Island Empanada closes in Shirley and Rocky Point
Island Empanada has closed two Long Island locations. Credit: Newsday/Thomas A. Ferrara
A top empanada eatery is closing two Long Island locations.
Island Empanadas, named on Newsday’s best empanadas on Long Island, announced it would close its Shirley restaurant on Montauk Highway Wednesday, following the recent closure of its Rocky Point restaurant at on Rocky Point Yaphank Road.
The Ronkonkoma-based fast-casual restaurant chain also has locations in Commack, Medford and Merrick, as well as a food truck that appears at street fairs and festivals.
The restaurant is owned and run by husband and wife Roy and Kathy Pelaez, who started their first restaurant in Ronkonkoma in 2011. The family said they started making empanadas at home for family and friends before training in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic to open their restaurant.
The restaurant includes 25 flavors of fried empanadas with chicken, beef, pork, seafood and vegetables on the menu. The flavors range from traditional flavors like beef and chorizo, to buffalo chicken, Philly cheesesteak and bacon mac and cheese.
The restaurant quickly expanded in 2020 to open multiple locations, but stores later closed in Huntington Station, Deer Park and North Babylon.
John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.
Most Popular
Top Stories
