The Original Marini's Empanada House

One the best place I have seen while travelling to US. People were nice and cheerful, food was excellent and vibe was amazing. We ordered Spinach and Tomato Basic empanadas, and they were great.

Very fun place to try. Food was very flavorful, well seasoned and delivered fast to the table. Food arrived very hot (I was warned) but couldn't resist taking that first bite. Resturant had a neat charm to it. Even had the opportunity to meet the owner what a great experience very nice gentleman who was concerned with how my meal was. Highly recommend trying this stop.

We stopped here on a Tuesday at about 1:30. This was our first time here. The place wasn’t busy when we got here. We got our seats and took some time to go over the menu. There are lots of choices, both savory and sweet. The menu doesn’t really tell you about the sizes of the empanadas other than a regular and a double size, however, if you go up to the order desk, they have a tray that shows all different sizes if you’re looking for something smaller. I wanted to sample a couple of different ones so I got the regular size. I’m a big fellow and after two regular size ones I was full and not hungry anymore. I got the hot Tia Maria, which had beef in it and I got the chicken poblano which had chicken in a mole sauce. They came out in about 15 minutes and they were hot and with some side sauces. The green sauce was kind of a mint sauce and the other sauce I got was a hot sauce. They were both very good. my wife got a couple of empanadas along with the Elvis Melbia which was a dessert empanada. Everything we had was very good and the dessert empanada was amazing. We look forward to coming back and trying some more of their offerings. I’ve never seen an empanada restaurant with this large of a selection.

Everything was super fresh and delicious. I got Linda's chicken, pizza, and oreo empanadas with curly fries. The sauces go well with the savory ones. The owner? I think had me try a spicy sauce along with the chimichurri. Service was calm but friendly. They put love in the food. I will be back.

Friendly staff. Good food. Good environment. We have been here a few times now and love coming back. All the menu items we have tried have not disappointed. Best and original empanada place in town!

We loved it here. Came on a Friday for lunch around 1 and it was pretty quiet. We tried 4 different, 3 meat and 1 cheese. The chicken mole is not traditional Mexican mole, know that before you get it. It's counter service so walk up and order and they being it to you.

Great empanadas and excellent, friendly service. I've loved Argentinian food since studying in Buenos Aires in college and Marini's has some of the absolute best empanadas, including those in Argentina. Service is always quick, friendly and warm. The atmosphere inside the restaurant is very authentically Argentinian; homey and elegant. Every time I go, I try to talk myself into trying something other than my usual- but why mess with a winning formula? The beef gaucho and ham and cheese empanadas are my favorites, pictured below. Shoutout to the excellent curly fries and chimichurri as well. I am so thankful to live close by to such an amazing place, and will return often. I could eat their empanadas every day and never get tired of it.

Absolutely spectacular! Those were the best Argentinian empanadas we’ve ever had! The only thing is that the menu is a bit overwhelming. LOTS of options! And since it was our first time there, when I mentioned that to the lady taking the order I was really expecting her to offer some help on sizes, etc, but she didn’t. At all. I’m glad they have a tray showing them (which I had not noticed at first). Perhaps that’s why she didn’t help?🤷🏽‍♀️🤷🏽‍♀️🤷🏽‍♀️ Forgot to take the picture before we tried them! Those are the mini sizes and it was great for us to try different ones.

Marini's is 10/10! They are super popular and now I understand why. They empanadas were fresh and the staff was friendly. There not much I can say, other than - WOW! "Spectacular! Give me 14 of them!"

Came in after work because of two tik tocs I saw earlier that day I was going to preorder, but then I thought I should spend more time In there and look around, and I'm glad I did. The place is like a time capsule, pictures of the couple who started it as well as old newspaper clippings, and a empanada machine! You can actually watch them make and cook your food! They make it all by hand! And when your food is finished as a Togo order they bring it out to you There's music playing and they played music like hozier, Kane brown ,Ariana grande, and Bobby brown The woman who took my order was nice, and I didn't feel rushed, the menu is really big and they have over 30 items to choose from. I ranked mine in order from 1-4 1. Beef gaucho, 2. Hawaiian chu chu, 3. Chicken bbq 4. Texas bbq I would go again to try new ones..

