Imagine the sweet lusciousness of caramelized onions with gooey cheese stuffed into a pillow of tender empanada dough and served piping hot. Cut into it, and the cheese and onions slowly ooze out.

It is the handmade onion soup empanada at Masa in Stonington’s Velvet Mill, and it is outrageously good. It is onion soup without the broth.

Jorge Baldiviezo, the chef and owner at Masa, which opened in the Velvet Mill off Bayview Avenue early last March, previously worked as sous chef alongside award-winning chef Renee Touponce at the Port of Call in Mystic.

He hails from Bolivia and is serving up Latin fare at his new eatery, such as Peruvian adobo chicken wings with salsa verde, greens, and cucumbers (six for $12) and chorizo tacos with mole negro, jalapeno jam, and cotija cheese (two for $10.)

The onion soup empanada is $8, the same price as the versions filled with beef, curry chicken, or pesto.

His food is creative and flavorful. His specials, including these recently on the menu, are always intriguing:

• Pulled pork on a steamed bao bun topped with potato sticks and served with Colombian coleslaw and garlic aioli.

• Seared swordfish with pesto, confit and smashed garlic potatoes, green tomato chimichurri, and a farmers salad.

• Pork carnitas and Swiss cheese on Cuban bread with fermented mustard, banana pickles, and homemade ham.

Yum, yum, yum.

Baldiviezo has a thing for potato sticks. Who knew? He tops his tacos with them, and the crunch is divine. In addition to the chorizo version, he makes them with ground chicken, salsa verde, cheddar, mozzarella, and pickles. They are also two for $10 and very good.

We inadvertently happened upon Masa (the name translates to a dough used in Mexican cuisine that is made from ground corn and soaked in a lime and water solution) and liked it so much we went twice in the same week.

A grilled chicken-cheese quesadilla, $14, a recent special, was incredible. In addition to the chicken on the corn tortilla, there was roasted eggplant, bell peppers, cheddar and mozzarella cheese, and green tomato Pico de Gallo. The ingredients all melded together, and every bite was a taste sensation.

Among his sandwich creations are The Veggie, $10, on bao bread, with roasted peppers, salad greens and goat cheese; the Caser, $11, on basil bread, with chicken, bacon, and siracha; and the Chinese BBQ, $12, loaded with five-spice ham and turnip pickles.

When Baldiviezo stopped by our table to ask how we were enjoying the food – yes, indeed! – he told us that his fiancé is a pastry chef and making Masa’s breads and baked goods.

Masa is open for breakfast, lunch, and early dinners. They close at 6 p.m. We have yet to go for breakfast, but we will. In the meantime, we are trying the regular menu items and the specials.

Among our many favorites:

• The Farmers Market Salad, $12, which is a mix of fresh greens, pickled squash, goat cheese, apples, and sunflower seeds. It is served on a cutting board, and the mandolin-sliced squash with the thin apple wedges and sunflower seeds takes salad-eating to new heights.

• The Peruvian Chicken Sandwich, $10, requires multiple napkins because it is messy to eat, but so be it. The chicken is served on basil bread, with greens, salsa verde, and yes, potato sticks.

• The Olives & Cheese starter, $5, is a small basket with about two dozen warm and briny green and black olives (some pitted, some not), smothered in cheese. People either like or dislike olives, and if you are someone that enjoys them, order this dish.

• Smoking Wings, six for $12 or 12 for $23. Wings are a precious commodity these days; they are not cheap, but if you like heat, Masa’s version is a good investment. They are prepared with a Peruvian adobo, salsa verde, greens, and those fabulous house-made pickles.

Every so often, I get excited when I find a new restaurant, and Masa is one of those cases. Like the Whitecrest Eatery, also in the Velvet Mill, it is a hidden gem.

Baldiviezo describes the place as an artisanal delicatessen, and it is that, and more. They bake their own breads, produce their own hams, and make all their pickles, brines, jams, and sauces. The empanadas are made by hand, one by one.

Even better, Baldiviezo has a jar of dog treats on the sill of the big window that looks out from his workspace along Bayview Avenue, always ready to offer a snack to a canine passing by. You’ve got to appreciate a hard-working chef who has a heart for dogs.

Masa

22 Bayview Ave., #8, Velvet Mill, Stonington

(860) 501-3249

masa-ct.com

Atmosphere: There are four seats at a counter inside to dine and watch the chef and staff at work, but most patrons sit just outside the door at tables in the cavernous space of the Velvet Mill’s atrium. Do not be thrown off by the industrial surroundings; the food is innovative, delicious, and beautifully styled.

Cuisine: Latin, with selections representing the owner’s Bolivian roots, as well as Ecuador, Argentina, Mexico, and much of South America.

Hours: Saturday and Sunday, 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m.; Wednesday-Friday, 10:30 a.m.-6 p.m.; closed Monday and Tuesday.

Service: Fast and friendly

Prices: More than reasonable

Credit cards: Yes

Handicapped accessibility: Yes