Skip to Content

A New Take On Tamales

Tuesday, 03 March 2009 00:00

Attention: open in a new window. PDFPrintE-mail

 

The Tucson Tamale Company, 2545 E. Broadway, opened its doors last November with a goal to bring healthy, unique food to the Tucson community.

The restaurant's owner, Todd Martin, previously owned another restaurant in Denver before leaving for a technical support job at Intuit, a computer software company. After 12 years at the company, Martin decided to give his passion for food another chance, and decided to focus on gourmet tamales.

"I love food and I have always loved to cook. I just started playing around with the different recipes," Martin said. "My friends started coming over, and everybody loved them and well, I decided this is what I need to do."

Martin prides himself on having a business model fully of integrity. He uses all-natural ingredients in his food, many from local producers, and without a deep fryer in sight.

"I've developed a masa that has no lard in it, with heart-healthy oils, no cholesterol, no trans fat, no hydrogenated oils, so its really crisp and clean and you get just the flavor of the corn," he said.

Hear Martin speak about tamales and see photos of his restaurant:


With eight tamales currently on the menu, and a rotating list of specials, Martin said he is always trying new things and has and more exotic varieties in the works.

"The tamale is the oldest food in the Americas. The recorded history of tamales goes back 5,000 years," Martin said. "You're going to get flavors you've never seen or heard of before here in Tucson."

The fledgling company is just over three months old, but Martin said he already has a local following and has been receiving rave reviews.

Martin is also using his savvy technology background to boost his business on the internet. He said much of his initial advertising push was done on social networking sites like Facebook. He also keeps a blog to document his journey of opening a restaurant, as well as running a Twitter page under the name 'cornartist.'


For a behind-the-scenes look at the Tucson Tamale Company check out these videos:

How To Make Tamales

Tamale Tasting

Reheating Instructions

Free Tamales For Life

A Satisfied Customer

All photos and video by Cody Calamaio and Cameron Jones




Written by Cody Calamaio You are reading A New Take On Tamales articles

News

Culture

People

Education

Health

Sports

Food

Related Items

Stalk us at:

Border Beat on Facebook


Border Beat Blogs

Educación en la Frontera

By: Shannon Maule

A look at higher education in regard to those who have and have not been able to travel from various countries to the United States. Stories from people in the higher education world relating to the border.

A Mosaic America

By: Rachel Kolinski

"Exploring Diversity one Face at a Time"

Dancing in the Desert

By: Hope Jamieson

Explore dance throughout the borderlands.

A City of Musical Diversity

By: Maria Teracena

Tucson musicians influence and are influenced by the sounds of the world.

Culture Crossing

By: Chelsey Barthel

American borders are crossed every day by cultures of all kind. These stories tell the personal experiences of people from different lands, offering further insight into the difference of cultures.

Borderfilmbeat

By: Lauren Inouye

A look at Mexican and Latin films that reflect culture, politics, and society --  reviews, research and analysis.

CaPOWera

By: Charles Misra

Stories about martial arts and combat sports with a cultural twist, all finding a home in America's southwestern borderlands.

Border People

By: Jamie Turow

Profiles of English language learners.

Tear Down Borders

By: Jessica Hoerth

Meet some of the people in Tucson who have made the journey across the border as they share what they came in search of and what struggles they may have encountered along the way.

Border Couture

By: Lauren Urratio

Fashion and how it is impacted by the border and international cultures.

Crossing the Line

By: Lucy Valencia

News from along the border with Mexico

The Border Project

By: Melissa Guz

"The Border Project" is an art showcase located in the University of Arizona's Museum of Art. It has over 40+ art pieces related to border issues.

Athletics and the Border

By: Preston Fawcett

Get to know high school coachs and athletes from Arizona border towns or from Mexico and their struggles to get to where they are.

Border Personalities

By: Audrey A. Fitzsimmons

The Southwest boasts of diverse ethnic backgrounds and a wealth of interesting personalities. Border Personalities is dedicated to the people of the Southwest and their stories.

Border Beats

By: Jeff Kessler

U.S. - Mexico border issues, current events, and interesting local stories

Music of the Border

By: Steven Schiraldi

Music reviews of musical works by Mexican or other ethnic artists.

The Border Wall

By: Brett Haupt

A visual exploration of America’s last frontier -- pictures and videos from different areas of the wall and fence that separate two different worlds and insight into what really stands between the United States and Mexico, ramifications of wall building and what it means for the average citizen.

Border Athletes

By: Lauren Sokol

Meet international student athletes at the University of Arizona, a look at the recruiting process that helped them find a temporary home in the desert, and culture changes that the athletes might have endured.

Journey Across the Border

By: Emily Kjesbo

Spotlighting Mexico’s top travel destinations, as well as a few of its hidden gems.

Border Shots

By: Keith Perfetti

A photojournalist looks at how other photographers have viewed the border and shoots lesser known spots of the southwest.


MLS Soccer comes to the Desert

By: Jeff Kessler

All about the 2012 Desert Diamond Cup,  a 10 day exhibition soccer tournament featuring four Major League Soccor teams coming to Tucson.


News

Culture

Education

People