Empanada Kitchen

Placed a catering order for 18 people to be delivered to a local hotel as we were there for a multi-team offsite. TLDR - great food and very accommodating for a large catering order. We were working through lunch as we had a lot of things to discuss and work on, so I emailed to clarify our location, which was the second floor of the hotel. I didn't realize that their normal delivery method doesn't allow for this, but they totally made it work for us and Sophia delivered our food to us herself. Despite our large order and having add ons, they got it right. Would totally order for them again.

After a long day at the Baloboa Park we wandered past the San Diego High School and City college down Park Street and decided to walk towards the downtown on C Street. We saw this beautifully painted bright yellow store front and decided to give it a shot. From the outside walking in, the mouth-watering smell of the kitchen smells lured us in this lambently lit area. There's a couple of see-thru display showcasing the empanadas so you can pick exactly which one you want. The excellent options of flavors is very broad. They offer vegetarian, beef, chicken, mushroom, lamb and more! We tried the chicken, ratatouille veggie and beef empanadas. They are the best empanadas I've had! The chimichurri sauce both spicy and regular are very delightful! The spicy is perfect. I recommend everyone to go here and try this out.

Chicken empanadas are truly juicy and have good flavor. The lamb could use a tad bit more seasoning. I thoroughly enjoyed my meal especially with the dipping sauce.

Cool spot that is basically grab and go. Got the ham and cheese, beef, and Italian sausage (the special). Their 3 for $11.95 is...not bad. Would love to run the menu on this place. The spicy chimichurri was good. It's medium not crazy hot. The chimi with the Italian sausage was excellent 👍

It’s a very cute empanada shop. They are made fresh throughout the day and they were the perfect texture. Crispy on the outside with delicious light filling inside.

Absolutely great little place serving delicious meat pockets. I've had to go here a couple times before I could try their lamb empanadas, they sold out on previous days before noon. I would definitely recommend getting their house made chimichurri sauce to go with your pockets. I also love how each empanada is crimped uniquely so that you can tell which one from your plate full you are eating. This is a new favorite on my list of hot spots

Nice little restaurant in the heart of downtown San Diego. If you are looking for something different definitely try this place. Indoor and outside seating. Prompt service. Ordered the chicken, sweet corn and basil and the apple for dessert. Only complaint is the empanadas could have been hotter and chimichurri needs more herbs.

Delicious, homestyle empanadas served in a cute, bright, and airy space.

What a treat !! I read about this place and we took our friends & we were (All) thrilled with the flavors and enjoyed the fact that they're baked & not fried. We will be back

Felt very meh about this place. I visited with some coworkers at lunch. There was only one employee working and she was very rude! Was not friendly and did not care about the way she conducted her service. I ordered a corn and cheese empanada and a spicy beef one with a side salad. Side salad is totally not worth it, do not get it! Tastes like a regular Costco salad with some walnuts. Both empanadas were good and fresh but nothing to rave about. The spicy beef one was the best one. I don't think I'd recommend this place.

Do not order from the downtown/East Village location. They have repeatedly had me wait 30+ minutes and then canceled my order. Their business hours are either inaccurate or the shop is just poorly managed. Make sure you are selecting the North Park location, which is far more reliable and the quality of the food is much better.

It's most certainly a bright spot. The staff there this Sunday morning when I visited was cheerful. Lovely. And super warm. She / They made the visit pleasant. I thought the food was above average. I think it's great for a quick snack. I think it's great if you're just passing by. But I wouldn't go out my way. I got two this morning. One lamb. One mushroom and cheese. Torn on which one is better. I think without the chimichurri sauce, the lamb was better. It was savory and rich. It felt well put together. But I added the sauce and it switched the flavor profile of it a bit too much. The mushroom and cheese one was the opposite. It didn't need the sauce but the sauce enhanced it quite a bit. The sauce was okay. I got the spicy one and it was more mild. I can only imagine what the mild version tasted like. Plenty of seats. Can fit maybe 30ish people inside and outside. It's a warm atmosphere / ambiance with it being yellow and white.

Hands down the best empanadas in the area (IMHO). Fresh ingredients and delicious! They also have unique options. We love the sweet corn empanadas. I believe it's made with corn, mozzarella, & béchamel sauce. I have tried empanadas at several other places in SD, and Empanada Kitchen is the best. They also have a location in North Park and there was a location a long time ago in the now closed Little Italy Food Hall (RIP). I just wish the C street location was open later.

The chicken and mushroom with goat cheese empanadas were light and great quality. The pastry wasn't too salty and had a soft crispy texture. The salad was good quality too and even its walnuts and cashews were roasted. The attendant was very friendly and the ambience was chilled and quiet.

