Empanada Mama, NYC

February 24, 2009

Foodie is pleased to announce the return of Senor Food in his second guest appearance:

Senor Food is back and this time I have brought with me a friend, and that friend is...The Empanada. Some of you may be asking "What is an Empanada?" An empanada (not to be confused with the Portuguese empada) is a stuffed pastry. The name comes from the Spanish verb empanar, meaning to wrap or coat in bread. The empanada is made by folding a thin circular-shaped dough patty around the stuffing, creating its typical semi-circular shape. To put it simply, it is awesome! (definitions courtesy of Wikipedia and Empanada Mama's website).

I recently returned to Empanada Mama in NYC with a friend and it was even better the second time around. Now understand this is not a fancy place by any stretch of the imagination and I would not suggest making a special trip in to the city to eat here but if you are in NYC or are going to be and you want something a little different, it is amazing! The restaurant is small so if you are going for lunch, get there by 12:15 or after 2pm as it fills up very quickly.

I was not shy when I ordered and recommend you try as many varieties as you think you can handle. If you are a fan of foods that have cooked pineapples in them, I STRONGLY suggest you order the Hawaiian (ham, sauteed pineapples and mozzarella cheese). I also scarfed down a Cheese Steak, Reggaeton (Caribbean style roast pork with sofrito seasoned yellow rice and peas), Spicy Chicken, Beef & Broccoli Teriyaki, Spinach & Cheese, Mushrooms (sauteed portobello & white mushrooms with onions) and Chorizo.

Settle down with the judging as this was done over TWO visits, not just one. The empanadas range in price from $2.25 to $3.oo each. Very affordable, even in harsh economic times. The menu also offers many full entrees as well as salad, tapas and soup selections. They have a fun and interesting drink menu featuring Postobon Sodas, natural fruit shakes, coffees and hot chocolate.

It is something different when you just don't know what you want for lunch. If I could, I would probably head there right now.

Arriba!
Senor Food

PS: The guacamole is great and the website is a riot.

Empanada Mama
763 9th Avenue (between 51st and 52nd street), NYC
Phone: 212.698.9008
Website: www.empmamanyc.com

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