My husband and I were driving by Anthem yesterday after a not-so-successful search for "pretty rocks" off Castle Hot Springs Rd and the tummies were growling when I remembered an empanadas cafe from Facebook. They are tucked in the area towards the back of the strip mall but Google got us right there Andrea meet us as we walked in and was very helpful with selections that I could have since I don't eat meat. I had one spinach and one artichoke, my husband had two beef and one philly. SO YUMMY!!! And the sauces they pair with the empanadas were also made with love. I had to get a cherry empanada to enjoy later We tried the Sea Moss sparkling waters which were yummy as well. They also offer frozen empanadas to take and bake, so I had to get the spinach which I wanted my husband to try. Give them a try! You will be hooked! Thank you Andrea and team Fran & Phillip :-) read more

Fillings (the spinach and the chorizo one) were good but the outside dough was flavorless. A baked dough should be light and flaky and a fried dough should be crispy and crunchy. These were kinda in-between. A little disappointed as I was excited to have a place for empanadas nearby. Folks are super friendly and I wish I could give them a better rating but probably won't be back. read more

We've been meaning to come to Leila's after seeing it talked about on our neighborhood page and finally found a time when we were over in that area, so we decided to stop in for a quick snack. Love having small businesses in our town! The GPS misrouted us (because the dirt lot in front of the building isn't an official turn), so we just drove back behind and to the side of the building. There are signs pointing you which to follow to the entrance. We received a very warm, friendly welcome and started looking at all the options. There was a really good selection of choices and I like how there was both sweet and savory available. We went with the Philly for our savory and the Apple for our sweet. We also grabbed a Diet Coke and a Guarana, which is a Brazilian soda, from the drink fridge. The empanadas were both incredibly delicious! It was just the right ratio of dough and filling. They weren't too toasty or undone. Super flaky and could be eaten by hand but they were served up hot, so we used forks. Definitely made with love and care. The Philly came with a oniony, peppery, mushroomy, cheesy kind of sauce. I could be misrepresenting the ingredients (it isn't listed on their site menu) but it captured all the traditional Philly cheesesteak flavors. The Apple one came with this crème brûlée sauce which was almost like a thick, melted ice cream that just went perfectly with the cinnamon apples. They also have fridges with take home empanadas and desserts. Next time, I have my eye on the Oreo filled one! read more

Leila's Empanadas - The Apple and The Philly - Empanadas Near Me - Phoenix, Arizona

See all

Wow! These empanadas are amazing! We tried about 10 of them. Leila was at the counter and heated them up and they each had a different sauce for them as well. She was super nice and had great customer service. We will be back! read more

A friend recommended Leila's so I stopped by today to pick up lunch. We tried 5 different ones and liked them all. Friendly service and a neat setting inside. Planning to take a friend next week. read more

This is a cute little spot with phenomenal food. The interior is very clean and modern. Empanadas were absolutely delicious and perfectly baked, some of the best I've ever had. The brigadeiros and pao de queijo were also fantastic. Highly recommend stopping in for lunch or a snack! read more

Phenomenal empanadas. Great flavors and eating two is filling. Location is tucked a ways back but it is worth the effort! They also sell 5-packs frozen for a discount. Sounds like they opened late 2024 - everything looked clean and smelled fresh. Will be back. read more

See all

Was in the Anthem area today and noticed they have a new empanada place. They were delicious! Tried the pizza empanada and the pulled pork. The owner was so nice and came to talk to us. Very clean place and great service. Highly recommend read more

Leila's Empanadas - Deliciousness! - Empanadas Near Me - Phoenix, Arizona

Best empanadas in the Phoenix area hands-down need to try if you could give more than five stars I definitely would

What a great place! We are from Chandler And heard about this place and even though it was an adventure to find- the empanadas and staff are amazing! Well worth the drive .We will definitely be back! read more

