On 1 February 2025, a line formed at Tamales Chela in Guadalajara for Candlemas tamales. Waiting reached an hour and the pavement queue was described as nearly a kilometre long. The shop can sell around 3,500 tamales on peak days and sold out near 7 p.m. while customers were still arriving.
Custom concentrates demand on those who found the infant figure in a Rosca de Reyes and are expected to provide tamales for family. Orders of thirty or fifty pieces serve gatherings, not one breakfast. The queue becomes the point where a household festival obligation is transferred to a specialist shop.