I'm so lucky to have these savory/sweet chicken saltenas served with a super spicy green chile salsa just down the street from my home. How can you resist a family owned counter service joint where food is delivered piping hot with a smile? Often packed so you might have to wait for a fresh batch of these yummy el Salvadorian  pockets. But well worth it! We also tried the chicken sandwich recently and it's a boatload of tender chicken and mayo sauce and some kind of slaw that was just delish!
Review Source:Having lived in Miami, I was happy to see the choices for Latin bakeries on my visit to Arlington. Â I peeped in and saw that Pan American bakery might be the closest thing to the delicious Cuban bakeries that I missed oh so much. Â There were a variety of sweet and savory options available. Â I chose what looked like the Cuban sen~orita pastry (Napoleon), an alfajor, and what I call a concha and I believe was called a cornete here (the custard-filled cone).
The cornete was awesome! Â It was flavorful and had just the right amount of crunch and sweetness on the crust. Â The alfajor was not my favorite. Â It did not have enough filling for me and was a bit too crumbly and dry, although I know some types are intended to be that way. Â The sen~orita was a bit bland. Â It would be better filled with custard rather than whipped cream for a bit more flavor. Â
With all of the dessert reviews in mind, I have to wonder if what makes this place is their savory options. Â I heard a few people ask for the chicken soup and empanadas. Â The bakery was pretty busy with locals, so I will get more cornetes and try some soup and empanadas. Â I'm glad I tried this place, but it didn't really live up to my expectations.
One of the many Bolivian restaurants in Arlington, but they have the BEST salteñas, only place i know that sells "helado de canela" (cinnamon sorbet) to go neatly packaged, my son wont have his traditional Bolivian breakfast w/o the "pan con queso" (cheese bread) from this bakery, the tres leches cake is succulent, and the "trancapecho" (no translation, lol) is WOW, u basically get 2 orders for the price of one!!
ps-only reason i don't give them 5 stars is b/c of the limiteed seating, tiny place, but the Alexandria location is ample w/pleaty of tables to enjoy a full sit down meal!!
I've never even been to the bakery, but I love their food. Â My neighbor swears by the saltenas and brought some for my wife and I to try. Â I ate all of them minus a few bites of one my wife was savoring. Â Now more neighbors are hooked and I ask my buddy all the time if he's going to Arlington...if he goes, we order 6-12 at a time. Â I'll take chicken or beef, idc, they're both delicious. Â Im down for anything they make:) Hmm, I still have one....
Review Source:Going to give Pan American the 5 stars. Â I just have to.
It really boils down to quality of food, service, and value. Â Everything I had here, the Carne saltena, the Pollo saltena, the tres leches cake, and the empanada. Â Simply amazing for less than $10. Â This place is a hidden treasure in Arlington. Â
I definitely need to come back and try their soups, entrees, and sandwiches. Â After seeing some people order some while I was munching on my saltenas, I kind of wish I ordered those too.
I will be back.
$2.50 Saltenas, can't beat it for the price and taste. Â The other baked goods are OK, I've had better and I've had worse. I am a fan of their cheese bread, I stop by for this whenever we're having Italian food at home as a add on to our meal. Â Good place to stop by for a quick meal for takeout. Â I don't recommend dining in on weekends as the place is quite small and really popular but highly encourage for take out.
Review Source:This is basically just a review of the saltenas: they're awesome. Â I wish they had the little olives inside waiting to crack my teeth just like the ones I had in La Paz, but everything else is like I remember. Â If you haven't had one, they're basically an awesome beef stew inside a yummy egg-glazed pie crust - spicy, sweet, savory goodness, all something you can eat on the street with only a little bit of a mess. Â At $2.50 a pop, the price is great, too; two of these make a filling meal. Â Both are good, but I'll recommend the chicken.
Review Source:This Bolivian bakery and cafe in Arlington is pretty good, but I think the Alexandria location is better. The silpancho is pretty solid, but for some reason, it does not seem as flavourful as their Alexandria location. Â BUT it's only $10 here, so that's a definite plus over the other location. Â The green hot sauce is much better than other local Arlington places too. Â It's hard to find beef saltenas, but they do have them here and they are definitely good and fresh from their ovens! Â It's a bit small place though, so it's seems like more of a carry-out/takeaway place than a sit-down restaurant, but there are definitely some seats and tables here. And they are perfectionists in their saltenas - when I picked them up, they were so large that the box would not close properly - when i tried to close it, the staff told me not to because that would crush the saltenas and the juices would escape. Yes, they were fresh and well done.
