United States Mississippi Vicksburg
Sollys Hot Tamales
An iconic eatery renowned for its signature spicy, wrapped Mexican dish, a beloved staple in Southern cuisine for over 80 years.
- 1921 Washington Street
- (601) 636-2020
- https://www.facebook.com/sollystamales/
Tips from the community
The historic town of Vicksburg, down in Mississippi’s lower Delta region, is the home of world-famous Solly’s Hot Tamales. In business for decades, the tamale shop has served generations of Mississipians and those living across the river in Louisiana. Their tamales are divine, but are not the only thing on the menu. The frito pie is definitely worth a taste, too!
jvandergriff 11 months ago
Sollys Hot Tamales Guides
The Delta Tamale Trail
jvandergriff (Jody Vandergriff) The “Cotton Rush” of the turn of the last century brought all sorts of cultures and nationalities to the Mississippi Delta. One such group were the Mexicans who could make more picking cotton in the Delta than they could make anywhere else in the country. Of course they brought their food with them, and the “hot tamale” was introduced to the African-American laborers who worked beside them. That’s one theory, anyway. Other theories suggest that tamale recipes were brought back from the Mexican-American War, or that the Native Americans had been making tamales all along. However they got here, we’re glad they did! At any rate, the popularity of the tamale took off because of their portability, affordability, and full flavor. You may ask yourself how the Mexican tamale is different from the Delta tamale. According to the Southern Foodways Alliance, the Delta tamale differs in that, “Tamales from the Mississippi Delta are smaller than Latin-style tamales, are simmered instead of steamed, have a gritty texture from the use of corn meal instead of corn flour, have considerably more spice, and are usually served with juice that is the byproduct of simmering.” There are dozens of great places to try the different varieties of Delta Tamales (some places even deep fry them) throughout the region and we’re going to name some of them below. And if you’re really, really into tamales, you don’t want to miss the Delta Hot Tamale Festival which takes place in Greenville every October