Rincon Tropical

I’m in love with this beautiful restaurant! Rincon Tropical: Home Away From Home! Fine Puerto Rican cuisine less than a couple miles away from where I live is amazing. I’m so happy I stopped by here today, This lovely little restaurant takes me to the Caribbean in mind, body, and spirit. The Butterfly Shrimp with Garlic Sauce was scrumptious, full of flavor, crunchy, and I can’t wait to try more delicacies whenever I come back.

Awesome food!! Will definitely visit again when in town.

Everything was absolutely delicious, the service was outstanding, and the atmosphere was great, I can’t wait to tell my friends about it and I can’t wait to go back !!

The food at this restaurant is undeniably flavorful and well-prepared—each dish shows quality and care. However, I found the pricing a bit steep, especially since many of these meals can be made at home just as well, if not better. Beyond the food, the atmosphere left much to be desired. The dining area felt cold and uninviting, and what concerned me most was the clutter along the walls. It looked more like a storage warehouse or garage than a restaurant, with boxes and storage bins lined up like a hoarder’s stash. This gave off an untidy vibe that’s definitely an eyesore and doesn’t inspire confidence in cleanliness. I hope none of that clutter affects the food quality, but for a restaurant, a cleaner, more organized environment would make a big difference. Worth a try if you’re curious, but there’s room for improvement in ambiance and upkeep.

The food was amazing, the service was also 10/10! Will definitely be returning! Worth the drive!

This place was great. Its kind of tucked away, but worth the drive. I have been looking for an authentic Puerto Rican restaurant for a while and glad I could finally find one. The hours that you see here could change though not sure how often that happens. I had tried to make arrangements to come here a few times with my friends before finally being able to stop in on a Tuesday night. The downside? Parking & parking lot is overall not good, needs to be maintained and or paved. But food? Excellent 🫶🏼💯

Excellent pernil. Tripleta sandwich was very good. Habichuelas were great. Relleno de papa was good.

They have chuletas can-can!! 🇵🇷 The Carne Frita, mofongo, surullitos were excellent!! This was our 2nd time and both times just wonderful!

BFF is Puerto Rican so anytime we travel to a new city we look up PR restaurants. Located in an impoverished area next to a lube, oil, and filter change shop, it looks basically like a bar from outside (it actually is a nightclub after hours). The server we had is Puerto Rican and I assume is a relative of the owner. She was very friendly but service was rather slow as she forgot to bring us a drink menu after asking twice. There were some screaming kids from what appeared to be friends of the owners but our server was very apologetic after we left. As for the food, it was decent and tasty, but have had better. We started off with the yucca fries with mayoketchup which are always my fave! They were so crispy and fresh hot off the grill! I ordered the mofongo bowl with rice, beans, french fries, queso, and pernil (shredded pork). I've never had mofongo this way before, but it reminded me essentially of a Chipotle bowl, PR style. BFF ordered the pollo fricase and although he said it was good, he has had better. We also had this blue tropical drink with vodka instead of rum which was tasty (blended) but stick to the rum instead of improvising vodka as I felt it would have tasted more authentic. Overall, not bad, just in a sketchy area and plenty of street parking.

I normally order from here all the time But today I picked up a dozen of Pastels and super disappointed, especially after spending $40 and driving across town to pick them up. Lost a customer

Did I tell you that I grew up in the tri-state area? Also we've been to SJPR. And no, not the resort PR. Stayed at an AirBnb in Carolina and local tripped the city. So on a date night, I was tasked to find a place to have dindin and found this spot. PuertoRican food in Detroit. Why not. Let's get right to it. Mollejitas en Escabeche: I adore chicken gizzards. What they got here was actually pretty good. It's a perfect food for picking while drinking beer. The flavors were very good. Chuleta Cancan: Esta no es chuleta cancan mi gente. Any bodicua from the islands will tell you that this isn't it. Esta es chuleta por certo pero no es cancan. Porfavor! No me gusta. Somebody please tell the cook. The tostones was pretty good, but that's not the centerpiece is it? Pescado Frito: Mi marido diga me it was ok. Wasn't the best fried fish he ever had either. His mofongo was decent, trust me I tried it. But mi marido, didn't have that cara de emocionada face when he was eating it. He's all about fish. Anyways, I felt like when we came we were pretty much the only people eating there. It was sort of wierd, but ok since we had peace and quiet. The service was actually pretty good hence the one extra star. Pero la comida primera necesita mucha mas. I wish you guys the best of luck. Please fix the food. Puerto Rican food is not just about tostones and mofongo. That's just the side dish, not the main Event. Thank you so much for reading my review. I hope this helps with your decision making experience. Enjoy your awesome yelptastic day!! Muchas gracias y hasta pronto!