Review Source:Saltensa ~ notes to self.. WOW! moist, flavorful, delicious, 2.50 each( including tax)!
Both the steak and chicken were delicious. Â When I bit into the first one, I actually said WOW. Â It was that good. Â I got it to take out but you need a plate to eat because its so juicy inside things tend to drip out when you bite into it. Â Not recommended when you are in your car trying to eat these delicious treats. Â The green sauce is also delicious. I need to get back to eat them more often!
Saltenas are phenomenal, especially the chicken. Â I have also tried a few of the pastries and tres leches cake and all of them are quite tasty. Â For $2.50 a pop, its hard to beat a few Saltenas. Â They warm up well in the oven the day after as well so get a bunch and eat them all week.
Review Source:This is a recent find - and now we're Saturday morning takeout regulars at the bakery (haven't eaten at the restaurant though). Their dulce de leche pastries are amazing - stuffed full of what I think is homemade dulce de leche. Delicious. The saltenas (like empanadas) are great too - the chicken ones are kind of like chicken pot pies wrapped in pastry. I'm usually not a fan of saltenas, but these are great. I also really like the various breads, very cheesy. I don't know the names of anything but just look in the glass case and point - I haven't gone wrong yet.
Review Source:This is a small place to get carry out, it's too small for you to be able to sit and eat, but I promise you they have the best chicken salteñas in the whole Metropolitan  area, I've gone to all the other places in the area and tryed different saltenas and theses are the juiciest and tastiest.
Review Source:The food I tried was decent (I can give 3.5 or 4 stars). One reason I gave one star to this restaurant is that they automatically charged a tip (I think 15%). If you didn't pay attention to your bill. You may end up with giving more than 35% tip to them. A very very bad practice!!
Please don't give a tip unless you think they deserve more than 15% in their service. Tip is already included on your bill.
Tip should be based on how you are treated. It should not be the case that  the restaurant owner or server thinks how much he/she deserves when it comes to tip.
I don't know whether they change their tip policy later. you can ask whether tip is included in your bill.
Was looking for a tasty place to eat lunch while visiting my mom in an apartment building nearby. Looked this up on Yelp and it had great reviews, so I decided to walk there and check it out.
Ordered two chicken saltenas and the falso conejo (which is like flattened steak, lightly breaded, with a stew-type sauce with peas and carrots, served on top of potatoes and with a side of rice).  The saltenas were like little chicken pot pies in bread pouches. They were good, but not like what I expected. The falso conejo was delicious. Very comfort-foody and while I was there at least  6 other people ordered it, so it must be pretty popular.
All in all, I was very satisfied and will return.
They also had a showcase with some beautiful cakes in it. One was flat and round and looked to be covered with a layer of caramel ganache and topped with strawberries. It looked SOOOOO good. Might go and buy one tomorrow!
I dragged my roommate here because I was craving empanadas/saltenas. Â
I ordered two beef and one chicken saltena. Â These things are massive and filled with deliciousness. Â The pepper sauce was just right, not too spicy, but added a nice tang to the hearty saltena. Â
When we walked in, there was a gentlemen that just received a plate of fried ridiculousness, and even though it looked too good to pass up, I stayed on course to sate my saltena craving. Â We asked for the menu, and after review, apparently Pan American has dishes that they prepare on a daily basis and repeat this rotation weekly. Â We were definitely the only non-Spanish speaking folks in there, but that didn't deter us from asking questions about the various pastries and other treats people were snatching up.
My roommate hit the Tuesday JACKPOT and ordered what turned out to be pacumutu. Â The pacumutu was of the chicken variety, and amounted to basically a half chicken fried hard (Fugees reference) and was served with rice, fried cassava (yuca), and fried plantains. Â The sides were average-to-above-average, but that chicken was the real star. Â I'd like to think of myself as a NoVA fried chicken aficionado, and this stuff rivals Bon Chon for fried chicken delicousness. Â Better than Flavors and Oegadgib's plain. Â This is what fried chicken should be. Â Tuesdays cannot come soon enough now!!!
Honestly, I came for the saltenas, but the pacumutu was so heads-and-shoulders better than anything I've had in recent memory, that the saltenas took an instant backseat. Â
I also ordered a piece of the "budding" and while my first taste of a crumb had a nice cinnamon flavor, the rest of the piece was rather bland. Â I'm not sure if I need to heat it up and eat it warm?
Speaking of Tuesdays, this plays was pretty busy for a Tuesday evening. Â Surprising really but good for them and I hope it keeps them in business for that much longer!!!
