a piece, and of the tzatziki when you don’t.
I’ve tried the chicken souvlaki pita before, and I didn’t like it as much. Despite the marinade, the flavor of the chicken was too soft to measure up to the rest of the ingredients. My daughter has done the felafel pita before and she thought it was OK, but not remarkable.
My husband prefers to get the gyro bowl ($13.50) which includes the meat of your choice, tomatoes, lettuce, onions and cucumbers, feta cheese, tzatziki and spicy yogurt on a bed of rice. The whole thing feels like a larger, more substantial meal than the gyro and is enough for two meals. He likes how the flavors meld together.
Nick the Greek has been expanding throughout California and the west, and I can understand why. It’s not a place where you’d eat every day, given the limited menu, but a great place to grab a pita when you don’t feel like cooking.
Nick the Greek 1509 E 14th Street. San Leandro, CA Daily 11 AM - 10 PM
Cupid’s Hot Dogs are a staple in the San Fernando Valley. I had never heard of it myself, but I only started eating hot dogs when I got pregnant with my first baby – long after I’d moved away from the Valley. The now small chain started in North Hollywood back in the 1940’s and been in the family since then. While some of its locations are now run by the granddaughters of the original owners, others seem to be franchises. We visited the Chatsworth location, which seems to be one of the latter.
Cupid is particularly well known for its chili hot dog ($7 after tax) and that’s what Mike got one weekday day last week – I wasn’t hungry enough to get one myself.
He was underwhelmed. The hot dog was utterly unremarkable. The hot dog was standard – it could have been an Oscar Weiner wiener for all he knows -, and the chili was uninspired. It was perfectly fine, but it was as generic as they come.
What was surprising about the chili dog is that eating it wasn’t a mess. He’s not sure if this was because there wasn’t too much of it, or if the chili was more solid than usual, but it was perfectly clean to eat – he barely spilled any onto the container. The hot dog is also normal size – not the extra large ones you get at Costco.
Finally, Mike was quite unhappy that the hot dog came in a styrofoam container. which are now ilegal in LA.
While the menus at the different Cupid’s seem to be the same, I’m not sure if the same can be said about the quality. We might try one of those still in the family next time we are in town.
Cupid's Hot Dogs 9840 Topanga Canyon Blvd. Unit D Chatsworth, CA (818) 700-1729 M - Sa 10:30 AM TO 8:00 PM
Where my craving for IHOP was permanently satiated.
Ever since an IHOP opened in San Leandro, now several years ago, I’d been wanting to give it a try. Even though I’m fairly certain that our last experiences with IHOP had been disappointing, there is something pretty magical about those glossy menus with photos of delicious looking pancakes in all sorts of flavors. Truth be told, I’m not actually that big a fan of pancakes, and I seldom even end up ordering them, but they still fascinate me. Even now, as I think about them, I’m almost ready to head towards the door.
Alas, I’m not a breakfast-eating-person – I’m just not hungry when I wake up – so despite such cravings, I still haven’t made it to the San Leandro IHOP and might not had gone to an IHOP at all, if I didn’t find myself hungry and with low blood sugar as we approached the Grapevine during our last trip to LA. I saw the sign for it as we approached Lebec and there we went.
The restaurant itself, part of the Petro truck stop/travel center which also hosts a Wendy’s, a Baskin Robbins and a mini-mart, in addition to other facilities, was clean and pleasant enough. It seems to have taken the space of an Iron Skillet, so it doesn’t have anything that screams “IHOP” other than the name. It was fairly empty on a Saturday around 1 PM.
While I needed something to eat, I wasn’t actually hungry so I decided to get something light: the fresh berry crepes ($13.50). In the menu, they were shown rolled around some filling, sprinkled with berries and drizzed with chocolate sauce. In reality, the crepes were served folded into triangles, had some cut berries on top and a super-light dusting of powdered sugar. They were an extreme disappointment.
