Argentinian native Maximiliano "Max" Gonzalez never imagined he'd own an empanada restaurant in Little Italy. A professional tango dancer and teacher in Argentina, Gonzalez says he came to Baltimore to help spread his culture and teach people how to tango.
"A few years ago I started doing empanadas for my students so that they could experience more about Argentina. After a short time, people started calling me in advance to place orders. It developed into a business when I realized people really liked my empanadas," he recalls.
As demand for his empanadas increased, Gonzalez eventually began selling the tasty treats at local farmer's markets in Owings Mills and Highlandtown. Selling at the markets also helped him weather the warm summer months when people are less interested in being inside dancing, preferring instead to be outside.
"We started to get a crowd with people standing in line for our empanadas. Business exploded and I didn't have the space at home any more to keep making the homemade empanadas. We started renting a commercial kitchen and commercial storage to keep up with the demand," Gonzalez continues.
In September 2009, he hit the big time, at least regionally, when a Virginia-based Latino grocery store approached him about selling his frozen empanadas.
"After we got that account, we realized we couldn't just rent space any more." So began a search for a permanent location. Gonzalez search started in Fells Point, but he quickly found a location in Little Itally, a former deli.
"Empanadas is not a fast food but it's a fast snack or meal. We found this place on S. High Street. This place was actually perfect. It had everything that we needed, a oven, deli cases, refrigeration."
Though small, the 313 S. High Street shop will seat about 30 guests -- 10 at the "empanada bar" and another 20 at tables. With a new liquor license expected in a few weeks, Gonzalez says he'll add table service and also begin serving Argentinian wines and international beers.
His empanadas are traditional but witha gourmet flare. "We experiment with different flavors. You have more options for cheese, vegetables and meats. We have traditional beef, chicken, ham and cheese, a mixed vegetable that people request all the time. Then we have weekly specials -- three or four. Each country has an empanada and we try to represent each of those. Bolivia has a potato empanadas and another region combines brown sugar with ground beef," he explains.
In addition to his empanadas, Gonzalez also sells a variety of foodstuffs from Argentina.
"I'm so happy because this has been such a positive outcome," he says.
Source: Max Gonzalez, Max's Empanadas
Writer: Walaika Haskins