Bakery can't make handmade empanadas fast enough as tourists descend on nation's oldest city

At the Spanish Bakery & Café in St. Augustine, Florida, a tray of 16 empanadas doesn't necessarily last long. On a busy day, bakery manager Carol Miller said customers can scoop them up as soon as they're made.

"There are times when we'll sell through three trays within an hour, not even," Miller told Fox News Digital. "So, it really depends. There is a lot of craze for these empanadas, and they do go very fast."

The attention may be fueled by tourists, recommendations and social media, but the bakery's empanadas are hardly a new addition to St. Augustine's food scene. Miller said they date to the bakery's opening in 1965.

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"We actually make everything from hand ourselves – the doughs, the mixes, pressing them, everything," she said.

Making enough to satisfy the crowds takes work.

Producing 10 trays using the bakery's former hand-rolling process could consume an eight-hour shift, Miller said. A newer rolling machine has cut that time to about four hours. With 16 empanadas to a tray, that's 160 at a time.

While plenty of customers happen upon the bakery while exploring St. Augustine, others arrive knowing exactly what they want. Miller said visitors mention everything from news coverage to TikTok and Instagram posts as reasons for stopping by to try the empanadas for themselves.

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The bakery also draws on its surroundings. Located in St. Augustine's historic district, it offers visitors a connection to the city's Spanish identity.

"I think because we are mainly Spanish culture in the colonial quarter here, it is nice that we go back to our Spanish roots here specifically," Miller said. "On top of that, we are a healthier version since we are baked instead of the traditional fried."

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That distinction is particularly appealing in Florida's warmer months, Miller said, when visitors spending the day walking around town or heading to the beach may be looking for something hearty without choosing another fried option.

For people hesitant to order an empanada, customers sometimes incorrectly assume the filling will be spicy simply because it's Spanish cuisine, Miller said.

The bakery, she said, tries to make its food welcoming to the broad mix of people who visit St. Augustine.

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Not everyone, however, visits because of the hype.

Alexis Rapchak, a 12-year-old visiting from Ohio on her first trip to St. Augustine, was trying one of the empanadas for the first time. Asked how she'd heard about the bakery, her answer was simple: "I didn't. I just showed up."

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But she described it as "really good."

"I really like the dough and the inside," she said. "It's perfect."