Frequently Asked
Questions

Orders open each week and close Wednesday at midnight. We recommend ordering by Tuesday evening to guarantee your spot — batches often sell out before the cutoff. Once the week is sold out, the order page will reflect that automatically.

The exact pickup address is emailed to you by Friday evening once your order is confirmed. Pickup rotates within the Mountain Brook, Homewood, and Vestavia Hills area. You'll always receive the location before Saturday morning.

Yes — you can order multiple dozens in one order and mix pork and chicken. Just add each variety to your cart and select your preferred salsa for each. Orders of 3+ dozen are popular for entertaining. We do cap total batches at 50 dozen per week across all orders.

The mild salsa is a smooth roasted tomato salsa — warm, rich, slightly smoky with garlic and cumin. It pairs beautifully with both pork and chicken and is approachable for all heat tolerances including kids.

The spicy salsa is a fire-roasted chile salsa with visible seeds and a slow-building heat that earns its name. It's not aggressively hot but it's genuinely spicy. If you're heat-sensitive, start with mild.

Currently each dozen comes with one salsa choice — mild or spicy. If you'd like both, the easiest solution is to order two dozens (one with each salsa). This is a popular choice for households with mixed heat preferences.

Steamer (best): Keep in the husk, steam over boiling water 15–20 minutes.
Oven: Wrap in foil, 350°F for 20–25 minutes.
Microwave: Remove husk, damp paper towel, 90 seconds per tamale.

Full reheat instructions are included with every order.

Tamales keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. They freeze exceptionally well for up to 3 months — many of our customers freeze half their dozen immediately so they always have tamales on hand. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.

Not at this time. Saturday pickup is the only option — it's what allows Ruby to keep production focused and quality consistent. We're evaluating whether delivery makes sense in the future, but for now, Saturday morning pickup is part of the Ruby's Tamales experience.

Yes, within the 50-dozen weekly limit. If you need a large quantity for a specific date, we recommend ordering as early in the week as possible. For orders of 10+ dozen on a single date, reach out to us directly at hello@rubystamales.com so we can plan accordingly.

Our tamales contain gluten (masa harina). They are made in a kitchen that handles pork, chicken, and may contain traces of dairy. If you have a specific allergen concern, please contact us before ordering at hello@rubystamales.com and we'll give you the most accurate information for your situation.

Because tamales are made fresh to order, we cannot accept returns. If there's a problem with your order — wrong filling, missing items, or a quality issue — contact us at hello@rubystamales.com within 24 hours of pickup and we'll make it right for the following week.

Join the SMS list at the bottom of this page. You'll get one text per week — usually Tuesday evening — when that week's orders open. That's it. No spam, no marketing emails. Just a heads-up that tamales are available.