El Rincon Mexicano Restaurant

Came here thinking it would be a quick bite. Was very wrong. It took ages to get seated. We chose to sit in the back patio, which was partially covered, but it had been drizzling and raining on and off and the partial covering was not good enough for that sort of weather.
After being seated, it took ages to order and get our food, even though we had basically already known what we were going to get by the time we were seated. Also noticed a broken bottle next to my seat, which wasn’t particularly safe.
I ordered the beef enchiladas Mexicanas with the green (mild) sauce. My partner got the 5 taco platter, a mix of beef and chicken. Neither of us was overly impressed or blown away by our food. After finishing, we once again waited for ages before anyone came to us and we could ask for the bill.
In the end, instead of waiting for someone to come to us so we could pay, we just got ready and went inside and paid there. It still took some time.
All in all, won’t be returning. It’s not remotely close to us, and the food seemed mediocre at best. Although our server was very bubbly and sweet, the service in general was lacking. Nothing to really get us to return.

Delicious and always fantastic.
My husband and I went on our second date, and we now go back for valentines day each year.
Expensive, but worth it. Be patient, it is slow… but delicious takes time.
Make a reservation… it gets busy!
tip: Rice is not vegetarian, get extra beans instead of rice.

In my books El Rincon is a giant MEH. Nothing stood out in a really positive or negative way, but we have no plans to return. If we’re in the area and craving Mexican, we’ll go back to Tenoch or King’s Tacos.
We stopped in for lunch on a Saturday. We decided to go to El Rincon after looking up our options on Unilocal because we had a craving for fish tacos to satisfy. It was not busy at all — there was nobody in the front dining room, but we were led to the back patio where there was one other table dining. During the course of our lunch there were a handful of tables that came in.
Our lunch started off with the guacamole ($ 13) — quite expensive and not worth it. My husband liked it but while it was fine, I thought it could have been better, especially for the price. However I did enjoy the fact that the chips were warm (freshly made?) Portion size was on the small side for the price.
For our main we really only wanted fish tacos, which came 4 to an order. We would have been open to trying other tacos but they came minimum 5 to an order and we knew we could not finish 9 tacos between the two of us. We asked if we could order 6 fish tacos but the answer was no. We were going to just split the 4 fish tacos but our server told us that the order was on the small side and encouraged us to order more, so we added an order of the tacos dorados (crispy tacos) which we later regretted, because the 4 fish tacos turned out to be enough, and the tacos dorados weren’t very good.
The fish tacos were only ok. The battered fish appeared pretty dark — they weren’t burnt, but definitely over-​fried and there was too much batter. We ate them because we were pretty hungry but can’t say it satisfied our craving for a really good fish taco. Other reviewers noted that they thought the fish tacos seemed on the small side (which I read beforehand and pushed me to order the tacos dorados when the server said our order was small) but we thought they were pretty consistent with most other tacos joints.
The chicken tacos dorados didn’t look over-​fried, but were still on the dry side, and it was only filled in the middle part of the roll, so a good part of the taco was just like a nacho chip. Did not seem like good value.
As an aside, and this is totally not the fault of the restaurant, but near the end of our meal we were being pestered by several wasps flying around us and our food which really didn’t help the dining experience.

I haven’t been in Mexico for more than 2 years. I’m excited and scared at the same time because everything has changed. Cities, people, situations, and life in general have only something that is constant: change.
Food could appear to be easy to replicate if you follow a recipe; if you had seen how it has been cooked; if you go to school and make it a million times, or if you woke up with inspiration (a muse on your side).
Food is culture. Food is a way of transmission (salmonella, love, rage, etc.), and I completely believe that you can taste the effort, the kindness, the love, or magic the cook tried to put into that offer to your senses.
If you are lucky enough to have inherited the gift of cooking (beware you will be surrounded by ppl asking you to cook for them, like my ex grandma, mom and aunties know) then you can stay home and satisfy your own and your loved ones cravings. However, if you lack time, interest, touch, or you just get so bored of your surroundings that you just need to go and discover the other blocks, well, you would expect that the hired person has better or worth to try skills.
What happened to me in this bookmarked place was Meh.
I´m glad I just ordered a Pancita and a Margarita. The Margarita had a cool umbrella I kept, but when I tasted it pufff fake lime… Really? And the soup came in a cute talavera plate, but that was the charming part, the plate… It was lacking seasoning, with 5 pieces of pancita, 2 of which were huge and I needed to fight against in order to cut them with my spoon (splash.).
The waitress was really nice but weird, even when I asked her if she spoke Spanish using our language, every time she pass by to check on me (yes I was the only one there) she kept asking in English «is everything ok?». She gave me free totopos, but I needed to ask for salsa, it didn´t come by itsef… In a real Mexican place the salsa arrives first.

