Great service however tamales lack flavor, although you receive salsa on the side it doesn't make it any better. I tried both pork and chicken and both meats lacked flavor. The meat was dry and dull. If you are sensitive to spicy food, this is perfect for you and kids. read more

After all these years, still my favorite tamale place! Generous portions, fresh and delicious . The service is always personable and should definitely be on your places to try list . Personally, my favorites are the pork tamales and the Elotes. read more

I went in to buy elotes, just to find out that they only have it on the cob. I need it for a potluck, so that wouldn't work well. The website says that it is available shaved and the guy seemed irrititated that I was even asking about it. He acted like a complete jerk and stormed off after I said that's not what I looking for. Needless to say, I won't be returning. read more

Came here to grab food before my class and service was absolutely horrid not to mention the OWNER greeting us with racism and constantly squinting at us because we were Asian. Instantly lost appetite not to mention the distasteful food. read more

I read the reviews and gave this place a shot. There is an interesting variety of tamales; however, the tamales are not fresh. They are microwaved & very obviously, as they are placed in the microwave before they are given to the customer. The tamales are very overpriced (2.75+ per tamale). They are small, so it's not like you're paying for quantity (or quality for that matter). read more

Delicious tamales and sides. Was surprised how good the sweet tamales were. The only complaint I have is that the sides are rewarmed in the microwave. But still very tasty. read more

Try the strawberry tamale. I was looking for something different and I tried this on my baking day. It is delicious. I can compare it to my favorite cranberry orange bread. Next time bread. I have a sweet tooth and this is on the list. read more

Tamale Hut Café - I was looking for something else. Try the strawberry blueberry Tamale. - Mexican Near Me - North Riverside, Illinois

See all

A small business that supports the arts! A great find near Loyola Medical Center. The owner is very friendly and informative and took time and care as we ordered. I got a traditional pork tamale and a spinach one. Both were really good.....The spinach tamale was wonderful. My husband had elote corn (yum), and albondigas soup! It's obvious that the owner here uses fresh ingredients and takes great care in preparing the food. We visited on a Monday, at lunch time and there were very few customers- easy in and out.....but there should be much more lunch traffic here because this place is amazing! read more

Tamale Hut Café - Tinga - Mexican Near Me - North Riverside, Illinois

Well I have been meaning to try this place for awhile. I have passed it a bunch of times and I figured today would be the day I gave it a shot. Plenty of parking, COVID restrictions in place, no indoor seating anymore just to go orders. The employee I dealt with was pleasant, not friendly, but nice enough. I ordered two chicken tamales and a pork. The tamales were fresh and tasted okay. The chicken was dark meat which I am not a huge fan of but dealt with it. Not the best tamales I had, not the worst. They were small, in my opinion. At $2.75 a tamale, I was hoping for a bit more. $9.12 for 3 small tamales is a bit pricey for me. El Milagro is a much better deal and you get more bang for your buck. Give this place a try, I am probably not going to return, but you may enjoy it. read more

My cousin is very sick at Loyola Hospital. I wanted to thank the nurses, doctors, and staff taking such good care of her so I called Tamale Hut and spoke with Jaime Flores the owner. He helped me figure out how to best get food to the ICU. They provided pork, chicken, and cheese jalapeño tamales with salsa. chicken Tinga with tostada chips, cheese, and sour cream. The nurses were very appreciative and said the food was delicious. I'm very grateful for all the help, next time we are up north we will surely stop by for a meal! read more

When I went, I asked which were spicy, and he said none. I asked again, as I was in shock, and he said the green sauce, but that it's good with spice.... lol. I then had to tell him my kids don't like spicy foods, and won't eat it. I guess I'm wondering why he wasn't honest the first time? He then recommended the pineapple sweet tamales. Unfortunately all 3 of my kids would not eat it. I tried it, and it tasted dry. The texture was a bit "spongy". I enjoyed the chicken flavor, but it was too dry. The spinach, cheese, and bean were delicious! The place itself has potential. It has a fun red sign/background and nicely painted. There's a lot of tables and a system for music. The back of the counter is very disorganized, and needs some nice shelving for organization. The tamales aren't exactly fresh as he microwaves them in front of you. For $2.99/tamale I think they are a bit small. Overall, I would go back, but these are my suggestions/observations. read more

The most amazing soup. It's spicy and hearty with home made albondigas. The tamales are wonderful. Fillings are bountiful and range from beef and pork to spinach, broccoli and crab. Friday nights (once a month) there is a free comedy show with some of the best local comedians in Chicago. Atmosphere, great food, and the warmest host in town. read more

