Colombian Empanadas

My mother and I drove over an hour to try the famous Colombian empanadas at this place because a friend recommended them. The place was okay, the service was very bad. I asked the guy that was helping us if he was the owner or just an employee, he said his parents were the owners and he was working for them while they were on vacation. I let him know he was rude; my mother and I are not Colombian and so we asked what the items were and he seemed annoyed. We went back a second time and the man was still there with the same rude attitude.

If you want authentic Colombian food this is not the place to go. They have the worst customer service and not the mention the food quality is poor. Last time I ordered a morcilla (blood sausage) it had a a funky smell and an off color. I didn’t care to try it, I cut into it and the smell turned me off so I decided to return it. Long story short, the owner refused to take it off my bill. Fifteen minutes later she took it off my bill and bluntly told me how the «customer is not always right.» And how the real problem was that I’ve never had Colombian food before. I am Colombian and I know what Colombian food should taste like.

We tried empanadas, the caramel twist (in the sweets/​dessert section, their mango (jugo natural), piña (jugo natural)…we tried $ 21 worth of food! We also had their yuca frita (fried yuca… think thick, coarser fries). The yuca serving was 4 stems/​sticks and they were thick. It looks like the empanadas are prepackaged so I don’t know how fresh they are… but all the food was really delicious. I loved my mango natural juice drink, I got it with water but they can also do milk (which would be for breakfast/​morning drink).
I would eat there again! The cashier was friendly and is somewhat English literate. The place is small and cozy. A hole in the wall type of joint but the food is good. I would definitely go back again. Did not check about a changing station in the restroom or a restroom. Try a natural fruit drink at the least. LOTS of options: mango, pineapple (piña), guava, guayaba, orange, blackberry, and maybe another one. Super tasty.

This is a small place has lots of options everything is already made and ready to go so fast service but you don’t know how long the food has really been sitting there.

POOR excuse for a empanada place specially being Colombian.
don’t order the dollar empanadas there is a reason why they are a $ 1
the worst customer service you can get they are annoyed by the fact that you are ordering that is the only part of the restaurant that feels like Colombia
the food is ok not great and the empanadas are ok
but don’t order the dollar empanadas I can’t emphasize that enough

If I could give no stars, I would. I heard good things about this place but the food quality was just horrible. I had the empanadas (rez) and they we hot but break your teeth rock hard! I mean it’s like they literally just deep fried leftovers! In addition to that I also had a plate of assorted meats, even single thing had been fried. Why would you fry a small rib of meat??? I was disgusted, won’t be back again.

I am from Colombia so I have a feeling if the food will be good or not and I have to admit thatI enjoy their selection!
The flavors are awesome and they even have caldo de costilla just like how my mom makes it.
I would recommend their Brazo de reina and empanadas.
I once left my passport and purse here for 3 days and they even returned it. Very honest people.

Delicious!!! Went there for a quick lunch break. Friendly quick and delicious! The meat and potato empanadas were great, I also tried one with beef, rice and boiled egg… Awesome! The sauce they give on the side is really tasty too. I’ll definitely be back!!!

Empanadas — who doesn’t love them? I’ve been to loads and loads of empanada places and this place ALWAYS wins. Their empanadas run from 50 cents to $ 1ish, depending on what the filling is. I adore their ‘dedo que queso’ (a cheese filled pastry in a long shape). It’s a dollar and worth every penny. The service is fast and friendly and the empanadas are wonderful!
I hope this place stays open forever.

Really fresh food, great variety and always delicious. The price is incredibly good and very cheap for everything. I come here whenever I can. Once you walk and you dont know what to choose because there’s just so many different kinds of pastries.

I came with my fiancé, who suggested we go, and the place is amazing! It’s not fancy but it’s so GOOD!!! The food is good and the people are friendly and quick. I would stop in for some empanadas or a filling lunch for a great price!

