Crazy popular place given the neighborhood it is in. Talk about a perfect concept in the perfect spot, fits like a glove. In this tiny shopping strip in a very Hispanic hood in Hayward. I once came on a weekend early afternoon and had to turn around and look for an alternative...line out the friggin' door. Came on a weekday late in the lunch hours (2ish pm) and was able to get in the door. But within minutes of receiving my order, a line of over 10 peeps roll in and now the place seemed busy. This place has serious pull. All they do is carnitas, but in true authentic Mexican fashion. Carnitas is straight pork cooked in its own lard. It is seasoned simply (probably just salt) and cooked low and slow until the meat gets incredibly tender. Pretty much 'confit' method which is used in other cultures as well. But in true authentic fashion, in those pots of lard bubbling away, they are just not cooking pork meat. They are also cooking pork skin, one crispy (chicharone), one soft and chewy (cueritos), and also Buche which is the pork stomach lining, so it has a dense and meaty texture, but when confit'd is pretty darn good. You can get these carnitas in taco form, which seemed very popular during that lunch hour. Or you can get it as a combo plate with rice and beans. Or you can get any of those pork items by the pound, which I'm sure the majority of peeps do on weekends to take back home to feed a small army. Combo #3 ($16ish/4*) This is their smallest combo that can feed 1-2. Has about a pound of protein of choice, a small scoop of rice and refried beans, a decent size of salsa and 6 corn tortillas. I ate half there and brought the rest home for a light dinner later. Also comes with a fountain drink, so really nice value given how many meals I was able to get from it. Now when you order a combo, you pick what types of protein you want. You can get just the pork meat, which seems like mostly pork leg meat given the thick fibers in the chunks. It is quite tender and pulls with ease. The seasoning is perfect but is made even better with their thin and slightly spicy red salsa. I tried the 'mixta' option which was pork meat mixed with tender pork skin and even a bit of the buche. Definitely more exotic but very satisfying from my perspective. I think next time I'm going to order by the pound. Get a pound of meat, a half pound of the soft and gelatinous skin and a half pound of crispy chicharones. That way I can make my own tacos at home with all 3 components topped with their salsa and my own chopped onions and cilantro. Damn I'm drooling just thinking about it. Vamos cabron. read more

Carnitas El Rincon - Hayward - Carnitas Mixtas / Braised Pork Mix - Tacos Near Me - Hayward, California

Picked up and took home. Ate the carnitas, but the rice and beans had no flavor. Blah! What a waste. Please do better. read more

Carnitas El Rincon - Hayward - No flavor rice and beans! - Tacos Near Me - Hayward, California

This place is the worst I tried it different times and every time is the same thing They sell you cilantro and onion separately from your tacos how are you suppose eat them with out the main ingredients I order food to go and they make you wait I've gone to different carnitas in San Jose and there so much better then here and there the same franchise so I don't know how they operate read more

Absolutely love this place! Definitely top quality food! I'm a rice head and the rice is A1! Definitely come here for your food for a party! read more

Carnitas El Rincon - Hayward - Inside - Tacos Near Me - Hayward, California

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Paid $2 for extra beans and rice not only did I get less but also less meat. So essentially I paid more money for less food while the cashier had the nastiest attitude. I will never eat here again she even knew she gave me less. read more

We eat tacos really good the only down side the salsa was not spicy at all very watery for my like specially with tacos otherwise employees are very friendly and the carnitas are good, get earlier because they get very busy read more

Amazing carnitas. I have only tried Gading Rd and they have opened one on Tennyson, will review when I do but I tell everyone to go to this El Rincon. Very good carnitas and often they Have chicharrón. read more

Repeat customer for party packages. Food is always a hit! Definitely recommend! Thank you for great food and great prices!

I use to love this place but lately it's been a hit or miss. The carnitas look kinda dull gray and really dark meat almost as if it was boiled instead of fried. Real carnitas have a nice golden brown with a slight crisp to it. I've must of gotten the bottom of the barrel because this was not it. I still plan to go again and maybe I'll have better luck next time. read more

Carnitas El Rincon - Hayward - Carnitas don't look so great. - Tacos Near Me - Hayward, California

Best carnitas I've ever had outside of Mexico. You HAVE to get the combos. That's the best bang for your buck, also get the carnitas MIXTAS. Straight fire. Their house salsa is so good too. Estás carnitas son las carnitas más deliciosas que e comido fuera de México. Vivo en San Francisco y vengo hasta Hayward a comprar estas carnitas mixtas. read more

Carnitas El Rincon - Hayward - Receipt. #Cheap - Tacos Near Me - Hayward, California

Super nice staff. The carnitas are out of this world! Has a to go setting. Great for catering! Absolutely love this place!

