Buenavista Bakery & Cafe

Reviews

• Kirsten B.

  star star star star star 29 September 2026

  My neighborhood go to for pastries and empanadas!! Try one of EVERYTHING! Especially the guava and pineapple pastries. Bought empanadas for my birthday and they were a huge hit. Also, Yolanda, the owner is so sweet and generous. You won't find better prices anywhere. I'm trying the sandwiches next!

• Edward V.

  star star_border star_border star_border star_border 23 September 2026

  OLD BREAD!!!! Really disappointed at this place. After moving from the Caribbean I've been looking for our taste of bread. I went to this bakery since it's Cuban and bought a few breads. To my surprise when I get home they were all with mildew on the button. I could not even enjoy my bread. It's a shame since Caribbean is not a huge community in The Valley and the few just give a bad name for us. It's a real shame I couldn't enjoy the bread.

• Jade T.

  star star_border star_border star_border star_border 21 September 2026

  I don't know weather to laugh about this or be mad . We went there because we wanted to try their Cuban sandwiches, there was literally no body in this place other than myself and husband. The lady who was in the kitchen came out to tell us , " she didn't have time " to make us a sandwich , we were so shocked because we have never been to place where a cook tells us she has no time ... worst service ever. If you don't have time to cook the why did you open ?

• Beyrruth B.

  star star star star star_border 16 September 2026

  My husband gets a ham & cheese sandwich and I get the steak one. Really good taste & portion.

• Joseph M.

  star star star star star 11 September 2026

  TL;DR: Homey Cuban food and friendly family service in the heart of the SFV that will satisfy your palate's cravings for popular Cuban cafe fare.
  
  Came in on a Sunday afternoon.
  
  Croquetas: crisp on the outside; crunching through that shell gives way to a gently seasoned layer of smooth mashed potatoes, and then once again to the center pocket of ground beef. Both my wife and I liked this better than the similar offering at Porto's. Like an archaeological experience, a spherical treasure with strata of delicous-ness: as you dig into the crunchy outer crust into the mantle of creamy potato, you end up at the core of seasoned meat.
  
  Pastelito de carne (Meat pie): crispy, buttery deliciousness! Loved this one. Meat was juicy, seasoning is warm and inviting, and overall is just a nice savory snack that is both filling and addicting.
  
  Chicken empanada: crispy shell; juicy, moist chicken with a pleasantly acidic, spiced sauce that balances things out nicely.
  
  Pan con lechon: Bread has a super crunchy crust, giving way to a pillowy, airy layer. The juices from the pork fat absorb into this layer and it's even better than any mayonnaise could ever achieve. Pickle, mayo, Swiss cheese to help balance things out. The lechon is very tender and juicy, with that very familiar and nostalgic roasted pork flavor that makes me happy. We're not talking about bold flavors here necessarily, but delicate, simple flavors in a well-executed balance. Awesome sandwich!
  
  The pigs they roast for the lechon come from a local Cuban farmer. You can also pre-order a half leg or whole leg, and if you give them a 1 week lead time, you can order a pig that they roast in-house. I am most definitely going to do that sometime this year, maybe for a nice spring equinox or summer solstice picnic with friends.
  
  Guava pastry: perfectly flaky, with a generous amount of guava jelly that has a definitely prominent guava flavor. The balance of the pastry-to-guava ratio was on point! And that satisfying mouth feel from the crunch and chew of the pastry lamination is oh so good. Also personally thought these were better than the equivalent offering at Porto's, for what that's worth.
  
  Cheese roll: also perfectly flaky with nice chewy, airy dough with that sweet and just gently tart cheese for filling. My only complaint here is that I'd prefer a bit more cheese filling in this, as the bites are definitely bready in the bread-to-filling ratio than I prefer. But most definitely a tasty, well done treat.
  
  Also got a loaf of bread, some crackers, and pineapple empanadas to take home. The bread once again had a perfectly crunchy crust and soft, pillowy interior. What's really nice about it, too, is that it's made in such a way that you can very easily break apart perfect hand-sized rolls from the loaf, that would make for a nice-sized sandwich. The crackers are plain but perfectly crispy and go nicely with coffee, hot chocolate, or some kind of dip. The fatty in me used them as a vessel for cream cheese, and they served that purpose very well. I haven't been too keen on dessert empanadas in the past, but these pineapple empanadas had a nice smooth and tender crunch with a nice pineapple filling that actually had chunks of chewy, jellied pineapple mixed in.
  
  What they actually had available in the menu and on display in their counters and shelves was a bit limited, which I found to be disconcerting when I first walked in, but after being greeted by the very friendly owners and talking to them about what was actually available, I was so very glad I tried everything I did. However, as I explain below, they're aware of this issue among others that I observed, and are in the process of improving their customer experience. A woman walked in while we were enjoying our meal, asked if "that's all there [was]", and just left with only a bottle of water. I thought that was very unfortunate, as she did not a get a chance to see just how worthwhile of an experience this place and its family has to offer.
  
  Had a nice chat with both the mother and son family owners. The son, Pepe, informed me that they plan to renovate the bakery, from optimizing workflow in the back to giving a fresh look and feel to the front, and are already in progress of paring down the menu to focus on a specific subset of dishes that will make things as fresh and consistent as possible. The front-end of the cafe could definitely be updated and reinvigorated with some better organization, fresh paint and decor, and making sure that the display cases don't stay too empty, as they are a major enticement for potential customers walking by and inside who want to have their curiosity piqued visually and aromatically. He was hoping to get things re-done and settled in by the end of the month, so I'm already waiting in anticipation for that.
  
  I'm very excited to come back in a few weeks, see what they do with the place, and update my review.