Tuesday, March 29th - House of Empanadas - Hidden Gem!

House of Empanadas

There are restaurants you would never find unless you fall into them on the way to somewhere else or if a friend recommends them.  Or in our case, sometimes we see them of Food TV.  One of my favourite Italian places in the Seattle area came about that way.  Anyhoo, in the case of the House of Empanadas it was a bit of a combination of proximity and Bobby Flay's Throwdown show.

Off Davie in the West End, far enough away from the beach and from downtown that you may never find it is the House of Empanadas.  If it weren't for our needing to stay in a 2 block walking distance from St. Paul's, we may never have found it.  Actually, in addition, if it weren't for having recently seen Bobby Flay have an Empanada Throwdown in NYC, we may not of known what a tasty and cultural pocket of goodness Empanadas can be. 

Their menu has nearly a dozen different fillings PLUS a few dessert mini Empanadas as well.  The savory ones come with a some fresh Chimichurri sauce on the side, a spicy green pistou.  D had the Pork and I had the Mushroom and we split a Vegetarian.  For dessert we split a couple of the dessert Empanadas. 

The dough was tender and light.  The filling was the star of the show.  The Mushroom one was exceptionally plentiful on the shrooms and the whole pocket was not a dough fest like some, say, Panzarotti can be. D loved the Pork.  It was well cooked and seasoned. The other difference from some styles is that they are baked instead of deep fried.  Although, deep frying is always dangerously addictive, baking did not detract from their yummoness.  The dessert ones on the other hand were a bit more doughy to filling because of their size.  They were alright.

They sold Yucca and Plantain chips to go as well, which is a plus for me :^D.  If we lived closer, this would be a regular lunch place for us.  As it is, we have agreed that we'll have to make a point of visiting the area for an empanada.

Side note, according to the Empanada dude on the Throwdown, the fork seamed pockets are not autentico.  They should be crimped like pie crusts.  The fork crimping is for Pastelitos. I wasn't personally fussed and they were tasty non the less

Service: Prompt (to go)
Cost: $$

House of Empanadas

Robson Street/West End
1220 Bute Street
Vancouver, BC V6E
www.houseofempanada.com
(604) 699-8977

to go Lunch

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