Los Tamales

Absolutely disgusting slop at outrageous prices. $17 for a no meat - cheese enchiladas with beans and rice. The flavor is disgusting and inedible, it is completely overpriced. They use a lot of lard in their beans - inedible. The red sauce has a terrible flavor. I was polite, thanked them - no response. Asked for a fork, "inside." Looked all throughout bag - no fork. Asked for a fork - given a knife. Terrible, unfriendly service. This food is atrocious. Disgusting!!!!!!

Authentic, friendly.. I imagine you'll get more from your experience if you speak Spanish. The food is great. Service is quick. tasty and fun.

The first thing you notice when you walk in is the amazing atmosphere beautiful art pieces on the wall. The customer service is amazing they are great! The food was amazing! I highly recommended them. If you want authentic taste go here! The b shut bierria tacos are out of this world. The meat is extremely well season and melts in your mouth. The Tamales don’t get me started on the Tamales they are amazing! So many different flavors and choices.

We happened to be at the market next door when we discovered this place.And I'm glad we did.The food here is delicious, I wish we lived closer! The staff was helpful and quick. For patrons who want to eat in, there is a chips and salsa bar.The price was fair given the portions.I was unable to finish my taco salad due to its size. The birria tacos are also fantastic. The meat is soft and delicious. I've never had a better magonada. The ideal balance of salty and sweet. I can't wait to return.

I started hearing the buzz about this place and seeing some cool pictures so I went to check it out myself... the staff was very friendly and prompt with their service. I called in my order and they were honest and accurate on the amount of time it would take to be ready which was much appreciated. I ordered a large size "Taco Pizza" (I'm sure there is a more legit real name for it like pizzacoa and consommé) and added sour cream and guac. It was big, filling, delicious, and very visually appealing. The only thing I could complain about would be the guacamole; it was very watery and didn't seem to have much avocado or guac texture. Other than that, great place and very innovative and lively menu and I'll be returning for sure!

The barbacoa quesabirria tacos are the best I’ve had. I have tried them at several different restaurants, but it is absolutely the best here. The taco shells are crisp - even when delivered. I usually dine in at the restaurant, though. The consommé is the best as well. It is SO GOOD. The staff are sweet and pleasant too. 5 stars!!

They have the best Birria tacos I've ever had. We go a couple times a month just for these tacos. They're always crispy on the outside but cheesy and packed with meat on the inside. Highly recommend.

I don’t know how I haven’t written a review about this place yet. The birria tacos, is the best birria I’ve ever had hands down. I normally get it thru DoorDash, and it is so tender and juicy, the meat is never tough. The consume is out of this world. I crave this birria allll the time. The only thing is the rice and beans you can order isn’t super flavorful. But you do get a big portion for how cheap it is. Love this place

Stumbled upon this place when visiting Tacoma and I will be driving back just to eat here. I got two quesabirria tacos which were pretty big and I was pretty full after just this and the consomé (I did also fill up on the self-serve chips and salsa bar). The tacos were very good and cooked really well. I also ordered tamales from the market next door, which is the same tamales the restaurant gets but just a bit later in the morning, and they were amazing as well. The restaurant is a spacious and casual joint inside a strip mall and is connected to a Mexican market. Plenty of parking available

Submitted a phone order for a pizzacoa, AKA a birria pizza, two asada burritos and 1 dozen and a half of tamales. Upon pickup, I was greeted with two rude young looking girls. One heavy set and one thin with glasses. All I asked for was the arbol salsa they have in the back, for Birrias and soups. They both gave me attitude after I asked. Claimed the green and red salsa they have at the salsa bar is all they have. I never had an issue with asking for the arbol salsa with previous purchases at this restaurant. The thin girl rolled her eyes at me and said that's not arbol salsa, I asked her *politely * what is it if it's not arbol? She continued to walk in the back and grab the salsas ignoring my question, so I asked the heavy set employee. She said she didn't know what arbol was. This review is for the management to go over what working in the food industry means and these girls need a refresher. The food is good, which is why I am a returning customer for years.

