About Us y'all

My First Roll

'You can put whatever you want in an empanada!'  

My mom's side of the family is Cuban, and it was my aunt who first taught me how to make empanadas. I still remember that day vividly—it took us all day to prepare them. We made the meat, the dough, everything from scratch. Looking back, I should have realized just how labor-intensive they were! That day, my Aunt Cindy gave me a little piece of advice that I never forgot. She said, "You can put whatever you want in an empanada." Little did I know, years later, I would be rolling (all the pun intended) with that little piece of advice and would be building something greater than I ever could have imagined.

The Moment of Realization

One day, a friend called out, "Hey, Empamama!" …and at that moment, I knew I had something special. After graduation from the University of Florida (Go Gators), I was working in Gainesville and was completely unhappy in my career. I knew I was destined to be my own boss. I would call my Dad daily with my next new idea but never landed on that home run until one day after work, my boyfriend at the time asked if I would make him some empanadas. In an effort to impress him, I decided to make some 'not so basic empanadas' - and at that very moment, I knew I was onto something. There was the "Dixieland Delight" stuffed with cheese grits, BBQ pulled pork, coleslaw, jalapenos, red onions, and pickles, and the "Breakfast at Stephanie's" filled with eggs, cheese, hash browns, sausage, and sausage gravy. At the same time, I was working full-time and booking local bands, so I made empanadas before shows to bring people together and build connections through delicious food. At one of the shows, a friend called out "Hey Empamama!" … and at that exact moment, I realized that was it. The next day I secured the domain, Facebook, and Instagram accounts not knowing what I would do with it all, I just knew it would be something one day soon.

Chasing Dreams

I was still in Gainesville and frustrated with my lack of creative freedom at work - simply put, I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. I needed a change, so on August 3, 2015, I quit my job and moved back to Tampa. Armed with a notebook, I started brainstorming ideas, doodling logos for Empamamas, and before I knew it, I had a business plan. I worked on a friend's food truck for six months to learn the ropes of the food truck business and figure out the finances for my own venture. During that time, we started building our own truck. I chose a food truck over a brick-and-mortar store because it gave me flexibility and allowed me to reach people across town rather than waiting for them to come to me. Deep down though, I knew we wouldn't be a food truck forever.

A Sweet Debut

On February 20, 2016, we attended our first major event, the Chocolate Festival. Our star empanada was "The Big Smo"—a dessert s'more empanada I had previously made for a country artist I had worked with. It took my best friend and me 18 hours to make 600 empanadas. I remember sitting down, taking a break, and thinking, 'What the heck have I gotten myself into?' I had no idea how to run a kitchen. While I was confident in my branding, marketing, and sales skills, kitchen operations were completely new to me. I even had two 100-pound propane tanks on the truck—definitely a recipe for disaster if not handled correctly. But somehow – we survived and that event became one of our most successful to date. By the end of the day, I promised myself I would figure this out no matter what.

Keep on Truckin'

I was working 12 to 18-hour days on the truck and would come home so exhausted and dehydrated I could barely walk. I kept telling myself to "keep on truckin'"— that was our motto. We continued to put ourselves out there and share our story with anyone who would listen. Six months later, I saw an article about a new development in Tampa called Armature Works. I pulled over to read it, knowing I had to be part of this project. I immediately emailed them to set up a meeting. After being told I might not be a good fit, I was disappointed but  - kept on truckin'. Within three months of that meeting, we had racked up a bunch of awards, including first place at the Tampa Wing Fling, Cuban Sandwich Festival, and Tampa Bay Storm Local Beats + Eats Contest. Our food truck was becoming a fixture at major Tampa events, and people were starting to take notice.

Turning Dreams into Reality

A few months later I heard about the 'rotating stall' at Armature Works' Heights Public Market and decided to try again to be part of their project. I set up another meeting and brought our food to the Armature Works team—it was a hit! We secured a spot as the second rotating tenant which basically gave us the opportunity to operate there for four months. At the very first tenant meeting, I introduced myself saying, "Hi, I'm Stephanie, owner of Empamamas. I'm the second tenant in the rotating stall, but what the owners don't know yet is that I'm never leaving." It became a bit of a running joke, but I never lost that mindset, even after being told it would remain a rotating stall. 

To my surprise and all thanks to a bit of persistence, I received a call  just two days after Armature Works opened with some really exciting news: we were invited to move in early and become a permanent tenant, with one small caveat—I had to add tacos to our menu. Tacos? No brainer! In February of 2018, we moved in that night and were open 24 hours later - literally. #betheflyingpig

A Sister is Born

After parking our food truck and focusing on growing our customer base at Empamamas, we quickly became the top producer at Armature Works. We were on a roll (again, all the pun intended). In 2019, we had our best year to date at that point and were excited to see what the future would hold for us. That all quickly changed as it did for many in 2020. We had to get creative during the COVID shutdown. We cooked up a storm in a friend's kitchen at King of The Coop and kept the good vibes going with Uber Eats. And guess what? When the country opened back up, we joined the baby boom too! When an extra stall at Armature Works became available, we took the opportunity to add something new—Muchachas, our Mexican spot featuring irresistible Birria Quesatacos, Walking Tacos, Nachos, Big Ole' Burritos, y mas.

And, as with many sibling stories, a wedding was in the mix! I met the man of my dreams, Felix 'Bubba' Flores of Wicked Oak Barbecue, and a few years later, we tied the knot in March 2024. I officially became StephMom to Jordyn and more recently Mom to Oaklee. I guess you could say that I have more reasons than ever to – keep on truckin'.

We are excited for what tomorrow brings for our hardworking team and brands. Stay tuned and most definitely follow along on TikTok, Instagram and Facebook. We have a pretty awesome story to tell and we love sharing it with you.