Panada

Best empanadas in the neighborhood! Amazingly affordable lunch specials as well! $ 6 platters with a main dish of chicken stew or roasted pork and side of rice, beans, and veggies. (They used to give you a soda too but not anymore). Chicken stuffed plantains are amazing too.
Clean interior, a few tables for a quick lunch, lots of menu options, fast takeout, and gorgeous Latin American tunes on the radio every time you walk in.
Pro-​tip: no credit card minimum

Decent food with prices to match. Definitely a good places to go to when you want something exotic at a reasonable price

Very nice girl at the cashier, the food was delicious. We got the chicken with rice and a side of maduros and red beans. All flavorful and good. Recommend. Not to mention the prices were good. Thanks guys!

Stopped here for lunch and had their beef empanadas and the stuffed sweet plantain. The empanadas were moist and the sauces pair well with it. Originally I wanted to try the pernil, but opted for a quick snack instead. I will say that I don’t get an authentic vibe from this place for some reason. Nonetheless, decent.

Very nice chicken stew with lots of veggies (requested) and yellow rice. A big plate of tasty, savory food for $ 7.50. Plus the dude behind the counter was a gentleman. Check the photo above for a visual. Thanks for the good meal.

The workers in front are very nice and the food is decent, but not authentic-​tasting. The mango smoothie is pre-​made and not fully blended, therefore giving it an unappealing consistency.
The biggest problem with this establishment is that the cook drops utensils on the floor and reuses them.

Still my favorite fast grab. So healthy and such great quality yet so affordable. Would pay much more for it. Not complaining though: P

They make fresh slamming empanadas.
Shrimp, chicken, ground beef, guava & cheese, cheese & broccoli, spicy chicken
The rice & beans are to die for– roasted pork «pernil» as the PR refer to it tasty juicy– a side of sweet plantains hit the spot
Hey I come from Hell’s Kitchen to eat here & the price is amazing !
Try out this place you won’t be sorry people!!!

Review for delivery.
Placed order for delivery, representative from restaurant called 10 minutes later to inform me they wouldn’t be fulfilling the order because my address (0.7mi was too far away) and I would have to cancel it by calling Seamless myself. They couldn’t help.
Honestly I wouldn’t be writing this review if the employee was more polite or at least somewhat apologetic. I’d recommend adjusting your delivery range on Seamless before taking orders online.

I try to give every business a fair shot and I feel horrible writing a bad review. Unfortunately, this place does not deserve anything above one star.
The «panadas» — short for empanada, are exactly what they are called because they are just not real. They cost $ 2.50 each but probably cost about twenty cents to make. The dough/​flour base used to wrap around the meat is extremely thick. There was hardly any meat in the spicy chicken one I ordered or the beef. It was basically composed of all dough and cheap spices. When I cut it open, it was made of brown meat. For $ 2.50, I think white meat should be the only option considering the size. Never again.
The tostones ($ 2.75) are incredibly thick which defeats the entire purpose. Authentically, they would usually be less than ¼″ thick if they were puerto rican (as my grandmother or anyone in my family would cook them) and not ½″ to an inch thick. They should basically be called fried green bananas.
The rice tasted like it was made it was made in a crock pot. It is comparable to sticky rice and not anything that I could compare to a «latin taste» as the door indicates.
Overall, I was shocked to see that this place has four stars. This place may be «affordable» but I will choose to spend my money somewhere that values quality over quantity anytime or just quality as a whole.

Went back again, and liked it even more the second time, but I must say it’s much better than it looks.
They need to work on their marketing. For one thing, the name on the side of the canopy is obscured, and I thought the place was called «Canada»!
With the neon sign in the window saying «Latin Taste!», that made no sense, so I looked for the name on a wall or somewhere. There were beautiful empanadas on display and lots of nice smells while we ordered at the counter, fast-​food style. Finally had to ask the personable young guy behind the counter. It’s a nice name; they should throw it around more.
They could invest in some silverware for people who eat in. Those little plastic forks and knives are dreadful. It’s a nice option on a part of First Ave with few. I hope they do well.

