Free Pollo Campero Empanada Day

How are you marking National Empanada Day?

National food days are a funny lots. Some hold mild interest for the foodie, some lean a little "meh," and some are so ingredient-specific that you almost want to pause, scratch your head, and ask "is that an edible thing that actually exists?"

Then you have the dream team, the comfort food pantheon, those dishes or companies that serve up tasties we'll consume any day of the year, no national-holiday-type prodding required. Two happen to be falling on the very same day -- Tuesday, April 8 -- and we can only compare it to a cosmic alignment of the tastiest order.

Since savory comes before sweet, let's address that first: It's National Empanada Day. Wait, wait, come back! We're fairly certain that just reading the word "empanada" makes anyone run for the nearest empanada, because, well. Empanadas.

Pollo Campero will mark the day at several Southern California locations including spots in Van Nuys and South Gate. How will the holiday be observed at the chain? Free. Chicken. Empanada. Filled with its own exclusive flavor-packed Latin spice mix. And, wait for it: No purchase necessary.

Seriously, how often do you see those words together, in reality? Not your foodie daydreams? Practically never, is our best guess.

The Pollo Campero empanadas are handmade and made daily, so there's that and that, too. And one more that? One free empanada per customer. That's fair. 

And one more celebratory note: The free giveaway is also in celebration of the Guatemala-born company's 43rd birthday, which happens this month.

As for the sweet 'n free side of April 8? It's also Free Cone Day at participating Ben & Jerry's. Oh yeah. Free chicken empanada and a free scoop of something rich and vanilla-y?

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Why don't these duo cosmic free food national day alignments happen each and every day? 

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