Almost anyone can follow a recipe and recreate a well-loved food with moderate success. But not everyone can amalgamize flavors and ingredients in never-tasted-before ways to create, from scratch, new takes on traditional foods. And that’s just the kind of food chemistry Ricco Lanauze has been mixing up at Tamales Inc., his restaurant on Park Avenue in downtown Idaho Falls.
Specializing in the well-loved, yet humble tamale, Ricco is serving up new takes on the slow-cooked concoction steamed in corn husks. “It’s tamales with a twist,” he explains. “Come in with an open mind and try it before judging. Most people have something in mind when they think of tamales. This is different.”
Smothered in salsa, guacamole, or cheese dip, the tamales are served alongside rice and beans in rich and tasty, flavorful dishes. And if you’re not sure which sauce to try, just say, “Flag it,” a term that customers themselves came up with to request all three sauces—green salsa, white cheese sauce, and red salsa—the colors of the Mexican flag.
Try walking tamales served with spicy Takis, or Tama-zole, a combination of Mexican hominy soup around a fresh tamale. The hearty dish will have you rethinking your definition of Mexican food.
“Most people don’t realize Mexico is a big country with 31 states,” Ricco explains. “People think it’s one set of flavors, but the spices and tastes all depend on the region they come from.”
Born and raised on the East Coast, Ricco still spent a decade living in his mother’s home state of Sinaloa, Mexico, and says the flavors of Tamales Inc. match most closely with Mexico’s northern region. A self-proclaimed chef, Ricco concocts all of his own recipes and creates his own menu, something he’s done with each of his restaurant endeavors over the past three decades.
From owning various restaurants, bars, and lounges, Ricco’s most recent eatery came after he had to close Fiesta Cancun on First Street during COVID. But his customers still clamored for his fresh tamales, a time-intensive dish that not everyone has the patience to make.
“I thought I was finished with the restaurant business, but people said, ‘Can you at least make us tamales?’ So I started making them at home and selling them by the dozens. That’s how Tamales Inc. got started. But once I had more than 2,000 followers on Facebook, I realized it was time to open another restaurant.”
The downtown restaurant has a vibe as mixed as the menu—stark black and white logos with grey walls are juxtaposed against vibrantly colorful Día de los Muertos murals of Catrinas, the famous ladies symbolizing Day of the Dead with their elegant dresses and sugar skull makeup. This contributes to the fun and friendly vibe, as well as great food and a first-rate staff.
“We have an amazing team. My employees treat the place like it’s their own. They’re happy to be here and love coming to work,” Ricco said. And though customers keep asking for a menu expansion to popular dishes like fajitas, Ricco says he’s keeping the menu tamale-centered.
After recently applying for a beer/wine license, he is excited to add mixed drinks—with a twist, of course. “We already have frozen horchata, which is just like a smoothie and something people have never had before. Soon we’ll have frozen mojitos, frozen sangria, and frozen wine spritzers and mimosas—all with 20 different flavors so you can always try something new,” he said.
It's a party for your tastebuds at Tamales, Inc. “Despite all the hard work, what keeps me going is when people are so happy with my food and my recipes. It’s so humbling when people say it’s the best food ever,” Ricco said. For the man who began his culinary career washing dishes to become a restaurateur designing his own menus, it’s quite the plot twist. And he’s been fond of mixing things up ever since.
For More Information
Tamales Inc.
475 Park Ave
208-760-0926