An excellent lunch place. We stopped by this location for a late lunch while downtown and were not disappointed. I got their two empanadas + salad special and I was stuffed afterwards. You definitely get a lot of food for what you pay for (relative to SD prices, of course). The food is also prepared extremely quickly so it was perfect because we were very hungry.

Fast service and tasty food. Empanadas were solid -- nothing too special but definitely fulfilled the craving I had. Great place for lunch because the food is prepared so quickly. Prices are fair and the interior is clean!

What do you put in your empanadas? While in San Diego for a conference, my wife and I ate at this restaurant for 3 of the 6 days we were there. Amazing food! We had the Ham and Cheese, Sweet corn and basil, vegetarian, chicken, beef, and apple empanadas. None of them were disappointed! None!!! But, if I had to choose a favorite, it would be the ham and cheese. They were all filled nicely, flavorful, and a pretty good size. I will definitely be back!

Pretty solid empanadas with quick service! Had the beef and caprese empanadas, highly recommend their spicy chimichurri sauce with the empanadas!

Nice spot in downtown San Diego. Came here for lunch and picked up 3 empanadas. Empanadas were pretty good overall and I would come back.

Grab and go empanadas made with love and flavor. These bite sized delights are small but mighty! Cute ambiance on the corner when you enter the food hall and service was wonderful! Empanada Kitchen hand makes their empanadas and their own chimichurri sauce fresh using a traditional-gaucho homemade recipe. Featured: The Special of the day Argentina pork sausage,provolone, & chimichurri Mushroom & Goat Cheese Sautéed onions & mushrooms, goat cheese, mozzarella Caprese Basil, tomato, mozzarella Beef The most tradional filling- beef, onion, red bell pepper, green onion, olives Chicken Chicken with home made sofrito Ratatouille (vegan) Roasted veggies, onion, red bell pepper, eggplant, zucchini, tomato, garlic Alfajores cookies classic Argentinian cookie filled with dulce de leche Havanna chocolate cookies Two sweet cookies with creamy Dulce de Leche between the cookies, all covered in chocolate Come visit soon and grab a table outside and enjoy Italy vibes!

This place easily caught my eye when we passed by it once because of its yellow facade. Decided to finally try it out one and morning and it did not disappoint! They have a variety of rotating flavors of Argentine-style empanadas to choose from and we got the following: Spicy Italian sausage - arguably the best we got among the trio. The mushroom and goat cheese one would be the runner up. Our least favorite was the bacon and egg as it is pretty basic but overall, all three have really good outer dough and internal flavors. We will be returning customers from here on!

Employee was very nice and empanadas were really good. I tried the chicken and the veggie, I recommend the chicken.

This is my second review. I usually don't give second reviews unless my opinion flips 180 degrees. I have always liked this place. They have had the best variety of empanadas and chimichurri. Unfortunately, the quality has gone down incredibly. I recently tried their corn and basil empanadas with both the regular and spicy chimichurri sauces and I was super disappointed. The empanadas were overcooked (almost burnt) and the filling was half as much as it used to be. The chimichurri was just watered down vinegar. The overall taste of the empanadas with the sauce was so bad. It was disappointing to see such a great place with amazing empanadas go down to this level. I have always introduced my friends to this place but unfortunately, going forward I won't be. It is not worth the money and the empanadas are not fresh and filled fully.

If you like empanadas, this place has lots of flavors: beef, chicken, ham and cheese, mushroom, corn, etc. I like how they "stamp" the initials of the flavor on all the empanadas, so you can easily tell which is which in a box. The crust is a little bland (1 star off), but the fillings are delicious. I would skip the chimichurri sauce as it is more like a vinaigrette.

Definitely the best Argentine style empanadas I've had stateside. I had a Caprese and fugazetta special, and they both took me back to my favorite shop I used to stop at in Palermo on the walk from the Plaza Italia subte. Their chimichurri sauce was very nicely tart.