I read about Leila's Empanadas in a local magazine, so I told myself next time I'm in the area I'll have to stop by. The location is a bit hidden but there is a big sign "Open" that's outside so it helped me find it! The empanadas OMG SO DELICIOUS Beef one was juicy and full of flavor and the with caramel - YUM. I'll be going back soon. Service was fast, I took it to go in under 3 min read more

Leila's Empanadas - Peach Empanada - Empanadas Near Me - Phoenix, Arizona

The 1st thing I noticed as I entered this establishment was how exceptionally clean & neat it was & that they did not have music blaring, prohibiting conversation if you chose to dine in. Nice selection of fillings in the empanadas. I chose the Maria for my savory, which is beef, mushrooms & capers & a peach empanada with caramel sauce sauce for my sweet. My friend got BBQ & blueberry for hers. We shared with each other & both were excellent. Nice selection of beverages available. I really like that the all the different varieties are available in freezer packs that you can buy, take home & fix in either your oven or air fryer. I really enjoyed it here & recommend to all. read more

Awesome empanadas, awesome people, nice and clean establishment. Love the place, food and the great feeling being there. read more

These empanadas are delicious! They are stuffed with fillings too. Great addition to the community in anthem. I'm Puerto Rican and there aren't many places in AZ that make that cuisine. This place definitely reminded me of Puerto Rico. I will continue to go to Leila's and tell others how great their food and service is and support their business. read more

We read about Leila's Empanadas on Yelp, and planned a stop there during a trip between Arizona and California. The location was tucked away, not visible from the road, and they said this was because they needed a large space to do the food preparation, baking, freezing, and selling fresh. The place was large and clean. I think the woman helping was was Amelia? Very friendly. We tried the ground beef with black olives, the pulled pork, and the oreos. All were good, but the pulled pork was the favorite, and we bought two freezer packs to take with us. We wished we had time to try other types. read more

Ate one of everything it was delicious! We loved the BBQ pork and the blueberry the most! read more

Leila's Empanadas - Ate one of each empanada and one of each dessert!! Fantastic - Empanadas Near Me - Phoenix, Arizona

See all

Great product, unique flavors and worth the visit. A little awkward location wise but I'll be stopping here often. A little pricey but if they are making them by hand , I understand. read more

Yummy empanadas! Worth the price.. delicious and great combination of flavors. My favorite is ham and the sweet ones as well. I will def be a regular customer ;) read more

Great little spot. I'm now addicted to empanadas. I keep a stash in my freezer at all times.

We ordered breakfast empanadas and apple and blueberry as well. Both the savory and sweet flavors were delicious. I highly recommend.

Delicious food. Excellent quality. Tender, yummy dough and fillings. I bought the frozen packs and they cook quickly. Great to have on hand for company or a quick mea. read more

Excellent addition to Anthem's haunts! Food is great, and I'll be back regularly going forward.

Amazing empanadas! Also the best cheesecake I've ever had! Definitely worth the stop, I will be back for sure!

These empanadas are super fresh, authentic, and delicious! I also love being able to sit in the cute little restaurant space and enjoy my lunch break on my work days. I work just across the street, and it's difficult to find such an inviting space with really good food. Great adddition to the neighborhood! read more

If you like empanadas or hand pies you'll love this place. The empanadas are perfectly baked and stuffed full of either meat or fruit. Lailamake sure that each pie is full so that when you bite in there are no giant air gaps. My wife and I ate a couple of items while we were there and took a number of them home with us. My wife raved over the pepperoni and cheese empanada, and she and my daughter, both love the artichoke empanada and spinach empanada. I tried a Brazilian. Chicken Coxinha which is essentially a Chicken Croquette. It was stuffed with seasoned chicken potatoes, and it was shaped like a cone. Delicious. I took home a couple of peach empanadas which I thoroughly enjoyed as I am a huge peach fan. Also had an apple empanada that my daughter said was very very good. Leila is super helpful and explains what the items are and if you have any questions she's more than happy to answer. The place is a little bit hard to find but worth the effort. The shop is neat and perfectly clean with several small tables if you choose to dine in . I urge you to go and try this place out and support our local businesses. She puts out a quality product that tastes good. read more