First, the crepes weren’t fresh. I don’t know if they make them there or the buy them in packages and then lightly heat them but they were clearly old and tough – you could barely cut them with the side of a fork. They were also very dry, and with no wet elements on the plate, hard to eat. I did ask for some whipped cream – which I think was probably whipped “topping” – and that helped some. The berries were fine, though not juicy enough to help the crepes. In all, it was a very disappointing dish. If I wanted old packaged crepes with plain berries, I could buy them at the supermarket.
Mike’s meal was more special, at least, by virtue of this being the first senior meal that he ever ordered. We are now officially old. He had the 55+ breakfast sampler ($11.30) which came with 1 buttermilk pancake, 1/2 a strip of bacon, 1 small slice of ham, 1 breakfast sausage, 1 egg (he had his over medium) and hash browns. He substituted the latter for wheat toast for an additional 80 cents (!).
He felt that was the ideal amount of food for his apetite nowadays, and was hapy he hadn’t over-ordered. Quality wise, the food was comparable to Denny’s. He did like his egg, however, probably because he seldom has them.
We had sodas, but they didn’t charge us for them – perhaps because the waiter realized just how disappointed I was with my meal. He did ask me whether he could bring me anything else, but there was no way to save those crepes.
In all, what I learned from this experience is to not go to IHOP.
IHOP Petro Travel Center 5821 Dennis McCarthy Dr Lebec, CA (661) 663-4341 Daily 6 AM - 10 PM
Ike’s Love and Sandwiches is a chain of sandwich shops that started in San Francisco in the mid-aughts and which has since expanded to over a hundred locations, mostly in the western US and Florida. They popularized sandwiches made with Dutch crunch bread, their garlic aioli based “dirty sauce” and sometimes unusual ingredient combinations. They opened a location in San Leandro in late 2023, and we’ve had them several times. Their sandwiches, while expensive, are substantia, good for a couple of meals and pretty tasty – though I feel they all taste pretty much the same. They do have plenty of vegetarian and vegan options featuring fake meats. Unfortunately, they’ve gone up on price, about 12% over six or seven months, though that’s true of restaurants in general.
It’s easy to order online and you can customize your sandwiches, but they don’t have a “make your own” sandwich starting from scratch – so if you want something plain, you have to find the closest sandwich to what you want and then ask them to hold whatever ingredients you don’t want.
The last sandwich I ordered was the Big Lee-bowski ($17), which comes with “all beef meatballs, bacon, mozzarella sticks, red pesto, ranch, habanero.” It’s tasty enough, but all the flavors and textures of the ingredients blend together into one. At almost 1900 calories, it’s just not worth it – though one sandwich is definitely large enough for two meals.
I have tried several sandwiches by now, though most of them seem to taste very similar – I’m guessing it’s the dirty sauce. My favorite is the Hollywould’s SF Cheesesteak ($14.50), which comes with beef slices, mushrooms, provolone cheese and dirty sauce. I loved it the first time I ordered it, it had plenty of mushrooms and I really like mushrooms, and I enjoyed the dirty sauce. I may try it again without the sauce, now that I’ve grown tired of it.
I’ve also had the Ike’s ($16), which comes with pastrami, gouda, purple slaw and “mack sauce”. It was good, if unremarkable. I don’t think I can remember the sauce being any different than the others.
I had the Nacho Boy Supreme ($17) once, which comes with roast beef, bacon, mushrooms, avocado and Swiss cheese – it was fine, given that the predominant flavors are mushroom and sauce, I prefer the Hollywould’s SF Cheesesteak which is cheaper and has fewer calories.
Finally, I had the Damon Bruce ($17) and was disappointed by it. This sandwich comes with steak, onion rings, provolone and steak sauce. It tasted like all the other sandwiches, however, and the onion rings were nowhere to be found. OK, I did find them once I opened the sandwich and looked for them, but they are basically crushed with all the other ingredients, and they don’t really offer anything but moisture to the sandwich.
