Referencing the Mathilde Cheese Factory, a supplier to King Fernando II and the Royal House of…read morePortugal as far back as 1850, Casa Mathilde brings heritage recipes to Sao Paulo's Praca Antonio inside a spacious buildout with fair prices but questionable customer service. Now considered São Paulo's definitive Portuguese Bakery, five locations throughout the capital offering guests a bounty of sweets and savories beginning at 09h00 Monday through Saturday, it is over two stories that Casa Mathilde's flagship location stretches, level one comprised of cases expanding back to a display kitchen with comfortable seating along the sides. Popular to the point of filling floor two during lunch, a lack of Portuguese-fluency doing diners a disservice as staff is impatient even with the store 3/4-empty, it is recommended that guests obtain a marker upon entry and take a long look before ordering, as at least five-dozen items that change seasonally comprise Casa Mathilde's daily collection. Offering classics in addition to items targeting Brazilians and tourists, French Toast easily identifiable alongside Donuts labeled Bola de Berlim, it was alongside the latter stuffed with Dulce de Leche that five additional items were selected, the Portuguese Egg Custard flakey but a bit over-baked while "Pastel de São Bento" utilizes the same Shell but fills the center with finely ground Nuts and Sugar. On to Charniqueiras next, the taste and texture reminiscent of Brazil's Quindim Pudding beneath a caramelized top, it is inside Mathilde's eponymous Queijada that guests will find the taste of Citrus amidst granular consistency, the same forming the center of small orbs topped in Golden Walnuts with a crackling shell that makes one want to immediately book a flight to Sintra.

I lovvvveee the pastel de nata from this pastry shop. Having been to Portugal myself I would say…read morethat this place has the closest tasting pastel de nata/pastel de Belém to that of Portugal's, than I have ever had. It is not only light, but the inside is nice, creamy, and not overly sweet. The crust is crunchy and flaky, but not overly so. This is a great place to come to for coffee and/or a dessert with or without somebody. If you can sit upstairs by the window, it is a great place to spend your time enjoying your goodies while overlooking the historic downtown of Sao Paulo and doing some people watching.

I didn't give this place five stars because it's perfect, but because there are so few places like…read moreit. * Serves a full menu 24 hours a day * Huge menu, so there's no fighting over whether you should pick a restaurant * Huge space, so there's always somewhere to sit In particular, it's a great place for late nights when other restaurants have closed or for brunch because there are many breakfast options alongside all the standard lanchonete fare. It's generally clean, service is fine, if not a bit spotty at time, and the food is good enough and comes quickly, though sometimes entire pages of the menu will be unavailable for whatever reason.

I was told that Brazilian Bakeries were in a league of their own...I now know why!…read more It felt more like a breakfast cafe or diner mixed with a bakery. The food selection was crazy!! So many things to choose from! For breakfast I had the eggs and buttered cream cheese bread. The eggs were creamy and perfectly executed. The bread though.....soooo good!!! There's plenty of seating inside, but it was completely filled by 8:30am.

We fell in love with this cafe !! Everything about it was awesome. It looked like we had gone back…read morein time. Everything looked delicious. We stoped in just because it looked cool. My husband and my friend Max had the bourbon milkshake and a slice of what looked like cheesecake but better. I had a classic cappuccino and had to have food togo because it looked so yummy !

If you find yourself out of breath on a walking tour of downtown Sao Paolo, the charming art deco…read moreCafe Girondino is a great place to stop off for an afternoon coffee and rest your feet. It's in a great location at the corner of Cathedral Square and Rua XV de Novembre. I can only imagine what it must have been like to be here in the early 20th century when the old cable cars would rattle along the street and the Paulista Boys would smoke cigars and drink their specialty coffees. Next time I am in the area I will come for lunch.