We probably wouldn't've ended up here were it not for a couple of our friends who insisted on showing us this place. We're Austinites, but we traveled out to Houston for the furry convention in the next door hotel. That's right, this review is written by a furry. Enjoy that knowledge, LOL. When you're at a weekend-long con, you gotta eat, and you gotta fuel yourself with something actually decent too, not just greasy fast food. I'm not sure how far off from that this actually was, but pfft. Anyway, upon entering I found myself pretty dang impressed by the menu because um, that's a lotta empanadas. That said, it was almost too many options because my brain was on overload trying to decide (I guess most would consider that a good problem). It definitely convinced me to get two flavors, not just one. Snagged the Beef Gaucho and Hawaiian Chu-Chu. I reckon most people see a menu like that as a reason to return repeatedly to try all the flavors. I know our friends went multiple times over the 3-day convention, so that shows you. Personally, I didn't find my choices all that compelling. The Hawaiian tasted exactly like a Hawaiian pizza, and the other was sorta unremarkable too. Maybe I shouldn't be surprised? But I was expecting better for all the hype. The fries were hella good though. I dunno. I don't really see myself stopping in again in the future when there are lots of other places to try in the area. Not that it wasn't decent, just that it wasn't incredible, y'know? Pricing was decent. Maybe I should've tried a dessert empanada... maybe that'd've changed my tune, LOL. I'm open to the possibility I just didn't pick the good ones. The ambiance was sorta fun. Lots of kitschy stuff to look at, kinda homey. We waited quite awhile for our meal, but we had good company and there was room to sit and vibe. So sorry, no five-stars from me, but it was fine for a one-off stop.

Awesome place for hot and fresh empanadas. I love how many options there are to choose from. My favorites were the beef gaucho and humita. If you love cheesy corn, the humita is perfect. The beef gaucho was so savory, and I loved how the pastry soaked up all of the grease. The chicken bbq and italian marcello were more non-tradional flavors, and I enjoyed them. They both tasted how you'd expect. The hot tia maria just tasted like stewed beef, and the green hulk just tasted like spinach. The fries were delicious!! It seems like they use freshly cut potatoes. They're fried so well and I love that they're curly.

Why 5 stars? Because I need to come back here several times. --- --- --- This might be the restaurant with the longest gap between when I bookmarked it and when I actually visited. When I was living in Tampa back around 2012-2013, I developed a love for churrasco. So I bookmarked a bunch of places that served churrasco and hoped to check this one out during a future Christmas visit when seeing family. Fast forward a decade and I live here now. But I'm about an hour away from this place and have never had the opportunity to stop in. But when eating a late lunch nearby, I decided to make the trek over and pick up a couple of savory and a couple of sweet empanadas, mostly to eat later that night for dinner at home. But before I got in the car, I had to at least take some sample bites, and I was not disappointed. Maybe it's because I had just come from lunch, but the sweet ones were really hitting the spot. But later at home, I actually liked the savory options better. And they were just as great re-heated, by the way. As for what I ordered, I went with the Chicken Diablo, the Texas BBQ, the Banana and the Oreo. I could have stared at that menu for about 10 minutes and still not decided on what to order because there were about 400 options and 350 of them sounded amazing. But because the cashier was just waiting on me awkwardly, I decided to finally just come up with something. I would definitely love to come back with people so that I can try more empanadas, but also so that I can try some of the non-empanada menu items. I cannot believe it took me this long and I pledge it won't be 10 years before I make visit #2!

The place is a nice surprise! The empanadas are tasty, fresh, and feel very light. They have both sweet and savory ones, and they can customize if you have a preference. They offer multiple drinks, including with alcohol they have both red and rose, and a varied selection of sodas. They also have plenty of goodies to take out, like palmeritas, suspiros, and alfajores. It's self service, so you order from the counter and seat. They will bring the food to you, and recover the plates after you are done. You have indoors and outdoors seating, and it's good for big or small parties.