Excellent tamales! Placed a large, last-minute order and Jaime was so accommodating and friendly. We got 20 each of the chicken verde, pork verde, cheese and jalapeno, and bean tamales and all were delicious and fresh from the steamer. Our guests raved about them and were constantly asking where we got them from! read more

Sheesh, Riverside-ians -- I'm jealous that not only do you have a dedicated empanada shop, you have a dedicated tamale shop! A tamale shop with lots of vegetarian options on the menu, which never happens at suburban Mexican places! Since we'd just eaten at the aforementioned empanadUS, we only had room for one tamale each. My mushroom tamale was filled with fresh portobello mushrooms. It was surprisingly spicy and so very delicious paired with the chilled green salsa they give you. For some reason, I don't see mushroom on the online menu, so it may be a special, but they definitely also have cheese, bean, spinach, broccoli, and special-order mole tamales. I loved that they displayed fine art on the walls -- wouldn't have expected that! The owner was friendly and happy to chat with us. read more

Tamale Hut Café - Inside - Mexican Near Me - North Riverside, Illinois

See all

We're going here????????? This ran through my head as I followed my parent's car into the strip mall parking lot. My mom was itching to try it after one of her girlfriends raved about it. We were fortunate it was empty when we arrived because we weren't quite sure what to do. Jaime, the owner, was patient and friendly, he helped steer us in the right direction. Jaime told us there was a "buy 2, get 1 free" tamale sale going on so here's what we got for $18: 2 spinach tamales 1 crab tamale 1 chicken tamale 1/2 order of tinga 2 egg/chorizo tacos drinks The tamales were fantastic. I rarely eat them since most aren't veggie friendly, but they had several options for vegetarians or pescatarians - crab, cheese, mushroom, broccoli or bean tamales. I had a spinach and a crab, both were quite tasty. I would've like to have tried cheese, but there weren't any ready when we got there. My parent's enjoyed theirs so much they decided to take a dozen home. As Jaime bagged the order he explained how long they're good in the fridge and the proper way to reheat them. My dad was jazzed that he was able to get breakfast tacos even though we came after breakfast ended. I assume they were good, he cleaned his plate and I didn't hear any complaints. My parents also split a 1/2 order of tinga, which they said was excellent. I'm glad Jaime told them it would feed 1-2 people because it was huge. Tinga is shredded chicken breast sauteed with chipotle sauce, onion, tomato, and pepper, served over tortilla chips, and topped with sour cream. We had never even heard of the dish before visiting the place. Be forewarned the menu is almost exclusively tamales and tinga. They have several varieties of tamales including 2 different sweet ones. Bottom line: The place is really cute, they even have live music on occasion. The location isn't optimal, but I think the tamales are worth coming back for. read more

These are delicious! If all you've known are crummy store-bought tamales these will change your mind. We had the chicken and pork and both had a solid filling of shredded meat that was delicious. We definitely will be back. read more

FIRST TIMMER! Great customer service. (I'm guessing he was the owner) so genuine and friendly! Will comeback. I tried the mushroom tamale and the bean tamale. Definitely try the mushroom! The mushroom tamales had just came out from the steamer and were great! I will say the use of the microwave was a bit of a turn off. The side of rice is a bit too expensive, it costs more than one tamale and the portion is small. Other than that can't wait to come again and stuff my face! read more

See all

This place must be just a lunch joint because it closes at 7 p.m. every evening. And the place is empty too at 6 p.m. For a family of 8, 2 adults and 2 little kids, we figured 8 would be sufficient. But, greedy as we usually are, we ordered 14. 8 savory and 4 sweet. And we ate them ALL!! Of course, not so smart later, as they kind of expand fivefold in your belly. But, they are good. I'll rank them in order of best to just ok: mushroom--very very tasty crab both sweet ones-coconut/pineapple and strawberry/blueberry pork spinach chicken - kind of dry Did not have a chance to get the chicken tinga. I didn't even know about it. I should have read the reviews prior. Oh well. I guess I'll have to go back. read more

This place is the best! Incredible, home-made tamales. My favorite side is the corn! To die for! They Cut the corn off of a cob, add a little mayo, cheese and Cayanne pepper. Out of this world! Be sure to try the Tinga, too! What's cool about this place is that it not only has an awesome restaurant but, it supports local artists with special evenings of entertainment, comics, poetry readings and art exhibitions. read more

I think this place is great! The food is super fresh and great quality! The lunch specials are so filling and you get a great variety of foods to try. I think I dreamt of chicken tinga for a week after my visit to the tamale hut cafe! Staff is friendly. Also great - paletas year round! Real Coca-cola from Mexico! read more

Easily the best tamales I've ever had. Fresh ingredients, well made, friendly services. Not much else to ask for or say. Great experience with delicious tamales. Yum read more

Tamale Hut Café - Looking good! Pork and chicken with corn, yum - Mexican Near Me - North Riverside, Illinois

Amazing food. Such a nice owner. Honestly the best tamales I've ever had! Going back ASAP.

