A family-owned taquería in Chicago’s Hermosa neighborhood is serving tortas on orange, pumpkin-shaped bread, and its video of them on the grill is going viral.
Tacotlán calls it Chicago’s first pumpkin-shaped torta. It costs $25, it’s carryout only at the restaurant’s Tacotlán Express location on West Fullerton Avenue, and it’s on the menu through the first week of November.
Fillings and Price
You pick the filling, and Tacotlán loads the pumpkin bun with beans, lettuce, tomato, sour cream, and queso fresco. The birria torta comes with onion and cilantro, and adding beans, lettuce, tomato, or sour cream to it costs $1 each.
- $25: al pastor, chicken, chorizo, veggie, or avocado with queso fresco
- $30: carne asada, birria, or milanesa de pollo, each a $5 upcharge
- Avocado: $3 extra on any filling
That’s about double Tacotlán’s regular tortas, which run $10 to $14 on bolillo bread. Its regular al pastor torta is $12.
The Video That Started It
Tacotlán posted a video of the orange buns loaded on the flat-top on the evening of Sept. 15, with the caption “Thanks for keeping us busy with our Pumpkin Shaped Tortas! See you for more tomorrow.” By Sept. 27, it had 62,400 reactions, 1,000 comments, and 4,900 shares.
The next afternoon, the restaurant posted a photo of the torta with “Thank you for the love on our Pumpkin Shaped Torta! More tomorrow!” On Friday, Sept. 25, it was still pushing it: “Have you gotten the FIRST EVER pumpkin shaped torta in Chicago yet?”
The torta has reached well past Chicago. On Sept. 16, the El Paso radio station KLAQ ran a story saying El Paso needs a pumpkin torta too.
What Makes the Bread Orange?
It’s one of the most common questions in the comments on Tacotlán’s video, and the restaurant hasn’t said. Many commenters compared the torta to a pambazo, a Mexico City sandwich made with bread dipped in red chile sauce, typically guajillo, and usually filled with potato and chorizo, according to Larousse Cocina. Others asked whether the color comes from food coloring.
The rest of the comments are mostly people who want one: delivered across the country, brought to San Antonio, doubled, or made in the shape of a ghost next. I’ll update this story if Tacotlán shares what’s in the bread.
Tacotlán Has Made Shaped Tortas Before
The pumpkin is the latest in a series of holiday-shaped tortas. Tacotlán’s menu listed a heart-shaped torta for $14 in February 2025, and it sold a gingerbread-man torta from Nov. 14 to Dec. 23, 2025, at 4312 W. Fullerton Ave. and 916 W. Fulton Market. This year’s pumpkin torta is sold only at Tacotlán Express.
Tacotlán opened in 2018 and is known for its quesabirria.
How to Get Tacotlán’s Pumpkin Torta
- Where: Tacotlán Express, 4349 W. Fullerton Ave., Chicago
- When: through the first week of November. Tacotlán Express is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, and it’s closed Monday.
- Price: $25, or $30 with carne asada, birria, or milanesa de pollo
- How: carryout only. You can order ahead on Tacotlán’s website.
For more fall menus from the big chains, see my fall and Halloween fast food guide, and for trick-or-treat candy, my 2026 Halloween candy guide.
