by Janet Wilson
posted September 11, 2008
) Photo by Janet Wilson The Empanada House is located at 615 Commercial Lane. |
This is about a block past Merv's on Mountain Creek Road. You might remember the location as previously occupied by LaCosta, Two Grumpy Old Men, and Pario's.
The menu refers to the Empanada House as "The Flavor of El Salvador", so it's a bit different than Mexican (for those who were expecting Mexican). The food is prepared by the owner, fresh to order. While we were there a man came in with his son (who had not been there before) and said, "This is the best chef in the world," so she definitely has her fans.
There were so many items on the menu I wanted to try, I couldn't decide. Of course I ended up with a box to take home.
After being seated, you are served fried plaintains with three sauces for dipping. These sauces were served in containers with lids and little spoons like most places leave on the table for all the customers - and since we weren't given bowls to put our sauce in, I asked about it. Our server said, "Just spoon it on to the plaintain."
That bothered me because I am certain everyone isn't doing that. There was a tomatillo (which was way too hot for me), a red salsa, and chimichurri sauce. Our server told us that chimichurri sauce is used a lot in Argentina.
You can also place an order for fried plaintains ($2) and fried Yucca ($5). Entree items on the menu include filet mignon, carne asada and pollo asada. There are several salads priced from $3.50 to $6.50. Quesadillas, accompanied by rice and beans ($6) are also offered on the menu.
Having eaten the empanadas at Taco Rico, I knew I had to try one at the Empanada House. I ordered one made with sausage and cheese. Of course, I wanted to try the soup (they offer three) and I selected the Sopa de Tortilla ($3.99). I also ordered a Pupusa stuffed with sausage and cheese, as well as a tamale ($2). See what I mean? I got carried away.
The soup was full of chicken, as well as slices of avocado and I thought it was wonderful! To me, the pupusa is similar to a pancake with stuffing in the middle and while I enjoyed it, as I have in the past at other places, a pupusa simply doesn't "wow" me. On the other hand, the tamale did! Maybe you've had better ones, but to me, it was the best tamale I have ever eaten. It was served wrapped in a banana leaf, and was so soft and moist, filled with chicken and what might have been potatoes (or it could have been yucca; yucca reminds me of potatoes).
Wayne ordered two tacos ($1.75 each) and a burrito ($6).? He absolutely loved the tacos, made with ground beef and it topped with onions, cheese and cilantro in the small, soft corn wrappers (you can have flour if you prefer). He said had he known they would be so good, he would have bypassed the burrito and ordered more tacos! The burrito was a good size, filled with rice, beans, avocado, cheese and sour cream (although he had them hold the avocado) and served with plaintains. The burrito was not topped with a sauce, although I suppose you could use one of the sauces that are served with the plaintains, but there wasn't enough for that.
We enjoyed the food here and would definitely recommend your giving them a try. Being in the location they are, they need to get the word out so customers can find them. It's as if they are all alone.? There is a laundromat next door, but the Food Lion center in front of them is almost completely empty (including Food Lion), so they are not getting the grocery-shopping traffic they should.? Go by and give them some of your business. Keep in mind, the food might take a bit longer since the owner is preparing everything fresh for you.
Hours for the Empanada House are Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. for lunch and 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. for dinner. They are closed on Sunday.
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