Tamales in Orange County for the Holidays

The way this entry works is that when we find out about a tamale deal at a certain place we list it here under the year in which we found out about the deal. If we then find out that they renewed it for a new year then we will move their listing to that new year. If a place isn't listed under the current year it doesn't mean they don't have tamales; it just means we haven't officially confirmed it yet for a new year, but it might still be worth calling them find out.

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2016

El Zarape

El Fenix

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2015

Trader Joe's

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Mi Casa

Mi Casa’s generous-sized “wrapped goodness” tamales are available in pork and chicken by the dozen for your holiday feast.
$29.95 a dozen
For many families across Southern California, tamales are an essential element in celebrating the Christmas holiday. Since 1972, Mi Casa’s traditional tamales have been a Southern California Holiday tradition!
“Our customers that have been with us since 1972 know the taste of our original chef Jose Perez’ homemade pork tamales, which are still prepared with the same recipe today,” says Owner Ryan Moore. The tradition continues and Mi Casa’s famous tamales are made the same way. “It’s time, labor and an intensive process. Wet masa is the secret to making our tamales light and fluffy!” says Moore.
For more information about the great food and enjoyable dining experience at Mi Casa Restaurants, or to pre-order your holiday Tamales by the dozen visit http://www.micasa1.com.
Costa Mesa – 949-645-7626
Rancho Santa Margarita – 949-635-9538

Click to enlarge

Taco Rosa

Miguel's Jr.

2014

Las Fajitas

Cuca's Mexican Food

2013

Tlaquepaque

From Facebook: "Now taking orders for tamales; we have pork, beef, chicken and cheese. Call us today and place your order at 714-528-0110."

Sarinana's Tamale Factory

We have new tamales on the menu: Corn tamales (the famous "Chepos") and Chicken tamales (with green and red sauce). - Happy Holidays (714) 558-8650 2218 W 5th St. Santa Ana, CA

Taco Mesa

"All Tamales are fresh handmade, wrapped & steamed in banana leaves. $25 per dozen" More Info

OC Weekly has some more 2013 choices.

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2012

Grandpa's Mexican Food

Grandpa's Mexican Food has closed and been replaced by a different Mexican restaurant. I'll try to check when I can to see if they have tamales for the holidays.

Antonio's

At La Palma/Imperial in Anaheim Hills: $21 per dozen.

Whole Foods

Even more info here: Stick a Fork In It, Where to Buy Tamales in Orange County This Christmas, 2012 Edition

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2011

We're coming up on Christmastime 2011 and people already want to know where to get tamales from for the holidays. If you know of a place in Orange County that is selling tamales please leave a comment or e-mail reviews@ocmexfood.com and I will add the information in here. Here's what we know so far.

Tamarindo Truck

Read Our Interview w/ Tamarindo Truck • Call (714) 640-9371 to order
ADDITIONAL NOTE: The Bernardo Yorba Middle School is hosting a Food Truck Festival on 11/25 and TAMARINDO TRUCK will be there pre-selling holiday tamales. Best part is every purchase will help to support the award winning music program at the school. Please tell your readers to come to 5350 Fairmont Blvd in Yorba linda 4PM-9PM on Friday 11/25 and they can get some world class tamales along with all of Tamarindo's GREAT Mexican delights.

Reyna Market

Will have four different kinds of tamales. 12 for $20.

Reyna Market
902 W McFadden Ave Santa Ana CA 92707
(714) 549-1558
Yellowbot Listing

Rancho del Zocalo

Rancho del Zocalo in Disneyland is serving tamales during the holiday season. They just serve them at the restaurant, not as bulk orders, but it's a good thing to keep in mind if you are at Disneyland this time of the year. The picture above is from 2010 so the price might've changed.

Here's a video of one of the chefs at Disneyland showing how to make tamales:

And one by a Disney fan about how to make Rancho del Zocalo-style tamales:

Matador Cantina

"Our house-made Holiday Tamales are back! Beef or chicken take-out orders only. $30 doz. Order 2 days prior to pick up. 714.871.8226" There will also be tamale entrees available to enjoy at the restaurant during the holiday season.

