Albuquerque, NM
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Albuquerque buys tamales by the dozen through December, red chile with pork or green chile with chicken: a 1929 Barelas kitchen, a 90-year-old tortilla company downtown, a South Valley carry-out, an Oaxacan family's dining room on Old Coors and a Gibson Boulevard lounge. Sourced from two Albuquerque Journal tamale guides and New Mexico Magazine.
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Press picks, until locals rank their own Top 5s. Sourced from the local food press. As seen in Albuquerque Journal and New Mexico Magazine. Updated September 2026.
El Modelo Mexican Foods · Barelas
The Albuquerque Journal dates this Barelas operation to 1929 and says the tamales are fresh rather than frozen and made entirely from local ingredients. They are large and handmade, sold in pork with red chile or chicken with green chile, by the piece, the half dozen or the dozen, and the Journal recommends ordering online or by phone for pickup to avoid the parking. Order a dozen red chile pork and collect them before the 6:30 last call.
La Mexicana Tortilla Co · Downtown
Both Albuquerque Journal guides land on this Coal Avenue tortilla company, family owned and operated for more than ninety years and known, the first guide says, for its tamales. The Hot Tamale Restaurant Kitchen storefront is carry-out only, with tamale orders placed online, sold by the piece, the half dozen or the dozen. The stock-up guide prints a short week, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and closed Sunday through Tuesday, so plan the pickup around it.
Kathy's Carry Out · South Valley
The Albuquerque Journal's stock-up guide puts this Isleta Boulevard carry-out at more than thirty-five years in operation, serving food made fresh each day. The detail that matters in December is the schedule: fresh tamales are available daily after 4 p.m., sold by the piece, the half dozen or the dozen. Order a dozen in the late afternoon rather than at lunch, and plan around the kitchen rather than the other way round.
La Guelaguetza · West Side
The Albuquerque Journal's tamale roundup puts tamales on the table here alongside traditional tacos and comfort food stews, and notes the room is small and the wait can be long. New Mexico Magazine explains who is cooking: the Salazar brothers, from San Lorenzo Victoria in Oaxaca's Mixteca region, who opened on Old Coors Drive in November 2019 and are the restaurant's only employees. Order the tamales and a stew, and go expecting to sit elbow to elbow.
Cervantes | Restaurant & Lounge · Southeast Heights
Four decades on Gibson Boulevard, and the Albuquerque Journal says the recipes have stayed where they were. Both of the paper's tamale guides list this one, the second noting fresh ingredients and traditional time-honored preparations, the first calling it a local favorite for tamales served in unpretentious quarters. Tamales are sold by the piece, the half dozen and the dozen, and the kitchen runs Tuesday through Saturday. Order a dozen for the freezer and a plate to eat while you wait.