Ricos Tamales in San Jose del Cabo

Every night in the main plaza of San Jose del Cabo people gather around the various food carts and buy a snack as the leave church or just hang around with their friends and families in the evening. There are the favorite corn cobs rubbed with butter and covered in cheese. Another popular item is the corn kernels served in a cup mixed with mayo and cheese. But the most popular food cart is that of the tamal women. Every night they come in and sell their tamales: chicken with green sauce, beef with red sauce, elote (corn kernels), and rajas with cheese. They have huge coolers full of tamales tightly wrapped in their corn husks and still piping hot.

My aunt says that she never got excited about tamales until she tried one from this vendor. So did my mom. After her first tamal from this kiosk, she was hooked. Apparently they are not the only ones. While we were ordering our 5 tamales, people were asking for 10-15 of each flavor. Many locals were sitting down on the benches in the square eating their dinner right there, obviously this is something they do often. Everyone seems to know about the tamal stand.

In a way it was sort of a reality check for me. So many restaurants have opened in San Jose since I last was here. There were always a few staples: the Tropicana, Mi Cocina, Tequila, Don Emiliano, and Morgan’s to name a few. These nice restaurants should definitely be there for the special occasions, and many have done very well because of their excellent menus and service. But recently I have noticed a growing number of high- end places serving gourmet food at gourmet prices, but no equivalent for the low to mid price range. Although they might serve wonderful Mexican food with modern twists, nothing appeals to the masses like a homemade tamal with classic flavors. Not everyone can afford (nor want) to spend $30 on a sautéed snapper for dinner, but everyone can enjoy a Tamal with Atole or Agua de Jamaica for less than $3, sitting around the plaza watching everyone go by.