Kamala Harris picks up a to-go order, and this Phoenix restaurant owner is still smiling

Adriana Zapata, owner of Cocina Adamex, found out Thursday that Vice President Kamala Harris would be one of her customers the next day.

Harris and her Democratic running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, stopped by the restaurant after their packed rally at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale. It continued a long tradition of dining on Mexican cuisine for politicians who visit Arizona.

The event was Harris and Walz's first appearance together in Arizona and part of their initial swing state tour.

“I don’t know what can top this,” Zapata said shortly after Harris and Walz picked up their to-go order. “Knowing that we’re preparing food for such influential people, I don’t even know how I can put this into words.”

While the duo didn’t stay at the restaurant long, Zapata said she wasn’t expecting the meaningful conversation she had with Harris.

“Both her and the governor were excited,” she said. “The governor didn’t want very spicy food. (Harris) made a joke that even pepper is spicy for him.”

Harris and Walz ordered green and red chile tamales.

Cocina Adamex, at 416 N. Seventh Ave. in Phoenix, opened two years ago and is known for its XL concha-and-coffee combo.

Zapata’s kids and nieces also got the chance to speak to Harris and Walz.

Her niece, Arlette Adame, who is starting her first year of college this fall, said Harris advised her on what classes she should take.

“She told me to slay in college,” she said. “It felt so surreal. She is extremely nice and the most calm person.”

The customers who were in the restaurant when Harris and Walz walked in didn’t know the Democratic ticket was about to arrive.

Later in the evening, the visit was still the talk of the restaurant.

Davida Cisneros, 58, of Phoenix, had hoped to catch Harris and Walz at a restaurant on Friday. However, she guessed wrong and waited for more than four hours, she said.

She said the new Harris-Walz ticket is energizing her about the election.

“(Walz) is the teacher, the veteran, the coach,” Cisneros said. “It’s just someone we haven’t seen in politics in a while.”

Another customer at the restaurant, Shelley Hubbard, 59, of Phoenix, had been at the Harris-Walz rally in Glendale. She said it was a great introduction to Walz as a vice presidential candidate.

“We think Donald Trump is unfit for office, and that’s why we are a little more politically engaged than before,” she said.

Zapata said she was considering putting a vice president-themed item on the menu.

"They take their job so seriously, and they are great people," she said. "There's this perception that they are intimidating, but they are really nice."

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Harris-Walz ticket stops for tamales at Cocina Adamex after rally