First time trying Puerto Rican food. The food is amazing very similar to Mexican food so you just have to know what they call it in Puerto Rican. I really like the fried pork it was good for starters. I'm not quite sure what I ordered I had a friend order it but the food was very flavorful had taste to it and it wasn't just meh. The service is excellent, the food did take a while but then again everything is freshly made. The ambiance is cool, I wanna say it's a restaurant by day and a bar by night from the looks of it and how it was advertised on the wall inside the restaurant.

My husband is from San Juan and we've come here for a taste of home. Haven't been in in a while. Wondering if pre-ordering pasteles is still being offered. Need our pasteles fix. Gracias

When I went it was the weekend. It was hard to find parking at first. So I had to walk a little way. The club is strict about ID's so have yours ready. The environment was kind of loud but well worth it. They played Spanish music. Drinks were a fair price, however I was sad that there was no food available that late . Overall great experience . We all had fun!

Unfortunately we got a carry out and we got 2 cooked rellenos and 2 raw rellenos, why? I have no idea, I called but nobody is answering the phone. Desgraciadamente fuimos por una orden y nos dieron 2 rellenos cocinados y 2 totalmente crudos, llame y nadie responde el teléfono.

Took away 3 stars: 1 because this place is overpriced, 1 more because the food's taste was basic, and another because the older guy and older woman in the back actually making the food did not have masks on. I just don't get it! A friend and I traveled from Lansing to have some food in Detroit. We stopped here to grab her something and she said it was nothing special and their portions are small.

Just wow! Love the food very homemade.Portion is great for one person.They had music playing making you want to dance.

Yes, I know it seems as though every place I go to gets a 5 star rating, but I don't like bad food, that's why I pick places like this. The Rincon Tropical over in southwest Detroit is a undiscovered Jewel. I've been here a handful of times and each visit has gotten better and better just like their empanadas. I've had many dishes here and I'm not sure where to start off , weather it be their amazing Puerto Rican fried chicken , the outstanding whole fried red snapper pictured below. It's the only Puerto Rican food I've had before and I can for sure say it's the best. The building is very easy to miss so when approaching look very hard to find and have your taste bud changed forever

Pretty decent Puerto Rican food, so that's the 4 stars. Why 1 star off? The music was being played an ear-bleeding, night club decibels and there were only 2 tables of patrons eating at 4pm on a Friday. My friend and I could barely hear one another! We both ordered the mofongo - she got the fried pork bites, and I got the shrimp. The fried pork was good, but each piece was pretty crispy/hard. My shrimp were tasty and so was the plantain mash, but there were no shrimp inside the actual mofongo, and I was disappointed. -Reasonable prices, and pretty authentic food. Tried Champagne cola for the first time! Looks like a fun place at night, might stop by sometime :)

WILD GOOD. The pernil con arroz. When I'm missing my culture, this place hits the spot and reminds me where I'm from every time! Wish I could eat this every single day.

I wish they were open every day. The food is very good. The service is okay. The atmosphere is very authentic. It is a good place to eat on a cold day (which we have a lot of). It is a little more expensive than what I like to pay, but with inflation, hey, that is the way it goes

From January 2016 Yelp deleted my review. Outrageous Deliciously Crafted Authentic Dominican Republic and Puerto Rican Food. Mofongo rules, Papa Rellones, Tostones Pollo, Ribs, Empala n much more, gotta love this place placing up fantastic meals going on 3 years now. Find them on Facebook a SW Detroit classic.

I've been to this restaurant several times in the past(30+ at least). Being PR we tend to look for what we love. This restaurant is no longer what I love. I haven't been here in about 3 or 4 years and I can honestly say that it has become a shell of what it once was. The menus are super small print. Severely overpriced. food was ok not what i was accustomed to at this restaurant. Calamari was burnt. The service was absolutely terrible!!! We ordered simple appetizers and it took over an hour to receive our food. Our drinks were brought out after about 20 minutes. Then we were never asked if we wanted a refill or another drink. I was upset because I had really spoken well about this restaurant, but it was a terrible experience. And when I asked about our food her response was "Well we have other orders." Keep in mind there were only three tables with customers in the whole restaurant. I will probably never go there again. I wonder what happened. Only four years ago everything from the menu to the service to the food and atmosphere was 1000 times better. So so disappointing.

The food here is delicious and the staff is really nice. I will always get mofongo when I come here. It's so good. The carne frita and pernil are also on point. You can't go wrong here.