Place is small and bullet holes in the windows but well worth the visit. Carnitas meat only and mixta are both good whether in a taco or burrito. Chicharon is good too. read more

Carnitas El Rincon - Hayward - Tacos - Tacos Near Me - Hayward, California

Was taken here by a friend we were visiting the bay. It's his go to for tacos. He recommended the mix but I was afraid it would be too fatty and ordered the carnitas burrito. This place is clearly well liked by locals. Definitely a hole in the wall. Don't expect the bathrooms to be clean at all because they were filthy haha. I entered the location in and looks like they have other locations in the bay. The carnitas was nice. However, on the greasy side for me which made it a heavier meal. Also was a little too heavy on the salt for my liking. Sauces were great. read more

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We purchased carnitas today, and we were so disappointed. The carnitas looked and tasted like they were just boiled. They were definitely not properly cooked because most of our meat was red inside. My daughter loves carnitas and took one look and said "those don't look very good" well she was right. read more

Came here to grab a to go order for dinner tonight. I got the combo #1. The carnitas was juicy and had a good flavor. Like the meat itself was good, not smothered with seasoning. They have a scale at the register and they put the container on the scale before packing it up so you know you're getting the weight you're supposed to. Is that not legit AF!? I read past reviews about bad customer service. The girl at the register wasn't rude. She may not have been hella friendly, but she wasn't rude at all. Even when I was leaving a lady came from the back and thanked us as we were walking out. I would consider ordering trays here for the future (which was my whole purpose for trying them out this visit). I wasn't a huge fan of the salsas, but the pickled habanero was good. Good heat level and pickled flavor. Not as spicy as I expected, but it was spicy and yummy. Note: my sister in law that can't really handle spicy thought it was way too hot. read more

Carnitas El Rincon - Hayward - Tacos Near Me - Hayward, California

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Cleary if you come to this spot, it is because you know a good carnita when you taste one...I don't often write reviews but El Rincon deserves a moment of my time to applaud the quality of the product. I didn't got there because of ambiance or service though after reading some of the reviews, I can say that my experience with service was not bad at all but these are hard working employees doing their best to fill orders as quickly as possible. The food is top notch and very well priced. We hosted a dinner this weekend for 15 people and everyone commented on how delicious everything was and I am also thrilled that it did not break the bank to feed my guests. I hope this place is around for many more years to come! read more

To make it short they do not answer phone calls & if you decide to place an order through door dash they DO NOT even pay mind to the orders. After placing an order for pick up through doordash I drove 35 min to pick up just to find out my order didn't even go Through as the female in the back came to the front grabbed the iPad and put it to charge. She asked what I ordered I showed her my Doordash receipt & she proceeded to say we don't have all that then said cancel it then. To top it off both females were Rude. Don't recommend read more

You can't go wrong with carnitas and this place makes them deliciously finger licking good! Loved the friendly service! I'll be back.

The food is amazing!! The carnitas were tender and flavorful. The rice and beans were also very tasty and tortillas very warm and soft. Salsa's the perfect taste. I definitely recommend Carnitas El Rincon to all my friends and family. read more

I actually stumbled accidentally onto this wonderful find. I was misdirected to another food venue nearby and ended up here due to poor directions given to me. My lucky mistake! Prolly 95% of their customers are Spanish speaking-only clients. While the staff is geared to service the Hispanic community, they were very gracious to educate me about what they had at this tiny food establishment. Who opens a Taqueria which sells only one type of meat?? THESE DUDES DO! As I stood in line my first time not knowing exactly what to order, the person in line in front of me said, "They have the 'BEST CARNITAS IN HAYWARD!". Those are big words for a town which excels in good/excellent Hispanic fast food. I ordered the mixed carnitas plate. Meat only. No tortillas, rice, or beans. Just the meat. Juicy greasy silky sloppy goodness! No joke, I ate almost the entire take-out clamshell of meat while driving back home in my vehicle. Greasy hands and fingers dripping with the greased heavenly flavors! I'm lucky I didn't get into an accident. Talk about distracted driving........Wow!! This place is no joke if you're in for just Carnitas. Their Carnitas tacos are the best I've laid my hands on. The best! You'd be doing yourself a favor to venture over to give them a try. You'll owe me on this one! Enuf Sed! read more

Simply delicious. Fantastic greeting at arrival and friendly. Tables available and must be early to get a seat. Traditional music playing and Spanish speaking. read more

Los cocineros train guantes haciendo la comida, pero estan tocando telefono atras y tocando la comida y no se los cambian.