My trip to Pan American Bakery:
Me: "Hi, I don't know what any of these are"
Young Cashier: "ummm''
Me: "How many different types of pastry are in here?" (pointing towards a heaping pile of delicious looking pastry inside the glass display case)
Young Cashier: "umm"
Other Cashier: (translation in Spanish)
Young Cashier: "oh, 4"
Me: "Oh... I'll take one of each"
Needless to say, this impromptu stop was TOTES worth it. I also got the most delicious corn bread ever and a cheese thing that was amazing. As I sit at my office desk to write this, I am weighing the benefits of licking the remnants of my last pastry off my plate against the myriad looks of disgust I'll get from co-workers...
*licked plate clean*
Worth it... now, weren't there some crumbs in that bag...? I mean it hasn't been in the trash that long..
To eat a salteña and indulge in a serving of silpancho is to venture into the every day heart of Bolivian cuisine.
A salteña, which is a kind of oval empanada, looked, to my novice eyes, like a cross between a croissant and a rugby ball.  And, oh boy, did it taste good!  The oven browned outer casing resembled a muscular pastry shell and was both firm and forgiving. Â
Once bitten into, the interior filling of chicken meat was juicy, mildly sweet, slightly spicy, and very savory.  Having done my homework, I was prepared for the juices that seeped out from the first bite and angled the salteña so that I could catch the drippings with my plate.  Once I got the hang of it, which meant holding the salteña upright so that the liquid and meat remained in the shell, I devoured the rest of it in no time. Â
I ate my silpancho simultaneously...going back-and-forth between it and the salteña.  The silpancho consisted of a flattened piece of fried steak that had been dusted ever so slightly with breadcrumbs and hammered to the width of beef jerky. Â
The steak itself was topped with two ornamental eggs (cooked sunnyside up) and served alongside two generous segments of boiled potatoes; and, on top of all of that (yes, there was more), I placed an additional layer of pico de gallo (some kind of Bolivian version of it) and some llajua sauce (a green sauce, made from spicy peppers, that resembles the sauce that accompanies an order of pollo a la brasa). Â
The final combination (with the meat, eggs, and traditional condiments wedded together) was truly delicious. Â However, there was nothing glamorous about the meal. Â The food seemed very simple and honest. Â It seemed very much to be like "real" unadulterated food (something that a Bolivian would eat on any given day); and, in that way, the food was very special.
Places like this make me truly appreciate living in this area. I just tried the chicken saltena here and hands down it was one of the best things I've ever eaten. Nothing about it can be improved, it is immaculate.
Since these are pastries, I recommend coming in peak hours to ensure you're getting fresh food. However, don't plan on eating here, because the place is the size of a shoe box. Also brush up on your espanol. This place is the real deal. Come now, it'll be worth the drive. Trust.
Yes I do like the fresh baked bread from here. I usually get the wheat bread which is round and Biiiig, or the bread with bits of cheese on top. Have you gust try this ? well you should ..put some ham and cheese and butter and it's really good...
I also like the baked cheese empanadas, which I like to eat with a juice drink if it's hot or a latte from starbucks during the winter. Â The cheese empanadas are better when warm so if you take it home warm them up in the microwave for a few secs or better yet put them on your little oven for a minute or two and it'll be yummier.
I haven't tried the cakes  yet, they look good but I have the feeling I will be dissapointed.
I went here to get some yummy tres leches cake, however, I was a bit disappointed. The cake was dry and did not have any moisture in it from the milk. It was in the evening, so it could have possibly dried up, but who knows...
Still searching for a local place to eat tres leches. I found a delicious place in MD, but it's all the way in Wheaton.
I love this place as much as I love my starbucks coffee. Â
I haven't had cinnamon ice cream since last time I was in Bolivia a decade or so ago. Yes, it was that long and so when I heard they had them, I just had to go. Indeed, not only did they had my favorite but coconut! After I wiped the drool from my mouth, no not really but I almost did drool, I asked for my cinnamon ice cream and *shakes head* you'd think I would know the correct name for this but sadly I don't..They have the best spicy empanadas! One is enough to share with two people but if you are greedy like me, only is just enough to make your day :D Â Their bread is also good as so is the saltenas.
Now..why not 5 stars? Because I do not like the girl at the register, the little one with the horrible blonde dye job. You know the one that is glued to the register and looks at you as if you were retarded? Yeah that chick! I'm sure she can be a sweetheart but she always seem to have that sourpuss face whenever I go, may be its just me? Anyway, I find her to be a bit rude towards me. Perhaps was because I mispronounced the name of certain things a few times and kept asking my mom what the name was?