Negative 10 stars none of the food was right definitely not pollo chicken and cheese first time going drove over a hour and a waste of money

You're really selling the whackest 13$ fricase de pollo we ever seen LOL tiny ass drum stick and thigh. I was giving you another chance after the first time we wasted our $ with y'all. Your pastelitos ain't shit either.

This place is cheeks. Building is dilapidated, decor is third world, food is way too expensive for what it is. No parking other than the crumbling alley next to the building which is annexed to an oil change shop. Glad we came in the afternoon because I would not feel comfortable spending any amount of time down there at night. Wasn't too long ago I was biking through this exact area and saw a guy casually walking across Michigan holding a gun in the middle of the day as if it was perfectly normal. Took forever to make the simplest things. Like we were here for over two hours and we only had 5 people and there were maybe 3 other tables. I ordered a salad, it took them like a half hour to bring it and it was literally a saucer of wet chopped iceberg lettuce sitting in warm water with a circular slice of beefsteak tomato and some cheap Italian bottled dressing. Shrimp mofongo was dry and tasteless. I usually don't comment on plating but it was so incredibly careless its worth mentioning. They cook for customers the way you cook at home for yourself when you're starving. It was like nobody's supposed to be impressed anyway so who cares. Staff, flippant and unprofessional as it gets. Having lived in NY and occasionally returning pretty often I'd like to think I have a pretty good gauge of good vs bad Puertorican food and this was the worst I've had. Definitely would never go anywhere near this dump again.

Do not order online, it is falsely advertised. I placed an order and when I got there the manager informed me that they are not affiliated with the yelp account. I order food that was delicious but I'm still waiting on yelp to refund me

Worst service ever !!! Then accused of not paying the bill that came to 45 dollars with a tip.. waitress indicates we only gave 25 dollars which was BS. We came for authentic PR food despite the bad neighborhood, a hole in the wall and druggy looking spot.. I guess we should have known better... NEVER AGAIN!! All this happened on Saturday June 27th..the food was an ok.. nothing spectacular!

Color me impressed. As a recent transplant to Michigan, I was really starting to believe I was the only Puerto Rican in town. Well this place took care of that falacy! The food was great, the service good although the place is not going to be winning any design awards it was clean and had some old school salsa playing. As a first timer there I had to go with the Mofongo con carne Frita. I was NOT expecting it to be as good as it was! My gringa loved it, the portions definitely did not seem small as I had read. The flavor was spot on, I mean really good Mofongo. Nothing fancy, just good old fashion Rican cuisine. If you want to sample some of the food of my people as my gringa says (who knew I had a people, lol) this is the right p[lace for you. You can bet I will return , really soon! Can't wait to sample their arroz con gandules and pernil among other delights. Oh and the beers were cold!

I love Caribbean food so I got here as fast as I could.... Then I slowed down quite a bit as I ventured onto a residential street off of Michigan Ave in Southwest Detroit. Don't get nervous! The food is worth the sacrifice of posh neighborhoods and fancy decor. I tried the mufango con carne frita which was amazing! I tore my steak up into little bits and mixed it together with the perfectly paired mufango. The butter married the two and by the time it was in my mouth, there were honeymoon fireworks going on. Did I say amazing? My husband tried the Monday special- pork which was simmered with green peppers and onions. It was delicious! The meat was tender and the seasonings played well together. It was like a pork version of ropa vieja but it had to be the most tender pork I've had. Nestled next to that brilliant main dish was arroz con gandules. Flavorful and fluffy! The prices are amazing considering the quality and taste of the food! Don't let the neighborhood or building fool you: these people know what they are doing and have set a new bar for Caribbean cuisine. Check their Facebook page for daily specials and pictures of their dishes!

Food was very good. Service was the worst. No plates or silverware for our appetizers. The long island ordered was super sour She decided to tell me they were out of what I ordered as my husbands food reached our table. When I asked how long it would take for something else her favorite response was "I dont know. There are orders before yours" ... We asked for a plate so I could share my husbands plate and was brought the world smallest plate.. Maybe that was the appetizer plate after all. Well we finally got the plantains we ordered after finishing the one meal we were forced to share... Weird.. Upon receiving our bill we notice a "service charge" added to our bill. We asked what it was and agian "I dont know" was the response. She said she would take it off... Ummm... Never the less we tipped her 20% And will never return or recommend This place...