The empanadas here are pretty good, not the best I've had, but still satisfying. I got the Ham and Cheese, and Bacon and Egg. There were no other customers in sight, so I received instant service, and my order was ready as soon as I paid (pre-made, but kept warm with fresh-tasting ingredients). The empanada shells were buttery and flaky enough, though they don't compare with a lot of the empanada spots I frequent in the bay area where I'm from. The Bacon and Egg was bursting with fluffy creamy scrambled eggs, but was lacking in the bacon (maybe I saw/tasted 1-2 tiny pieces total, or maybe it was finely minced and sprinkled in there with the eggs, I'm not so sure). The Ham and Cheese was filled with ham and gooey melted cheese, but somehow it was a bit lacking in flavor. Not sure if they just had a bad day, or if this is how it always is, but for me, I wasn't too impressed. It was good, but I wouldn't feel I'd be missing out on anything if I didn't return. Good news is, they have delicious chimichurri sauce on the side, spiced well, with options for both spicy and non-spicy, and these made up for the shortcomings on flavor and ingredients in those empanadas. I took my order to-go, but saw that they had seating options both inside and outside, it's a pretty cute restaurant. However just 1-2 blocks away there are homeless encampments, unpleasant odors, and dirty streets, and that's probably the only area you'll find parking nearby too. I only came to this C Street location because the other location on El Cajon was not open before 11am on a Tuesday. But I don't know if the other location is any better anyway, since I'm not from around here. Even though my experience here wasn't perfect, it's still a decent empanada spot.

Yumminess for ratatouille veggie!! This was a recom and was pleasantly surprised .. Mushroom n goat cheese and finally beef rounded up my trio .. Service was good and fast and the gentleman was helpful . Can't wait to try other flavors in this casual atmosphere spot

Overall solid spot, got a chicken and a breakfast empanada. Flavors were good, the shell was buttery and flaky, the spicy chimi was ok but lacked spice. Overall solid, location felt a little sketchy walking from our hotel. But I'm not as familiar with the area

Delicious fillings in the beef, lamb and veggie empanadas! They explained that the dough is imported from Argentina. The owner is from Buenos Aires, and is very picky about the quality of his empanadas flour. He wasn't able to source the dough, or make it himself, I guess. I know that getting dough from Buenos Aires may add a touch of authenticity, but personally, I don't care for the carbon footprint. I enjoyed all three empanadas, but the beef was the most delicious, followed by the lamb. The veggie empanada had a vegan dough, but I wasn't able to really distinguish much difference between the vegan and non-vegan. The flavors were really outstanding in the fillings, but personally, I wasn't that impressed by the imported dough. Also, I requested the spicy chimichurri sauce, and took the order to go. I was told by the server that all of their empanadas come with chimichurri sauce, so I was expecting three chimichurri sauces for three empanadas. Instead, I only got one, and that one was very watery, and not at all spicy. My server was excellent and knowledgeable about all the most popular flavors, including the basil and corn, which is the most popular. However, it had cheese in it, which I avoided. He also mentioned that the mushroom and cheese was one of his favorites. Maybe I'll try those if I come back next time. I am not that familiar with Argentinian food, so I can't really speak to the authenticity. However, I have eaten homemade empanadas by Argentinian friends, and various restaurants that had a thicker and more savory richer flavor to the wraps that I prefer more.

Great spot to grab lunch. We enjoyed our empanadas - flavors were great. GOOD vegetarian empanadas can be hard to find... I love that they have several options without meat.

I was looking for a bite to eat that was small and inexpensive since I had food at home and didn't want to overspend or overindulge. As I perused Google Maps to find out what was in the area, I came across Empanada Kitchen and after reviewing the menu and determining they were in budget, I walked around the corner to their downtown location on C Street. The place is hard to miss with bright yellow painting color blocked against a white wall with black lettering. The venue is very clean and the menu is simple and easy to navigate. This was my second time coming here and both times service was great. (Shoutout to Chris and Dan!) The second time around I ordered one instead of two empanadas and settled on the pollo (chicken) with the chimichurri. I LOVE that the empanadas are baked versus fried for those that care about how their food is prepared. It was flaky and not too crispy on the outside and then succulent on the inside. The chimichurri is heavily seasoned (which I like) so if too many flavors simultaneously in your mouth isn't your kind of party, don't ask for it! Will definitely make this a local go to spot. If you like supporting local and small businesses, put your money where your mouth is!

One word: delicious! If you're in downtown SD, you can't miss this place! Also it's painted bright yellow. It's small and clean. The girl behind the counter was super nice and made recommendations since it was my first time here. They have a deal where you can order 3 empanadas for a discount so I had to try three different flavors! I got the chicken(my favorite), mushrooms and goat cheese, second favorite) and the ham and cheese ( for my little one). The crust was buttery and they were a perfect size. I will be back to try the other fillings.

