Amapola Deli & Market

The Galvan family surely knows how to run a deli/food business. Founded in 1961 the family made a name in the tortilla business. Since then it is a tortilla factory, full service meat market, bakery, service deli, and grocery store all in one. I call it a Latino grocer in WholeFoods quality. This is my new go to Latino market where I can browse all the goodies with my family and eat them on the spot. Yes the dining area is not terrific but it works. The selection and the quality of the foods are excellent. Quoting my wife, it's the best horchata and flan we've had anywhere. Prices are expected to be slightly higher but I think it's worth it. If you're in the West Covina area stop by to check it out. Of course Amapola is also available in Downey and Paramount. Oh in case if you have a sweet tooth and not sure what to get I suggest vanidoso-- four layer cake made of amazing goodness of 3 Leches, chocolate, flan and cheesecake. Heavenly yum~

I'm not Mexican, so I can't claim to know what's authentic. But being a lover of all foods, I did have my share of various Mexican cuisine over the years and I know what tastes good. Enter Amapola, a deli and a market as the name states. It's located inside the West Covina mall towards the Sears wing. Besides a die where they can serve many dishes made to order, they also have a smoothie section with various aqua fresca, a bakery section with a plentiful selection of pastries and cookies, a ceviche section, and an entire small market for meats, produce and apparently ... lots of beer. There are small tables for dining in. Most are for 2's and 4's. There are also some counter seating facing out to the mall, next to where you pick up your order. There are also some counter seating accessible from the mall, without having to actually walk into the market. Coincidentally, we came it was Tuesday, and they had taco specials at a buck each Lucky us! We tried 2 of each of their choices: carnitas, pollo, asada and pastor. All came on a plate hit and fresh. The meat were either seasoned or marinated and grilled, very tasty by itself and even better sprinkled with fresh cilantro and diced onions. Their salsa had some kick and complimented the tacos. Also got a pollo tamale with green salsa and a sweet tamale. Both were good but after the tacos, my appetite just wasn't there anymore. A fresh cantaloupe aqua fresca in an enormous cup helped to wash down the tasty food. Afterwards, we walked around the bakery section to bring pastries back and experiment. Prices were very affordable that I wasn't sure if I read the signs right. Cream cheese tangerine pastry has a consistency of a large cookie. Nice citrus flavor w/o bring too sweet. Their cookies were great. Soft and crumbly with chopped nuts. The cheesecake is not like the American. It's less dense, not as sweet but creamier , almost like a thick, dense flan. The pastries with center fillings like guava, vanilla, apple .. etc were all flaky. We ended up spending some time in here enjoying our lunch and browsing the bakery. The staff, though had a communication barrier, were nice. And this ended up being one of those rare times that I'll miss and crave these tacos. Worth a visit if you're in the area! Notes: * If parked outside at the lot, enter through the door located by DXL Men's store. Walk by the kiddie play area and you're there. * Many items in the bakery does not have a tag to show what it is. Ash the staff. * Smoothies and aqua fresca need to be paid at the food counter first. Then bring the receipt back to get your beverage. * Bakery items are tallied up at the counter, but paid for at the check out registers.

I'm writing this as I have devoured an entire pork tamale within minutes after visiting Amapola Market. I've passed by Amapola Market briefly in the past, but it never crossed my mind to walk inside. Today, since I was working at a Hiring Spree inside the mall, I decided to venture inside. The market is HUGE! There's a full bakery, hot food station, taco station, sandwich station, and a grocery store with fresh fruit and veggies. Everything is affordable! They have great deals on meals and there's a daily special throughout the week (today's deal is $4.99 for two shrimp tacos and a coke). There is also a $4.99 Boar's head sandwich special daily. Since I read some great reviews on the tamales I decided to purchase 2 chicken and 2 pork tamales ($1.59 each). I was so blown away by the pork tamale that I returned during lunch to purchase 3 more. I even brought a coworker with me and he loved his meals as well. For lunch, I had also ordered the beef soup or Caldo de Res. It was really flavorful and came with a side of rice. I will definitely be returning to this hidden gem at the mall!

This is a cute little Mexican market tucked away in the corner of the West Covina Mall...serving great food and drinks at a reasonable price. My friend and I stopped in here on a Sunday afternoon and we were lucky enough to snag a seat. I ordered asada tacos and my friend got the taquitos. To drink I got the sandia (watermelon) aqua fresca and she got the spinach one. I was hesitant to try the spinach one but I'm glad that I did...it was delicious. However, the watermelon drink was amazing. So fresh with real chunks of watermelon inside. It's nothing fancy and your food is served on a styrofoam plate with plastic silverware, however the tacos and taquitos were really good. The hardest thing is finding a place to sit once you order your food. Also, trying to do actual shopping here and then hauling it across the mall to your car isn't convenient either. I'm looking forward to coming back to try other food items and aqua frescas.

Went here yesterday with the boyfriend to give the restaurant inside the market that is located in a mall a try lolz It still is a bit of a weird concept for me to see a market inside a mall, but they had a lot to offer there with their grocery options, bread and pastry selection, fresh juices, meats and hot food items to name a few. We quickly walked around the market before reaching the little restaurant inside. They had a decent selection of items from burritos to tacos and offered a Taco Tuesday meal that was three tacos and a 16 oz soda for about $4.50. So my boyfriend took advantage of that deal while I got a lingua burrito and large horchata. We ended up sitting at the bar, but there were some tables to the side to sit at as well. The workers putting together the orders were moving pretty quickly, especially since they had to conquer a big order from one of the customers as well. Our food came out nice and hot that I had a hard time eating my burrito since it was so warm. It also came with chips, side of pickled carrots and radish and two different hot sauces. I really liked my burrito and how much meat was in it and definitely was a fan of the green sauce. The horchata tastes like rice pudding and was overbearing with cinnamon. And I got a bite of my boyfriend's al pastor tacos that were pretty good and had a hint of pineapple flavor. Overall, a good experience, but would definitely need to explore the market side of it hehe