November 18 is Tamale Day in San Francisco’s newly bustling SoMa district as Tamal celebrates its one-year anniversary! To celebrate this happy day co-owner and chef Moaya is putting together a special menu incorporating both the eponymous menu items as well other platillos deliciosos all made with quality organic, regional, and seasonal ingredients.
Tamal’s birthday celebrants will also have a chance to win year-round 2005-2006 passes for two to the Latino Film Festive in a special drawing as well as a chance to win a copper-framed art piece by Cory Mac a ' Ghobhainn.
At Tamal everyday is a celebration of Latin America’s humble dish, the tamal, which on this rosy-warm restaurant’s menu gets star treatment. German-born and New York-raised Chef Moaya brings years of culinary travel experience, having lived in Thailand, India, and Puerto Rico, to his menu creating such unique and savory items as the Taj Tamal, an Indian-style curry chicken-filled tamal with cucumber raita and a spicy papadum ‘tortilla’, the Tamal de Camarón with prawns and roasted butternut squash, thai curry and fire-roasted corn masa wrapped in a banana leaf with shizo and a mango-english cucumber salsa and the French-inspired beef bourguignon Vache Ivres with Niman Ranch organic beef and black pepper-stuffed tamal with a cabernet reduction and a shitaki mushroom chimichurri.
Closer to home, the tamal’s roots show up in the Central American delicacy corn fungus in the Tamal Huitlacoche, a savory vegan tamal with epazote and cilantro-scented corn masa with fire-roasted corn and organic ‘corn truffle’.
Another popular Mexican street food, the taco, is served up with Tamal’s customary flair in Las Tres Campanas, a trio of crispy corn tortilla tacos inspired by Taco Bell. The threesome feature a taco with seared-cumin seed and crushed pepper-encrusted rare ahi tuna with spicy horseradish celeric root slaw, and tomatillo salsa verde, another with grilled tamarind prawn, guacamole and spicy cabbage slaw, and finally a confit of duck taco with a Scharffen Berger bittersweet chocolate, orange, and guajillo chile mole and Neils Yard Shropshire orange stilton cheese
Tamal’s birthday celebrants will have chance to win year-round 2005-2006 passes to the Latino Film Festive in a special drawing as well as a chance to win a copper-framed art piece by Cory Mac a'Ghobhainn.
Located at 1599 Howard Street (at 12th Street), Tamal serves dinner Tuesday - Sunday 5:00p.m.10:00 p.m., closed Monday. Ample free street parking is available. All major credit cards are accepted. For reservations or to book the entire restaurant for private events, contact us at (415) 864.2446. For more information, write to tamalvinoymasa@hotmail.com or visit www.tamalsf.com
