Julia's Empanadas

This used to be one of my favorite lunchtime spots when I worked downtown DC. No joke, I was there at least one day each week. I'd take that 30 minute round trip walk from my office regularly. There weren't too many places in downtown DC where you could eat for under $10 and healthy at that. For about $6.50 you can cop the special of an empanada, a soup and a salad. My typical trip to Julia's would be to get a Jamaican style empanada (ground & chopped beef, onion, potato, curry, spices), a black bean soup and tomato, cucumber & celery salad. After a while I started adding another $2 to that special and getting one of the dessert empanadas. They have varieties like strawberry, pineapple coconut and apple. But my 'off the chains gotta have it knock em out the box' favorite dessert empanada is the peach/guava. It is slamm-min!!!! I discovered Julia's Empanadas back in like '96. Every Wednesday I was up in the Adams Morgan area & would hit up the location on 18th. I was thrilled to see the guy who worked at that location become the manager of the Dupont Circle location. I couldn't honestly tell you his real name, but I always called him Ray. Real cool dude. Julia's has me as a lifelong customer. Believe that.

I come to DC a couple of times a year on business and stay at a hotel within walking distance of Julia's. I make it my business to get there at least twice per visit. Don't let the tiny, unassuming, kinda dark, rather bare-bones storefront appearance fool you. While it might not look like anything to write home about, the empanadas will make you want to shout from the rooftops. I can really only speak on the sweet ones as I had a savory one just once. (It was the chicken, and it was quite good, large, and generously filled.) However, the fruit-filled ones are amazing! The pastry is a beautiful deep golden with a good helping of filling. It is sturdy enough to stand up to the weight of the fruit-filling but not chewy or doughy. It is a perfect hand pie! My hands-down favorite is the strawberry and cream. It is not to be missed, and the apple is a close second. There is no real ambiance, but the service is fast and friendly in this right-priced gem, and if you walk in without the money necessary for this cash-only purchase, they've got you covered with an in-store ATM. To avoid the $3.00 fee, I advise a stop-in for a withdrawal at your own banking institution first. My only wish is that I could experience them warm from the oven---or even warmed up. That is the drawback of stumbling upon such a great find while traveling & and staying at a hotel. Regardless of that, whatever you do, don't skip Julia's!

tl;dr: Local chain, no frills, hole in the wall eatery with empanadas on demand that are made fresh daily and served hot. Obviously made with love when you see the empanadas. Warm, delicious, and perfect after a night out or a quick bite. I wanted the Chilean empanada, but they were out, and I will be back to try that one! Jamaica Empanada - 4/5: This empanada was not bursting with flavor as I was expecting, but it was pretty good! I think I would compare it to the beef in a Shepard’s pie. The Pastry itself was delicious. I can’t imagine how they taste out of the oven, because just from the warmers, it was so crispy, warm, and comforting. Chorizo Empanada- 5/5: the chorizo was amazing, and the flavor blast I was looking for. Especially compounded with the salsa verde they gave us, it was amazing! This empanada also had art on its pastry, just to demonstrate the love that goes into these. Papaya Guava Empanada - 3/5: The empanada was yummy, but after the other two, this was sort of disappointing. The guava jelly was fine, but I can tell it’s definitely not homemade.

Very pretty looking pastries, but mostly empty and WAY overpriced. It was about 8pm. I got a pear almond pastry. There was almost no filling. Tasted kind of like almond extract but it was mostly dried up pastry dough. For $3 + tip, I was not impressed at all. I threw most of it away because I’m already fat and I don’t need to waste my daily calories on plain dough. Sorry, Julia. Maybe it was just an off day or something but I’ve had better empanadas at Taco Bell, for $1.

I smelled the place before I got there — you can smell the delicious scent of empanadas before you arrive. Once inside, the small shop draws you toward the empanadas lined up in their warming case, enticing you to get one (or more). I decided to get two for lunch, one Chilean (beef + veggies and spices) and one Salteña (curried chicken + olives, veggies, and egg). The Salteña was phenomenal. At $6 each, it’s slightly pricey, but worth it if you’re hungry and want something hand-made, tasty, and quick. The only thing I didn’t love was the $10 minimum for credit cards. That’s a pretty high minimum, and it means you have to get at least two empanadas if you didn’t bring a debit card or cash. The colorful art on the entrance is lovely and draws your eye, once you get close. Try Julia’s! Make sure to grab napkins :)