Tomorrow I'm going for some helado de canela! ;]
I stumbled across this gem randomly, while doing an epic thrift store circuit amongst the various Goodwills in Arlington.  There is an odd trifecta of pretty good Goodwills, which led to the purchase of a couple cool bookcases and a huge wooden cutting board that retails at $40.  Oh wait, yea, the salteñas.  That is what I am writing about.  We had seen a random little thrift store in this shopping center and pulled in, only to find that the thrift store is closed on Sundays.  Thats when the sign for Pikes Pizza popped out at me. Â
"Hey, Ive read that place has good Bolivian food!"
"Are you hungry?"
"No, but looks, the place next door has salteñas...I haven't had a really good salteña since the last time I was in Latin America."
And so we headed next door to Pike's Pizza, slightly confused as to whether we were supposed to be getting salteñas there or at Pan American Bakery.  But I saw a teeny tiny sign that said salteñas on the Pan American Bakery window, so that's where we went.
Now, I have to say that I'm basically fluent in Spanish.  I knew we had found a good place when the tiny storefront was packed with spanish-speaking customers.  Eavesdropping on several orders ahead of us, I figured out that every single other person had included at least one or two chicken salteñas in their order.  And so, I pleasantly asked for two chicken salteñas to go in Spanish.  They didn't bat an eye at why the asian chick with the tall white man ordered in Spanish and responded deftly in Spanish.  Literally 45 seconds later, I had two steaming hot chicken salteñas in a bag with a handful of napkins and a small container of spicy green sauce (which tasted like a tomatillo jalapeño salsa to me).
We took our treasure out to the Jeep because of the limited space inside and dug in.  The salteña, for starters, is like an empanada.  Now, most DC district dwellers are most familiar with this style of food in the form of a 3 am drunken visit to Julia's Empanadas.  I like Julia's, but its mass produced and doesn't have the epic juiciness and freshness of the ones found here.  I bit into the salteña, which has a perfect salty sweet dough cooked golden brown, and then the juice exploded into my mouth.
A word of caution, these things will dribble all over everything. Â There is a reason why they give you 10 napkins. Â You will use them. Â Eat with care and eat over the bag they give you. Â Then you can relish the filling of chicken breast, peas, potatos, raisens, hard boiled egg, and everything else in between properly. Â One of these is pretty big, a huge snack or a small meal. Â All for $2.50. Â It doesnt really get much better than that. Â It will spoil you for Julia's Empanadas. Â
As we wiped up the remnants of the salteña from our faces, we turned and started to laugh at the couple in the car next to us, stuffing a salteña in their mouths hunched over the plastic bag it came in.
Ok, I'm a big fan! Â After the huge rec from Maha and Antonio, I made the journey out today after my Sunday brunch feeding.
Even though I was completely full, and a little tipsey from all the unlimited cheap brunch champagne, I bought a half dozen chicken saltenas for all my brunch companions who were stuck in my car during this side trip. Â
They were warm and enticing all the way home (the saltenas, not the brunch friends). Â So, even though I wasn't hungry, I had to split one open and devour the warm, comfortable innerds of potatoes, peas, chicken and egg. Â
Oh wow - I now need to go back and work my way through the entire menu, to include pastillas, alfajores, and tres leches cake. Â Oh, and I saw one of the soups come out to a table when I was leaving...yeah - gotta come back for the soup also!
Wait, don't tell my trainer ANY of this!
After listening Tom sietsema's review on one local bolivian restaurant yesterday, I had to try soemthing latin american.
So I made a trip out to Columbia pike in search of Pan american bakery & Grill. It was around 4pm but still so crowded by spanish-speaking customers. Very small inside but you can see all freshly baked bread/pies/desserts that keep coming out from the bakery in the back.
I had no idea what all yummi-looking stuff in the store so I just asked for bread stuffed with cheese, bread-pudding and tres leche cake.
I could have gotten more stuff if there wasn't a line and if I could read spanish... but I had to move over to the side since I was getting enough attention from LONG line already by asking more than a few questions to the cashier.
- Great cheese stuffed bread (Pizza hut should learn how to do cheese-stuffed crust from here). Heavy-duty Bread-pudding.. One piece but I thought it weights a pound, it's very worth every penny. Tres leche cake was moist and not-too-sweet and light.
I can't wait to go back there to try other good looking bread and sweets again, but I need to take someone who speaks spanish or at least I need to study the names of baked goods in the store first.
We have been going to this bakery for years now. I'm giving them 4 stars for Saltenas, only.