The customer service is super nice here. The empanadas were just ok. Having lived in Buenos Aires for 10 years I was so happy to be able to have a taste of 'home'. Sadly they didn't quite hit the mark in the store. Now we took them home and reheated and they were much better. Maybe because the dough is so thick it needed to cook longer. The filing was nice but the dough is really off. Quite thick.

This place was incredible! Very fast service and super friendly. The empanadas were to die for and the price was very reasonable. I had the four cheese empanada and one with chicken, mozzarella, and spinach.l with a blueberry dessert empanada. 10/10 highly recommend!!

Very fun place to try. Food was very flavorful, well seasoned and delivered fast to the table. Food arrived very hot (I was warned) but couldn't resist taking that first bite. Resturant had a neat charm to it. Even had the opportunity to meet the owner what a great experience very nice gentleman who was concerned with how my meal was. Highly recommend trying this stop.

Love the food LOVE the personnel!!! Family dining at its best!! BEST SANGRIA!!! YUMMY!

I ordered the Hot Tia Maria, Linda's Chicken, and Spinach empanadas. They were flavorful and there was a substantial amount of filling. My favorite was the Linda's Chicken. The Hot Tia Maria had spicy beef inside and reminded me of a spicy beef ragu. I would definitely go back to try the other menu items especially the desserts.

The empanadas were really good! 3 savory 1sweet. The empanadas breading is really soft I enjoyed some more than others. The cheese the and the viva zapata where my top 2 I even ordered another viva zapata to go. It had cheese pico refried beans really good. The snickers were heavy on peanut butter and the okie dokie was ok. Overall really good go with a friend buy a few split them and you'll quickly find your favorites. They have a large variety something for everyone to taste. Very spacious great music not too loud. Order and they bring it to you.

It is not often you get to have authentic Argentinian empanadas and then visit with the husband / wife dynamo team who created this Houston treasure. Although I have been to Marini's original empanada house many times , it has been awhile since Covid that I was willing to eat inside. The food was ordered and delivered to our table quickly. Fresh, hot and made to order !! 1 bite into the succulent spinach empanadas and I was hooked .We shared a few bites of the chicken milanesa that my table ordered and I was in " food heaven". For dessert we ordered sweet potatoe empanadas with lightly sprinkled powder sugar. Have I died and gone to HEAVEN? Pure bites of deliciousness that was not overly sweetened. A few moments later after we had placed an order to go, the wonderful founder Mr .Marcelo Marini came by to say hello . We shared some beautiful stories of his humble beginnings after leaving Argentina and even brought his desert chef out from the back Mrs.Marini to chat for a moment. A wonderful experience. A beautiful soulful restaurant. Yes!!! We wanted some empanadas later for when we had some evening munchies. Return: Absolutely Parking: plentiful Price: reasonable

I arrived in houston to watch la seleccion argentina play in the copa america at NRG and I decided to try out an argentine restaurant that happened to be in the area. I ordered the empanadas las pampas (ground beef, mozzarella and avocado) and the dulce de leche and it was so delicious that I wasn't able to take a proper photo before i sunk my face into the empanadas. The employees were super friendly and the inside decor was unique that had a cozy feeling to it. I'll have to stop to this location every time I visit Houston from now on.

We did not like the milanesa sammy without the bread, the chicken was very gristly....2 stars. The curly fries were tasty. The Pampas, Texmex savory empanadas were 5 stars, as well as the mini pumpkin empanada, a cup of tortilla soup, these and a bottled water made up the 5 star #1 combo. This combo gives you the option of fries, soup or a salad, I chose the soup. We picked up a few extra empanadas for our kids and some palmeritas cookies.

Yelp does it again! We were in Houston for the Texans/ Steelers game and found this place nearby. When I tell you it hit the spot... I got 2 savory and 1 sweet empanada. It was so delicious with the spicy green sauce! It filled me up for sure. Got the homemade sangria and it was a perfect combo with the meal. The service was quick and they were very friendly/ helpful. The place was a good packed and you could tell this was a town favorite. Will definitely come here again!