The only reason I found this place is because of Unilocal!I have been in Katy for 8 years and never discovered this little gem. Being a native from Southern Ca I am use to lots of different types of foods which Katy severely lacks!
This place looks like a small donut shop and is about the size of one too. But once you step through the front door you almost forget you are still in America! The workers there mainly speak Spanish, which I thought was cool since after all, these are Columbian Empanadas! I’m sure they could understand me but found my self reaching way back to my high school Spanish class to improve communications. There was a little TV mounted on the was behind the counter playing World Cup soccer. I wish I had time to stay and eat there so I could feel as if I were in South America, but I had to quickly return home to feed the kids!
I ordered 3 different types of empanadas that I photographed.
1. Columbian Empanada that was meat and potato. Only $ 1 each and was deciduous. Crispy on the outside and warm and soft on the inside.
2. Chicken Empanada with a pastry exterior. This was the most expensive at around $ 1.75 each. This was my least favorite since it only had shredded chicken inside and not much else but at almost twice the cost of the meat and potato I preferred the other for both flavor and price.
3. I will just call this Empanada #3 since I don’t recall the name and not sure of the exact ingredients. I believe it also had meat, potato and rice but either way it was wonderful! I think it was only $ 1-​$ 1.25 each and again, a bargain these days! I think this was the most flavorful out of all 3 and recommend too!
4. Pan con queso (bread with cheese) — at only $ 1 each I had to try something else. It was okay and was a large portion for only a buck. If I only had $ 5 for breakfast and wanted to get full, I would order this with an Empanada and coffee.
They had so many interesting other items behind the display case, it was like a donut shop but with many more interesting items!
If you are sick of the same old food places in Katy and have an adventurous pallet like me, then this place is worth a try! With so many items under a buck you have nothing to lose so give it a try! I hope we get more small mom and pop places like this around Katy that serve something different and good.
I will be back to try more!!!

My guess is that you have to go during the «fresh bake» hours when the empanadas are piping hot. I dropped in around 5pm, and they were pretty stale. My arepa was pretty good, but still not amazing.
The service is good. They accept credit cards. And they have other menu items like dinner entrees, baked sweets, and Colombian bevs.

I’m sad. I don’t come out to the suburbs too often and when I do I want to try something exciting and delicious! I pulled up my trusty Unilocal app and saw a place within .1 miles of my location that had a 4 star average! And even a 5 star from an elite Unilocaler! I was sold.
When I finally sat down and got a chance to read over the reviews, I realized they were very vague and generalized reviews with no real direction besides, really good empanadas, but not which ones?
I figured I’d get a sampling of a few. I got the beef, chicken, and a pork one. The shells were all different for each of the different types. This was odd for me.
Than again my only experience with empanadas was Marin’s and I want to say those are very Americanized? But I do enjoy those.
I feel like coming here in the evening for dinner was a bad choice. They might have great empanadas for lunch because they are fresh, but for dinner you’re stuck with what’s left over. Meaning they have been under heat lamps or in the display case all day. The shells were all stale.
I do enjoy how Marin makes them fresh for you.
I’m giving them 2 because I give them the benefit of the doubt that I came at the wrong time. But my personal experience was barely worth 1 star.

Wow! This place is awesome! It’s too good for words! Just try it you won’t be disappointed! Explore new culinary adventures!

These people are not from America, but the food translates well.
Big fan of Columbian cooking, and they have a little of every region. The soup was good, and the empanada’s can stand on it’s own as the meal or appetizer.
I hate to say best as I dont know what best is when it comes to empanada’s. But I will definetly be coming back for more.

Great little café in Katy. Intimidating to walk in, but everyone was real cool and the food was super duper cheap.

Best empanadas in Houston! My parents are colombian and these are the closest thing I have found to my mom’s empanadas. Only $ 1 each. When my parents visit from Louisiana they always stop here to pick up some fresh breads from the bakery.

We were driving around one morning and found this little bakery called Colombian Empanadas. My husband is Colombian, and we’re taking a trip to Colombia next year. In efforts to get to know his culture, and experience some new foods, we stopped in to try some of their breads, pastries and empanadas. My husband’s parents will bring back breads for me to try when they visit Colombia, so I was excited to try freshly baked bread. I was a little intimidated when I walked in, but as we looked over their selection and talked to the woman who worked there, we were instantly made to feel at home. The service was great, and the food was really good. Some of my favorite items that I’ve tried so far were the pandebono, buñuelos, and their beef empanadas w/​lime. This place is a little hidden treasure in Katy, and we’ll definitely be back for more.