Since she was a little girl, Irene Tovar learned to make tamales. Her mother taught her and her sisters the craft to help them move forward, since they had to start working as children because “they had a very lax father.”
37 years ago they set up a stall in the flea market part of the Ignacio Ramírez market in San Miguel de Allende. Since then, her seasoning and charisma have been key to gaining customers, local and foreign, who seek her out and recommend her.
A plus is the cocoa shell atole, which is not easily found in other places in Mexico. Irene says that an older woman, whom she knew when she was a child, taught her how to prepare it and that it is only found in San Miguel de Allende and some parts of Michoacán.
The day for Irene and her mother begins at 4 in the morning, as they have to start selling hot atole and tamales at 7:30 AM in addition to advancing what they can for the next day’s production.
At 7:30 they begin to serve a variety of atole flavors: oatmeal, husk, rice, chocolate, white, raw corn, and the diners’ favorite, cookie. And talking about tamales, there is something for all tastes: green, red, sweet, cheese, rajas and mole.
Every day, after clearing the stall, they start to prepare the product for the next day, leaving the chicken, chilis, and dough ready to beat by hand and ‘assemble’ the tamales; One of her daughters and her husband help her with this work, which sometimes lasts until 9 at night.
Although competition has increased over the years, Irene is grateful that she has clients who always look for her and bring theshole family for a delicious tamale for breakfast with its corresponding cup of atole.
Doña Irene also attends to private orders at (415) 119 8546.
San Miguel Times
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