The Perfect Empanada

By Brian J. Lowney

“I’m chasing the perfect empanada!” he emphatically says, as our conversation begins…

Pablo Mastandrea is on a quest to find the perfect empanada.

The Attleboro, Massachusetts resident and father of four, started his personal journey more than 20 years ago in Rochester, New York, where he attended graduate school, but he couldn’t find what he was so fervently seeking.

“It’s become my passion,” begins Mastandrea, a native of Buenos Aires, Argentina. “For 20 years, I have been chasing the perfect empanada.”

Mastandrea shares that during his culinary journey, which has taken him from South America to Miami, Los Angeles, and New York, where he’s occasionally enjoyed the fried or baked Latin American hand pies made with various delicious fillings.

“They were very unique at the time,” Mastandrea continues, adding that while he enjoyed a lucrative corporate career in sales and marketing working for several Fortune 500 companies, he was always drawn to the kitchen, where he could create good food for his family and friends.

His latest venture, “The Perfect Empanada,” combines his passion for cooking with his business acumen.

“I’ve chosen the road less traveled…” he emphasizes. “I left a comfortable, corporate professional career to take a chance and create an innovative company driven by personal passion and a vision.”

Working with the staff at Hope and Main in Warren, Mastandrea launched his new venture in March ’21, and began production and sales of his Artisanal Gourmet Empanadas eight months later.

“Our empanadas have all the qualities of goodness. They are decadent and delicious, fun, shareable, portable, beautiful, and creative,” he tells. “Our empanadas are baked, not fried. I am a bit of a perfectionist and all about the presentation. In addition to being delicious, our product must be creative, fun, and memorable! Most empanadas are pretty tasty. We want our empanadas to be irresistibly delicious,

Pablo Mastandrea & his daughter Sophia

and more importantly, we want our customers to love our product, while creating lasting memories with their family and friends. And for that to happen, our product needs to be perfect.”

Mastandrea and his daughter, Sophia, a student at Attleboro High School, can be found most Wednesdays at the Farmers Market at Hope and Main. The father-daughter team also serve their exquisite Artisanal Gourmet Empanadas at other farmers markets, breweries, and events throughout the area. They also offer catering services for private parties or corporate events. And if you want to experience The Perfect Empanada fresh baked in your own home, you can order their unique Take & Bake Empanadas, which can be picked up at Hope and Main, Monday to Friday, between 9am – 5pm. Delivery can possibly be arranged, as well. They can be reached at 508-241-5150 or by visiting info@ ThePerfectEmpanada.com.

“This summer I wanted to get involved in the business to learn from my father,” Sophia shares. “It’s always been my father’s dream to start this business. I grew up eating his amazing empanadas so I know how special they are, and my goal is to help my dad share them with everyone.”

Flavors include a Cuban Sandwich, Lobster Mac and Cheese, Spicy Beef, Savory Chicken, Salmon Decadence, Hot Italian Sausage, Bacon Mac and Cheese, Spicy Chicken Sandwich, Reuben Sandwich, Philly Steak and Cheese, Bacon and Mushroom, Spinach and Cheese (vegetarian), Caprese (vegetarian), and Tuscan White Bean Soup (vegan). Dessert empanadas include Guava (vegan) and Guava and Cream Cheese (vegetarian).

“We rotate production of our flavors so there is always something new, delicious, and exciting for our customers to enjoy,” Mastandrea tells.

According to the entrepreneur chef, some of the most popular flavors include Savory Chicken, which features chicken breast, sautéed with onions, roasted red peppers, scallions, and then finished in a white wine reduction to enhance and balance out the flavors.

Another empanada that attracts a loyal customer following is the Cuban Sandwich, featuring Mastrandea’s signature layered filling of mojo, marinated roasted pork shoulder, layered with cooked ham, Swiss cheese, dill pickles, and mustard.

“Many customers love our Hot Italian Sausage,” Mastandrea adds, explaining that the empanada features Italian sausage, sautéed with onions, fresh garlic, red peppers, and then finished in a gourmet sweet red chili sauce, providing the perfect balance of sweet and spicy in this decadent recipe.

“I’ve always been a different and innovative thinker,” he continues. “For example, people need to know what’s inside each empanada when they are serving them to their guests. So, I apply a unique flavor stamp to each of my empanadas, making it easy and fun to identify them.”

Mastandrea says that one of the best aspects of his job is introducing new customers to his products, many of whom have never tasted an empanada.

“I want to be the innovation leader in this growing foodservice category,” he emphasizes. “We are swiftly heading to set a new standard for empanadas. We are going to lead with passion, humility, enthusiasm, fun, creativity, friendliness, dedication, and above all, generosity. In addition to succeeding as a business, we want to be in a position to give back to the communities we serve and truly make a long-term impact by helping others, who are perhaps, less fortunate. In order to achieve this, we need to continuously innovate and improve The Perfect Empanada experience for our customers. Our operation is very labor intensive and we wouldn’t have it any other way. This is not a side-gig. We embrace the challenge to serve the absolute best experience possible. This, to me, is the true definition of what The Perfect Empanada should be. So, I don’t think I’ll ever stop chasing the perfect empanada!”

The enthusiastic entrepreneur describes the response that he and his daughter have received at Hope and Main and other events as “overwhelmingly positive.”

“The lines are forming at the farmers markets,” Mastandrea observes. “We are a small and humble operation, with just a pop-up tent and a table, but we have a much bigger and more exciting vision for this business. We are going to make it happen!”