RICHARDSON, Texas — Inside of Tamaleria Nuevo Leon in Richardson, there’s was a holiday rush ahead of the Christmas holiday.
Nearly every minute, the phone rings inside of the bustling tamale restaurant. It’s a sound that the owner, Doris Quintanilla has heard endlessly over the last few weeks.
Her hardworking team is on a mission to fulfill a Hispanic tradition this Christmas.
“We’re boosting production to have enough tamales for everybody,” Quintanilla said.
By the end of this Christmas holiday, her restaurant will make triple the amount of tamale orders compared to this time last year.
Each one is made by hand and steamed, just like Quintanilla’s grandmother made them in her Mexican state of Nuevo Leon. Today, grandma’s recipe lives on through the tamales Quintanilla sells.
“This is not only a Latin tradition, cause we have a lot of people from everywhere,” Quintanilla said. “I think it’s been so popular right now that everybody wants to buy tamales, especially fresh tamales.”
Quintanilla said demand is high despite the rising cost of ingredients. Issues in the supply chain forced the small business owner to pay more for the ingredients needed to make tamales.
“Everything is super expensive,” Quintanilla said. “The meat, the husk, everything, but we have to work, and we have to still have our place open… so we have to buy whatever it is at whatever price it is.”
The spike in prices is concerning for Quintanilla, who plans to open a second restaurant location in Dallas in 2022.
“We haven't raised our prices too much, but we don’t know how it’s gonna [sic] be next year,” Quintanilla said.
On Thursday, Jacob Morales, a resident of McKinney drove to Tamaleria Nuevo Leon in hopes of scoring some last-minute tamales.
“The tamales are really good, and it’s the closest thing to having homemade,” Morales said. “I need to learn how to make them, and I will eventually, but I know how to eat them!”
Even through a pandemic and the surging cost of goods, Quintanilla takes pride in knowing she is helping others keep the holiday tradition alive.
“I feel so blessed that a lot of families from Dallas have our tamales for Christmas on their tables, so that’s a blessing,” Quintanilla said.