Rincon Norteno Cafe

This is a go to place for our family. Whether it is chips and warm salsa on Fridays after work or an intentional dinner out we enjoy Rincon.
The chips are light and the salsa is warm and delicious. For starters I love the chilies Gueritos Rellenos con Camaron. They are super spicy and I do like it hot. You get 5 in one order and it is enough to share or to have as an entrée. At our table there is always the combination platters galore. You will always find a chile relleno in the mix somewhere and they are a must. Also a must are the beans! I am always finishing the beans on my plate and the plates around me.
I have also been here and ordered breakfast and the Huevos con chorizo is excellent — and I love that I can order breakfast anytime. .
I have read some review that say this place is bland but that could not be further from the truth. No place can survive over 50 years without be authentic and delicious!

I’m not from the area but thought «hole in the wall.» So it must be good. Overall the food was very bland. I ordered a carne asada burrito and hardly any meat. My brother order chilaquiles and they tasted like cooking oil. Service was okay. I wouldn’t recommend this place.

Some of the worst service I’ve EVER experienced in ANY place, and that includes the rinky-​dink mom-​and-​pop carts on the side of the road in Mexico. We arrived and let them know we were a party of 10, 2 of which were babies and 2 others who didn’t even order anything to eat. There were 4 empty tables all next to each other, 3 of which would have sufficed enough to accommodate all of us accordingly. They ignored us for about 5 minutes, allowing people to fill half of the tables before they decided to squeeze us in to 2 tables inside even though we asked to be seated outside instead because there were more tables. When the waitress took our drink orders, half of which were alcoholic beverages, she only carded one person (who happened to be the birthday guy). He left his ID in the car, so he had to go back to grab it. She gave a speech about how she has to ID by law and «blah-​blah-​blah» which is known and understandable. But when she took the rest of the alcoholic orders she didn’t ID anyone else. She was completely incompetent on the menu items and continually brought the food to the wrong people. Out of all the drink orders, she couldn’t manage to bring out the simplest ones, 3 waters. Whenever we tried to get someone’s attention to attend us, they either ignored us or dismissed us. When they finally decided to bring the chips and salsa, the waitress just tossed them, literally TOSSED them, onto the tables letting some of the chips spill out. Half the plates were tasteless, and the rest were «alright» but absolutely mediocre compared to the price. To top it off, they have a policy in which they include the tip in your bill if there’s more than a certain amount of people. This would be understandable and acceptable if the service wasn’t so shitty and if the food was actually enjoyable. I would NEVER recommend this place to ANYONE.

Rinon Norte was one of our favorites. Last night we went there for dinner .The food was just plain bland, bland and bland. Not a good thing for Mexican food.
Ed Hackney

We came here in search for the perfect Huevos Rancheros, which fellow Unilocaler’s rated highly recommended on Unilocal.Hubby had the huevos con jamon, love that both dishes came with potatoes, like homemade! Definitely yummy. Great service!
This is our New Mexican restaurant!

OMG the chile gueritos de camaron are the absolute BOMB! No one makes enchiladas rancheras like this place. Waitresses are friendly/​courteous and if I could I’d eat here everyday. Thank You RINCON NORTENO.
been coming here for many years and the quality of your food never changes!

My review is on the happy hour
is from 3−6pm everyday and it is soooooo good. I recommend the chavelas at 3.00 each you cant beat that. The chicken quesedilla is delicious, chile guerritos! Are my favorite. Good customer service

The complimentary chips and salsa are the best I’ve had to date. The salsa is served warm. I ordered the Taco and Tamal combo. The Tamal was good. The Shredded Beef Taco was so so. The rice and beans were delicious. Now the menudo with all the fixings and tortillas were on point. Our waitress was very charismatic, friendly and attentive. Our food was served HOT. $ 50 for 4. This included a coffee and 3 soft drinks.

Even on a hot day, the cozy patio at Rincon Norteno is the perfect way to enjoy some fresh air. The food is great. I love the soup. And the atmosphere is relaxed and friendly. It is the kind of old fashioned family run restaurant that you don’t see much anymore. The chile’s Guerrero are yummy. The warm salsa is tasty and if you ask, they bring special chips and guacamole with melted cheese. My grandchildren look forward to the simple dessert that comes with the meal. Usually cinnamon rice pudding or jello. They also get a kick out of the occasional train that passes by. It is just a nice experience.

Although I have only been eating here for 22 years, they have been serving authentic Mexican food since 1964. There is no need to tell you what my favorite dish is because whether you are here for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, you will receive a fresh authentic meal. Their homemade salsa is my favorite salsa anywhere.