Saw it on food network, happy I tried it, very nice place, cozy friendly and excellent good service. Food was ahsome I give them a 10 star review, keep up the excelent work.

I went to this restaurant after it was featured on the TV show «You Gotta Eat Here». I tried the chicken empanadas and regular nachos. The nachos were really good but the empanadas were just OK. I’d rather go to Jumbo Empanadas in Kensington Market. The dishes were very greasy. Service was extremely SLOW! There seemed to be only 1 waitress for both floors of the restaurant. We were in the basement (which was very cramped /​hot/​stuffy). The entrees came out within 30 mins of us ordering. The dessert took nearly 50 mins to come out … We only ordered 1 churro stick (it was good but quite small and cost $ 4.00)! Everything was over priced. The waitress was nice but was unable to check in with us often as she had to tend to the other customers upstairs as well. Unfortunately I will not be returning to this restaurant. It did not live up to the hype.

Last Saturday we went to El Rincon after we watch «You gotta eat here» TV show featuring this mexican restaurant in St Clair.
We arrived un the afternoon and the place was full. The manager told us that they were fully booked and that we should wait 30 minutes if we want a table in the patio section so we decided to wait outside. Once we get our table the waitress say to us that the restaurant was working at their maximum capacity and that the kitchen were serving the food with some delays. I saw some reviews complaining about the waiting time but you have to understand that this is no Taco Bell and that they cook every dish at the moment. We were a party of 3 and we order the fish tacos, chorizo empanadas and a Parrillada. The food was amazing. I know about mexican food and let me tell you that this restaurant is like eat at any good restaurant in Mexico. Everything tasted like it supposed to taste if you were in Mexico. Also they have a beautiful patio with lots of folklore and latin music so for a moment you dont even feel like you are in Toronto.
Kudos for El Rincon. We will be back soon but this time we will make a reservation to avoid all the waiting.

Came with my husband and two small children on a very slow Saturday lunchtime. There were three other tables, with two of the tables having been sat right before us. The service was beyond slow. They claim it’s because everything is authentic and homemade but that’s just a lame excuse. There was only one slllloooooowwww cook and one waitress. After 10 minutes and not having the chips and guacamole yet we had to ask for the food to be prepared to go. When I went back to ask how long it would be, that’s when I saw that our ticket wasn’t even up on the cook’s board. It was still untouched in the register. Once we had the food, it was decent but nothing worth the wait. Too bad cause this place is super close to us. I’d rather drive somewhere else.

Staff were very accommodating to our large group. The fish tacos were delish and quite filling. I had the beergarita, it was really good.
My waitress was Camilla, she was super cute with a pretty smile. :)

Nice place, multicolored walls. Great tasty food.
Will consider coming back again.
I had the vegetarian tacos and it was so good.