Changed to new location at 6538 Michigan Ave. Tried it for the firs time yesterday. It changed locations from a smaller in the hood place. Now don't get me wrong, I love Divey- in the hood places. But- i hadnt worked up the nerve to go to this place yet. Since they changed locations, and turned it into almost a nightclub, and had pladted themselves all over FB and i had a craving for some of my type of food without cooking it. I said lets try it. It cost about 25 bucks for a Platillo (dinner) of a Fried Pork Chop, Arroz con Gandules and a small size salad, a Platillo of Fried Pork and Arroz con Gandules and side salad, Two Pastelillos/(Empanadillas) and an order of Tostones. The food was good. I mean, it would be better if I made it, but it's the kind of food where you're never going to have better than your own or your mom's, you know? LOL The price was ok. The portions could be bigger. I read that on the FB comments- So i was prepared. But it was ok- bigger than i expected after reading the comment. I was full after eating. But glad I got the extra empanadilla and tostones. The taste was good, flavorful, nothing overcooked or burnt, nothing off tasting, i'd go again.

Boy, was it worth the trip from Waterford to Southwest Detroit. You might not be able to see it because it isn't on a main drag but the food is definitely worth it. I enjoyed their mofongo con carne frita. For those who aren't familiar with Puerto Rican cuisine, mofongo is mashed fried green plantains with meat served on the side. It is often served with a butter sauce that goes over it and makes it even tastier. Before that however, I ordered some tostones which are fried slices of plantain. They came with a mayo/ketchup dip. Although I must say they were delicious with or without the dip. I will have to say this. The place is small. I want to promote this place because I'm for small businesses and this one is exceptional. I would most definitely come back.

loved this place. Finally found a authentic Spanish Puerto Rican spot in Michigan. Its a bar/club style place, so definitely an interesting feeling. Food was amazing and so was the service. I came during the day so they had just opened, but still had a great experience with the food and staff. looking forward to coming back here again to show my friends what real Puerto Rican food tastes like,.

Food is great! I've been here for 33min and I've still haven't gotten my water. Asked the waitress/bartender a few times. You guys could probably have more business if u hired the right people.

Eh. Want so much to love this place. Puerto Rican food can be tasty, full of flavor and complicated. Or, like this placce serves it, it can be bland, and tasteless. Sigh.

I am still dreaming about the roast pork and the Mofoo? The food is authentic delicious and very reasonable

Food was overpriced for the lack of quality. Chicken was one of the worst I've ever had, beans and rice were far from traditional, salad was cafeteria style at best, seafood was way overcooked, served swimming in a bowl of hot butter oil and not cleaned properly. The atmosphere from local patrons is far from friendly. Couldn't finish entree it was that bad and went to a local taco joint that I know wasn't dodgy and left that other establishment well satisfied. If you like to spend lots of money on sub-par food and mediocre service, this is the place. If you're looking for that special establishment that serves liquor and plays music that is authentically Puerto Rican, this is the place for you. Foodies be aware, I won't even post on here what I observed going on in the kitchen. Feel free to try this place out for yourself, don't say I didn't warn you.

So I'm just going to have to be brutally honest here! Is it hard to find authentic PuertoRican food here in Michigan! And although, it was worth the drive I'm not so sure I will be making an effort to drive the distance to this place as often as I initially thought. The alcapurias were lacking flavor the mofongo had a sweet type butter sauce on the side (weird for me). We tried a ton of side menu items, amarillos, rellenos de papa, Arroz con gandules, carne Frita, and pernil. Pasteles later ordered Best items: arroz con gandules, and pernil and carne Frita. Flavorful and tasted like campo food! Not my favorite: rellenos de papa (not enough flavor or meat) and mofongo I did however enjoy the pasteles and will be returning. Service was TOP NOTCH!

Waitress was nice. They had ran out of yellow rice, Mojitos, and fried chicken. Tostones were not smashed or double fried, also ran out of chimichurri which was on the menu to come with my steak. Maybe it was just a bad day.

Just had my BBQ ribs with Arroz con Gandules...loved it...rice a little dry maybe because I ordered by cell and took 2 hrs to pick up, but still great taste & flavor. The tostones were also great. Worth the drive from Garden City..the restaurant a little dive but the best dive I've been to since my San Francisco days. I am now a fan and will definitely will be returning for more & try other dishes. Delicious!

Overall is okay my only complaint is the mofongo. Every hispanic knows that mofongo is made out of green plantains not ripe. Also with NO butter but with garlic and chicharrones de cerro (pork grind) Somehow theirs is swimming in butter that even leaves a bad after taste. I have asked several times if they are serving me the other dish mangu and always I am told no that's how they make it. So I won't be back as my driving time there is more than an hour for okay food

PR food and music from a DR kitchen in a pretty odd place. They tracked down the last pastele in the place, kept the rice coming, and offered some great hospitality. Island hospitality in Detroit. Happiness.

