A New Portuguese Cafe is Now Open in Bloomfield

Azorean Cafe is officially open in Bloomfield.

The cafe, is owned by Portuguese native Elsa Santos, who is originally from the Azores, a group of islands that are part of Portugal. The menu will offer traditional island dishes, include stews, seafood casseroles, and Azorean pastries.

The 35-seat restaurant is located at 4715 Liberty Avenue, and will serve breakfast and lunch from 6:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. daily, then will offer pastries, coffee and Portuguese drinks (think sodas and juices) during its evening hours.

Azorean Cafe’s morning offerings will include platters with eggs and Portuguese Chorizo (which comes from Portugal by way of a Massachusetts supplier, one of the only in the country who could provide Santos with the chorizo, cheese and jam from the Azores that she needs), breakfast sandwiches, and assorted pastries, including queijada, an Azorean specialty pastry made with custard.

“They’re made from a secret recipe that has been in my village for 100 years,” Santos says.

Lunch will feature a variety of casseroles, including salt cod, shrimp and rice in red sauce, or octopus with potatoes. They’ll also serve sandwiches, like pork loin with sauteed onions and tomato in a garlic sauce, and grilled chicken. Appetizer options will include a cheese plate feature Portuguese cheese selections, and black pudding with pineapple.

Santos, who lived in Portugal until she was 27, then in Washington D.C. before settling in Mt. Lebanon, has dreamed of opening her own restaurant to honor her home cuisine for years. With experience in the coffee industry, opening a cafe felt like a natural fit.

“Once I moved to Pittsburgh,” she says, “it all came together. I thought to myself ‘This is where I want open, this is the community I want to be in.'”

Azorean Cafe will be open Monday through Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Azorean Cafe (4715 Liberty Avenue)