Saltenas were invented by some crazy cholita in Bolivia. Anyways, the cholita was thinking how can I combine Sopa and Empanada at the same time?
The idea of the Saltena hit her while she jumping into the wrestling ring  (saltar in Spanish) . Please don't believe this .... This has been my own interpretation to the invention of "Saltenas" in Bolivia. Â
Ok, I'm gonna keep it simple. If you like meat, Potatoes and bread, This thing will put a smile on your face for $ 2 guaranteed!
*** 4.5 Stars ***
Ummm...Saltenas. Â So good, so tasty...
First off, Saltenas are NOT empanadas and they are THE signature food creation of Bolivia (don't let those other South American countries tell you any differently). Â If you know anything about Saltenas, you must come here. If you know nothing about Saltenas, you must come here. Â They are always fresh and as a native Saltena eater.....nay, Saltena EXPERT, Pan American makes the best in the VA/DC/Md area.
In addition to the area's best Saltenas, they also have amazing homemade Bolivian soups that are delicious and very satisfying. The value for the buck is amazing and I've always left full, satisfied and happy no matter what I order.
Their pasties are not your usual fare but very goooood. Ask for the "budding" (pronounced boo-deen) which is a typical Bolivian bread pudding.
Ever since switching jobs I miss working close enough to escape here for some chicken or beef Saltenas or a bowl of their tasty soup-of-the-day. Â If I really wanted to treat myself, I'd order up a freshly made plate of Silpancho (pronounced Sill-pon-cho) which is a piece of steak, pounded until very thin, lightly breaded with breadcrumbs and pan fried...all served with two fried eggs, potatoes, diced tomatoes and onions all on a bed of rice. Â Friggin' the best!!
I sing the praises of Pan American bakery to everyone I know. Hmmmm...wish I got a dollar for all the Pan American fans I've made and all the business I brought to my favorite Bolivian gem. Â
These folks make me proud as they're true to the quality and authenticity of their food. Â If you want a taste of Bolivia, hope on over to Arlington, brave the traffic of Colombia Pike and head into Pan American Bakery & Grill. Â I assure you that you'll be happy you did!
I eat bolivian food alot on the count of my girlfriend being from there. Saltenas are a bolivian staple, and no one makes them like pan america. their shell is so soft and delicious and their meat and vegetable fillings are tender and fresh. the salchipapas, which is sausage and french fries drizzled with ketchup and mayonnaise are so delicious its scary, the sopa de quinua and the pastries are also very good.
Review Source:This place is small and incredible! Â Staff is friendly to Gringos like me. Â I only wish I knew more Spanish to experience other items on the menu.
Only a few tables, so seating around the prime times to eat is at a premium. Â The fresh made salsa at the table is earthy and HOT!
I thought the place was a bakery, hence the name "Pan American Bakery". Â But, they have so much more. Â The Saltenas are the best I have experienced. Â Plump, juicy meat pies in chicken or beef. Â Visit their web site, and they serve full meals for b'fast and lunch. Â On one visit, my wife and I were eating our simple Saltenas when a nice grilled steak, potatoes, hominy on the cob (never seen before by a Gringo), and a beautiful salad were served to more native clientele sitting next to us. Â It looked and smelled incredible. Â We asked the patrons at the table and It was the "weekend special" that I must have next time.
Some people assume PAB is related to Pike Pizza next door since they offer similar fare (as stated by other review, no pizza here). Â I do not believe that is true. Â Pike Pizza is good on its own by serving great Bolivian food plus BEER.
With my Thai Square take-out in the passenger seat, I had one thought in my mind...DESSERT! Â Say hello to Pan American Bakery & Grill.
Tacked onto a tiny plaza with a dry cleaners and a thift store, Pan American's bakery is loaded up with decadently attired breads, cakes and desserts. Â The soft, sugary cakes drizzled with jams, freshly baked breads with golden brown crusts dotted with cheese - they're all here. Â Oh, did I mention the tres leches??
I decided I would pack up 2 (no not one - two...I love my weekly cheat meal) portions of brazo gitano. Â I had never tried one before. Â They look a little like jelly rolls. Â They tasted amazing with just a hint of coconut.
One need only look next door to see their full grill and cafe. Â The menu looks tasty, so I'll probably need to check it out for lunch or dinner sometime: steaks, short ribs, salmon, saltenas and rice, yucca, or fries on the side. Â It piques my curiosity.
4 stars - Friendly counter staff, delicious baked goods, and pretty convenient for those close to Columbia Pike. Â Definitely worth a bookmark, folks. Â Happy Dining!
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