New Portuguese coffee shop is bringing a taste of the Ironbound to Watchung
When Stephanie Oliveira moved from the Ironbound, a Newark neighborhood known for its lively Portuguese, Spanish and Brazilian culture, to North Plainfield, she was excited to join a new community for her blossoming family.
But soon after moving to the Somerset County borough in 2020, she and her husband, Rafael Oliveira, began missing their daily dose of coffee, bread and pastries.
“There, we had all of these Portuguese products at our fingertips, but after moving here, they were hard to find, so we drove 30 minutes to Newark several times a week,” she said.
So the Oliveiras, both 100% Portuguese, decided to open their own coffee shop.
POURtuga Coffee House opened at 60 Stirling Road in Watchung on Jan. 28, offering favorites such as Portuguese custard cups, which are flaky pastry filled with egg custard; Portuguese paninis, which are Portuguese rolls stuffed with ham and cheese and pressed; and Portuguese doughnuts, which have a cake-like exterior and are filled with sweetened egg yolk.
POURtuga Coffee House’s bread and pastries are delivered each day from Teixeira's Bakery in the Ironbound.
POURtuga Coffee House serves coffee made by Delta Cafés, a Portuguese coffee company.
“In Portugal, if you ask for a coffee, you won’t get a drip coffee — you get a shot of very strong espresso,” said Stephanie. “Our Portuguese latte is a shot of this expresso with steamed milk.”
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Stephanie figured that most customers at the 1,500 square foot shop would be locals looking to try something different, but on the weekends, 90% of the customers are Portuguese, she said.
“I didn’t realize there were so many Portuguese families in the area — it feels like I’m back in the Ironbound,” Stephanie said, laughing.
Customers can hang out at the 40-seat shop, which is adorned with cozy couches, lots of natural wood and colorful Portuguese tiles.
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“I wanted to make it feel like you’re visiting someone’s house in Portugal,” Stephanie said. “We kept it very rustic because where we’re from in Portugal, we’re surrounded by farmland, so we tried to keep these elements to make it feel homey.”
Go: 60 Stirling Road, Watchung; 908-760-3007, facebook.com/profile.php?id=100088435660006.
Contact: JIntersimone@MyCentralJersey.com
Jenna Intersimone has been a staff member at the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey since 2014, after becoming a blogger-turned-reporter following the creation of her award-winning travel blog. To get unlimited access to her stories about food, drink and fun, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Portuguese cafe POURtuga Coffee House opens in Watchung