Fresh homemade empanadas yumminess! Got the 3 for $12 special. Hubby got two mushroom-goat cheese empanadas and the lamb. His fave was the lamb! I got the chicken, caprese, and sweet corn- basil empanadas. Delish! Loved all of them especially with the spicy chimichurri sauce! Great light lunch/snack before heading out for today's adventures :)

Beef Empanada - ground beef, onion, red bell pepper, green onion, olives Sweet Corn & Basil Empanada - sweet corn, basil, and mozarella, all integrated in bechamel sauce Mushroom & Goat Cheese Empanada - sauteed onions, sauteed mushrooms, goat cheese, and mozarella Super unique fillings and really quite tasty. Just wasn't the biggest fan of the dough. Favorites were beef and the corn+basil

4 stars for the only reason that the location is by railroad tracks and the parking is terrible. The empanadas were great though! The were many selections to choose from. I was served quick and politely by the gentleman who worked there. It's a small cozy empanada shop. The bright yellow makes the shop lively. The most interesting menu item was the apple pie. It was an open faced empanada. It was not too sweet, and it was broiled/toasted so it had a very unique crisp/charred taste.

Wanted a quick bite before starting our day and Empanada Kitchen was super convenient to our airbnb stay downtown. We did the empanada deal 3 for $11.95 and ordered the ham & cheese, sweet corn & basil, and chicken. Also got a hot coffee. Empanadas overall were pretty good - chicken was prob our fave with the accompanied mild sauce. The coffee was okay, was more on the bitter side. The interior is cute with hints of yellow everywhere and also had two outdoor tables. If you're looking for a filling and quick bite, I'd recommend this spot.

When I'm in San Diego I always make sure to stop by and grab a variety of empanadas. The desserts are also delicious. Its nice to grab a couple and head up and enjoy them chilling at balboa park.

Really tasty! The corn empanadas in particular were excellent. Charming retro so-cal pop music added to the atmosphere.

I love going to this place when I'm in the area, or even when I'm not. This time I got the ham and cheese and lamb empanada. The ham was pretty good. But the lamb was amazzzing! The lamb had so much flavor to it.

We got all of the flavors to try just out of curiosity. The circular ones were the worst as they were over baked and so hard. The regular shaped ones were alright but burnt. As for the filling, my favorite would be the ground beef ones. Seemed to have the most flavor. The ham and cheese lacked a lot of life. Overall, I don't think we would come back for empanadas here. It was good to try once.

Wow! I was staying nearby for business and found Empanada Kitchen on Yelp. It was a little walk away so I gave it a try. Great outdoor seating area and open inside seating as well. The menu is on clipboards as well as on the wall. I ordered the vegan option as well as mushroom and goat cheese as well as the caprese. Incredibly good empanadas. Rich flavors. Great amount of ingredients per empanada. Really delicious. I'll be back if I'm in the area again. Delicious empanadas, quick friendly service makes Empanada Kitchen a must.

First time here. Empanadas were so tasty. I was able to try the chicken, beef, sweet corn & basil, and apple pie. Great customer service. Will definitely come back when I am in the area.

This place is good, but the empanadas were not authentic. They were made from a flour dough and then baked, so they are perfect if you're avoiding fried food, but if you're in the mood for your grandmas empanadas maybe try somewhere else

Ambiance: 8/10 The place inside was nice and cozy. Defiantly a place to take a quick break with friends. Service: 9/10 The person helping me was kind and very attentive. Didn't hesitate to help me out with anything I needed. Food: 8.5/10 Very flavorful! You'll want to get 3 as these can go very quickly as you're eating them. They'll recommend the Chimi Churri sauce and I 100% agree as it'll go nicely with any Empanada you buy. Overall Score: 8/10 Would defiantly come again with friends if we passed by. The portion as are small but the flavor more than makes up for it. The location is pretty easy to get to by transit though trying to find parking might be an issue. If you happen to find yourself passing by this place defiantly give it a try!

5 star for the beef Empanada absolutely delicious probably one of the best beef Empanadas I ever had. Not a huge fan of the chicken Empanada, just seems like the chicken flavor was off and had a after taste that was not pleasing. Staff were polite and professional Place was clean and comfortable Definitely a place I will visit more often Would love to see pepperoni and cheese on the menu

A small walk up counter an a few tables. If you want empanadas and empanadas done well then this is the place. They were overflowing with flavor and the patty was spot on. A winner meal

Great neighborhood spot for a local, reasonably priced meal. I love that they have a variety of empanadas, and not just the traditional style. They're really is something for every diet (except maybe gluten-free... unsure). The empanadas come out nice and fluffy and the fillings are super tasty. Two or three empanadas and you have a complete meal. Recommend checking this place out!

Very kind hearted cashier and clean place . I got a veggie empanada and I'll be honest - could have used more flavor , but some people probably like that there's no salt or flavoring and just a bland veggie taste . I think I would go with another type next time, maybe the sweet corn one or the apple Filling one. Nothing to complain about hence the four stars .

