I had just walked out of Summer Avenue’s Rio Grande Supermercado with crispy rice salad and Lao sausage from the Lao Street Kitchen pop-up when I caught a whiff of masa and chiles and saw the cowboy hat.

A red umbrella, a tamalera pot wrapped in black plastic, and a hand-painted sign: Ricos Tamales “El Ruco.” These are the moments of serendipity you live for in this line of work.

Six kinds of tamales: $2.50 each or six for $15. Cash or Cash App. All hot. All different. All good. You could grab one of each and call it lunch, but honestly? You might want two of each —one for you, one for a pal.

$10 Deal: Lao Street makes Memphis’ foodscape special

Here’s the bottom line on each:

De Salsa Verde. Chicken in green sauce. Bright, tart, spicy. It hits hard up front, with a peppery, tangy sauce that soaks into the soft masa and makes your whole mouth wake up. A no-nonsense classic.

Rajas con Queso. Strips of poblano and melty cheese. Creamy, vegetal, mellow. This is the gentle one, the sleeper hit, the kind of tamale that makes you wish you’d gotten three.

De Chipilín. Chipilín’s a wild green from southern Mexico and Central America. Think spinach with a funkier, grassier edge. The flavor runs deep and herbal. Earthy but clean. Almost like hoja de santa or matcha, maybe even yerba mate. If you’re a greens person, this one’s your jam.

De Mole. Chicken again, but this time cloaked in mole: dark, chocolatey, fruity, complex. Slightly sweet, slightly smoky, a slow burn that builds. It tastes like someone’s grandma made it. You’re not worthy, but here you are.

De Cerdo. Pork in red chile sauce. The one you expect, done right. Tender meat, rich sauce, plenty of cumin and garlic. It’s cozy and bold and familiar in the best way.

De Elote. Sweet corn tamal. No filling, just sweetened masa dotted with kernels. It’s dessert. Dense and sticky like cornbread’s softer, sweeter cousin. You’ll want to eat it slowly, but you won’t.

There’s no wrong order here. You could start sweet and end spicy — or do a little zig-zag. Doesn’t matter. What matters is the masa — soft, moist, rich with lard or oil — and the fact that each tamale is its own thing. No filler. No copy-paste flavor. Just honest, well-made food from an old guy (that’s what El Ruco means) with a cowboy hat and a big steamer pot.

Ricos Tamales “El Ruco” isn’t listed on Google Maps. It’s a folding table on the sidewalk. But you’ll find him outside Rio Grande most days, usually in the late morning or early afternoon. I was told he upgraded from the tailgate of his truck to this table on the curb, and you gotta appreciate the little glow-ups like that in this life. Just a man and his tamales.

I came for Lao sausage. But I left with six tamales and, if I’m honest, I regret that I didn’t get six more for the freezer.

Ricos Tamales “El Ruco” is located outside of the Rio Grande Supermercado at 5110 Summer Ave. Call 901-567-0854 for more information.