I'm giving this place 5 stars because it's not easy to find authentic Puerto Rican food in Michigan. I have to say I am born and raised in PR. I know how authentic Puerto Rican food should taste. I am very impress with their pernil and mofongo. Their mofongo is much better than many restaurants in Puerto Rico. The arroz con gandules is Ok. I think it needed more seasoning (salt, ham, tocino). The rellenos de papa are huge and the flavor is pretty good too. We bought a dozen of pasteles (they are big) we haven't tried them yet. I totally recommend this place. Please be aware this is not a fancy place. This is what we call in Puerto Rico a kind of barrio cafeteria. The food is worth it. The waitresses were pretty friendly too. I will totally go back here.

Very happy to find a place on the eastside of the state that was definitely authentic to la isla. Had a small group so we ordered A TON of things off the menu including the pernil, alcapurrias, pastelillos/empanadas, canoas, maduros, platanos, arroz con gandules, arroz con habichuelas, etc. It seemed like if it was on the menu, we basically got it. And it was all delicious! The recipes and cooking techniques stayed true to traditional flavors and the portions were certainly fair. Price was fair as well. Our waitress was super nice, attentive, and funny. Talked to us like we were family so that warmth added to the enjoyment of our meal. Only notch is that the food took a bit of a while, but I wasn't so surprised as, like I said, we had a group of hungry adults. Cash only is a bummer, but not a deal-breaker. Next time I'm there, I'd like to try the sancocho and/or pasteles.

Was on yelp looking up another place when this place popped up. I decided that I needed this in my life immediately lol. I ordered the crispy pork with mofungo to go. After the first bite I knew this place was serious about their food. I will definitely be going back VERY soon.

This is a great little gem. Reasonable prices for such great food and portion sizes. The staff is friendly, service was fast. It is a family friendly bar. I've been several times and have suggested it to my friends and I am now suggesting it for you as well. Order a Relleno.

Great place, ambient, service and food. I came with my family and eat pork with Tr-fongo, that was delicious.

Food was really good. My favorite was the alcapurrias. Everything I've had from there is truly delicious. The only reason I didn't give more stars is because of the building condition. It's not very welcoming. Parking was not very good and the building itself looked rundown and not the cleanest. It looks more like a bar than a restaurant. The setting works for a bar but as a restaurant not so much.

The food is very good, authentic and fresh. Friendly staff. Excellent mofongo and flan. The venue is in a shady location with a cafetín atmosphere. The food has 4 stars.

Their food has been consistently very good each time. Reminded me of actual Puerto Rican food. In the past have ordered their Alcapurrias, papa relleno, Empanadilla, chuleta, tostones, mofongo, fried salami, rice and gandules, and Pernil. Most recently on 7/23/15 ordered 2 Alcapurrias, 1 papa relleno and an empanadilla. The food was again very good and everyone has been very friendly. Wish they were located closer and in a better neighborhood, but they are worth the drive for the food and service.

I love this place food was so good and the service was excellent as well. I was order the fried pork with rice and beans and plantains. I also brought my friend and she enjoyed it as well, we both needed up with an carry out order as well lol two thumbs up!!!

Food is good, not the best. Service is horrible. The young cashier was so unprofessional along with the cooks talking about drinking and sex in front of everyone. I called ahead and asked for my food to be wrapped in aluminum paper to keep it hot, the person that took mmh order said that they would do it, I get there and remind the cashier about the aLuminum paper and apparently everyone answered without knowing because before leaving it turns out they did not have aluminum paper. The girl in the front tells me I can go buy the paper andd they will wrap my food. I think the owner was there, walked past me multiple times and didn't even say hi. This place has potential but it's just bad management

Hello all, I loved the food, clean place, simple but great food, you have to park in the street but I can live w/ that. Notice that the location is on 6538 Michigan Ave Detroit 48210. Guys the pernil is delicious, and the mofongo taste like from PtoRico or DR - Eric

The food here is very authentic and delicious! The pork was full of flavor and nothing I ordered was bland! The mofongo was perfect with the garlic sauce on top!

Food was good.4 stars for that. Like when they gave us appetizers for the first time I was shock ... I had pork and fired plantians ... Decor for better then before ... Waitress was friendly and nice .place was full with ppl first I seen ... What I didn't like was when I went to the restroom it was one stall that was available but didn't have a seat cover like come on put the cover seat that was in the out of order stall at least ... We not men that could stand and pee .. We women like come one ....