So I was a little iffy when I walked into this place due to the fact that that it's just 2 warmers when you walk in and looks like just one kind of empanadas , but when I looked at the menu, I discovered they have a couple more things besides just empanadas they have salad and multiple deserts and drinks They also have very rare different empanadas with different meats in them And at a very good price not to mention hospitality is great and the place is super clean. I will definitely recommend this place in the future and I'll be back.

Very good selection of flavors :) clean place and super delicious , worth a try when in SD

We walked past by this cute little place shortly before they were closing for the day. The were nice enough to let us order and finish eating quickly. The empanadas were juicy and delicious. And chimichurri sauce also adds a lot to the empanadas. Would definitely recommend this place!

This is a convenient spot for a simple and quick lunch. The empanadas were delicious and tasted of high quality but I did have some issues with the other aspects of the restaurant unrelated to the food. I came in with a large group and we all ordered together at the counter. Perhaps there was some confusion or miscommunication, but I ordered the three empanada combo consisting of one lamb empanada, one mushroom and goat cheese empanada, and one sweet corn and basil empanada. I didn't receive the sweet corn and basil one, and even checked my group to see if any of them had it accidentally on their plates but no one did. The empanadas that I had were delicious but I do wish I could have tried the sweet corn one. I also got one spicy chimichurri sauce and one original but to me, they tasted pretty similar so I couldn't tell the difference without the sticker on the top. Besides that, they are following COVID regulations pretty well but the tables for outdoor seating were very dirty and we had to wipe them down ourselves. Overall, the experience wasn't too hot, but the flavors of the empanadas are what really made this place earn 4 stars in my book.

Had a few hours to kill before hotel checkin so found myself wandering around downtown San Diego. I didn't really know what I wanted to eat but I know that empanadas are generally pretty light and don't kill your whole appetite. If you're expecting to have dinner later, found this random little spot on yelp and stopped in with the husband. The gentleman at the counter, was really nice and knowledgeable about the offerings, I was blown away by the variety because you typically don't see these combinations inland. I resisted the urge to get my normal beef empanada and decided to go out on a limb and try the special, a mix of mozzarella, garlic and onion, called fuggazzetta I believe. I decided to try that because it was a special and not on their normal menu and you had this Jersey girl at garlic. I loved it. It was so delicious of wonderful flavor bomb crispy pastry with generous fillings. The lamb was unexpected. Clearly, I didn't really read the description well because I was expecting ground lamb, but what I got was a marinated moist braised lamb. The acid from the chimichurri was perfection to cut all of that richness. I will be fantasizing about these little tasty bites for a while. That part of San Diego is a little sketchy you're going to come into contact with a number of characters if you choose to eat outside like we did but all in all worth a stop.

I'm just gonna say this was absolutely amazing. They have really great empanadas, i'm not sure if the lady spelled her name Andi or Andy but she was so sweet and gave us a free empanada because they were out of one we wanted. The customer service was 10/10 and so was the food!

We were just driving around downtown and could NOT resist stopping at this cute little empanada shop with a bright yellow facade and it was one of the highlights of our day. We ordered an assortment of beef, chicken and their ham and cheese with the regular and spicy chimichurri sauce and everything was so good! The dough had a perfect thickness of being able to hold it generous servings of protein while not being too thick. It also held up really well the next day (we carried it with us as snacks for a hike). Personal favorite is the beef and the i can just drink up that spicy chimichurri sauce (so good!!!). Pro tip - if you want it a little bit more crispy, 5 mins in the airfryer at 370. Worth i try!

Interesting to try, we got a big box full, but to be honest the empanadas themselves weren't anything better than anywhere else, and kinda pricey for what you get. But they were good. Kinda small, we'll formed, moderate in flavor, and just in the good range. I would recommend getting one or two first and if you want more, then order more, not order a whole bunch like we did.

Being married to an Argentinian, I have had my fair share of empanadas during the last 16 years. The empanadas from Empanada Kitchen are probably the worst ones. The chicken ones were full of onions and red peppers. The ham and cheese were awful as the cheese was like watery milk. The beef, well I'm not sure what that was. Although the empanadas are oven baked, over half of the empanadas we ordered were burnt. The empanadas sit in a small display rack and are microwaved after you place your order. The empanadas were small, especially the ham and cheese ones (they were almost the same size as the chimichurri container--see photo). The store is in a bad part of the city. There's no parking in front of the store as it sits in front of the train tracks. Only a single one-way lane is across the train tracks and there's no stopping. There's no parking in the back. Once you do find parking a few blocks away, you will need to walk through numerous homeless encampments. Homeless are everywhere in this area including in the front of this restaurant. Customer service was great. The employees were nice and the empanadas came out really fast (since they were microwaved).