Everywhere you go out here in so cal, when you talk about going out to breakfast, you really only have a few options, mainly American or Mexican. If you want to play it safe, go American. Sure you can get some good pancakes, ham and eggs, bacon and eggs, Denver omelette, etc., etc. But for some spice in your breakfast, Mexican is the way to go. And here in the Coachella Valley, that would be Rincon Norteño in Indio.
Here is the truth, I’ve been to a many Mexican restaurants in the area. Palm Desert, Rancho Mirage, Cathedral City, Indio, Coachella and so forth and so on. But, consistently tasty and moderately priced, only two places qualify, one of them is Rincon Norteño. We’ll talk about the other place later. Oh, and before I forget, do not go to those «Mexican» restaurants off Highway 111 between Rancho Mirage and La Quinta. They cater to the taste bud challenged.
Rincon is not fancy and does not cater to the tourists with spice issues. Its just really good, tasty and sometimes spicy Mexican food. This is where the locals go. The servers are always friendly and call you by name when they recognize you. But, then and again, sometimes they’re running around with customers and they might not get to you asap. So, just calm down, drink your coffee, beer or chavela and enjoy watching everyone else. You need to come here for breakfast. HIJOLE, the breakfasts are delish. The chicharrones con chile, the bistecitos, the nopalitos, mmm mmm good. Add some eggs, refried beans, Mexican rice and papas guisadas and you will tear up, either because you’re emotional or due to the spicy meal. Oh, and the coffee. It’s pretty darn good. It’s a small place and can get crowded quick. Lunch and dinner is good too, you know, enchiladas, costillitas, tacos, burritos, etc. But breakfast is the ticket.
If you’re visiting the area, check it out. Don’t feel scared because it’s a bit off the beaten path. But, step inside, say «Buenas» and enjoy the goodness.

Food is always so good! Chilequillas (sp?) with carne asada is always what I get, it’s always the best! Chips and salsa is always really good, the only reason I gave 4 stars is because the servers are always pretty slow. They’re really nice though, and like I said the good is always good!

The place was cozy but the menu was a little expensive. My daughter & I went to here today, we had a few drinks, which was good. But we want just a few individual small tacos but they don’t have it. We would have to buy a full meal instead. I think they should have individual small tacos. If you wanted a small snack nothing else.

I have been coming here since I was a child. The best and most authentic mexican restaurant I’ve been to. Enchiladas are the best. If you go for dinner time, they offer free dessert. Sometimes it’s arroz con leche and other times it’s jello. Everyone there are very hardworking and very bubbly. Margaritas are bomb too.

The main problem here is the inconsistency of the food.
One day, it’ll be great. The next couple of times it’ll be horrible. Prices are ok.
Due to the unpredictability of the food, I very rarely eat here.

If I could give no stars, I would…
I went there on Mother’s Day to eat with my children and my daughter’s boyfriend, his mother and brother. We ordered fajitas and I got a beer. The location is scary the train passes by and it makes so much noise! If you like a «gated view» that is the place to go.
Our meal was according to the menu.
$ 12.95 my meal
$ 12.95 my daughter’s meal
$ 10.95 my son’s meal
$ 4.95 my beer
total $ 41.80
with 10% added tax would have been $ 4.18 –should have been $ 45.98 adding the 15% gratuity of $ 6.89 the total bill would have been: $ 52.87
WE GOT A BILL FOR $ 65.00!!!
The fajitas had more fat than actual meat. The server took forever to help us and we had to flag her down constantly to come to the table.
That place is an insult to Mexican food.

Had high hopes for this place. Completely overpriced and the worst part was the food. The sad part is i was so hungry. Oh well, lesson learned and ill never come here again. Paid 30 to have my breakfasts ruined not to mention my mood!!! Now im off to fill up on junk food to get the bad taste out of my mind.

Food is ok, chabelas are great! It’s our go to place when friends are in town. We always have a good time and staff is friendly. We go because it’s tradition rather than food being good. We usually focus on drinks and the chips and salsa, which is what makes Rincon a good choice.

OK this is IT!!! After 3 months in the valley and 20 Mexican restaurants later we have a winner!!! Completely and totally homemade. I feel like I’m sitting at Rosa’s kitchen table while she delights me with all of her secret family recipes! I had machaca con juevos and today’s special Albondigas soup. I also sampled the chili Colorado, tamale, and enchiladas. Every item was completely from scratch. I cannot point out a favorite. Everything is ridiculously delicious. No details necessary. Just go there, close your eyes, point to anything on the menu and then order.

Interesting location. Kinda underneath a road/​bridge and not too many businesses around it.
The complimentary chips were very good. Better than bagged chips from the supermarket. I had 3 tacos with rice for $ 9.99. The were the hard shell fried type. The chicken taco had good flavor and a nice crunchy shell. The shredded beef taco was disappointing. I prefer more seasoning/​marinade in my beef. I wasn’t tasting anything eating the beef. The rice was good. Standard Mexican rice.
The menu is pretty big so there may be other things I’d like here but I’d never order a shredded beef taco again. Wish Tacos and Beer was closer. Great tacos there.