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| - This is a nice little place with great empanadas. They have a variety of savory and sweet offerings -- the sweet ones have an option to add ice cream and chocolate sauce. They appear to have several kid- and vegetarian-friendly offerings.
We have lived in Mesa for a long time, but this was our first time here. The location is a little off the beaten path, but we agreed that is was worth the trip. There isn't a lot of parking in their lot, but we went there when it wasn't very crowded and did not have any trouble.
As some others have reported, I think a normal person can probably eat 2-3 empanadas for a meal -- I'd suggest 2 and +1 for dessert, especially given the interesting dessert options. For the savory options, I also recommend using the salsa verde that they give you. It just seems like the right thing to do to brighten them up a little. Maybe not the Hawaiian one, but the others for sure. My kids had a bean and cheese and a cheeseburger empanada and enjoyed them. It was a nice touch that each different kind came in a little paper bag that was stamped with the type. They all look the same and that keeps things organized. If you order multiple of one type, you get one labeled bag containing several of that type.
I had the Pernil, which contained some roasted pork that was very good -- moist and tasty, especially with a little hit of the salsa verde. I also tried the Boricua, which had the same pork, but also rice and some kind of peas in it, I think. I liked this one the best. I had the platter, and found the rice to be cooked well, but a little boring (salsa verde to the rescue!). The fried plantains were perfectly cooked and very tasty.
For dessert, we split the Fig, Cheese and Caramel (Well, that one ended up being all mine since everyone else thought it sounded "weird") and the Ruiz's Pieces with ice cream and chocolate sauce. The Ruiz's Pieces is Nutella and peanut butter, and I have to admit it was the star of the show. The Fig, Cheese (Mozzarella) and Caramel was good, but I didn't think the flavors blended together as much as I would have liked: the ingredients were stacked/layered in the empanada with the caramel on the bottom, figs in the middle, and cheese on the top. It was definitely worth a try and interesting, especially if you like something a bit off the norm, but it was a little challenging to ensure that you got a bit of each filling in every bite.
Overall, I think everyone was happy and we'll be back.
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