Papa Luna’s Empanadas

I’d been meaning to try these empanadas forever, but San Diego has way too many distractions. I happened to receive some leftover minis at work and they were delicious. A trip to the shop for fresh ones was necessary. Midweek for a late lunch was a great time to go for a quiet meal. The case had 18 different varieties during my visit, mostly savory but a couple dessert options as well. I went with two shrimp and bacon and one short rib. The short rib was awesome. They have a 1 per order limit on them and they’re like a pot roast pasty. I also liked the shrimp and bacon, but they were a little more dry than the minis I had before because they’d come apart at the seams while baking. If you’re in PB and want a quick meal or snack, Papa Luna’s is a great option.

ever since i came back from puerto rico… i’ve been seriously craving empanadas. I had the most amazing empanadas there at a place called Vagon… yum!!!
this was close by so we checked it out.
service is friendly…
prices are above what I would have liked to pay for what i got…
empanadas were good… not amazing.
the salsas they had on the table were pretty darn yummy
we sat outside for the people watching and the warm sun.
gonna head out and find more empanada spots around SD…

I’ve been to Papa Luna’s twice with my friend who introduced me to it. In terms of quality and taste their food is delicious. My personal favorite would have to be the kickin chicken. You can’t go wrong with adding the sauce they provide for you either! It’s honestly really good!
The only reason why i’m giving them a three is because of their lack of customer service and their employee’s attitude. Both times I’ve been in i’ve encountered two different employees but both had similar attitudes. They looked like they hated their lives and hated serving others. They gave me attitude and it honestly just didn’t seem like they cared to be there. It put me in a bad mood. After receiving attitude from the employee I came to find that the empanadas were cold after waiting 15 minutes for them to be «heated.» Horrible customer service.

Stopped by to use their restrooms. The empanadas in their cases looked good, so I decided to buy one to go. There were so many to choose from, so I asked the nice man behind the counter for his recommendation and he recommended the kickin chicken. I ate it the next day cold and it was tasty and had a little kick to it. It included 2 different sauces on the side — both pesto based. One was spicy and the other was on the plain side; both were good. The empanada was big and I believed it was baked, not fried, so it wasn’t authentic, but it was a a pocketful of yumminess! I would definitely go back!

I dot usually post reviews, unless I have a good one. I just never want to be that person. however let’s talk about when you find yourself enjoying lunch just feel a sudden jab in your throat and find a thick piece of metal in your food that could have killed you?
Let talk about no follow up from the company, ok they claimed they were not notified. Six one way half dozen
about when they are now aware and all they can offer is a weak apology and an even weaker excuse claiming that it is not uncommon to find foreign objects in your food when they. order from distributors??? Oh and and a gift certificate for your next visit. No thanks. Sounds more like a lawsuit if you ask me, but what do I know? Yea never eating here again. This place is full of shit. Next stop BBB and city health department. –good day

Update — 03÷14÷16 — today I got two to take home for dinner as it was too early in the day. I tried the Pollo. Not as great as I would have liked. The chicken was cut up in little pieces and didn’t have a lot of flavor. I wish it was thickly shredded. I may have got one with more bell pepper than onion or green chile. Glad I tried it but won’t get it again. Good thing I got another one — Philly Cheesesteak. I think the recipe has been updated. I did not taste any cheese at all. Glad I like meat as that was all that was in it. I think the sizing has decreased too as I ate my empanada in six bites. :(

Aahhh! There is so much selection to chose from. But I made sure to order something I’ve never had in my life. So I went with the Camarones Y Tocino (Shrimp, Bacon, Sriracha Cream Slaw, Cilantro) this was bursting with so much flavor. This is a must have. Only thing was it was about $ 5 each. I could eat about 3 of these. Haha!

Wow, this place is awesome! I’ll admit I was skeptical when my friend suggested getting empanadas for dinner; I was thinking of little bite-​sized ones, not exactly a meal. But the empanadas are actually fairly big (two or three would make a meal for most people) and they have such a large selection! I got the kickin chicken, which was amazing. The chicken was so moist and the crust was flaky, it was everything I could’ve asked for and then some. They have dessert empanadas, too!
It’s a tiny place but the atmosphere is great. I don’t care what anyone says, part of the dining experience is the atmosphere. It’s bright and cheery, with both indoor and outdoor seating. The cashier was really friendly. Without a doubt one of my new favorite restaurants in San Diego!

The red chimichurri sauce kicks ass over the green. The empanadas are very authentic IMO and I have had my fair share in my life. These may be the best so far, well actually there was a place on Bonita Rd (in the same strip mall as TJ Oyster bar) that were the best but for some reason it closed :(
They start at $ 4 a pop which is a bit steep. The guy working the counter was really nice BUT he told me the meat one had a hard boiled egg in it which I pictured a whole hard boiled egg, ground beef and potato. Well it was like chopped up bits of egg, but still good. I had the spinach and the corn one’s as well. the corn was my favorite, spinach, 2^nd and meat 3^rd. They were ALL good.
The crust was perfect. They were not overly doughy. They had thin a very crispy crust with a good filling ratio.
I took mine home cold and heated them 350 for 15 minutes and they were perfect. They really should give you heat at home instructions. I hated guessing. That other place I liked that closed gave you written instructions.
I can’t wait to back I had my eye on about 5 more!

I love love love empanadas at this place. Always fresh and delicious! Caprese is my favorite. However. They also have one with «prosciutto» and some greens and cheese, but it just ham and cheese nothing close to prosciutto and no greens, they fool you:(when I asked about where everything that listed in description man at the register told me that it was always this way and he refused to give me other empanadas instead. That’s a shame! service it not friendly. I will come back for to go only and buy what I already tried and liked, not going for a new items.

