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I was driving through the small town of Punta Banda, on my way back to Ensenada, and it was time for lunch. Being the adventurous sort of person that I am, I wanted to sample some of the local cusine. When I way local, I mean really local in that I wanted to stop at a roadside vendor stand. After negotiating a particularly mean speed bump, my nose picked up the smell of wood smoke. I looked to my right and noticed a small, roadside stand with several pots cooking over a wood fire. How could I resist this one? I didn't resist...
Photo: Tamales de Margarita is very unpretentious. You can't miss the stand, as it's located at the speed bump, in Punta Banda, on the south side of the highway.
Photo: Elena lifts the lid from one of the pots, cooking over an open fire, to show me the chicken-filled tamales cooking over the fire. We're talking logs, not charcoal! Margarita operates a small, roadside stand in the town of Punta Banda, about halfway between Ensenada and the world-famous blowhole, La Bufadora. She sells several varieties of homemade tamales that she makes at the stand, and steams in large pots, heated over a wood fire, in front of her stand. She also sells jars of pickled vegetables, delicious homemade salsa, black and green olives. She has been in the same location for 16 years, and she makes a decent living by selling the food that the makes at the roadside stand.
Photo: How could you resist tamales, homemade and cooked over a wood fire? I noticed the tamales aren't placed on a rack to separate them from the water. You'd think the tamales would be mushy, after absorbing excess water, but at Tamales de Margarita, that wasn't the case. I don't know how she does it... when I asked, Margarita just giggled and told me that it was a family secret.
Photo: Margarita picked a tamale from the pot, and displayed it for me, my camera, and the world wide web. I absolutely admire a gal like Margarita, who makes a living selling family-made tamales, salsa, olives and canned vegetables at a small, roadside stand, in Baja California. I parked my car, got out and walked to her stand. It's one of those semi-enclosed stands where the side that faces the road is completely open. I introduced myself to Margarita, the owner, and her friend Elena, who was visiting from the Los Angeles area. I asked what kind of tacos Margarita sold, as she doesn't have a sign that advertises her wares. She told me that she only sold tamales; that was ok with me! So, I purchased a pork tamale and a chicken tamale. These aren't the sort of tamales that you see in "gringo" Mexican-style restaurants. Margarita's tamales are huge and biting into them is like opening up heaven's gate. Margarita obtains all of her ingredients from local farmers in the area, so you know everything is as fresh as it gets. She has a table inside her stand, where she cuts the meat, vegetables and stuffs and ties the tamales into corn husks. She grinds the corn kernels up using a mortar, and makes all of her masa dough for the tamales on the spot. She does everything herself by hand, the old fashioned way. You can't help but to admire a lady this creative!
Photo: Margarita (left,) and her friend Elena (right,) tend the tamale pots. One pot has pork tamales and the other pot contains pork tamales. Margarita told me that the majority of her business comes from tour busses, which ply the highway between Ensenada and the famous blowhole, La Bufadora.
Photo: In between customers, Margarita busies herself cutting up vegetables for salsa, cooking the vegetables, and bottling the salsa. She uses a wide variety of bottles, jars and whatever she can find... you won't find your standard canning jars at Margarita's operation! I purchased a jar of her salsa... it was delicious! I think the part of her operation that intrigued me the most is her method of steaming the tamales: Over a wood fire. In front of her stand, she has a fireplace, built out of cinderblocks, with several large pots full of tamales cooking. She was pleased to show me the contents of each pot, more tamales. In addition to tamales, Margarita sells homemade bottles salsa, pickled vegetables, black and green olives. Of course everything is made from fresh ingredients obtained locally. She does all of her canning using heat from the wood fire. If you've ever done any canning, you know how important it is to sterilize everything and how tricky it can be. It's hard enough using a gas range, but this lady does it outdoors over a wood fire. When I asked her more about her operation, she told me that she does a big business, as many tour buses like to stop on their way to and from La Bufadora. I sampled some of her pickled vegetables, olives and salsa, and couldn't resist purchasing some to take home with me. I asked Margarita what her secret is in making such delicious products and she answered in one word, "vinegara," or vinegar in English.
Photo: Besides tamales, Tamales de Margarita also sells bottled olives, pickled vegetables, vinegar and home-made salsa. All of Margarita's products are made from fruits and vegetables grown in the local area.
Photo: Elena waits on a couple of customers, as she gives them a sample of Margarita's salsa. Both Margarita and Elena are outgoing, friendly ladies who will treat you like family. I hung around and chatted with them for the better part of an hour before I said farewell.
Photo: Tamales de Margarita revolves around a fire pit, constructed from cinder blocks. Note the large pots that are black from the fire - all of Margarita's products are cooked over an open fire - which contain tamales, tomatoes, peppers and other vegetables. Talk about "old school" - I think Margarita invented the word - as everything is made by hand, and cooked over a wood fire. I love it!!!
Photo: The photo really doesn't show how big and juicy Margarita's tamale is... Trust me, it's GOOD!!! Oh yes, the tamales you ask? D-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s. Huge. Fresh. Moist. Her tamales feature a nice, thick masa dough, very moist and tender. Oh the tamale filling is sooooo good! Both were delicious, but if I had to pick a favorite, I'd vote for the chicken, as simply put, I love chicken tamales. The price, you ask, for 2 tamales, a bottle of salsa and a bottle of pickled vegetables, plus samples of her olives? $40.00, which is just a little over three U.S. dollars. Next time you're driving through Punta Banda, on your way to or from La Bufadora, stop by Tamales de Margarita, say "hola" to friendly Margarita, and have a delicious lunch. Your taste buds will be glad you did. Tamales
de Margarita Copyright(c) 2005 eRench Productions. All rights reserved. This site has been on the web since December 22, 2002. Web page design has been created by eRench Productions... custon photography for any occasion...
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