Visiting from out of town and noticed their sign for vegan tamales, quickly pulled over and was met with some of the best food I think I have ever had. About to go order some extra to take back home to Iowa. Alex was super friendly & the food was out fast and hot read more

Super friendly owner. Chicken Tinga was bomb. Also got elota, albondingas and tamales. Super good. Would recommend.

If you know me or have read a fair amount of my reviews, you probably know I'd sell my soul for a good tamale. But what would I do for a good vegetarian or (gasp) vegan tamale?? It's not often you find a vegan tamale, much less a place that advertises a vegan tamale, but THC knows all of theirs are delicious, so no worries about their reputation. None of their tamales use lard! The variety of flavors change a bit on a daily basis plus some staples that remain. I'm a big fan of the mushroom and spinach tamales, and when I ate meat, the red chile pork tamales were the bomb, as was their albondigas soup. They are priced average or above average, their sizes are average but the tamales themselves have good flavor and moisture in the masa dough, and are adequately filled. I could probably stand a bit more filling but they make up for it with flavor, for sure. The owner who is almost always the one taking your order will laugh if you ask him if they ever freeze them. No, no they do not, and he takes pride in that fact, as they should. Be sure to check the website for the variety available daily, and you can also pre-order more unusual ones in advance by the dozen. I've never had to do that but it's a great option if you want to make sure they have what you want on the day. The dining area is quite spacious, and colorful, but nothing too special. I've only ever picked up and not eaten there. During my visits, it's typically empty so I'm not sure how busy or stark it might feel for dinner, but I do know it should be tasty! read more

I've been riding past this place for years and it finally stuck out to me. I was referred by a person whom knew the owner and really spoke well of him. I finally got a chance to visit, everything was so personable and the owner is soooo friendly and informative!! the Tamales perfect and the Tinga was the first for me and I'm in love... if you are in the area and looking for a great tamale experience, please stop by the Tamale hut Cafe... I'll definitely be back. read more

El Milagro has always been my go-to place for tamales but Tamale Hut Cafe gives them a serious run for their money. As others have pointed out, these are not traditional tamales. With ingredients like broccoli and crab though, they obviously aren't trying to be traditional. These are more of a refined, gourmet tamale. The white corn masa is moist and the fillings are made with good quality ingredients. Both the spinach and mushroom tamales I had were very tasty and fresh. The blueberry/strawberry sweet tamale though was kinda dried out and somewhat bland. You can find cheaper tamales elsewhere but those often contain more corn than filling and aren't as good as Tamale Hut's. Definitely worth it for the quality you get here. read more

As a lover of tamales who doesn't eat lard, this place seemed like a God send! They very specifically say that they don't include lard in their masa, and even have VEGAN options available! Now being (a part-time) vegetarian, gaining access to authentic, vegetarian-friendly Mexican food is difficult enough, so I'm sure this place will make Vegans happy, too! We came here again after a couple years, where our first experience with THC unfortunately wasn't too great. Perhaps we had just gotten a bad order back then or maybe THC has stepped up their game, because our latest experience was pretty good! We got the cheese tamales, as well as the spinach tamales. We tried to order their mushroom ones and the pineapple-coconut ones, but they didn't have either of them (even though we were there pretty early in the day). We particularly loved the cheese tamales, the spinach ones weren't bad though. I knock one star off for two reasons: a) these tamales were much smaller compared to the ones often sold on carts and in other establishments in Mexican neighborhoods around the Chicagoland area, and b) I felt their tamales were slightly more expensive. small sizes + larger prices = no bueno read more

Sunday Funday......zoo, starving; tamales around the corner. So at 4pm on a Sunday not much left in the tamale department. I can say without a doubt it was all about the Tinga. My god was that delish. I wanted to run back and get some more. The tamales were good but the Tinga was phenomenal! See for yourself. oh and you can B to the Y to the O to the B...... liquor store next door! Yeah read more

The owner is super nice and friendly! The chicken tamales are little dry but trust me when I say the spinach and pork are the best. Tamales come out fast and come with some salsa read more