This restuarant has exceeded it’s back home inspired dishes with many meal packing flavours! specializing in the regional cuisines of Mexico with traditional cooking based on natural ingredients. It is also Vegetarian friendly! its fit for the whole family! Kid approved! Family Owned and Operated. Has a great reputation for freshness.
You need to try their guacamole! It is pricey, but the flavour and manual labour that goes into making this dish, is well worth it!
Below are my favorite items. El Rincons signature dishes!
*Guacamole Ranchero $ 11.00
Traditional Mashed Avocado Dip. Served With Chips And Salsa
*Frijoles Refritos Con Queso $ 9.00
Refried Beans Dip Topped With Melted Mozzarella And Fresh Feta. Served With Chips
*EmpanadasTwo Soft Corn-​dough Empanadas Slightly Deep-​fried,
And Stuffed With Mozzarella with Chorizo
Topped With Drizzle Sour Cream And A Touch Of Feta!!!*
*De Lima/​Chicken Lime Soup $ 8.00
Chicken Broth Soup Made With Squeezed Lemon Juice And Grilled Chicken Pieces. Topped With Rice, Green And Red Peppers*
*Desert is Churros. Althought not listed online, this is listed in store on the menu. All their Mexican Desserts Are Home-​made And Nut Free!!!*
*Deffinitley try their Margaritas made with tequilla imported from Mexico!*
I found this cute little restaurant while in the area driving by.
Its not much on the outside, but it’s friendly atmosphere and colorful décor on the inside makes you feel like you’re eating in Mexico!
The main seating area is quite tight, so be sure to call ahead and make reservations if you’re eating at prime hours.
In the summer time, their backyard patio is really spacious. There is a TV available to watch sporting events. (soccer games are a favorite)
Atmosphere: Back home feeling. Music, aroma, ambiance.
Cleanliness: good.
Constructive criticism: smaller chairs in the dining area.
Cuisine: Mexican
Facilities: Very clean. However, not wheel chair accessable. Washroom is located in the basement of the restaurant.
Food: Excellent quality. Freshness approved!
Likeliness of returning or recommending to others: I am a frequent customer. I have reccomended this place to others.
Parking: on a busy street — with a meter. Allow time and patience.
Portion Sizes: Good. You will deffinitley be satisfied.
Price: pricey but worth it since it’s all home made.
Service: prompt to greet you when you walk in. You may need to wait during high traffic times. Servers are warm, friendly and knowledgable.
Selection: Wide variety of homemade Mexican dishes.
Menu available online.
Hours of Operations
Monda y– Wednesday: 5:00pm — 10:00pm
Thursday: 12:00pm — 10:00pm
Friday & Saturday: 12:00pm — 11:00pm
Sunday: 12:00pm — 9:00pm

Came here starving craving some quality food, ordered chicken burrito and was the best decision I have made so far in the week of eat out foods. Portion was good for a 160lb HUNGRY man. They even gave me a free plate of nachos to start my meal with! Food was delicious and salsa was amazing and spicy! I asked for extra salsa and they delieverd!
Over all very good experience here, just expect to wait for your food as they prepare the food ON THE SPOT. But other than kitchen speed, servers are cute Spanish girls that makes me fall in love and was on point!
I recommend this place.

Colleague from Mexico recommended this place to me because I was lamenting the fact that Toronto Mexican food experiences had been bland up to now. This place didn’t disappoint. Pleasant ambiance and friendly service along with what matters most, well prepared food and beverages. The michelada was well prepared and the nacho appetizer as well as my fajita main were generous in size and tasty. Refried beans were fresh and not just a waste of calories. I can see why my mexican compadre would like this place… recommended!

I was craving Mexican food a couple weeks ago and my boyfriend and I decided to try this place out. He’s spanish and was born and raised outside of Canada and for him he really enjoyed this place, as did I.
The only reason I’m not giving it 5 stars is because the service wasn’t top notch. There was only one server, not sure if they were short staffed or not but it took some time for us to get our order in.
Once the order was placed the food came out pretty quickly, and the portions are great. We had order refried beans, tortilla soup and guacamole as an app and we were full off just those!
We will be back to try some entrees!

Sorry, not a fan… but remember, that’s just my opinion! I always feel guilty writing bad reviews so let me balance my 2 stars by mentioning that a few of my friends are BIG fans of this place. So, there’s that.
We sat on the back patio and enjoyed some tasty guacamole (nothing outstanding but still tasty; after all, how do you eff up guacamole?) and Micheladas (a Mexican drink made with beer, spices, lime and a salted rim… different but very nice).
I asked the waitress what her favourite dishes are. She said enchiladas or fajitas. I ordered chicken enchiladas and, sorry, wasn’t too enthralled. In fact, I was straight-​up disappointed. Flavours were just meh.
But you should still come here and try out the fajitas – they might be amazing… (There’s that guilt again!)