Was referred here by my friends mom and boy they did not disappoint. I ordered the combo mixta that came with rice, beans, tortillas and salsa.the mix includes cueritos, buche and carnitas. Im Not a cuerito fan but here they were so juicy and tender i enjoyed them in my taco. The salsa they give you with the food is so delicious. Because of covid You cannot eat indoors so only take out and I felt so awful for them because the lady that works there was such a sweetheart but was setting up her machine and everything so was only cash because unfortunately some asshole broke in and stole their cash register. Thumbs up to them for despite what they went through they still opened up for business and she still had a smile on her face. I'll be a return customer. Carnitas are flavorful and tender. read more

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My sprite tasted better than their burrito , it tasted dry and pitiful to me, i will not return

Answer your phone or hire more people. Completely useless. For everyone else: they don't answer their phone, you have to physically go in and order. I had to wait 1 hour for my order and they had the audacity to complain about the size. Maybe if you answered the phone this wouldn't have happened. read more

Deliciosas excelente sabor muy recomendables para fiestas las salas están muy buenas especialmente la de habanero!

Ojalá pudiera mejorar el servicio ya que las personas que atienden siempre parecen estar de malas, la comida muy buena.

This place is fire! Ordered the combo burrito with carnitas, buche and a little bit cueritos... best burrito I've had in a while! And I'm in Oakalnd.. Hayward stepping they game up read more

Carnitas El Rincon has a nice sized dining room with a large flatscreen, awkward parking lot, accessible salsa bar, small menu. offerings: tacos, burritos, quesadillas, carnitas only. eats: burrito(6.99) -only carnitas available iish, meat very salty, also inedible slight stomach issues afterwards -but for food quality, good sized burrito good value. take outs: -cashier not so literate in english -salsa bar at the right side -nothing seen on steam table. -no street parking visible. read more

Carnitas muy buenas , servicio pesimo , espera super pesimos, ordenar para lunch y llegas para la Cena

Good food and they'd party trays are a great deal. Although it wasn't ready when I arrived I still waited

We use to drive out to Gilroy to get good Carnitas BUT these are by far the best carnitas I've had. They are as close to real Mexican authentic carnitas there is!!!!! It's definitely a must try. Side note: Get the mixed carnitas :) read more

We ordered a family meal for 15 people. While the carnitas were tasty the rice and beans were lacking. The beans had a weird flavor like if they're from a can. The rice had a weird stringy texture to it, we initially thought maybe they add some cheese to it, but everyone who ate the rice got sick from their stomach. My assumption is the rice was old or something so that stringy texture we thought was cheese was signs of rancid rice. read more

The place isn't much inside just a few tables and chairs but they make up for it in food. Food is amazing. Burrito and tacos are great and carnitas is so good. They're not stingy with their salsa/sauces. I'll be back again! read more

omg this place has the best carnitas and buche. great price I ordered for my sons graduation party. 150 guest with rice,beans and it comes with salsa. read more

A mixing carnitas and good service I order for 150 people pick up and just everything was good

Unfortunately the service takes away from the food they provide I ordered food for my mom's funeral service. I paid in advance on Sun. Confirmed the order on Thurs. Pick up was Fri 12:30. I had to wait 45 min to pick up food. I paid for food for 20. When I asked for The cilantro and limes, the aunt rudely replied NO, THAT'S EXTRA. I said nevermind, I had folks waiting. I mean really, my mom's funeral svcs and she's going to argue about lines and cilantro. Went today, (3 MONTHS LATER) the service same. They really need to understand, if folks are wiling to pay for them to stay in business, treat them right. Regardless OF HOW YOUR DAY IS GOING or that you have your in expirenced niece working the register. read more

Food is great customer service is lacking because the young lady in the front is pretty rude, how she answers and threw my food on the counter and went back to talking to the cooks in the back is unacceptable read more

Food is really good. The cueritos are the best with their red salsa and tortillas warm

Delicious! My first time there and by accident, and so glad i stopped by when i saw it. I ordered the mixta (carnitas, cueritos, and buche) as soon as we tasted them we all loved them. All three were so flavorful no need to depend on salsa like other places, even after you are done you are left with that "good flavor in your mouth" satisfaction that you just ate something good. People are giving bad reviews about the service, i didn't have bad service, i ordered to go and the lady was really polite especially when i told her it was my first time there, she made sure to give me all her types of salsas when she didn't have to. read more