I can't believe it's taken me this long to write my review! I LOVE THE TAMALE HUT CAFE! I had been trying to get to this spot for years. I finally came with my boyfriend for lunch one day and it was everything I had ever dreamed it would be and MORE! Now usually when I see a review with the owner's name in it, I write it off to be fake, but Jaime, the owner is just that personable! Not only does he create incredibly delicious tamales, but he also uses his space for events to help make our community a more richly cultured place. I love it. He's got something going on there almost every week! From live music to open mic to art shows! I am extra grateful, being a visual artist in the area. There is no place like it and I am happy and proud to say I'll be the next artist on display starting Monday May 5th through July 5th! Thanks Jaime and The Tamale Hut Cafe! And did I mention the tamales are to die for?! read more

Excellent vegan tamales! They had bean, broccoli, and spinach tamale options when I dined there today. The rice side was delicious too. Great find in the area! read more

See all

Yummy Tamales!!! Not your average "tamale from a cooler" tamales. If you want that, hang out at a bar and you can get them. These are more refined and better made than most tamales out there. If you want to try something made with love, these are it. My favorite are the pork and cheese tamales, just thinking about them makes me hungry. The only complaint I have is that there aren't more places like this in my neighborhood. Instead we have "Trash Tacos" and Picante, not a good choice for a tamale lover. If you're complaining about the price, than you should just stick to Taco Bell. These tamales are a step above. read more

Owner was nice and friendly to talk to, but tamales were underseasoned and tasted old. Cheese was good, but Chicken was bland, broccoli tasted stale (I actually ordered spinach but it was mixed up). Elotes (corn) was priced at 4.99. Seems too pricey given nearby joints are more reasonable and taste fresh. read more

Ughh I love this tamale place and the owners are awesome, but they really have to do something about the prices or portions. I just spent $43 for a DOZEN tamales and HALF a pound of tinga. It's good, but damnn not that good to break my bank. I thought he charged me wrong, but it seems every time I go in the prices go up. I looked at the menu and they don't have prices listed for a dozen tamales which probably explains the rising prices. Either reduce the cost because you don't get much tinga (and that's the highest rate for tamales I've yet to see) or give more portions. I simply can't reason spending that much on food, let alone just tamales. read more

My son called me from school yesterday and said mom bring home Tamale's. So I got on the internet and found this Jem! I ordered 2 dozen tamale's. 12 chicken, 6 spinach, 6 cheese. Needless to say they were delicious! My kids went crazy over them. My son said he wasn't going to share but 3 chicken with his teachers the rest were for him! I was like son I can get more now we know where to go! I met the owner, what a great guy! We talked about my son and his school and he's lives in the area so it is a great neighborhood place to pick up tamale's! read more

Growing up in Los Angeles, CA and being accustomed to eating authentic Mexican cuisine, including home made tamales for breakfast at least twice a week, I thought I would never find great tasting authentic tamales made from scratch here in the Chicagoland area until I found THC. These are the real deal made fresh from scratch daily. I believe the family's uncle Tony, 84 years old, has been making them for over 40 years using his family recipe. My favorites are the pork and chicken, but the other selections are terrific as well. If you think the tamales are out of this world just wait until you try the "Tinga"! But if you prefer to eat the tamales from Jay's Beef or other hotdog and Italian Beef establishments you are truly missing out. read more

I love this spot i have been coming here for years and they have never disappointed! I drove 20 mins bec I've been craving it!

I grew up eating tamales in Mexico and handmade by my dear mom. I know a good tamale when I taste one. Found this place about a year ago and unabashedly state that they are delicious, light, lard-free and delicious. Everyone I share these tamales with raves about their chicken, beef, cheese, beans, broccoli tamales and so much more tasty choices. The tinga is also to rave for. Joe's and the owner's, Javier, service is pleasant--they know how to treat their customers. Can't wait to use their catering service some day at work or a party and go to one of their live music evenings. read more

Can you say Tamales with a Twist?? Alright, so I agree with Grace....sort of. I grew up in Little Village and I can testify that you will find better tasting tamales at a cheaper price on 26th St. But can I just say that you will NEVER find spinach tamales on 26th St? I have concluded that this is why you're paying more than $2 per tamale. They're like "specialty tamales" LOL. The spinach tamale is what stood out for me and the tinga is also really good. A 1/2 order of the tinga is more than enough for 2 people. I'd like to give props to the owners for being courageous enough to gamble with a place like this. He was telling me that they've been open for about 4 yrs now. That's pretty good considering the gamble, and the economy. Although it seems like they don't get swarms of customers, probably ever, they had an interesting idea. I will probably go back for the tinga or the spinach tamales. No rush. read more