OUT OF BUSINESS!!

Apparently Cortland did not care for Hot Tamale, they have gone out of business.

Update

I went to Moe's today with a friend for lunch and ordered a Joey Jr. with steak and a side of queso.  I guess their prices have gone up a little since the last time I was there, this cost me $8.85.  A full size burrito is $0.50 more than the Jr. but it's still less than the $10.20 Hot Tamale charges.  While I was there I asked about their queso and it's not made there, it comes in a bag and they warm it up (pasteurized cheese with jalapeno peppers) but I still think it's way better than the nacho cheese sauce at Hot Tamale. Hot Tamale burritos are good though, I just don't care for their cheese sauce and I think they're priced a little high.  

Which one is better?

Recently I noticed a new Mexican eatery had moved into downtown Cortland called Hot Tamale.  After checking out their menu, I thought they sounded a lot like Moe’s in Ithaca so, I thought I would check it out. 

My favorite burrito at Moe’s is a Joey or Joey Jr. so at Hot Tamale I just ordered a steak burrito which turned out to be almost the same as a Joey at Moe’s.  The filling options were similar to Moe’s as well, pico de gallo, salsa, tomatoes, black olives, onions, corn (w/onions), rice, beans, sour cream, peppers, and a number of sauces to choose from.  I ordered a “meal” which includes tortilla chips, cheese sauce (queso), and a drink so it would be the same basic meal I would order at Moe’s.  So, here is the evaluation of my experiences with both establishments:

Quality Winner:  Moe’s!  They both have fresh vegetables for burrito fillings however, Moe’s has fresh raw vegetables and fresh sautéed onions, peppers, and mushrooms.  Though Hot Tamale has fresh pico de gallo, I’m sure their salsa is from a jar.  Moe’s salsa is fresh on their fixing station.  I was appalled at Hot Tamale’s when the girl filling my order grabbed an open bag of store bought chips to fill my order with and the cheese sauce she gave me was nacho cheese sauce from a can like you get in a gas station.  At Moe’s the chips are made fresh and fried on the premises every day (you can watch them fry ‘em up as well as see the meat and veggies cooked if you’re there at the right time).  Though I can’t speak for whether or not the queso is made fresh, I know it’s not the orange nacho cheese sauce from a can…it’s very good.

Customer Service Winner:  Moe’s!  I have been to Moe’s several times and only to Hot Tamale twice but I can honestly say that I have never had a person at Moe’s act like making a burrito was as bad as scrubbing toilets.  The young lady fixing my burrito that day was not very fond of her job, the look on her face the entire time she was putting it together made that clear (or maybe she didn’t like waiting on me…who knows).  At any rate, it’s not a good experience for a customer to see that…if the employees are disgusted by the food, what will the customers think?  Smile and act like you are enjoying your job even when you aren’t.  The young man that rang up my meal was very polite and thanked me more than once…maybe he was trying to make up for his co-workers lack of people skills.

Value for the Money Winner:  Moe’s!!  A combo at Moe’s which includes a burrito with steak and other fillings, chips, queso, and a medium drink costs $7.86.  The same meal at Hot Tamale will set you back $10.20!  That’s a bit pricey for Cortland NY…

Sorry Hot Tamale, your burritos are ok but basically the same as Moe's. You can brag about freshness if you want but nacho cheese sauce in a can with bagged chips are a total bummer and will make people doubt your words.  Moe’s beats you on all around freshness too.