Tropical Bakery Cafe

What a hidden gem! We were wondering around as we are new to Charlotte and found this authentic Brazilian bakery!
We had ham & cheese pastry and cheese pastel (pastel de queso?) and some sweets (like 4 of them) + large Brazilian coffee and it was only $ 14!

My only complaint about this place is that is 30 miles away from my home, otherwise I would be coming over here in a daily basis! This is a very authentic Brazilian bakery (I am Brazilian) and they offer authentic products that you would find in most bakeries in Brazil. The owner is always there and it is always making sure everything is running smoothly. Everything is made fresh, nothing from frozen food, cooked to order with locally sourced ingredients. You’ll find here all the brazilian traditional bakery foods: pao de queijo (cheese bread), coxinha (deep fried chicken dough), xis (brazilian cheeseburger), suco de caju (cashew juice), suco de laranja natural (fresh orange squeezed juice) among other stuff. The sweets are also very traditional ones including negrinho /​brigadeiro (chocolate balls) which are must have in any brazilian birthday parties. They also have authentic brazilian cakes (which are the best in the world) but I have not had a chance to try them yet. The french rolls (cacetinho /​pao frances) are baked fresh several times a day and you’ll buy them warm but so warm that it would be very difficult to wait until you get home to eat them. I wish they would expand over to Huntersville, I would be their most loyal customer ever !

Delicious sweet pastries and sandwiches. Brazilian and Portuguese influences. Awesome service by owner Ruy!

Mto bem, mto autentico. Had the acerola smoothie (com leite), sumo do caju, X-​Frango sandwich, and some various pastries. Kibi wasn’t available, much to my dismay, but the selection was ample, especially with the supermarket of local (BRA) goodies next door. They had Guarana (Light), goibada, and all the other specialties you might expect at a typical roadside brasiliera café’. Bom provencha, gente !

We found this hidden gem when we were killing time while our car was being serviced up the street. (When in this shopping area, you may be tempted to stop at Stacks. Don’t!
)
It’s a Brazilian café and bakery, and if you judge the authenticity of the cuisine of a restaurant by the people who patronize it, this place is great, since we appeared to be the only non-​Brazilians there. (One person out of the two working there only spoke Portuguese, so I had to muddle through with my ‘Sportuguese’ (mostly Spanish with a few known words of Portuguese thrown in; believe it or not, it works pretty well since the two languages are quite similar.) Mind you, though, that not all of what they serve is Brazilian: there are also bakery items typical to all bakeries: tarts, pastries, etc. Anyway, what we had was some breakfast sandwiches, a couple of empanadas, and drinks. The sandwiches were great, as were the empanadas. The Brazilian coffee was quite good (though having been to Brazil only once in my life, I am hardly qualified to judge its authenticity; I just really enjoyed it, authenticity aside). The hot chocolate we got for our son was not so great, but I don’t think one goes to a Brazilian bakery for its hot chocolate anyway. The show-​stealer was the AMAZING fresh orange juice. They use a machine just like the ones I used to see when I lived in Spain: you load in actual, fresh oranges and you watch as the wheels carry each one down to the juicer, where all the juice is extracted. Amazingly good!
Great place, friendly staff, good food, GREAT juice. Stop by!

Secluded in a busy strip mall behind Stacks Kitchen on Monroe Road near Highway 51, this little bakery is a gem in the rough. They carry a fairly robust selection of fresh pastries and desserts, all reasonably priced.
I tried an assortment of desserts including a couple macaroons, cakes, and an especially tasty pastry with an airy, flaky crust and strawberry jam which I’m pretty sure didn’t have a name. They were all very reasonably priced and fresh, though I didn’t sense much of a South American slant to any of the desserts.
But then I tried their empanadas. About the size of a small burger, they’re slightly sweet, flaky, accordingly greasy, and spiced with a healthy seasoning of cumin and onion. I’lI make no attempts to hide my bias, I love empanadas. They’re really a fantastic alternative to American fast food. I’m down for Chick-​Fil-​A, Taco Bell or Mcdonald’s as much as anyone I know, and I try to keep my appetite as unpretentious as possible and my taste buds in check. But empanadas are just as inexpensive, fast, and less processed when done right. And although these aren’t the best I’ve had, they’re still tasty. If you’re heading to Matthews or the Arboretum, and you’re itching for a quick bite, give them a chance. You’ll thank me later.

Came here for lunch. The burger did not disappoint: bacon, egg, cheese, onion, tomato, lettuce and corn all on a fresh baked French roll. One of the better burgers I’ve had in Charlotte.
Oh, and the sweets are no joke either. The owner was eager to let me sample. Go here. Eat everything.

My favorite place to have breakfast has to be this bakery. Everything I’ve tried its just delicious. They make the best shakes I ever had. Love going here!

This a hidden treasure of Charlotte. Moving from New Orleans to Charlotte I was a shocked to find a lack of good bakeries. But for those who want a treat, come here. Their French bread is wonderfully tasty and authentic… crisp on the outside and light & airy on the inside… wonderful for sandwiches like New Orleans po-​boys! The brigadieros, crème brou le, napoleons, that we tasted were splendid. This bakery also sells sandwiches and other Brazilian foods. The staff is very friendly and will help you make your selection. They are now under new owner/​management since 20 days ago. The pastry chef has 26 years of experience and has worked in Spain & France. I highly recommend this bakery!

Ordered a special grooms cake from Tropical and it was fantastic!!! My guests couldn’t stop eating it and talking about it! It was delicious and I will return for further baked goods! Only complaint was that the cake was promised by noon and my father had to wait until 1pm for it to be complete. The day before a wedding, waiting that long was an inconvenience. But otherwise it was amazing!