I’ve been coming here for years. The service is a little slow, but friendly and very helpful.
They have delicious Mexican, with three levels of spicy. I like their quesadillas, giant shrimp burrito, guacamole.
The restaurant inside is about 5 – 6 tables only, with a beautiful patio that has about double the seating.
Not too pricey, either.

I got the burrito mojado with chorizo and it was delish! The guac, however, was a bit bland. They have cheap drinks which i really liked– try the micheladas!
The only thing that i didn’t like was that when we got there we asked to be seated on the patio– there were about 10 tables (all empty) and the waitress said if we sat at the table that we picked, we would be asked to move if other ppl came. What? The place was empty! And for the smokers– you cant smoke in the patio which meant we had to go to the front. Other than that, i would return to el rincon!

My family booked a table for 6 on a Thursday night through the online reservation system and we asked for a spot on the patio if possible and when we arrived we were pleased to have gotten what we asked for.
Most of us were happy with the food. My husband did find some gristle and bits of bone in the chicken for his fajitas and that was a bit of a disappointment considering the cost of the food. I’d expect the chefs to pay more attention to that. On the other hand the food was very fresh. I had the beef empanadas and they were delicious! I couldn’t finish everything on my plate. The sangria I ordered was okay but I think I’ll stick to Mexican beer next time. The dessert was the best aspect of the meal. We ordered several orders of fried ice cream and a light cake that I don’t remember the name of and it was all wonderful. The waitress was fantastic and just attentive enough without being overbearing. She didn’t rush us even though we took our time ordering and eating.
There was live music the night we were at El Ricon, which although very good, we wish we had been made aware of when the restaurant called to confirm the reservation; it was difficult to carry on a conversation. Overall, I’ll be back to visit El Ricon.

I’ve come here a few times before and was never really impressed, but liked the cozy backyard patio. The food always seemed overpriced for the amount and quality that they served. The service is quite slow, but I don’t take points off for that unless they let my drink go dry without asking if I want another.
I also think that all Mexican eateries should offer free tortilla chips and salsa. This place does not. Most places in Canada don’t. But they should.
But last night we dined with my best friend’s hungry Mexican husband and he verified the authenticity, but I had a few issues still.
Queso Fundito was ok. The cheese was very stringy and gooey, but tasty and served with flour tortillas.
Salsa was made of chipotles and very salty. I wish they would have brought the hot sauce earlier on in the game, because if you ask for it, it’s really delicious– and hot!
Steak tacos I had were loaded with meat. Not the best quality, but definitely well seasoned and there was fresh lime on the table. My friend’s enchiladas were much smaller than the picture on the menu (beware, most of the items are, except for the tacos). And they serve black beans with their entrée instead of Pinto beans. This is the kiss of death for me and I’m making note of this because those fuckers rip my intestines up. I won’t order an entrée that includes sides here when I come back just for this reason. Her husband ordered 3 steak tacos and 3 al pastor. The al pastor was just pulled pork without pineapple, but he said the pork was ok.
I will probably come back here despite the ok food. It seems to be hit or miss, but never outright bad or disappointing. The patio is great.
Points for the Margaritas. They had cocktail umbrellas!

Came for a friends surprise birthday party, having read the previous negative reviews. I decided to go in with an open mind and no expectations.
Décor is typical Mexican kitsch which seems to be par for most Mexican places in Toronto with a few exceptions. Friends had a great time posing with the sombreros hanging on the wall in the basement.
Because we were a party of 20, food of course took forever, but we were somewhat forgiving as this is expected for any large order in the restaurant. Wait staff were friendly and helpful in arranging for the surprise. Waiting to pay also took forever as everyone had separate bills but again this is no fault of theirs.
I should at least mention the food… The 5 taco combo was a bit small, and one in our party was complaining about it, as those that got enchiladas. A friend got the burrito, which got envious stares from those with smaller portions. I got the sizzling fajita with beef, which had generous portions as well, served with tortillas kept moist with a box and cloth. No complaints about the fajita, it seems to be one of the better deals here.