Gracias for helping us make goal! We are happy to see our amig@s come out in support and for the comments. Please follow us on Facebook & Twitter to see where we will POP up!

 ~tina tamale

Our Story

In December 2011, Tina Tamale found out that a local mobile pushcart and transporter truck was for sale. Looking at this as the ideal way to expand her mobile business, she secured the purchase. So now, Tina Tamale is working in her typical backwards fashion and just making it happen!

The Tina Tamale Pop-up Push-cart will now be able to do lunchtime service for just a couple of hours due to the quicker & easier set-up with the ability to serve tamales with magical ingredients like love and lard more often & in more places!

The recent passing of the new Oakland mobile food policy allowing for more food pod events (that’s three or more mobile food vendors congregating) has also opened the window for more opportunity. During the press conference for the new policy, Tina promised to upgrade her set-up, hire more Oaklanders and generate more tax revenue if given more events to vend throughout the year.  

While we are making our upgrades we are also revamping our menu. We will continue to specialize in tamales with traditional as well as fillings with a twist. We are striving to find a unique combination showcasing local foods while identifying with our ancestral & hometown cultural roots. Of course, all of our menu items will be delicioso!

Our History

Rosa Lopez founded our family's business, La Borinqueña Mex-icatessen, in Old Oakland back in 1944. In 2009, third generation family member as well as co-owner/manager, Tina Tamale Ramos, Rosa's granddaughter, began serving tamales at special events just a handful of times a year.

Tina Tamale then commissioned a painting of herself by local artist, Joaquin Alejandro Newman, as a calavera (skull) in homage to Rosa who was born on Day of the Dead yet passed away before Tina existed. Tina Tamale then became the branding for the pop-up stand and catering arm of the family business. By 2011, weekly events and catering became part of her day to day life.  

What We Need & What You Get

Acquiring the push-cart and transporter was just the beginning of our upgraded mobile journey! We pulled together the funding to make this purchase right away but could use some “Buy Now, Eat Later” revenue to get moving FAST. 

We estimate a total of $15,000 is needed to launch the Tina Tamale Pop-up Push-cart & Transporter for February 2012. You read correct, next month! We are about $3,800 short of this amount and could really use the support from those you who care about our Oakland Grown indie business.

The transporter needs to be branded with amazing art from Joaquin Alejandro Newman & Eduardo Pineda of Forrealism. This duo is also designing a limited edition t-shirt with coordinating art from the transporter screenprinted by Team Printshop that will only be available by contributing to this start-up campaign. 

Tina Tamale is honored to be partnering on a couple of events featured here as perks with Chef Peter Jackson of Boucherie Meats/Canvas Underground fame and our neighbors, Steve & Marilee Shaffer of Urban Legend Cellars located in Jack London District.

Why Spending Local & Indie Matters

Your contributions for the things we need to get going will help our local, living economy grow stronger. We will use future revenue from our mobile sales to purchase many ingredients for our authentic Mexican-American food from local, sustainable vendors. We will continue to live and work in our amazing diverse city of Oakland. We will continue to volunteer time and other resources to local non-profits. Local, indie & community are not just buzzwords to us; it’s a way of life!

Other Ways You Can Help

Por favor, help us get the word out about our campaign by sharing this page. February was Tina’s birthday month in the past, be part of the wave to make it “Help Tina Tamale get her Mobile Butt in Gear!” month by inviting your amig@s & familia to partake in the perks & fiestas coming up. 

Know of an upcoming event, festival or off-street location with lots of hungry mouths to feed that could use a vendor with hearty comfort food?  Need catering for a fiesta of any type, family gathering, business meeting or conference? Have you ever been somewhere and lamented, “I could really use a tamale right now!” & there were none around? Help us be part of the solution to your dilemma by letting us know where & when you would love to find us pop-up!