Excellent food and our food was brought out fast. Just a heads up, the menu on their website is different than the one in the restaurant (as of July 2024).

My first site of this place was on Guy's Diner, Drive in and Dives. I started off with a sweet tooth with the the dulce de leche and cherry. When ordering online you have the opportunity to add chocolate to it. I decided to add the chocolate to the cherry. I will say I made a mistake with that. I should of just left it as cherry. Now grant it the flavor was not bad but I won't do it again. The empanadas a a nice size and they are not stingy on the filling. They do have some outside seating and seating inside, the there were a lot of people coming in out and out, you can see them making it fresh. Customer service was good and the service was not long. It was filling I can see this as a dinner with a salad. There is lot on the menu that I will keep in mind to have on my next trip.

Personally I like the inside stuff Like the chicken Diablo, hot Tia Maria they are really good But I really don't like the outside of the empanada They are not crispy at all And they feel like a hard dough I really can not get used to it The place is packed so many people I strongly recommend to order online first

Finally made it here since it's quite far from where I am. Food was OK, I think it's a bit too doughy. Price range was good and the portions are big. The regular size is big already so the double are huge. Definitely can be share with that size. Service was fast. The place is small but they have patio for outside seatings.

Great Argentinian food Love the flavor and service is always sweet The mole empanadas are my favorite

This restaurant is an institution here in Houston. It's been opened since 1971. It's really good Argentina style empanada. Daily combos is what I got and it's a good starting point to try the empanada here. We got the food to go but the restaurant feel very homely on the inside. We got a number and then we got our food. The service was quick. If you never been here, it's worth it to try at least once. If the weather is good you can sit on the patio. The empanada are fried good an the meat is plenty and the desset empanada is very sweet for my Asian taste.

Being from Argentina, this place brings me back to my roots. The empanadas are legitimate and they offer a variety for every taste. I would also recommend the Milanesa Sandwich either the beef or the chicken with those delicious curly fries. Great service and you just might see Mr and Mrs Marini there. It's always a great conversation with him. I highly recommend them.

The place is busy and vibrant. All sorts of different people go there to enjoy some damn good empanadas. I tried different ones and these guys know what they are doing. Highly recommend to eat in or take out. Plus they can sell them uncooked so you can air fry or bake at home. The menu is huge and accommodates anyone's palate. The place is a bit divey but you must try out.

I love this little Houston Westchase staple in the Carillon shopping center. Marini's focus is empanadas, and they have undeniably been serving the best ones in Houston for decades. While they do offer sandwiches and full sized salads, I am here for the empanadas. The selection of empanadas is quite extensive. From meat to vegetarian to savory and sweet--they offer it. One can also choose more traditional Argentinian varieties, or choose from one of their fun creations--mostly Mexican, Italian, and even bbq inspired. One can even choose the baked option or a whole wheat option if one desires. If you'd like to try several items, go for the Numero Uno combo which includes two regular sized empanadas, a small dessert empanada, and your choice of side. There's definitely some more unusual choices. On my last visit I tried the Hippie combination which was salami, sautéed onions, and raisins. It sounded bizzare and unappetizing, but it was an interesting contrast of salty and sweet. I enjoyed it. The traditional Gaucho is a much more safe and popular choice. The most fun things about this place is sitting on the left side of the restaurant. It feels more like a bar, while sitting on the right side of the restaurant carries a totally different vibe.

Traditional Argentinian Empanadas! It is worth going out of your way and finding this gem on the map! Crispy outer pastry, stuffed full of fresh, savory or sweet ingredients! Empanadas create a warm (sometimes HOT) burst of flavor that makes you want to keep coming back to try new combinations! Order to go, or eat in at this long-time favorite in the Houston/Galleria area off Westheimer. Definitely a family favorite!

If you're a fan of empanadas, or are curious about them, look no further than Marini's. They have a massive selection of empanadas to satisfy anyone's pallet. Both savory AND dessert! The staff is sweet, the food is delicious, and reasonable as well. Give them a visit and see why they've been around as long as they have!