Can i just say, i LOVE THIS PLACE SO MUCH.
First time i came here, i was in such distress because all of the empanada descriptions were already watering my mouth. Thank goodness it was my friends and i first time, so we pretty much got everything on the menu and split all of them to see which one was the most delicious. They are cheap and good portion size (at least for my size (5,0 115 lbs) 2 is enough for me, 3 is pushing it)
My favorite ones were the Camarones, breakfast, and the espinaca. If i had to choose between those three, Camarones FOR SURE. Their sauces for the empanadas, DELICIOUS. I haven’t had their dessert empanadas yet, which i hate myself for not getting any yet, BUT I WILL and i bet they are just as wonderful tasting as the other empandas.
p. s. they got stamp cards, i think its a buy 8 and get one free, which is AWESOME. So make sure you get them if you decide to come back, which you will.

After reading the reviews here, I wasn’t sure what to think… But I am sure glad I ignored the negative reviews and stopped by! Loved the Sunny Goat and the Dulce de Leche so much that I had to come back again before we left San Diego. Delicious!
Brian was super helpful and nice!

If you’ve never been here, you’re missing out! Great variety of flavor, awesome sauces and relaxed atmosphere! Love it!

This is my 10^th time coming here. I’ve gotten the chance to try almost all of their empanadas. My two favorites are Spinach and Caprese.
Location — 5 blocks from the beach, great bars and coffee shops close by.
Ambiance — Indoor and outdoor seating. The indoor seating is well ventilated and seats are very comfortable. Outdoor is very nice except when it’s really sunny because the shade is limited.
Food — Prepared fresh daily and every empanada is heated to order. Their sauces are extremely fresh. I’m obsessed with the Chimichurri and Papa’s Pico sauce.
The owner of the store is very environmentally conscious. They don’t use any styrofoam for to go containers or cups. He actually supported a local beach cleanup that my company put together by donating Empanadas to the volunteers. I highly recommend it.

I have to say, my love for this place has grown over time! I always stick with the ol’ standard carne molida and eat it with a ton of chimichurri. The dough/​crust isn’t flaky like you might expect, but it’s also not oily, which is nice. It’s grown on me! I always feel like I could eat 10 of these things!
My tip: stick with the standard empanadas and not the more exotic ones!

Papa Luna’s has slipped down so far in customer service. I never had a problem of any kind in 3 years, until now.
There have been several times lately when the counter help is rude and condescending, and though I realize someone may be having a bad day, customer service is second to the food quality and you better bring it to work every day. Or quit and find something else you like doing.
I was on my cell phone, sitting at a table after placing my order. I was also waiting for the girls to count money. I sat on the phone having a convo with someone while the counter help girl literally was standing with crossed arms, just trying to stare me down. It was strange. She could have been doing anything else besides staring me down, like –oh, idk– maybe making a move to start getting my food order ready?
It certainly makes people uncomfortable enough to want to leave. So that’s what I did; I left. No one likes being stared down while waiting for their food. It’s highly aggressive and rude to stare.
I left mostly b/​c the girls were taking way too long to count their cash drawer. They were running back and forth to the kitchen, taking phone orders, ignoring the money on the counter. Not safe at all. Plus, the stare-​down was just going way too far. The cherry on top.
Too bad the people who work here are rude, especially the female blond who was staring me down.
Their empanadas are actually pretty good.

I’ve learned my lesson over the years to get the carne molida. Whenever I’ve tried the more unusual/​non-​traditional flavors, I have been disappointed. But the carne molida is tasty, and you gotta eat it with lots of the yummy, garlicky chimichurri. And at first, I didn’t like the crust of their empanadas, but I’ve learned to appreciate how they are baked and not fried and oily. Two empanadas would definitely be enough for me for a meal. They are more filling than they look!
I like them more every time I go!

Just came here, it was decent. Thought it was a little pricey though. We tried the camarones y tocino, espinaca con queso, philly cheese steak and caprese. I only really enjoyed 2 out of the 4, which was the caprese and camarones y tocino. I wish there was more bacon with the shrimp though. It was a little too doughy also, I ended up not eating the ends. The chimichurri sauce was delicious though yum. I’m not sure if I would come back but it was cool to try it.

You will smell the tempting aroma of the empanadas from down the street… let them draw you in. Surrender to the sweet golden brown egg-​brushed crispy crusts.
Most empanadas range from $ 3-​$ 4, and the half-​moon will cover the better part of your open hand. They come with two options for sauces, complimentary on the table — a chimichurri and pico. The pico is fantastic, and VERY GARLICY.
We tried four different types — ranked below in order of deliciousness:
1. Sunny Goat — organic goat cheese and Italian sausage
2. Philly Cheesesteak — meat, cheese, cheese, cheese, meat
3. Jamon y Queso — rich ricotta cheese with ham, quiche-​like
4. Empanada de Pollo– disappointing after the other three

These are by far the best empanadas that I’ve had that have not been made by a family member :) they are freshly made every day and baked not fried.
They have a great selection from veggies to meats and different cheeses. My absolute favorite thus far is the carne Molida with potatoes. I always want more after the first. I did have the chicken one bf and wasn’t as impressed. I will say there is something for every taste bud here so if you don’t like the first one you try, try a different one .
They are about $ 3.45 each and their a good decent size– one should be good unless you are very hungry or very curious to try others ;)
They have a in house made salsa which is to die for — the perfect blend of spices. They also have a in house made chimichurri. They sell in a container to go for about $ 4.