June 5, 2026
Inside Miami's Empanada Scene: Argentinian, Colombian, Venezuelan and Beyond
Few cities pack as many empanada traditions into one place as Miami. Walk into a Doral bakery and you'll get a crisp Argentinian baked beef; cross town to a Kendall Colombian spot and the same word means a deep-fried corn pocket dusted in masa. The empanada is one dish in name only — in practice it changes shape, dough, and filling depending on which country's tradition you've wandered into.
Below is a practical guide to the major empanada styles you can actually find around Miami-Dade, what makes each one distinct, and a few of the best-rated places to try them. Most of these spots are casual bakeries, cafés, and counter-service restaurants where empanadas are a core part of the menu rather than an afterthought.
The main empanada styles you'll find in Miami:
- Argentinian empanadas — wheat dough, usually baked, crimped half-moons
- Colombian empanadas — corn masa, deep-fried, small and crunchy
- Venezuelan empanadas — corn dough, fried, larger and stuffed
- Chilean empanadas — wheat dough, baked, built around the "pino" filling
- Peruvian empanadas — baked or fried, ají amarillo beef with a sweet-savory edge
- Cuban and Miami-fusion empanadas — wheat dough, picadillo and creative mashups
Argentinian Empanadas in Miami
Argentinian empanadas are the baked, elegant cousins of the family. The dough is wheat-based and thin, folded into a half-moon and sealed with a decorative crimped edge (the "repulgue"), then baked rather than fried. The result is lighter and more bread-like, built for eating by hand.
Fillings lean savory and classic: spicy beef ("carne picante"), ham and cheese, spinach and ricotta, chorizo, chicken, and sweet corn (humita). Many Argentinian bakeries also run sweet versions — dulce de leche, plum, or bacon and mozzarella — and most cluster around the markets and cafés of Coral Gables, Doral, and the broader Argentine community.
Argentinian empanadas to try in Miami:
Patagonia Nahuen 
Fresh Delicious Argentino 
Pasiones Argentinas 
The Empanada's – Doral 
Don Domingo
Colombian Empanadas in Miami
Colombian empanadas are the crunchiest of the bunch. They're made with a thin corn-masa dough that fries up deep yellow and shatteringly crisp, usually small enough to eat in a few bites. The classic filling is seasoned beef and potato, though chicken and cheese are everywhere too.
What sets them apart is the table: a true Colombian empanada arrives with a wedge of lime and a cup of ají — a bright, spicy cilantro-and-onion salsa — for dunking. You'll find the best versions at the Colombian bakeries and counter spots of Kendall, West Kendall, Doral, and Hialeah, often alongside arepas and bandeja paisa.
Colombian empanadas to try in Miami:
Fonda Sabaneta 
Rinconcito Paisa 
Las Caleñitas 
Ambrosía Colombian Artesanal Food
Venezuelan Empanadas in Miami
Venezuelan empanadas are also corn-based and fried, but they run bigger and more generously stuffed than the Colombian style, with less potato and more protein. The dough is softer inside, the shell crisp outside.
The signature fillings are carne mechada (shredded, slow-cooked beef), queso, pollo, domino (black beans and cheese), and pabellón — a glorious mash-up of shredded beef, black beans, sweet plantain, and cheese, all in one pocket. Doral is the heart of Miami's Venezuelan food scene, but you'll find excellent versions in Edgewater, Wynwood, and Kendall too, usually next to arepas and tequeños.
Venezuelan empanadas to try in Miami:
La Uchireña – Doral 
Arepera Tico Tico 
Gocho Bistro 
El Sitio 
Charles & Larry
Chilean Empanadas in Miami
Chilean empanadas are big, baked, and built around one defining filling: the "pino." It's a savory mix of chopped or ground beef with onion, a slice of hard-boiled egg, a black olive, and sometimes raisins, all wrapped in a sturdy wheat dough. The "empanada de pino" is practically a national dish, and the seafood-and-cheese version (mariscos con queso) is a close second.
Miami's Chilean empanada scene is small but dedicated, concentrated in the Westchester and Bird Road area where a handful of Chilean kitchens bake them to order.
Chilean empanadas to try in Miami:
Pamela's Restaurante Chileno 
Sabores Chilenos
Peruvian Empanadas in Miami
Peruvian empanadas can be baked or fried, and they're known for being generously filled with a slightly sweet-savory, spiced profile. The classic is a beef empanada seasoned with ají amarillo (Peru's signature yellow chili), studded with egg, olive, and raisin, and sometimes finished with a dusting of powdered sugar and a squeeze of lime.
They're harder to find as a standalone specialty in Miami than the Argentinian or Colombian styles — they tend to show up at Peruvian kitchens and ceviche spots — but the best ones are worth seeking out.
Peruvian empanadas to try in Miami:
Cuban and Miami-Fusion Empanadas
Cuban-bakery empanadas are the everyday empanada of Miami — the ones in the glass case at every panadería next to the pastelitos and croquetas. They're typically wheat dough, baked or fried, filled with picadillo-style ground beef, chicken, or ham and cheese, and sold for a couple of dollars at the ventanita.
From there, Miami chefs have run with the format. You'll find Cuban-sandwich empanadas, ropa vieja empanadas, guava-and-cheese, and other mashups across cafés and bars around town. It's the most improvisational corner of the empanada world here, and a fun one to graze through.
Cuban and fusion empanadas to try in Miami:
Pinecrest Bakery 
Atlantis Cafe 
Las Delicias Restaurant 
El Gallito Bakery
Sweet, Vegan, and Creative Empanadas
Across every style above, you'll also find empanadas that break the savory-beef mold. Sweet versions — dulce de leche, guava and cheese, apple, and plum — turn up at Argentinian and Cuban bakeries alike, often as dessert or a coffee-break snack. Vegetarian and vegan options are increasingly common too: spinach and ricotta, creamed spinach, mushroom, and dedicated plant-based fillings.
And then there's the "new school" — pulled pork, bacon and mozzarella, caprese, even shepherd's-pie empanadas — that show up on the more experimental menus. Whatever you're after, Miami's empanada map runs deep enough that