This is a great spot to try a variety of empanadas - they absolutely have something for everyone on their huge menu. We came for their lunch combo of 2 savory empanadas and one mini "house" dessert plus a side and drink, all for around $14. A pretty good deal in my opinion! Good luck choosing your favors, there are so many that sound amazing. I went for the Texas BBQ and Plain Cheese and both are something I would get again. The Plain Cheese, although boring in contents, was so comforting and good, like all the best parts of a stuffed crust pizza! The Texas BBQ was chocked full of beef and a slightly sweet BBQ sauce. The house dessert of the day was apple, so no complaints from me! Service is really friendly, the owners popped around to make sure people were happy, and the inside is quirky and fun. 10/10 experience

I want to express my undying thanks to the Marini family. A couple of weeks ago, I was in the area, so pulled into the parking lot to get empanadas. While looking for cross traffic, I forgot about the light post until it attacked my car! I waited 3 hours for a tow, but in that time, Marini's son in law chatted with me and gave me a hug which I desperately needed (I was pretty shaken up). Thought I'd go in and get an order to go, but they insisted that I shouldn't pay! I've always thought your food was amazing, but what an awesome family! Been coming since the 70s. Great food!

I travel frequently for work, so when a coworker recommended this place while I was in Houston, I was excited to try it. The beef gaucho and sweet potato empanada were delicious. The place is small, but it provided a pleasant experience.

Friendly Staff and service. You order your food, pay, cashier gives you a number and you pick your table. You have the option to sit outside or inside. There is also a drive through. It's a family atmosphere. They have variety of options to order. The Hot Tia Maria was so delicious and the Apple flavored dessert empanada was tasty. My mother had the Chuckwagon, the Chicken a La King and the Evita Peron dessert empanada. She enjoyed the Chuckwagon and Evita Peron but stated the the Chicken a La King empanada had more spinach than meat. The empanadas come with habanero hot sauce and green salsa. The salsas was good and they make them in house. The curly fries were good but had to add some salt and pepper.

Awesome Service and Oh my the Empanadas remind me of Mexico City's Empanadas excellent at every level!

Ate here while visiting Houston last weekend. The beef gaucho was the best. The chicken ones are ok. The dessert empanadas are meh. The argentinian cookies called alfajores were very stale. We saw the owner family sitting 2 tables away but they did not approach any guests to say hello or even acknowledge. Ambience was small corner shop kinda thing altho updating may enhance it overall. Overall, underwhelming food for all the hype by Guy Fieri. Pretty sure Houston has empanadas equally worthy as the tacos.

Marini's is my absolute favorite restaurant. Everything I have tried is incredible! There is a wonderful variety of sweet and savory empanadas. Some of my favorites are the Italian Marcello, chicken barbecue, Texas barbecue, and the New Yorker. Don't forget the chimichurri! For dessert, I'm a big fan of the chocolate and dulce de leche. I also really like the apple, especially the way it is diced.

This is my first visit to Marini's and the staff was very eager to provide suggestions on what I should try. I figured mixing beef, chicken and pork would give me a feel for my next step so I went with: Hot Tia Maria- super tender and flavorful beef and nice complex flavor with a hint of heat. Chicken Diablo- slightly confusing with small cubes of chicken, potatoes and vegetables. Texture was soft and to the mushy side. Flavor was in distinctive and a bit disappointing. Oinker - pulled pork and home made BBQ sauce. Meat was very tender and a good empanada but not something I'd order again. Nothing that stood out on the palate. Chicken Poblano - chicken was prepared well and the sauce was actually exquisite and full flavored. My second favorite of the four. The pastry on all of the empanadas was perfect! Flakey, tasty and crisp. There is a huge variety of empanadas to choose from so you have lots of options and chances to explore different tastes over numerous visits. Outside seating option is nice. I'd recommend you make a few visits here to hone in on what you like or even make one exactly to your liking with the ability to customize your ingredients. Well done!

Just great! Love it here. We're from Uruguay and love having a shop selling delicious empanadas close by.

This place is so great! We went in at an odd time and they were still busy so I think that says a lot for their demand in the community. I had an eggplant parmesan empanada and a banana/cinnamon desert empanada with a side of fries. Everything was absolutely delicious. Will definitely return when I am in the area.

