Girls' Night Out at La Masa - Empanadas and empathy!

After weeks of planning, and waiting, my girlfriend and I finally found time to catch up over dinner. Shannon, you can tell your mom I called you my girlfriend - even though it doesn't mean what she might think it means!Shannon writes a blog about the "fun" of dating in Milwaukee, and I LOVE reading it! Though I can't relate to everything (mostly because I don't date enough), some of her stories strike a big chord with me. Most just make me laugh and / or shake my head as I picture the scenarios Shannon describes.Naturally, our conversation turned to the latest goings on in our personal lives, which made for a funny (and at times frustrating) couple of hours of conversation.The biggest take-away, men: we just want to be a priority some of the time! It doesn't seem like too much to ask, but it feels like it must be. :-(Anyhow, on to the dinner portion of this post.La Masa is an empanadas bar on Brady Street. It's casual, cute, and full of friendly service! Plus, we each had City Tin coasters, making it a perfect chance to try out a new place.The menu is full of options. How does one choose?We started off with an appetizer of aji queso dip with apple slices, sliced red pepper,  jicama stick, and toasted bread. We could have eaten that all night long, but thankfully, we were wise enough to ask that it be removed from the table before we finished the pot! So delicious!Shannon then asked me if I was going to use one of my blog cards or if I would actually order. Um...I pulled out a card, and Alicia was more than happy to choose my meal for me. I did give her a bit of guidance: I'd go with the La Masa Trio and I'd like smokey blue cheese sauce on the side, please.I was delivered three very cutely branded empanadas along with jicama slaw. Alicia chose the black bean and chorizo (BB), the Wisco corn (W) and the mushroom truffle parmesan (M) empanadas. They were all very tasty, and the mushroom was a very close second, but the black bean and chorizo was my favorite of the trio.The jicama slaw was a refreshing side (though the serving was way too big for me!), and the sauces provided nice additional flavor.I'm glad I purchased City Tin coasters because I'm not sure I would have stopped into La Masa without the prompt. It just wasn't on my radar. However, I'd certainly go back. Shannon and I agreed that we wouldn't wait ten months for another girls' night out. Perhaps we'll even have more positive and inspiring stories to exchange next time! Fingers crossed!Cheers!Ker