In all, as I said above, I feel all the sandwiches pretty much taste the same.
My husband has often had the Jaymee Sirewich ($13.50), a sandwich with fried chicken, pepper jack, yellow BBQ sauce and ranch. When I asked him why he prefers it, his answer is a simple “it tastes good.” He’s trying to watch calories now, so he had something without fried chicken last time he went. He liked it, whatever it was, but can’t recall what he ordered. Not surprising given that, as I said, all the sandwiches taste the same.
My youngest daughter likes her sandwiches plain, all she wants is bread, roast beef, cheese, lettuce and the dirty sauce. So we order her the Dirty Reuben ($16) and substract the purple slaw. She does like it, more than other roast beef sandwiches, a fact she attributes to the dirty sauce (apparently, unlike me, she’s not gotten tired of it).
My oldest daughter usually goes for the Helen Keller ($17), which comes with vegan steak, American cheese, onion rings and BBQ sauce, though last time she got the Jaymeetless ($14.5) with vegan fried chicken, pepper jack, yellow BBQ sauce and ranch. Like me, she feels all of Ike’s sandwiches pretty much taste the same. Like me, she orders them because my husband likes them and he’s going there anyway, but wouldn’t order one otherwise.
My husband, though, does like the sandwiches and finds Ike’s convenient. That said, maybe next time I’ll skip ordering a sandwich for myself.
Living in San Leandro, I have easy access to a lot taquerías, so it’s probably not surprising that it took me years to finally try Chipotle – which has been occupying the old Copymat space in downtown San Leandro for over a decade now. I finally did several years ago (and you can read my review of their quesadilla), at my daughter’s urging, and I wasn’t impressed. Still, she likes it, so we get it once in a while. My last order reminded me of why it’s not more often.
Chipotle has an easy online ordering system, which allows you to customize your order, and it’s usually ready before you can get to the store. Their prices vary significantly between locations – with the Chipotle in San Leandro having some of the highest prices in the nation. Alas, they haven’t gone up as much as prices at other taquerías. Chipotle has its own frequent user club that allows you to very slowly accumulate points that you can exchange for free food. After this order, I’ll be able to get some free tortilla chips. Yippy (/s).
I ordered a steak burrito ($12.50) with cheese, sour cream and tomatillo-green chili salsa. As usual, I skipped the rice and beans. I was disappointed. Not only was the burrito fairly small, but it was cold. That’s because the cheese, sour cream and salsa are all added cold and very quickly cool down the beef. I suspect the tortilla is not steamed hot before serving it either. I was able to microwave it and melt the cheese as I was eating it at home – but I’m not sure if you’re given that option if you eat it at the restaurant.
I wasn’t thrilled by the flavor either. The tomatillo-green chili salsa was very strong and pretty much overwhelmed all other flavors. The burrito was too salty as well. The meat, cut into cubes, was OK but not particularly flavorful or tender.
In all, there isn’t much to recommend these burritos, other than the fact that I can order them online – unlike the much better ones at Taquería Los Pericos, half a block away.
I also got a large guacamole ($5.90) and a regular order of tortilla chips ($2.10). There are more than enough chips in the regular order to consume the guacamole – and this way I saved 65 cents over the “large guacamole and large chips” item. Yes, I know, it’s not much, but I hate giving any extra money to large corporations.
The guacamole was quite good. It was a little salty, but it tasted quite fresh. The chips are pretty light, a tad greasy, but good as well. Still, they do seem to be on the expensive side given that taquerias usually serve them for free.
My daughter got the chicken al pastor burrito bowl ($11.75), which she gets with extra black beans, extra cheese, extra rice, extra lettuce and extra sour cream. She really likes it, and given that she’s not a huge meat eater it works out well for her. A bowl can work out to two meals if she’s not particularly hungry.