Recently moved to the eastside and was looking for some Mexican food on DoorDash. Los Tamales came up and I noticed the strong reviews about the Pizzacoa so I had to order. The large was about $30 and worth every penny. This thing is massive and probably close to 5 pounds. The flavor is some of the best birria I've had and the consommé is flavorful and not greasy like a lot of places. Would recommend.

Ordered Los Tamales for delivery and was pleasantly surprised! I normally do not opt for Mexican food delivery but birria tacos just sounded reaaalllyyy good. Los Tamales was open a little later than most on a weeknight so we chose them. Food was delivered quickly and packed up nicely. It was still sort of messy because the food was pretty greasy, but we didn't order from them in the name of health anyways, so. First bonus was how affordable the food was. Four birria tacos, consome, two sides of rice and beans, chips, and guac, was only a little over $40 AFTER tip. And the portions were generous - the tacos were stuffed with a ton of meat, as well. Our only gripe was we wish they had more cheese (but they were still good). Overall the food was really good and next time the craving strikes, we'll definitely order from here again! Super curious about the pizzacoa too.

Absolute best authentic Mexican food ever!!!!!!! My family loves to frequent Los Tamales when we are in town. I have three teens that eat like horses but the price is well worth the value!!! I have yet to try anything that isn't amazing. The hand made fresh tortillas, drooling thinking about them. Love this place and cannot say enough amazing things about the owners, staff and establishment as a whole!

It's tamale time! One of the best things I got to enjoy over the holiday season were these tamales, but of course, they can be enjoyed throughout the year too! I drove over to Midland to get an assorted dozen ($22) of these bad boys towards the end of my wisdom tooth recovery period, and they sure hit the spot. The flavors I got were the - puerco: pulled pork. Some portions of it were juicy, while other portions of it were dry - rajas: bell peppers and cheese; the tamales weren't lacking of either - res: beef. Juicy and tender throughout :) Word has it that they have dessert tamales too, but don't quote me on that. I was just happy to have enjoyed something other than yogurt, tofu dishes, and soup :') Wouldn't hesitate to get my tamale fix from here again!

We decided to try this place because my partner has this love for birria tacos and wherever he can find them, he buys them lol so 3 quesabirria tacos, consome, and 1 flaming hot elote, later, we now have a review. Now, if you follow me, read my reviews, then you know that I don't eat meat. Therefore I cannot tell you how the tacos or the consome taste. But I can tell you that the tacos looked great. Different people make birria different ways and you can see that in the consome because some are darker than others. I also like to see a dark consome with a deep rich red tint. I think they did an okay job here. The consome wasn't too dark and wasn't that thick either. Because birria is a stew, I'm always looking for the consome to be thicker than that of a soup. You can also tell by the transfer of the color onto the tortilla. A rich birria will make the tortillas a red/brown color and I just didn't see that here. My partner did like them! He said he would order from them again. One thing that sets them apart that I love to see, a Mexican restaurant that offers street food as many of the ones here in western Washington do not. I did try the flaming hot elote and it was great! I personally wouldn't order it lol I love elote with a little tajin sprinkled on it. But because their specialty elote was good, I'm sure their regular one is good as well. I'm excited to try the nachos here, no meat or course. Other than that, it's a nice small restaurant and a strip mall of other Mexican specific businesses. All in all, I would say, if you want some Mexican food that won't fail you, there's no hit or miss. It isn't the top tier but it isn't the bottom either. It's good. I would definitely recommend and also recommend walking around the strip and stopping in a couple of the stores. Oh yeah, if I get the nachos, I'll update the review.

Both the birria pizzacoa and the quesabirria tacos were delicious. There was the perfect balance of birria, cheese, cilantro, and onion. I would definitely come here again. The consume was flavorful and great to dip in. My favorite place to get quessabirria tacos! Forewarning: the birria pizzacoa took longer for them to make (around 20-25 minutes) whereas the quessabirria tacos took about 5-10 minutes

The tacos and tamales never fail! So good! Flavorful, authentic and service is always kind and professional. Quick take out or relaxing dine in restaurant.

I'm sorry Los Tamales. The quality is no longer there. You use to be my favorite place. Now you let things slip. I mean, fix the soda machine already. Time to find a new place.

Delicious tamales. Great for caterings highly recommend good service too . Area is a bit sketchy

Yummy food and decent prices. The Birria plates are our favorites. Always our go to for quick Mexican food!

I first found this restaurant because I wanted tamales and I saw the name and thought, well I hope they can make their namesake. Wow. Can they ever. They have six kinds of tamale, green chicken (verde de pollo), red chicken (rojos de pollo), pork (puerco), corn (elote), pablano cheese (rajas), and beef (res). I've tried them all and they are all amazing. At one point I bought tamales every day for a week and a half. As for the rest of the, rather large, menu, everything I've tried has been amazing. You can taste the flame grill on the carne asada, the marinated chicken is tender and juicy with just the right amount of spice. The albondigas soup and pozole are as good if not better than anything I've had in Mexico. All in all, if you are looking for excellent Mexican food in Tacoma, Los Tamales is the best there is!

We ordered an assortment of a dozen tamales as well as tacos, birria, and a quesadilla. Unfortunately- it was a letdown. The tamales were extremely dry with a very small filling and meat that was not very flavorful. The asada in the taco meat was gristly and similarly lacking in flavor. The quesadilla was decent, however. Sadly, we didn't discover until we got home that there were no salsas in our meal. No jalapeños or onions that came with the tacos. Definitely overpriced for what we got. We won't be going back.

My friend and I ordered a total of 36 tamales and we definitely made the mistake of assuming that they were good due to the ratings they have on Yelp. I was so excited to get some tamales so I ordered a bunch and more than half of it was old, expired and SOUR. I got the red chicken and pork tamales, green chicken tamales and jalapeño tamales and the red and jalapeño tamales were both sour I spit it out and trashed them all. SUPER dissatisfied and disappointed. DO NOT RECOMMEND WASTING YOUR MONEY HERE. They will sell you all of their old food in the back just to get rid of it thinking they are going to get away with one day giving someone food poisoning. Also, their customer service was equal to their tamales. Sour. Negative a million stars

LOVE. Will be eating here/ordering from here again!! I got the HotCheeto Eloté, 4 Quesabirrias, Rice and Beans, the Mangonada and street tacos. Absolutely delicious!!

The rating could have been higher IF we got good service today, but sadly, we didn't. TikTok had a video with the hashtag #TacomaCheck & being from out of town, we wanted to try the birria quesadilla pizza we saw. We placed our order when we got in - but I was super annoyed by the server/cashier. I don't know if she didn't understand English very well, but I paid for our food and 4 drinks for my kids - who I explained would all come up and pick their sodas - and she brings out 4 bottles of coke and pops the caps. That was the first thing that rubbed me the wrong way. 2nd - she then stops by our table to ask if we're taking out or dining in. I tell her we're dining in. She clearly sees that our table has 5 people sitting. When she brings out our food - 2 plates, 2 plastic spoons, a box of the birria pizza- handful of napkins (which are the cheapy thin ones that clearly aren't enough for 5) and two plates of tacos. WTF? Y'all have a shortage of plates or what? We had to go up and ask twice for more utensils & plates. And she goes back and grabs one more plate when my niece went up to ask for more plates. I was so annoyed- I go up and ask for plastic forks at least and she hands me 4 like she's annoyed. I wanted to throw something at her by this time but decided to take the higher road and just go and sit down. The thing is this - if I'm coming in to spend money, treat me and my group like guests. This waitress clearly had an issue and bad attitude and if I get a chance to stop by and get her name - I will. Now back to the food - the birria was very good - not the best consommé- but it wasn't bad - just a bit watered down. The tacos were tasty as well - but the service just ruined the whole experience for us. I hope management sees this and works on versing your staff with better customer service.

9/15/23 last minute decision, I went to get some hot-ready to eat Tamales for my work's potluck.... I am impressed with their chicken & their pork tamales. A dozen for $24.99. Will be my go to spot for tamales from now on unless someone could suggest a better place. :)

This is the worst place to eat Mexican Food....the perfumed refried soup, not mashed beans but thick soup like whole beans, the Carne asada was burned and the guacamole looked like spit was in it(watery on top) I was going to go back for a refund but it's 25mins away I now have to cook because my daughter can not eat this, I was advised no one else complained and that refried beans are not always mashed? So disappointing. This is a never ever again end. I'm giving 3 stars because they offered a refund but again, I don't want to drive back. 40 +5 tip in the trash...

Deliciousness. Always worth the wait!!! Pizzacoa is the by far the best on the menu. Never fails

I've been looking for a legitimate tamale since I moved to WA from So Cal 9 years ago. Most restaurant and store bought tamales have very little meat and often are dried out. Someone on fB recommended this restaurant to me for tamales by the dozen, which my family traditionally used to eat on Christmas Eve. The tamales are reasonably priced at $24 a dozen or 2.50 ea. they have a variety of meat options and vegetarian option as well. I tried the verde de pollo, Rojas de pollo, puerco, and beef. The puerco and res were the best, very moist, meat had lots of flavor. The verde de pollo was the driest of the 4; I probably wouldn't order this one again. I reheated them by putting them in a steamer on the stove top. The portion of meat to masa was adequate. This is the big sticking point for me, most places barely putting enough meat in them. I felt like it had enough meat to satisfy me. I do wish they sent me with a cup or tamale sauce to-go though--maybe next time I'll have to ask if it's available. I realize I probably will never be able to find that authentic Mexican homemade tamale I was spoiled with back at home but this is a close substitute while I'm here in WA. I recommend them for tamales.

Yeah, who doesn't love a good tamale??!! Been here for years will keep going here for years...

This place is excellent. They have birria de chivo (goat) served as soup only, and it's divine. The beef barbacoa is excellent as well, they make delicious quesabirria tacos out of it. They have great tamales also, and excellent salsas. Somebody running this kitchen is a very good cook, the seasoning of the dishes is lovely. The food here tends to be fatty, which equals amazing flavor, but if you don't like that be warned. I love their consome, but skim the fat off the top before eating it. We got the barbacoa pizza once - not my favorite way to eat barbacoa as it got a bit soggy, but I could see getting it for a kid party or something. It looks super impressive!

I'm on a mission to find the best birria in Tacoma and I think I've finally done it. I ordered three yesterday and I wish I ordered 20 lol. SO delicious and the price is super reasonable for the amount of food you get per taco and they give you plenty of consume. And if you have some leftover, crisping them in the air fryer (or oven) is just chefs kiss. I'll definitely be coming back for more soon!! ‍

I wasn't that impress with this typical Washingtonian, Mexican food.. it was anverage like taco bell after bar hopping..

This review has been a long time coming. Since 2020 when we first discovered this location til now. It has yet to disappoint. The food is always good and prices are reasonable. I've ordered tamales buy the dozen many times from them this is one of my favorite places to get them from.

No recomiendo este lugar todo iva bien mi esposo ordenó chiles rellenos y yo una mojarra . Me di cuenta que avía un pelo en mi plato y se lo ensene ala mesera y solo me pregunto si quiera otro plato le dije que si pero para llevar se tardo como 30 hora y mi esposo mejor decidió que nos fueramos . Cuando salimos solo nos dijeron gracias completamente se le olvido mi comida . I don't recommend this place I found a hair in plate disgusting they asked if they could remake it I said yes & they literally never brought it out my husband was so irritated we decided to leave . As we walked out they just said thank you lol. Place sucks

Pizzaco was good, but the tamales were disappointing. I ordered red and green chicken tamales and when opening the bag there was a foul odor that hit me immediately. That was the obvious sign for me to trash the whole dozen I just bought. And not to mention the service. The lady checking me out was mocking the way that I spoke Spanish because it isn't great (I'm Cambodian btw). With just that being said, I don't even wanna bother to try for a refund. I'll keep my peace.

Okay, I'm going to bump this place up to five stars. I was here years ago and had tamales which I enjoyed fairly well. Then I heard in the news recently that this place had a very popular Taco Pizza. So just last night we went there and got one. You can't dine in at the restaurant right now due to the pandemic. Just take out. We took our pizza home and greatly enjoyed it. It comes in two sizes in which we went with a large size. When we got home the pizza still didn't look all that big. But in the end it didn't matter because it was very filling. Just after two pieces I didn't want anymore. This pizza is a bit different than what you may expect. It's kind of like a stuffed pizza. There is a bottom crust and a top one and in the middle it's filled with shredded beef, onions and other fantastic ingredients that go along with tacos. We got a couple of different salsas to put on top and a kind of a chili oil all in which made the pizza amazing. Not that it needs it but you can also have guacamole and sour cream added to it too. Definitely recommend if you love pizza but want version that isn't typical but still delicious! Also September 15th to October 15th is National Latinx month. My Yelp admin encouraged me to spread the word on Yelp for Latinx businesses. So I'm going to give acknowledgement and a big thank you to Latinx folks for my most favorite types of dishes!

We ordered 2 dozens of tamales to eat at home and they are delicious, good size and an excellent deal. The restaurant is easy to get to and well lit. The Staff is nice. We ordered ahead and everything was waiting for us when we got there. And they were still piping hot half an hour later when we got home. We would ve definitely coming back...

Best Mexican food we've found in WA. This place can beat the bigger Mexican chains with flavor any day that ends in Y! Their tacos de barbacoa with the consome-deliciousness! If you like Mexican food you'll love this place! Carne Asada is great! Nothing fancy, but it's clean and the staff are nice and don't laugh at us gringos who don't speak Spanish very well.

I started hearing the buzz about this place and seeing some cool pictures so I went to check it out myself... the staff was very friendly and prompt with their service. I called in my order and they were honest and accurate on the amount of time it would take to be ready which was much appreciated. I ordered a large size "Taco Pizza" (I'm sure there is a more legit real name for it like pizzacoa and consommé) and added sour cream and guac. It was big, filling, delicious, and very visually appealing. The only thing I could complain about would be the guacamole; it was very watery and didn't seem to have much avocado or guac texture. Other than that, great place and very innovative and lively menu and I'll be returning for sure! Enjoy! @bestcoastfoodie

Ok people, this place and the places around it are insanely amazing had never seen something like this here in WA. They have a variety of amazing dishes here but nothing can beat tacos made with fresh tortillas. Portions were on point, taste was out of the ball park. The lady's at front were amazing explaining what was available. What was so fabulous about this location was that the shopping plaza also had a tortillería, they had a Mexican market that had a buffet of tamales, and they had Mexican snack bar where you can get like elotes, tostilocos, rapados, duros. I had never seen anything like it. It was worth the drive to Tacoma!

Yikes. Went because of the good reviews but this was far from good. We actually left after two bites. Fajitas were swimming in oil and grease, maybe five pieces of weird chicken. Never got the tortillas. Tamales were 50% masa, very thickly wrapped with meat inside very dry. No sauce included. Third person in our party, their meal was never made and we left before it could be delivered. Chips were stale, every table was filled with dirty dishes, i bussed my own table so we could sit down. No bowls for the self-serve salsa. Will not be returning. Immediately went to tacos guaymas one block down 72nd. Way better.

delicious fresh authentic and quick highly recommended a great little secret tucked away.

Went on a Saturday afternoon to try the birria pizza. First off, there's no AC so keep that in mind if you plan to dine it. I ordered the large birria pizza, 2 carne asada tacos and a cup of elote. The pizza was WAY overpriced at $25. The flavor was ok, some pieces had wayyy to much cheese but the amount of beef on the pizza was generous. The tacos were just ok and the elote cup was disgusting and cold. The prices I paid were different from the prices advertised on their menu. Overall not worth the money.

Cool little hole in the wall in tacoma. Service was amazing. The lady infront is such a sweetheart! Food was good and authentic.

Oh my gosh, I absolutely love this place! The service is good, the food is amazing, and the prices aren't bad. We have eaten here 3-4 times in the last two months, which says a lot because we probably ate here the most. I normally order a few of the birria tacos, but with chicken. The consumé goes so well and they have some delicious, spicy salsa in various colors, if you know what I mean! Have not tried the tamales even though that is the name . We have had the tosti locos, elote, and the cheesecake. The only thing I wasn't a fan of was the cheesecake. It had a weird texture, but the flavor was good. Anyway, there's a little market next door that sells Mexican candy so we always stop there afterwards and stock up. Great little spot and highly recommend if you want some bomb tacos.

This is the best Mexican restaurant in Tacoma right now. 10/10, highly recommend. Everything is good, they make amazing tamales (as they should). Soups are fantastic, the birria de chivo is excellent. Quesabirria tacos (de res) are my favorite in town.

Best Birria tacos in town! The birria has so much flavor. Price is reasonable. They have a variety of Mexican traditional foods. Simple and just amazing!

Ordered a takeout and they had so many options! I chose the family meal (16 tacos, two sides and a liter of soda) and quesabirrias. This was a very clean establishment and the staff were all friendly. My order was ready in 15 minutes when it was busy. I do want to come back and try their tamales siete mares. Overall, I had a nice experience here.

Best Birria's I've had in Tacoma. It's the type of place I've driven by a million times and never thought to try. This place has GREAT Food. Everything I've had I've been amazed by. Don't let the outside exterior fool you. This place has the best Mexican food in town.

What can I say about this place. A hidden gem. So far I have only had the tamales but let me tell you, if you had not had these, you better get your butt up, drive, walk, run, hitchhike and get some. Tamales to go, but as I am writing this review, I only see 6 left. I swore there was at least 10! LOL I have had mediocre tamales in the past and at first was hesitant. These things came out steaming fresh! Chicken and pork were the ones that I had. Let me tell you, this was so moist. How do you all pronounce that "MOIIISSST"? My lips looks like I want to kiss someone. hahaha Flavorful and savory. Each bite was a bite of bliss. It was so good that I may have just put the entire thing in my mouth and swallow whole. YUMMM! 4 to go. I am getting full but my mouth wants more. I need to slow down. Thanksgiving is tomorrow and I need to save some room for that. I guess I can eat slowly and nibble. Who am I kidding!?!?! nom nom nom nom. There goes another. I should stand up. I need to make more room. Who thinks that I am able to eat all today?? A show of hands. I think I can do it. You know what?! What kind of mindset is that! Let's think positive. I CAN do it and I WILL do it. Oops I just let out a big burp, I hope my collogues don't think it is too bad. 2 left. Do you guys think I should share? Everyone is asking me what I am eating. I don't know if I want to give up something so succulent, so fresh, so full-bodied or so tender. OH SNAP! 1 to go. I guess they can split it. LOL I was almost there with the 10 Next time I will order 11. :) Oh man! I forgot to take a picture. Does a full belly count? I think Yelp may just block it. LOL I will definitely be back to try some more of the other food that is offered. Now I just need to message my boss to see if I can take an hour lunch for a quick nap and get back to work after. HAHAHA

Quesobirria tacos with consommé, Soooo good! Carne asada street tacos delish. Mangonada, Yum!

This place has the best Mexican food in Tacoma. The service is great as well. Hands down best food and soo worth every bite!! Amazing flavor with everything I've ever ordered!!

We love this place!! Their food is so amazing. The pizza coa is the best I've ever had. The family taco meal is great too. It comes with 16 tacos, beans, rice and soda for like $30 such a great deal. It's our go to if we want tacos asap.

The service has went really down hill. Came in today, to celebrate a birthday. Service was horrible, their drinks didn't have correct syrup, I paid 3.50 for a horchata, only to find out they didn't plan on refilling it. The elote took well over 30 minute. If the staff has been nice, or competent maybe it wouldn't have felt like I should ask for my tip back.

Food is consistently great. The family meals available are perfect for the take out only dining while the 'Rona has us all staying at home! Best tamales around. Everyone working here is very friendly and welcoming.

I read about this in the TNT, and the tamales were pretty highly regarded. Tamales were quite good. The sweet corn (elote) one was the star of the show. The masa in each tamale was great. We were hoping for more chicken in the chicken tamale, but overall they were very good. Definitely recommend checking this place out! This is supposed to be a hot area for mexican food. Anyone for a mini Mexican crawl?

Decided to try the famous Pizzacoa! Wow it was worth trying! The only negative thing was I ordered a large and only got 1 little salsa and 3 limes. Should've came with 4 salsas and 6 limes at least. We also tried the sweet corn tamale it was delicious. I will return soon to try more food items!!