At Moises Bakery, we buy Chilean chicken empanadas, our favorite of the shop’s six types, and at $3, the filling food is some of the best cheap eats around. When co-owner Phillip Coleman, from Chile, took over in 1991 he changed the European bakery to one that caters to the Latin and South American population, adding empanadas, Cuban croquettes, Venezuelan-style tres leches (sponge cake with three types of milk) and pastel de nata (Portuguese egg tart). Nearby, at Manolo, we watch international soccer games on the multi-screen televisions while sampling tortilla de papa (a five-egg pie baked with potatoes) and other Argentine comfort foods. The churros (fried dough sticks sprinkled with sugar) feed my sweet tooth. At Sazón Cuban Cuisine across the street, maracas mark the menu’s signature dishes, most of which come with black beans and rice. The rolled chicken coiled around a sweet plantain stuffing is another guilty pleasure of mine. It doesn’t cost much to feed a family in North Beach.