I hate giving bad reviews but I wish I would’ve read this before ordering.
I was craving Señor Pollo but they’re closed on Sunday’s.
First time ordering from here. Food, like most mentioned, is pretty bland for those with a craving for authentic Latin food. Ordered roast chicken, roast pork, rice, beans, chicken stuffed plantain & avocado/​cheese/​tomato salad for the family.
— Chicken was bland and soaked with the bed of cabbage «salad» they laid it on. Kind of undercooked as well.
— Roast pork was ok but also soaked with the vinaigrette the cabbage is made with. Annoying.
— Rice & beans. Terrible. I can always eat rice & beans and this was just «uneatable». The rice was hard and tasted like white rice from the Chinese restaurant. The beans were very thick (think mexican restaurant) and super bland and the little seasoning you taste is not Latin.
— chicken stuffed plantain is prob the best thing I had but the plantain was undercooked and the chicken had bone!!!
— salad was mushy & meh.
We all ended up still hungry because none of us ate everything on our plate.

The chalkboard sign read guanabana juice, so I immediately went in. Ordered that and yucca fries.
The drink was good except I soon learned most of the cup was occupied by a giant chunk of ice… so there was very little juice for the price I had paid, and I was not happy about that.
However, the yucca fries that came with a yogurt sauce and an optional hot sauce were perfect! I have been hunting for yucca fries that suit my liking – light and flaky. Some places fry them really hard and they lose the flakiness that yucca naturally has, or the fries come out really dry; this place make them exactly the way I want! The yogurt sauce was a tad mild and because of the mild flavor, I ended up using up all the sauce before I finished the fries… thankfully I also took the hot sauce, which is a refreshing vinegar-​based sauce with onion and dill floating in it – not actually very spicy.
I will be back to try a full meal!

Very affordable for the location, very clean friendly staff I come by at least once a week

I have worked in the area since September and have only bought lunch twice since then. Both times, I did takeout from Panada.
It’s super affordable considering the other options in the area. Kale salad is great and really really fresh ingredients.
The second time I went I also got a spicy chicken empanada which tasted like it may have been in the warming tray for too long.
The guy behind the counter is lovely and was super nice both times I was there.

Tasty, quick and convenient not to mention very affordable. The staff is also all so kind. For starters, a friend and I ordered the calamari and WOW! It was amazing and perfectly fried. It also came with a what may be a thai chili glaze sauce abns it had a very good kick to it!
We then both had the pernil sandwhiches with yucca fries, which were pretty tasty. The only problem is that the «pickled» purple slaw isnt actually pickled and it kinda disaapointed me. I ended up scraping it off.
The yucca fries were a little on the dry side but still tasty and i washed mine down with some good old chinola ! AKA passion fruit juice for you gringos. Try it out for yourself, its a neat little spot.

So yummy! Not too oily /​salty! Thank goodness. Keep it that way! Thank you! Got the fish fillet platter very delicious. They make everything to order.

Panada gives me joy. I don’t write reviews often, but these people are killing it.
Roast pork shoulder with rice and beans, delicious and great price. Watermelon & mint juice is great.
5* for food, service & price
4* for empanadas, pastry a little dry but they are baked which is good.
I would get delivery frequently if they put the minimum down to $ 10

Panada is relatively new on the block, they opened this year. Their price is a little bit higher compared to other Latin cuisine venues further down the blocks. They do have better presentations, friendly service and the food is good plus generous in quantity (as other places are).
I recommend the pernil and the empanadas. The empanadas are a bit pricey considering the size of it but it is tasty (yes, I’m spoiled by outer boroughs).The cheese & guava is delicious, pairs so well coffee.

The place is cute and stylish, the food fresh and delicious, and if you like Puerto Rican food this place is a MUST.
I went there with a larger group for lunch and we loved all our dishes. I had roasted plantains with chicken stew as an appetizer and am still salivating for that dish. Chicken stew was great as well as the Shrimp Creole, all extremely affordable.
The only thing I’d change is to switch form styrofoam to paper plates. Still — 5 stars and I’ll be back!