Sandoval Family

Not from a restaurant but straight from a Mexican family: Chicken, red or green chile, and rajas (jalapenos, cheese, tomatoes) tamales for $13.50 a dozen. Call (909) 988-9650 to order and arrange pickups.

La Reina Markets

Pork, chicken, and cheese/jalapeño Single tamale $1.39 + tax or a Dozen $14.00 + tax
Official Site

Cafe Maiz

Cafe Maiz in Mission Viejo is selling three different types of yummy tamales for $36 a dozen.

Click for larger image
UPDATE: Cafe Maiz has closed.

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2010

• According to callmemochelle on Twitter: "The tamale lady at Sugar Plums festival at the buena park mall has them.-- pretty good size tamales!"
• Rockin' Baja at Bella Terra in Huntington Beach says: FOR DINE IN: "Celebrate the Holidays, Baja style, and enjoy our Holiday Tamal Special, which includes a chicken tamal in red sauce and jalapeno and cheese tamal, drizzled with a tomatillo sauce and Mexican crema, served with rice and beans for $10.99. Sweet lovers can finish-off their Rockin holiday dinner with our pineapple and raisin sweet tamal a la mode for $5.99. Only available until 12/30! Every Tuesday in December, you are invited to enjoy our Holiday tamale dinner special or dessert for half the price!" AND FOR TAKEOUT: "We offer delicious tamales for this holiday season. $24/ dozen: 4 Chicken Rojas (chicken in red sauce), 4 (Jalapeno Cheese), 4 Pino Pasas" (Pineapple and raisin sweet tamales). Place order 24 hours before pickup. To place an order call us at 714.892.3852."
• George's Mexican Food in Huntington Beach - Call (714) 892-5775 for details
• Cancun Fresh in Fountain Valley - Call (714) 427-0008

Azteca's Details:

Read more about Azteca's by clicking here.

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2008

Durango Mexican Grill

Chicken, beef, pork or vegetarian tamales for $20 a dozen. Call (714) 255-5660 to order or for more info. Read more about Durango Mexican Grill in Brea by clicking here.

Esther's Taco House

Frequent blog reader Kelly has e-mailed saying that Esther's Taco House in Yorba Linda and Placentia has tamales, speaking of which I went to the Placentia Tamale Fest tonight (Dec. 9, 2008) and finally tried some of Esther's food at the booth they had set up there:

The phone number for their Placentia location is (714) 996-2397.

Las Golondrinas

Frequent blog commenter and sometimes guest writer Captain Jack left the following comment about Las Golondrinas: "Las Golondrinas has both savory and tamales dulces. They have 5 stores in South County. For the locations, go to lasgolondrinas.biz."

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2007

Pepe's

Johnny Automatic has e-mailed that Pepe's has tamales too. Order them at their Brea location: 655 S Brea Blvd Brea, CA 92821 (714) 257-7373.

Moreno's

Johnny Automatic also mentioned Moreno's in Orange, "or specifically the little panaderia located in a little building on the property just west of the restaurant." Click here to read the LA Times Calendar Live article about the tamales at Moreno's.

El Camino Real

(From ElmoMonster's comment below) El Camino Real Mexican Food 303 N Euclid St Fullerton, CA 92832 (714) 447-3962.

Super Antojitos

(From an anonymous comment below) Super Antojitos 341 E 1st St Tustin, CA 92780 (714) 832-2252

Casa Oaxaca

Casa Oaxaca 3317 W 1st St Santa Ana, CA 92703-3423 (714) 554-0905 Facebook Page Listing at Cortera Official Site

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(This is an "only-photos-first" post, done quickly to get photos up and a new entry on the blog, with the expectation that text may be added later. Guest reviews can also be added to this entry and each published one will be paid $10.)

Click here for the full flickr photo album (40 photos so far).

Rudy's Mexican Grill

Rudy's Mexican Grill 12525 Knott St. Garden Grove, CA 92841 (714) 893-6666 Listing at Zomato Listing at Foodspotting No known official website.

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(This is an "only-photos-first" post, done quickly to get photos up and a new entry on the blog, with the expectation that text may be added later. Guest reviews can also be added to this entry and each published one will be paid $10.)

