ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Just days ago, a local tamale restaurant faced possible closure. Now, they’re selling out within hours, with lines stretching out the door.
Behind on three months of rent, with nowhere else to turn, the owner of Juani’s Kitchen in Northeast Albuquerque posted a video on her social media, asking the community for a helping hand. “We’re in a really bad situation. We’re thinking of closing. We’ve been in business for five years, and this has been really difficult,” said Lorena Rangel in a TikTok video on Wednesday.
Rangel says many local businesses are dealing with the same issues, unable to get enough foot traffic to make ends meet. She says she made the video hoping to draw people in, just to give their food a try, unaware of the overwhelming support she would receive. “We never had [full tables] in five years,” says Rangel…