Empanada Mama

So obviously, people always want to know about things to do and places to go.

Sometimes in the big city, the "what" of something can often outweigh the "how" and "who".

Take the restaurant "Empanada Mama". Located on 763 9th Ave #1,  this little restaurant packs a mean punch when it comes to the heavily revered, "always imitated, never duplicated" Latin food staple called "empanadas". "Pan" in Spanish means bread, and what you get in reality is something that tastes like putting the best meat, cheese and spice from any Latin meal, wrapped in a flaky, soft breaded concoction that would remind one of a beef patty only in appearance. You'll probably need a couple of them at least, depending on your appetite, because they are not extremely filling in and of itself.

Finding a place that specializes in empanadas to a Latin food aficionado (like myself, lol) is tantamount to a connoisseur of Asian specialties finding a great Sushi and Sashimi spot. So imagine my joy when I was speaking to my boss and he tells me about Empanada Mama. We ordered it - actually he liked it so much that  he ordered it and then went to Midtown to pick it up. Fast forward to 2 weeks ago when I have a meeting in the area of this place. Great! We'll go to Empanada Mama - good choice and bad. The empanadas are flavorful, with many options from which to choose - but the service was horrific. It seemed like I were going to have to beg to place an order. Our food took extremely long, like 30 minutes, and we did not have a large order.

The waiters apparently learned the menu and forget manners. When a waiter pushes past me, and actually takes the time to put his hands on me to encourage me to move out of the way, there is a problem.

So Ratings-wise:
Service - 0.
Price - 1 (reasonable)
Ambience - 0 (felt like I was in the way from the moment that I entered)
Cleanliness - 1 (I must admit that it was pretty clean)
Excellence - 1

Great food, just order an hour ahead and take it TO GO!!!