Pilar's Tamales — Restaurant in Ann Arbor

I feel bad for giving it a 1 star because I really wanted to love the food. I ordered for the first time a few days ago and it was a huge disappointment. The owner is very kind and sweet but I’m pretty sure that the pupusas we ordered were bought frozen and not actually homemade. Everything about them was weird and not authentic at all. My husband and I have visited El Salvador before and their food here is not authentic. It was the most over priced pupusa I have ever eaten and it was not good at all. It was a blended chicken (barely) paste with bean mix. The cheese pupusa is what made me realize they may be frozen. It just looked like the cheese fat was separating from the lactose which happens when you defrost or reheat food with cheese. The pupusas did not taste fresh at all. I should have guessed when I asked her to not add jalapenos to the cheese pupusa she said they “don’t change their recipe….” I really want to be wrong here and maybe I just went at the wrong...

A gem from El Salvador. Pilar's Tamales is where eating food is equivalent to receiving the caring love of a mother's heart that gets poured into the recipe and in the surrounding air. We had the best conversation about her life since El Salvador while enriching ourselves with pure healthy ingredients. With a sense of building community through serving food, this establishment has restored faith in human values. In vegetarian options, the suggestion was to have Jalapeno and Cheese Tamale, with Pupusa and Tamarind (which is home peeled) drink. My friend had the special Turkey and beef options. It was served efficiently with magnificent presentation and warm with all the cultural heritage that was preserved over lifetimes. We even exchanged ways of eating food and left with a renewed spirit just right to start the New Year. Being a small, cozy place the only disadvantage is that we cannot bring all our friends...

Pilar's offers interesting variations on the usual Latin American fare one finds around Ann Arbor. In particular, she offers El Salvadoran pupusas, which are quite delicious. Her tamales are first-rate, too. There are very tasty vegetarian options, including several made with loroco. The jalapeños and cheese tamales and pupusas are very good (and a bit spicy). A friend had breakfast burritos for lunch the other day, and was quite pleased with them. Just because it was cold outside, I ordered a Mexican hot chocolate with my lunch. It was very good, with a good amount of cinnamon and cayenne. It was spicy, but not really spicy hot. I was glad to have gone with my whim. In the past, we have picked up tamales for Christmas. Provided you order in advance, you can get plenty of delicious tamales, with several varieties. The seating is tight, but I have never had to struggle for a place. In good weather, you can...