Tamales Brenda's

There are only two holidays that I crave all year long and they are Thanksgiving and Christmas. These are the typical time of the year where homemade tamales are in full season. When I found out about Brenda's tamales special, it was a must try location during my trip to SoCal. Stumbling upon her restaurant is equivalent to finding a needle in a haystack behind a hole in the wall. Long shot, but worth every bit of satisfactory feeling. This is exactly what her food will do for you.Her menu was about 15 items total. For a homecooked list of item served to the public, this was good enough to keep her specialty strong and fast moving enough to satisfy one's hunger. Of course I chose the Pork and Beef tamales to gauge the taste. The beef tamales was great. The style of prepping the beef was close to being barbacoa. The meat sliced away with the masa perfectly with a spoonful of balanced flavor proportion. The pork tamales caught me by surprised. The presentation is closer to Chicken Verde, and similar to the beef, it pulls away perfectly with the spoon. Neither too salty or bland, and melts away on your palates full of flavors.The preparation of the masa was the icing to this non-dessert dish. The corn mixed dough was perfectly mashed, leaving a smooth and soft texture to every bite. The masa alone was enough to satisfy my crave.I experienced the look on my friend's face as they take their bite of the Elote. The presentation alone gives a vibe of great taste, and the facial expression confirms the quality. Can't deny that I did not regret trying one.The level of service that Brenda offers with every plate is beyond exceptional. Her gestures are as warm as her meals. It is obvious to see that each dish is made with love which offers the comfort feeling of a homecooked meal. Definitely a spot to must try regardless of your timeframe availability!!

We love this spot! Delicious burgers and tamales. Super friendly family owned and operated. Make sure to get the grilled jalapeños and onions on your burger. Jalapeños don't pack too much heat just compliments the burger beautifully! No real area to sit and eat so we always pack it up and head to the local park where you will most likely catch fireworks from petco park and an amazing view of the Coronado bridge

Handmade Delicious and Homemade with love! Definitely a local eatery with complete devotion to Mexican Staples Like Seasonal Tamales and Champurrado served All Day! Very friendly, attentive and kind service! Rooted deep in the local scene, you can pull up the side and grab a bite!

Amazing tamales! I placed a big order for a holiday party and Brenda was the best. The tamales were absolutely delicious. The same goes for the rice and beans and homemade salsa. Highly recommend!

Brenda is a very kind person and she makes great food! I look forward to visiting her and enjoying her hot dogs and tamales.

I drove 8 hours just to see Brenda and her tamales!! Made with love and care. Brenda thank you so much !! I missed you after 4 years.

This place is amazing! You can tell it's family run and the food is all delicious and home-cooked. The cook, who I assume may be Brenda, is SO NICE and sweet and repeatedly expressed her gratitude for us ordering food from here. We kept telling her we were excited to try it for the first time since we found it on Yelp.The hot cheeto elote was completely delicious and I wish I had gotten a second one since I loved it that much. I didn't try the tamales, but my husband looooved them. He especially liked the green tamales.There's a good variety of food here like burgers, hot dogs, chicken tenders, fries, etc. It may be easy to miss at first, so keep an eye out if you're visiting for the first time. It's all street parking, tooAlso, they now accept Venmo as a form of payment!! So you can pay with cash or Venmo here.

We ended up here because of good yelp reviews and....We were not disappointed Tamales were delicious esquites were also delicious and chapurrado hit the spot on this rainy night. Señora Brenda and her son are very welcoming and make you feel as if you're just stopping by to your Tia's house to have some food. Prices are very reasonable. La comida está deliciosa gracias Sra. Brenda

Brenda was such a sweetheart! She made us feel so special and welcomed. She is making everything by hand and lots of love. We tried the corn on cob and the tamales and OMG it was so good! The tamales tasted so homey and delicious. Brenda told us she makes the masa with her hands and that's what gives it the amazing soft texture. Must try! It was so good! Her cute little spot is attached to her house but the ambiance just feels cozy and welcoming. Please go and try out Brenda's Tamales, the prices are very affordable and she will be so happy to see you there trying her amazing food! Can't wait to go back to SD for Brenda's food!

visiting Coronado island for Christmas and enjoyed tamales from Brenda's for christmas Eve dinner. Delicious! we know good food and this is it!