Tamales Elena y Antojitos — helmed by Maria Elena Lorenzo, her husband Jose, and their five daughters — began 20 years ago in Watts as a mobile food cart.
As business burgeoned, Lorenzo upgraded to a mobile trailer where she still specializes in churning out regional food from her hometown, La Costa Chica, Guerrero, Mexico.
In 2020, at the cusp of the pandemic, the family opened their first brick-and-mortar in Bell Gardens. Unfortunately, the related struggles proved too burdensome, and the team shut down its operation in July of this year.
Today, Tamales Elena y Antojitos sells its delicacies from a food truck stationed at Wilmington Ave. and 109th St.
Recently, Eater LA’s Bill Esparza expressed excitement regarding the tamale enterprise’s future, explaining, “[I want] to see what Tamales Elena y Antojitos will do in 2023. The talent of that family is unlimited, and they still have so much to offer the world.”
Additionally, the business’ Instagram instructs followers to “Stay Tuned 4 future projects.”
The Instagram goes on to say, “As y’all know our Bell Gardens location is permanently closed, [but] we have future projects in the works to bring pozole and other antojitos to you guys sooner than you guys think, stay tuned for news.”
A What Now Los Angeles with Lorenzo regarding plans for another brick-and-mortar is forthcoming. This article will be updated as details become available.
