Porto's Bakery, the Los Angeles-based Cuban bakery known for its yellow bags, is opening two new locations in Southern California. The stores in Anaheim and Ontario add to a chain that has grown from a home kitchen in Silver Lake into one of the region's best-known bakeries. For shoppers, the expansion means more places to buy the bakery's pastries and cakes without a long drive to Glendale or Burbank.
From a Home Kitchen to a Regional Chain
Rosa Porto, a baker from Manzanillo, Cuba, fled the country in 1971 after the Cuban Revolution. She and her husband, Raul Porto, opened a bakery in their Silver Lake home that same year, selling cakes and pastries to friends and family. Her daughter Betty told KCET in 2017 that neighbors had once hidden the bakery's equipment in their backyard during raids by the secret police, so the family's baking was never seized. Rosa stayed involved in the business until her death in 2019.
The operation moved to a 30,000-square-foot facility in Glendale in 1982, which became the flagship store. A location in Magnolia Park, Burbank, opened in 2005 and drew long lines. Later stores appeared in Downey, Buena Park, West Covina and Northridge, with each new site generally larger than the last.
What the New Locations Involve
The Anaheim store is being built at Downtown Disney, on the site of the former La Brea Bakery and Earl of Sandwich, and will include two ticket booths in the esplanade. The Ontario store will sit north of the 10 freeway at Archibald Avenue, within a new 8.6-acre development near Ontario International Airport. Construction at Anaheim is well underway, but the company has not announced an opening date for either location, so shoppers should check the company's official channels before planning a visit.
Raul Porto, chief executive of Porto's Bakery & Café, said in a statement that the company had long welcomed customers from the Inland Empire who traveled to its bakeries, and that the Ontario store would give the area a permanent home.
Why the Bakery Matters to Local Customers
The company says it serves about 23 million customers a year, many of whom buy pastries for weddings, quinceañeras, birthdays, baby showers and funerals. Its potato balls and guava cheese pastries are widely sold at prices the company describes as affordable. For families planning a celebration, a nearby bakery can simplify ordering and pickup, especially for large orders.
The expansion is a business development rather than a change in product or pricing, and the source does not report any new menu items or price changes. Readers planning a large order should confirm availability and lead times directly with the bakery.