A city dining guide has highlighted Evelia’s Tamales in East Elmhurst as a favorite of Queens Council Member Shanel Thomas-Henry.
The restaurant appears in the NYC Hospitality Alliance District Dining Guide, which is now in its third year and collects picks from city officials around New York. Thomas-Henry, who represents the 21st Council District and chairs the City Council’s Committee on Small Business, chose the shop as one of the guide’s featured local spots.
Evelia’s Tamales grew from a street cart into a storefront business. Evelia Coyotzi, who came to the United States from Mexico in 2000, began selling tamales from a cart under the 7 train in Queens after losing her job near the World Trade Center following the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. In 2022, she opened a shop on Northern Boulevard, not far from the original cart location.
The guide promotes the city’s restaurant and nightlife sector. For Coyotzi, being included could help bring more customers to a small business that has expanded from a pushcart into a permanent neighborhood shop.
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