In all, Chipotle is a mixed bag. It works out for my daughter but not for me. I prefer Los Pericos and other local taquerias, but I do like their convenient ordering method. I don’t like that they prompt you to tip for a take out order – but that’s become standard nowadays.
Chipotle 1505 E 14th St San Leandro, CA (510) 667-1003 Daily: 10:30 AM–11 PM
We tried the Hailey Bieber smoothie. Is it worth the hype?
If you are not on TikTok, you might never have heard about Erewhon, the pricy “health food” store in Southern California, which has gone viral for its smoothies. That’s where my daughter heard the super-expensive Hailey Biebersmoothie, which she sort-of-but-it’s-too-expensive-but-if-you-pay-for-it wanted to try. I was game. Sure, the 20-oz smoothie was nineteen-dollars-plus-tax-and-tip, but I figured we weren’t paying for the smoothie, we were paying for the experience. And really, an experience for three people for a fifteen minute drive and a bit over $20 is not bad.
The Erewhon in Calabazas was buzzing at mid-morning in a Wednesday. Apparently, everyone who wasn’t stuffing themselves at Porto’s, was getting some pretend healthy food and expensive smoothies here. Or, really, being seen. While middle age women shopped inside, the outside patio was filled with the young-enough-to-be-carded crowd. Beautiful people, because everyone is beautiful when they’re young.
I only had a quick look at the Erewhon market itself as my too-ashamed-to-be-with-mom daughter rushed us into the Tonic Bar at the far side of the market. The market looked like a smaller version of Sprouts. The Tonic Bar, like your typical cafe counter at any supermarket. I didn’t get a chance to look at prices, but looking at them online, they seem in line with Whole Foods or even the organic produce at Safeway.
Even the smoothie, which seemed outrageously expensive at $19, didn’t end up being so. Or rather, it turns out that all smoothies everywhere are outrageously expensive. Smoothies at Jamba Juice are $10 each – which is the same price as the 20-oz basic smoothies at Erewhon. The Haley Bieber smoothie is so much more because it has a lot of very weird ingredients, plus a famous name attached to it.
Ingredient wise, the Haley Bieber smoothie has “Malk almond milk, organic bananas, organic strawberries, organic avocado, organic dates, organic maple syrup, Vital Proteins vanilla collagen, vanilla stevia, sea moss, organic coconut creme, Driscoll’s Organic Strawberry Glaze”. The smoothie was originally released in conjunction with Haley Bieber’s skin product line and it’s suppose to help you achieve better skin – I’m guessing through its minute quantities of collagen and sea moss. Erewhon seems to keep the nutritional information of its smoothies a secret, but this one seems to have about 700 calories. With sugar from the maple syrup and the strawberry glaze in addition to that naturally occurring in the fruits, it’s also not fit for those in a low-sugar diet. It’s an unhealthy treat, and that’s how it should be seen.
But ultimately, it’s all about the taste and this smoothie is… not bad. Actually, I enjoyed it. It tastes like very light, not too sweet strawberries and cream ice cream with a ‘green’ undertone – I’m guessing from the sea moss. I liked how smooth and not-icy it was. It made me realize that what I dislike about smoothies is how icy they are, and what I dislike about shakes, is that they are too thick and not cold enough. This one had a thin, cold, smooth mouthfeel I really enjoyed. I also liked the strawberries and cream flavor and the fact that despite it having lots of sugar, it didn’t taste too sweet. Now, the colder something is, the less sweet it tastes, so that makes sense. And I liked the green flavor in the background. It wasn’t too forward but it gave it an ‘adult’ bitterness that made it feel more refreshing. I don’t make smoothies myself, but I was thinking about trying to make one by combining ice cream, milk (or almond milk), ice and some matcha powder and blending it very, very well.
Would I get it again? Not for $19 and 700-calories, but I’m glad I tried it once – and shared it with two other people.
This Cuban Bakery is All the Rage in Southern California
Updated in September, 2024
Judge by the hype Porto’s has been getting in recent years, you would never guess that Porto’s Bakery has been around at its original location in Echo Park since 1976. Perhaps its expansion into six locations hit the Southern California zeitgeist at just the right time. Affordable prices at a time of high food inflation is certainly a draw. All I can say, is that when the co-founder died a couple of weeks ago this was news worthy of a “have you heard?”.
This was my second time at Porto’s. The first time I was less than impressed. Don’t get me wrong, I loved their prices but the baked goods? Not so much. Camila got a cinnamon coffee cake ($10.25 a small ring cake) that was quite good, mostly because of its cinnamon pecan streusel, and I’d had high hopes for the guava strudel ($1.25), but it turned out to be no better than what I could make myself with some puff pastry and guava jam. Later, my sister got the refugiados ($1.35) for her baby shower, which are guava strudels with the addition of cream cheese, and these were marginally better. Still, this is the one place my mother will go out for breakfast to, and I was happy to oblige her.
We hit the Porto’s in Northridge mid-morning on a Tuesday. I thought this would allowed us to beat both the breakfast and lunch crowds, but apparently everyone else thought the same, as the place was packed – just as packed as when I went for the first time earlier in a weekend morning a couple of months before. It is, fortunately, quite a large locale, so we were able to find a table to accommodate the four of us (+ newborn baby) fairly easily. This was also my opportunity to learn how Porto’s actually works.
You see, Porto’s has four different counters, and you have to go to the correct one to order what you want. At the Cafecito counter, which is located to the far left of the entrance, just next to the dining room, you can order coffee drinks, smoothies and juices – they do have fresh orange juice. They also have a small selection of baked goods. After you order, you need to hang around as they will call your name when your drink is ready.
I ordered a dulce de leche latte ($5 for a small), and I liked it quite a bit. For me, it had the perfect amount of sweetness and coffee flavor. It tasted as caramel rather than dulce de leche, however. My daughter also had one and she didn’t like at all – she thought it was too strong and not sweet enough; adding more sugar didn’t help. She is not a coffee drinker, however. My sister had the passion colada smoothie ($5.5), “mango and passion fruit ice-blended with a touch of coconut cream” and it was quite good, it did taste strongly of passion fruit.
At the Café counter, along the main wall facing the front door, you can order food, pastries and drinks. They have a breakfast menu, salads, sandwiches and main dishes as well as cold drinks. If you order a food dish you can also order any drink from the Cafecito offerings. If you just order a pastry, you’ll have to go to the Cafecito for your drinks (except for the beverages in the Cafe’s menu). The line here was quite longer than at the other counters, but they will bring your food to your table (as well as any Cafecito drink you order here). They give you an electronic device which allows them to locate you.
If you are only interested in getting pastries, then just head to the Bakery counter. The lines are shorter here and they go faster. You will be able to eat your goodies in the dining room, or any of the tables along the wall or in the patio outside.
Finally, at the end of that counter, you’ll find the Cakes counter, where you can pick up their cakes. They have some coffee cakes, loaf cakes and portioned caked desserts at the other counters, but round, decorated cakes are the Cake counter.
I wasn’t extremely hopeful about Porto’s, after my experience last time we visited, but I was willing to give it another college try. As it was mid-morning, neither breakfast nor lunch time, I decided to hit both at the same and get a little from each menu. Thus I ordered a croissant chocolate twist ($2.75) as it sort of reminded me of the wonderful torsades-aux-pepites-de-chocolat we used to breakfast with in Paris a whole lifetime ago. I won’t say it was that good, it lacked the wonderful pastry cream for one, but they were better than I expected. I appreciated the small chocolate pepites, much smaller than chocolate chips, and the dark chocolate flavor – which contrasted nicely with the mildly sweet pastry. It’s served cold, so it was better when I microwaved it later. I’ll definitely get this again.
I also got a baked ham & cheese croissant ($3.25), which I left for breakfast the next day as I wasn’t hungry enough for that and the rest. It’s also served cold so it does need to be microwaved, but it stood very nicely to the microwave and the pastry didn’t get too chewy, as often happens. I liked it even more than the ham & cheese croissant I get at my local bagel shop, and those are $6. This illustrates why Porto’s is so popular.
Finally, I got a ropa vieja sandwich ($8.7), which comes with crispy fried plantain slices. I was a little afraid when I ordered it. Ropa vieja – shredded beef cooked in a tomato sauce flavored with onions and bell peppers -, is one of my all-time favorite dishes. It’s a pain to make (well, to shred the beef), but it’s absolutely delicious. I got my recipe from a Frugal Gourmet cookbook ions ago, and I was a bit afraid about just how it would compare to the “real thing” – assuming that the ropa vieja at Porto’s would be that. And I was also afraid that Porto’s ropa vieja would just not be that good. I needn’t had worried. Porto’s ropa vieja was almost exactly like mine. It had a subtly bitter element – perhaps a different choice of wine? -, but it could have fooled me. So the ropa vieja sandwich was absolutely delicious. The soft bun had the right amount of filling and was a bit hard to maneuver, but I managed not to spill any on myself (a huge accomplishment). For less than $9, this was also wonderfully priced and oh, so delicious. I had the other half the next day for lunch, and it held up very well to the microwave. I’ll certainly be ordering this again. They also serve it as a plate, and I might do that instead.
Camila, had a chicken milanesa sandwich ($9.6), which comes with mozzarella cheese, tomato, smashed avocado, and spicy jalapeño spread, all in a Medianoche roll. She was quite happy with it, strange given everything the sandwich had inside it. But then again, this girl just loves milanesas.
My mother tried the Napoleon slice ($4.45), a cake consisting of layers of puff pastry covered with vanilla pudding and topped with puff pastry crumbs and powdered sugar. This is a pretty mild tasting dessert, which somehow manages to be more than the sum of its two parts. I think it’s because it’s comparably light and not too sweet, thus appealing to both the very young and the middle aged or older. Now, it won’t win any bakery awards, but it was pleasant enough.
My sister ordered the fresh fruit tartlet ($4.45), which was a little unwieldy and broke when she tried to take it out of the box, but she otherwise liked. It has a lot of fresh fruit, including apple slices. This is a good bet for people who are pretending to be healthier.
Given that Porto’s is the one place my mom will go ut to for breakfast, I will no doubt be returning. But I would return anyway after this experience.
And return I did. I visited my family again in September, and once again we went to Porto’s – this time for breakfast.
I wanted to get a breakfast dish both to try one but also to be able to place our whole order at the Café counter. I thus got the torrejas. This is the Porto’s version of French toast.
I’m not sure what bread they used – their website described it as their “signature croissant loaf,” but they don’t list that as available, and the bread seemed to have more flavor and ingredient on it. In any case, it was very good – the slices were thick and substantive, but still light and fluffy. The torrejas came with a guava sauce, mango cubes, strawberry slices and blueberries and is served with whipped cream cheese. I like to add mascarpone cheese to my French toast, but these had already been cooled down by the fruit, so they didn’t really melt it. Still I liked the dish overall – and it was definitely large enough to share.
I also tried the flan, which was pretty average for a flan. That’s a good thing, as flan is delicious.
Others in our party were happy enough with their orders, but I didn’t get details.
We did bring my sister back a fresh fruit tart ($33). I had a slice later and enjoyed it very much. It has a tasty shortbread crust and a not-too-sweet pudding base, in addition to lots of fresh fruit.
Porto's Bakery & Café 19467 Nordhoff St Northridge, (818) 534-5210 Daily 6:30 AM - 8 PM Part of a Southern California chain
24688 Hesperian Blvd Hayward, CA 
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