Click here for the full flickr photo album (11 photos so far).

Casitas de Amigos

Casitas de Amigos 10513 Los Alamitos Blvd Los Alamitos, CA 90720 (562) 594-5655 Listing at MapQuest Listing at Restaurants.com No known official website.

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(This is an "only-photos-first" post, done quickly to get photos up and a new entry on the blog, with the expectation that text may be added later. Guest reviews can also be added to this entry and each published one will be paid $10.)

Click here for the full flickr photo album (9 photos so far).

Cuca's Mexican Food

Cuca's Mexican Food 26676 Portola Pkwy Ste E Foothill Ranch, CA 92610 (949) 472-8227 Listing at Zomato Listing at Foursquare Official Site

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(This is an "only-photos-first" post, done quickly to get photos up and a new entry on the blog, with the expectation that text may be added later. Guest reviews can also be added to this entry and each published one will be paid $10.)

Click here for the full flickr photo album (22 photos so far).

Nacho Nachos and Churros at Angels Stadium

Here is our first guest review by Blake K. He is covering some of the Mexican food options at Angels Stadium:

June 12th, 2015

Nacho Mama (chicken) at Angels Stadium

For this review, you could say I'm in enemy territory, given that I'm a Dodgers fan, but I can't say no to free tickets. The hospitality service Legends recently took charge of the "Big A" and has revamped its food selections. For starters, they have made the popular nachos more available throughout the stadium. The nachos stand is known as Nacho Nachos. Since there are several around the park, it keeps the lines down. The service was quick.

Steak and chicken are the protein options for the nachos and for my first choice I chose chicken. The chips are the standard, round Tostitos chips you'd see at any stadium. The same goes for the cheese. It's the warm, delicious, guilty pleasure goop we all love. The Nacho Mama size is the medium portion size for nachos. There is a small size, which only comes with chips and cheese, and there is a bigger size called Nacho Daddy, which has the same ingredients as the Nacho Mama, but comes in an Angels helmet. The toppings include pico de gallo, sour cream, jalapeños, and guacamole. I found all of them to be fresh, including the chicken. There was plenty of cheese to cover every chip, which made them messy, but they give you a couple forks with your order and I'd take “messy” over “not enough” any day. I wouldn't suggest going about eating these with your hands. The chicken was hot, tender, and flavorful. I tasted some peppers and onion in its seasoning. I didn't run into any dry pieces of any bits that were too tough or full of fat. The portion size is definitely big enough for one hungry person.

3/5 Bumblebee Men:

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I had some room for dessert, so in keeping with the Mexican theme I chose churros… with a twist. I’ve heard about the infamous Oreo churros before, but have never been able to find them. I know they’re at Disneyland (I’m not sure if these are the same), and some movie theaters. I picked these up at a stand called The Coop, which sells chicken tenders. They look like your standard churro, but dark brown instead of tan. Before I ordered these, I assumed that the Oreo filling would be inside of the churro, however, the filling (which is really more like icing) is on the side. Unfortunately, they were incredibly dry and crunchy. The Oreo dip was almost frozen, which made it a challenge to get out of the tub. I would prefer if the dip were warm, given that the churros are warm. The churros definitely tasted like chocolate, but the dip was more like vanilla icing instead of the Oreo cream with which we are all familiar. I don’t know if I just had a bad batch, or one that had been sitting out too long, but I’m not sure I’d give these another try.

1/5 Bumblebee Men:

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June 16th, 2015

Nacho Mama (steak) at Angels Stadium

Just a few days later and I’m back again at the ballpark. I was craving the nachos again, but I went for the steak option this time. Like the first time, the service was fast and pleasant. As I returned to my seat, I realized my nachos were missing guacamole and sour cream. I’m not sure if they were out, or forgot to add them to my nachos, but the game had already started and I was starving, so I ate them as they were. As I said in the previous review, the toppings were fresh, and the quality was consistent here. There was plenty to go around (minus the guacamole and sour cream, of course). and steak was tender, but I felt that the chicken had more flavor.

3/5 Bumblebee Men: