Very kind patient and personable. They are fast and friendly! No need to go anywhere else for NM style food.

Stopped in today to pick up a coupe of dozen tamales to freeze. Walking in, I was greeted with a delicious smell. Grabbed a dozen green Chile chicken and a dozen pork red chile. To my surprise they were hot. We came home and while we had just eaten breakfast shortly before. We couldn't resist sharing one of the hot tamales . We shared the green Chile chicken tamale and wow! It was delicious. Masa was perfect and not crumbly. Also, appreciated the tamale were not salty and had a good amount of filling which appears to be white meat chicken. The chile has a nice kick do it. Delicious! While we live in Albuquerque, we will definitely be back to take home your delicious tamales read more

Always in pursuit of the gritty underbelly of real deal Mexican food, I saught out Leonel's Tamales when we found ourselves in Taos, NM recently. On the day that we are dropping in, something is up in the kitchen and they only are selling tamales, nothing else from the menu. It was for the tamales we were coming, so that is ok by us. Sold either by the dozen at $22.25, 1/2 dozen or single at $2.50, they come out in a clear plastic bag maybe freshly steamed up from the back having been made earlier that day I suspect. Served on a paper plate with a crappy napkin, I can tell these are the real deal. Piping hot, not large, but real deal tasty, we thought these were pretty good. I had two vegetable ones and my husband had one pork and one chicken. I would say worth the buzz and a worthy tamale. Corn husk is good. My 3 rating is simply because we could not have anything else because the rest of the menu was mysteriously unavailable to us....and also their bathroom is a unisex single stall and notably has room for improvement and a deep clean. I would return again if in the area and hopefully maybe to a slight bathroom remodel. read more

Leonel's Fresh Tamales - Outside - Mexican Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

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Really good tamales. Great deal, and quick if you just want to get some tamales to go. My favorite was the veg, awesome that they have one without meat and cheese, just bean and veggie goodness. Loved the texture of the masa, not mushy or dry, just right and adequately seasoned. read more

Excellent tamales with fresh ingredients. Best in town. More authentic than other restaurants in the area. read more

Leonel's Fresh Tamales - Red Chili Pork and Green Chili Chicken tamales with rice and beans - Mexican Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

I have lived in Taos since 1997 and just never tried Leonel's before. As a Taos person I'm always on the quest to find the best Mexican & New Mexican food, and Leonel's is now super high on my list! These guys can cook and the burrito I ordered was full of flavor, spicy, and fresh. Can't believe it took me this long to eat here, but I bet I'll be back tomorrow. read more

Leonel and his dad are awesome ! I am newly located here in Taos . I Went here for breakfast two days in a row... left my wallet there by accident... when I returned the next morning, Leonel had it waiting for me. He found it under my table . I love this place ... So I had breakfast a third day here! And It was so yummy. I had a traditional breakfast with crispy bacon and red chili and my mom had a sopapilla and my friend had the green chili chicken enchiladas which he thoroughly enjoyed.. The food was hot and it was fresh and the tortillas are homemade and super yummy.. I love that they serve their delicious food on Mexican stoneware and serve their delicious coffee in stoneware cups. They are friendly and good at what they do.. On my next visit I I will definitely try their tamales. This place was great and I will tell everyone how good the food is and how honest the owners are. Thanks Leonel!! read more

I've been going to Leonel's since it was a food truck and cannot believe I had never posted a review for the best tamales, without a doubt, in Taos and perhaps the entire state. Their other fare is very good but you can find comparable burritos, enchiladas, etc. in other venues but none can compare to their tamales. You can find cheaper or more expensive tamales but not better ones in Taos, San Miguel, Rio Arriba or Colfax Counties, Española, Santa Fe or Albuquerque (the places I have searched for good tamales). I pick up a dozen every other week or so and have a tamale breakfast plate, huevos rancheros or breakfast burrito while waiting for the fresh dozen! read more

After a long search of tamales that are not pork we discovered this place. These are some of the best tamales that I have ever had! Will be purchasing dozens every time that we pass thru. You can not go wrong eating here. read more

This place is bigger than seems from the outside with a fairly large, clean seating area. Order at the counter and he brought our food out to us. We got the tamales both the red pork and the green chicken. They were really good, especially the chicken one. Glad we decided to stop here. read more

Leonel's Fresh Tamales - Chicken tamale - Mexican Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

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I loved my meal from Leonel's!! I got takeout, the sopapilla and the Navajo taco. Both were amazing! This was one of my favorite meals in Taos. read more

Leonel's Fresh Tamales - Navajo taco - Mexican Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

Small, clean restaurant with lots of takeout business. Slow service (and everything served in carry out containers right now) but well worth it. Chiles are spicy -- green chile has a slow build, red chile is milder but leaves your lips tingling. Tamales are exceptionally good; Navajo taco (on frybread) is delicious too. read more

Food was good. Red chili was good and a little Spicy but we both had to add salt to our food. It is a little pricey-- $43 for 3 drinks 2 meals and 2 single tamales. read more

Leonel's Fresh Tamales - Navajo taco with shredded beef and red chili - Mexican Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

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What's a hidden gem. The smothered burrito with shredded beef and Christmas chili was incredible. This is going to sound crazy, but the refried beans were perhaps the best part - creamy smooth wonderful flavor. The chilies were both delicious with a hint of spice in each of them. We also had a pork tamale and it was also great. While waiting for our food, two people came in and each ordered two dozen tamales to go. This place is legit - I can't wait to go back on my next trip through Taos. read more

Great little hole in the wall. I found them via one of my girls at work. She brought some tacos back for lunch last week, and I had a bite. WOW, what a great taco! We usually do breakfast burritos on Wednesdays and decided to try Leonel's and it was not a mistake. The burrito is a little bit more expensive than Lota burger, but I feel it's worth it. It's a fresh home made tortilla, large pieces of sausage, generous amounts of bacon, etc. that have earned a spot in the lunch and break rotation for the office. read more

Leonel's Fresh Tamales - Menu - Mexican Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

I picked up some pork with red Chile and some green chile chicken tamales for the family. The tamales are just the right balance of masa and meat. You can't go wrong with these tamales. read more

Over the top for needing to order 4 tortillas, a side of rice and beans = $4 for tortillas and total was $34.46 For rice , beans and 4 tortillas. Total = $34.46! Tomorrow I still have the order and they can price gage someone else! At 10 am I'll bring the order back and demand a refund! I'm so blow away how you get fucked! read more

Not much on ambiance but thats not what we were looking for, the best Navajo taco and this place has it. I had the ground beef and my husband had the lamb. The fry bread was freshly made and the veggie all fresh. It was more than i could eat. Will definitely revisit on our next trip to Taos. Fast service read more

I was happy with my food. The meat was nice, the salsa good. But the tamales stole the show. I'd happily return when I'm next around. Even the corn tortillas were great read more

This place is small, but all their food is packed with huge flavor!! I love going to small businesses when I visit new places and Leonel's does not disappoint!!! read more

The restroom was not functioning when I visited this business plus my friend that treated me to lunch there was overcharged.

Nice place, the food was good. The sauces were too spicy for us, but there are options. The staff were friendly. We didn't have the tamales (because of the spicy sauce) so we may have missed the best option. read more

I love tamales. So I went in around lunchtime with my friend who ordered a Navajo Taco platter whilst I order the tamale platter. And two Coca-Colas. We were the only ones there and it took over 25 minutes to receive two styrofoam containers. Inside mine was three of the tiniest tamales I've ever seen floating in a red sauce. Our lunch tab came to $46. read more

Tasty kind of rustic place. Low on ambiance, but if the food is the thing then it is worth a stop! Given the name of the place, I had the Tamale plate. I chose two pork tamales which came smothered in cheese and a red sauce. The red sauce was spicy! If that's a blocker I'd ask for it on the side. Kind of came on the side naturally. The pork tamales were delicious and filled generously with pork. Due to Covid, plates are provided only in to-go containers. But you can still eat in the restaurant. read more

A must stop for me every time I am in Taos. The veggie tamales are Delicious and I am Not a vegetarian. Fresh food, fair prices and friendly service every time. Adhering to all the Covid protocol as well. Can't wait to return in the Spring. read more

Leonel's Fresh Tamales - Tamales with a view - Mexican Near Me - Taos, New Mexico

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Drove up to Taos from Santa Fe today, just in time for lunch. Eureka! I passed the sign for Leonel's (they had me at tamales!) and turned the car around ASAP. Ordered at the counter (lovely young lady behind the counter btw), and we all three placed our orders: 1) Carnitas, 2) Chile Relleno with a side order of veggie tamale, 3) Tostada w/ beef. Everything was perfectly prepared: tamale was steaming; carnitas were tender and tasty; tostada was good (my Yankee friend ordered this against my protests!) and the best part had to be the fresh, hand-made corn tortillas. Side dishes of refried beans and rice were on point. This food is made with love! read more

One of the best tamales I have had in years. Also a good burrito. Counter service we had a party of 6 and service was fairly quick and efficient. O great little stop. Will be back for another tamale. read more

Food was FANTASTIC!! I had the Xmas smothered burrito and it was delicious! My boyfriend had the chili relleno burrito and it was great too. Friendly staff and food was fresh!! Will definitely return! read more

They are changing over to the winter hours so just give a call before you go. They actually stayed later just for me. I got the Navajo taco with ground beef with both red and green chili and I was blown away! Great food. i'm definitely coming back! read more

their lamb tacos were insanely delicious. the best ive had honestly. skip all the tourist joints get some real norteño food here.

This is the spot. It kept us going during the pandemic. Great authentic food. Great people.

My host at La Dona Luz Inn recommended this place for a breakfast stop on the way out of town. Its a bit of a drive south of the plaza for a convenient breakfast if you are staying in town, but its a great place to stop coming in or out of town. As they are known for their tamales, I ordered the tamale breakfast with eggs and the green chile chicken tamales. WOW, so good, I ordered a dozen tamales to take home. Can't wait to try the other two types of tamales. A definite must stop the next trip north! read more

Awesome birria tacos! Delicious and is always consistent with what you get. These are my favorite splurge foods!

Delicious! If you have never tried a Navajo taco, you must get one. I got it with shredded beef and the flavors were incredible! The tamales were so good that we ordered a dozen to take on our camping trip. If you're craving authentic Mexican food, you must give this place a try! read more

Huge tortas and tasty tamales at a reasonable price. Great lunch spot in Taos. Bright and colorful dining room. Order at the counter for carry out but you can dine at one of the tables. read more

Really nice people. Food is VERY simple. I wasn't a fan of the veggie tamale, but the kids loved the burritos. I quote, "So simple mom without all the fancy stuff in them." Very cost effective. read more

Wow. This place is so good. Service is basic. Spanish "Candid Camera" blaring in the background. Excellent breakfasts...and tamales (almost) as good as my Mama's! read more

Quick, Affordable VEGETARIAN burrito. Delicious even without cheese. Just add avocado and for $6.50 and about 10 minutes wait, you will have a pleasing quick meal in Taos. We enjoy coming here everytime. read more

Came here for a quick breakfast in Taos. We got a breakfast burrito, empanada, and of course a tamale. We thoroughly enjoyed everything! The burrito was stuffed with yummy ingredients and smothered in your choice of chile. The empanadas choices were pumpkin and apple, we got the pumpkin which was great! The tamale was also good, made fresh, with good ingredients. Would love to come back and try the sopapillas. The staff was also very nice and accommodating. read more

Tamales were excellent, masa to meat ratio was perfect. While they had lovely sauce, they didn't need it! The beans were great and the breakfast burrito could feed two people. The only bummer was the rice was forgettable. read more