Just Jumping in to update my review from my last visit....you know, had to eat another 5 in a sitting for "quality control"... And while my eyes were way bigger than my stomach on this one, I have to say Marinis continues to grow on me. Although arguably similar, I could swear, like fine wine, these little fried puffy babies get better each visit? Maybe I chose a better selection this time (the demichelli in particular)- but I'm thankful these little fried puffs, "born in Europe(Spain), Grew up in Argentina and baptized and were given a name [right here in] Texas"

I've been coming to Marini's for years. Their empanadas never disappoint and the sangria is always a good choice. If you're looking for traditional empanadas or even something more adventurous, I would say they're the best in the city

I've been coming to marinis for years now and it feels like i'm eating it for the first time EVERY visit. The employees are all very nice and helpful despite how busy it can get. And the sweet empanadas are some of the best i've ever had , especially the s'mores empanada ! I always order the chicken milanesa and i never get tired of it , not sure what they do to make it good BUT i always recommend to everyone thats never been ! I will continue to support this family owned business for many years to come

i was watching diners drive-in and dives and they mentioned how good the empanadas were here so when i was in houston i decided to check them out you are able to order online so that's what i did to avoid the lines and it was easy to order online. i ordered the spinach empanada and the cheese empanada along with chimichurri sauce. in the restaurant, there is only one line for in person ordering and online pickup - thus makes it very inconvenient and inefficient as it took a long time just to pick up the food. once i got the food, it was luke warm and the flavor of the empanada was average. i understand that argentinian and colombian empanadas have less flavor but these did not have any flavor unless you added the chimichurri sauce - that sauce was really good. the dough of the empanadas was good but overall i've had better empanadas elsewhere

Ehh. The empanadas were ok, I've certainly had much better. I had high expectations because when I went in, it was very crowded and lots of people saying they're really good, but I found them to be average. However, the staff was very kind and upbeat! They were very eager to help and make recommendations. I got the beef (with no egg inside) and The Oinker. They were both fresh and made to order.

The food is so authentic and the workers are so friendly! We came here not knowing what to order since their menu is so large, so we asked the cashier for recommendations. She definitely hooked it up and everything she recommended was amazing! Please go support this family run business!

Empanadas. Mahndoo. Shengjian. Momo. Dumplings. Every cuisine has a variation, and this one's a great representation of the Argentinian kind. The dough is where it's at - chewy and comforting, it's a great way to carb bomb your diet. The lady of the house is pushy but you can always order pickup. I'm not a fan of the beef empanadas or the steak sandwich here, so I get the following and eat in this order: * Fig w/ Everything - did you know it's better for your digestive health to eat dessert first? * Okie Dokie Artichokey - cheesy gooey yummy * Whatever other chicken empanada I also often add Berries Fairy or the one with banana and Dulce de Leche or both. 5 stars for the food and half star off for service. Closed Sundays, plenty of parking.

Empanadas are solid. May not be the most authentic but it tastes so yummy I don't care. I will say the crust kind of falls apart if you bite it wrong, so you have to be strategic and it's how you go about eating it.

Food was good, service was slow. Ambiance is homie. All I gotta say about this place.

Their empanadas are absolutely fabulous! You have to try them and there is such a variety to choose from!

One of our favorite date spots! We love the Marino couple and their amazing food! The original gauchos are our favorite!! My husband likes the Fig/Mozzarella desert but the EVITA is everything that's heavenly to me! May God continue to bless and keep this restaurant and family!

Just another in a long line of those trading on duration, rather than quality. The fillings simply weren't very tasty - I can't see how they could be with so many options. You can get eggplant parm or a British pie in a pocket. It would be virtually impossible to make sure both of those tasted the way they should. As an example, no herbs in the British pie. What you would expect for this place but disappointing nonetheless. If you want a hot pocket, pick one up in the frozen food section at Kroger - it will be crispier coming out of the microwave and you'll know what you're getting. I never cease to marvel at the power of a habit. Good for them - I guess.