Renowned Tamales Lupita braces for Christmas Eve rush
Dec 22, 2024
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — It has already been a busy December for Tamales Lupita, located in Canutillo, but they are just gearing up for the seemingly endless line that will extend outside their store until they sell out of tamales the morning of Christmas Eve.
Line of customers line up outside Tamales Lupita right before opening at 6 a.m. on Sunday
“On the 24th (of December), it’s a never-ending line. I think we prepare all-year long. We already know what to expect,” said Leah Grier, an employee who has been working there since 2010.
Tamales Lupita is well known in the Borderland for their selection of handmade tamales. They offer four classic kinds: red tamales with pork, green chile tamales with chicken, chile con queso tamales and sweet tamales.
But they are also known for their menudo which they only sell during the weekend, and their extended menu. That includes carnitas, barbacoa, chile verde and chile colorado (red and green spice) burritos, chicharrones (pork rinds), pig tails and chile rellenos.
The week before Christmas, however, Tamales Lupita temporarily stops making and selling the rest of their menu items and shifts all of their effort in the kitchen to the crafting of their popular tamales.
“We don't have the room to cook everything else and the tamales. So we need all the stoves to keep up with the amount of tamales that we're selling,” Grier said.
This year, Tamales Lupita celebrated its 40th year in business, and the owner and founder, Mundo Carrillo Escarzaga, reflected on the long journey of the now established Borderland landmark.
Mundo Carrillo Escarzaga - owner of Tamales Lupita
“(Our success) is based on the support we have received from the community,” Carrillo said. “We struggled a lot to lift the business off the ground. When we arrived in Canutillo, there was not much here. There were very few businesses. We struggled for years to stay afloat. It was not until approximately 20 years in, that the business took off, and today we now have 20 employees working.”
Carrillo and his wife Linda Carrillo launched Tamales Lupita back in October 1984, and for years were the heart of a small family crew that crafted the tamales that are so well-known today.
Tamales Lupita is so well-regarded now that last year El Paso County designated Dec. 18 as “Tamales Lupita Day.”
Despite the recognition and success of his business, Carrillo said he remains grounded and humble as he did in their early years.
“I feel the same,” Carrillo said, laughing. “I’m not up high or low. I am just the same way as when we began.”
Carrillo said their recipe for their tamales trace back to the neighboring city of Juarez and that it dates back to the 1950s, when he worked at an old restaurant that no longer exists called Tamales Abuelita.
"Tamales abuelita" (grandma’s tamales) is the term Carrillo uses to describe their recipe that continues to delight the Borderland.
“What makes the recipe special are the condiments that we use, and it’s not a lot,” Carrillo said.
That recipe is the secret to their red and green chile tamales, but arguably their more popular tamal is the chile con queso (chile with cheese), which Carrillo said they did not begin making until they were business for a few years.
“When we started, we did not sell the cheese tamales. We only sold the chicken tamales. With time, I came up with the idea of selling cheese tamales, and they ended up outselling the chicken ones,” Carrillo said. “But they all sell and we’re thankful for that.”
As to what inspired the name “Tamales Lupita”? Carrillo said it was inevitable.
“My mom’s name was Lupita, my wife’s grandmother’s name was Lupita as well, and I have a daughter named Lupita, so the name stuck. And there’s not a more Mexican name than Lupita,” Carrillo said.
Loyal customers, meanwhile, offered their own perspective on what makes their tamales special and keeps bringing them back.
“They’re very delicious. They have a great texture and the masa (flour) doesn’t dry up when you reheat it. And from what we know, they have the recipe for Tamales Abuelita, and we used to always go there when we lived in Juarez,” said Arturo Sierra, a resident from El Paso, who had just finished purchasing seven dozen tamales for Christmas Eve celebrations.
Arturo Sierra - Loyal Customer
Sierra said he’s been going to Tamales Lupita for nearly 15 years.
“The meat to masa ratio is the best, and the flavor too. You don’t want to have too much masa and a little bit of meat. These are good. They have the perfect combination,” said Debbie Morquecho. She and her husband Michael Madrid purchased a dozen red and green tamales at Tamales Lupita.
Morquecho (left), Madrid (right) - Loyal Customers
Morquecho and Madrid said they have established a tradition of lining up early in the morning of Christmas Eve, outside of Tamales Lupita, to purchase a dozen of each of their favorite tamales, and take back to their home in El Paso. Despite showing up on Sunday morning, they said they will still return and line up for more tamales this Tuesday.
Tamales Lupita is located at 6860 Doniphan Dr. in Canutillo and are open every day of the week.
Their hours from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
Tamales Lupita will be closed on Christmas Day. To learn more you can visit their Facebook page by clicking here.