El Rinconsito Catracho

+6 stars for the food!!!
We ate here tonight for the first time tonight to try it out. We usually go to La Piñata across the street which is my benchmark for consistently good Salvadorian, pupusas, etc. El Rinconsito Catracho has even better pupusas which I thought was impossible. The pupusas Reveultas are the best. The Loroco wasn’t as good as at La Piñata.
–2 stars for the atmosphere. Let me first say that I usually enjoy the hole in the wall type places. However, this had more the atmosphere of a hispanic bar than a restaurant. It doesn’t have many tables and most of them were taken up with the locals sipping on beer and not eating food and watching the soccer game. We felt like everyone stared at us when we walked in and it was a little uncomfortable. Definitely bring your earplugs for this place. Like La Piñata across the street, they have installed a new internet jukebox and it is louder than you know what!!! I couldn’t even talk to the person sitting next to me it was so loud.
The service was nice though one lady speaks english and the other doesn’t so you take your chances that she is there when you visit. Our pupusas came out fast (much faster than La Piñata and with a lot less grease).
We ordered the pupusa with the fried eggs on top. At $ 8.50, it was a bad value compared to the same sized pupusa at $ 2.50. We also had the chicken soup. It was good but about the same as La Piñata.
Bottom line, much better pupusas but they really need to figure out how to turn their tables instead of letting the locals loiter to watch the soccer game without eating anything. It would be much more comfortable for everyone. If they figure out the business part, this place is a home run because those pupusas are so good!

Excellent pupusas revueltas! Delicious rice and beans! Tried out their pastries again-​excellent! Wide selection of Salvadoran products-​finally found my favorite cheese-​queso Duro Viejo! We are definitely coming back!

Great food slow service marsela
Very bad costumer service
But good food
Lina and Juana Always very nice
And great service
I can give five star but fix something in the bussinnes

I used to visit this place a lot 2 years ago, the pupusas were delicious!
I came to this place last week for pupusas, the service still the same very friendly lady serving the food. But the pupusas were NOT good at all, they were not fully cooked and you couldn’t even taste the chicharon.
This place was full of drunk people definitely not a family place anymore!
The Atol de elote was good, and the tacos de pollo!

This place is a little gem in downtown San Mateo — loved their pupusas, and their al pastor taco was tasty. I think their pupusas are overpriced, but they are yummy!

Down home, stick to your ribs, locals mainly, kinda divey restaurant.
Besides having your standard Mexican menu, they have cuisine from Honduras and El Salvador.
Honduran yuca con chicharon — $ 12 — There was some real nice chunks of pork
that were both juicy and crunchy from being pressed on the griddle. The deep fried yuca it was served atop of is a gut bomb. (
)
Hondureno taco — Reminded me of a a chicken taquito or a rolled taco from Socal.
Bailada ($ 5.5) — flour tortilla with beans, rice, and sour cream. Tastes like the bean burrito from Taco Bell but wayyyy better. Opt for the egg. So good.
Montada pupusa. Basically a revuelta pupusa that’s topped with an over easy egg and topped with a salsa fresco. (
)
Washed everything down with a jamaica drink.
It’s not really divey but the interior matches the exterior. The authenticity of this place is the standout. The prices are reasonable enough that I wouldn’t mind coming back to explore more of their menu.
Worth walking the extra steps from downtown 3^rd if you’re into unique eats.

I agree with the review by Christopher S. While the food is authentic, the place reminds me of my Tios hanging out drinking cervesas, and talking loud (er) with each bottle. I brought my kids (11 and 13 year old), but would be uncomfortable if my daughter was older or my wife. There are only 5 – 6 tables, so take out might be a better option. Back to the food ! The waitress was very nice as she welcomed us. We had the queso con loroco, queso con pollo, and revueltas papusas. All tasted like back home and not greasy like some other papusarias. We also had the platanos, frijoles, and crema… a must with papusas IMO (the dish was okay not great). Finally, we tried a Honduran dish called camarones fritos. The prawns were sautéed with bell peppers and onion (a Central American staple), Spanish rice, refried beans, and salad. This dish was okay taste wise with small shrimp and not something that blew my socks off. El Rinconcito shines with there papusas and would make any Salvadoreno think of back home.

pupusas are off the hook! amazing!

For some reason, I was craving pupusas and found this place through Unilocal.Frankly, I’m not sure why I decided to try this place since it only had four reviews. It must have been the location and the very convincing (and spot on) reviews.
Before I had a chance to study the menu that was hanging on the wall, a woman walked out from behind the counter/​kitchen. She asked if I wanted the English menu. I didn’t think I needed it, so I declined the offer. She said to let her know if I had any questions. I finally decided on one pork and one chicken pupusa. She asked if I wanted beans and cheese in it. I guess I had a confused look on my face because said I could have whatever I wanted inside. I opted for one chicken with cheese and the other pork with beans and cheese. Apparently, everything was made to order. There was another lady in the kitchen flattening and stuffing my pupusas. The pupusas were amazing. The outside was crisp and the inside was soft. I especially liked the chicken with cheese. Definitely recommend.

I come from San Diego so my standards for Mexican food are high, and this is the only place I’ve found in the Bay Area that merits a 5* rating. The food is amazing and about as close to home cooked as you’ll find anywhere. Order a papusa and they litterally pat out the 2 thick tortillias by hand. The carne asada (which I always use as a good barometer of how good a mexican place is) is flavorful and the perfect blend of crispy and soft. The salsas are all incredibly fresh tasting. The Al Pastor also must be tried, and for dessert don’t miss the fried sweet plantains which come with authentic casera cheese and light sour cream. Yum!

I’m basing my rating entirely on the food which, according to my Salvadoran girlfriend (and my stomach) is quite authentic and tasty. HOWEVER:
I don’t think one would be comfortable venturing here unless one spoke Spanish Not because the staff doesn’t understand English (They do!) but because the regular «happy hour» crowd that hangs out in the restaurant is pretty loud and rowdy and as a consequence make my girlfriend a bit uncomfortable when she’s inside.
So, the food is killer but the crowd could quickly and easily make one yearn for takeout… Which is what we do… frequently!

This is a very local’s place. Like Juanita’s before it, not a lot of folks outside the Hispanic community come here. It maybe one of the better kept secrets in San Mateo. I miss Juanita’s. After a few year absence working in the area, I came back to find it replaced. Apparently Juanita sold to the fine ladies that now man Rinconcito. They do Honduranm, Salvadorean and Mexican fare. Of course Mexican fare is plentiful around here so I skipped that. Got a Revuelta pupusa, a taco Hondurenos, and a Salvadorean tamale with chicken. This is as close as you’re going to get to Central American home cooking without being in someone’s house Im sure. Fluffy tamale, rich flavorful pupusa, and a rolled fried taco with beef and a tomato chile sauce to round it all out. A bunch of locals came in to watch the Mexico-​Turkey Soccer match and everyone was just kicking it enjoying the sunny afternoon. Don’t let the hole in the wall ambiance and dumpy outside deter you. I miss Juanita’s but Rinconcito is a worthy successor.

This used to be Juanita’s. I never went to Juanita’s. The new place is good. Check it out.