This is my go-to place for fresh shrimp cocktail, guacamole, pico de gallo, and warm tortillas. They are always fresh!!!

Quick fast and good quality tacos ton a Tuesday $1,25 each, can't beat that Lots to choose from chicken, pork, tripe, carne asada If you're feeling adventurous, get some tripa and cabeza, it's really good and you're likely not going to cook it yourself Enjoy read more

Cardenas Markets - 4 tacos on taco Tuesday, 1.25 each - International Grocery Near Me - San Rafael, California

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Marcella or Marcel the cashier with red glasses was so rude. And didn't even help to bag didn't know any of the produce. Would just toss the items and even our GLASS bottles. Kept asking for help from her peers because she didn't know. Had an attitude the whole time. At the end instead of helping me bag she just pushes the items away. Needs to do better if she doesn't like her job get a new one where you don't work with customers. At read more

We visited this market on multiple occasions during a week-long stay in San Rafael. They have a great hot food section and we were able to get some really delicious tacos for $1.25 on Taco Tuesday! It can be a little confusing though and at one point we had to order our tacos at one location and then move to a different location to order a carnitas family meal. The grocery store is nice overall and they have a fresh flower selection and lots of delicious treats at the bakery. The only reason that I can't give this location five stars is because had the prices are a little high and although they offer some deals, like buy multiples and get a better price, we found on more than one occasion that the offers are deceptive and/or they don't honor them at checkout. Because of this, we ended up spending a lot more for regular groceries than we would have liked. I would definitely come back here for taco Tuesdays and for the horchata though. read more

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Taco Tuesday at Cardenas is a must! The food is great, the prices are even better. I get the Birria, chicken, and Asada which are all fantastic. I've tried both the red and green salsa and I have a preference for the red, but it is on the spicer side, but the taste is definitely worth it. They serve everyone very fast and are all very nice! read more

Cardenas Markets - Menu - International Grocery Near Me - San Rafael, California

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If I could give this place 0 stars I would, and given the experiences I've read from previous patrons/yelpers, I'm surprised that this place even has the HIGH rating of 2 and a half stars! Today, as a black woman, I witnessed another black woman being racially profiled in the most disgusting way! I saw a man who worked at the store FOLLOW HER OUT TO HER CAR YALL!! HE repeatedly asked her to show her receipt! When she showed her receipt for the items in hand he then TOOK A PICTURE of the receipt!!! I couldn't believe it! She was visibly upset, and even after coming back into the store to confront the COWARD of a female cashier who instructed the man to follow her out, she was met with attitude, a condescending tone, and flat out disrespect! This woman (the black woman who was profiled) mentioned that she was an officer, and the female cashier DID NOT BELIEVE HER!!! THE AUDACITY! I just cannot believe that I witnessed something like this, and it makes me sad to think that once again black women are attacked for NOTHING!!! I will be sure to inform my family and friends of this who still live in the Bay Area, as I am only visiting from NC, and was stopping in to grab a few items for a party I was attending. I was happy to see the manager "right this wrong", but for me the damage was already done. WILL NEVER SUPPORT BUSINESSES LIKE THIS THAT HIRE RACIST, IGNORANT, AND DOWNRIGHT MORALLY WRONG employees! read more

My partner is Mexican and took me here to get Caldo do pollo because we're both sick. It was delicious but when I spoke full Spanish to the workers they spoke English to me back, which hurt a little bit but I understand! read more

Good prices, and Mexican ingredients you can't get elsewhere. Don't look for affirmation from the staff and you will enjoy shopping here just fine. read more

La atención al cliente va peor cada día !!! Los precios que ponen en los estantes no salen cuando uno va pagar , hoy quise comprar dos bolsas de chips los cuales decían estar a $2.50 y en la caja aparecían a $4.99 , en lugar de ir a verificar el precio solo me dijeron ese precio sale y no en la otra caja estaba pasando lo mismo , los cajeros no se ofrecen a verificar el precio de las cosas , tuve que dejarlos y la otra persona en la otra caja igual dejo el producto que tenía precio equivocado, deberían de capacitarlos un poco mejor con la atención al cliente read more

I get my groceries delivered from them. Great prices and enough to justify the long distance charge. They are the only place to get roasts thin sliced. Lucky's and Safeway can't hold a candle to this outlet! read more

This is my go to place for Latin products it's like Safeway, but Latin with everything you could imagine they make their own tortillas. They have a bakery. They have a huge meat counter. They have a counter with dips and cheeses. They have a huge assortment of Latin beers and tequilas, and they also have a full service Taqueria with a lot of different foods. I usually get the other tacos or burrito and the quality is pretty good for a grocery store. read more

Prices are Super elevated...WoW Service.. they all have really BAD ACTITUD every department you good an actitud, they make you feel like customers should thank them for the service . Honestly if they don't like any of the position...they can go find work somewhere else. Us as customers we don't need to put up with their problems. read more

The prices are so reasonable. Everything was di fresh. I bought some carnitas, tortillas and pico de gallo Had a great dinner with it.

My first review of the year goes to the business that made my last week of the year great: Cardenas Market. When cooking at home the trick is to get the right quality ingredients that are fresh. This makes Asian and Mexican markets my FAVORITES. Cardenas Market has fresh produce, meats, and all the spices and pantry staples you will need. I strategically ordered their bakery items for my birthday so we could try their cake, cupcakes, and coffee cake. I am not shy about my frustration that bakeries and donut shops are a rarity due to their absorption into chain grocery stores but this one pulls it off. Impossibly light, not too sweet vanilla cupcakes delighted my family while the tres leches cake impressed seasoned eaters. The coffee cake was dense, delicious, and not too sweet. Anything Mexican you need, buy it here or you will be overspending and and and remember - turnover on recipe repeats have a higher turnover than your standard grocery store so save cash and get fresher products. I say that is win win! Thanks to Cardenas Market my family enjoyed many Mexican meals over the Christmas holidays like tamales rojos, birria de res, pozole, carnitas, and arroz con pollo. We also had treats like champurrado, gelatina frescos con crema , and gelatin mosaico. I made so much red and green salsas from their impossibly fresh produce to dip a gazillion bags of crispy tortilla chips into. It was marvelous! I spent a lot of my holiday week doing what I love in the kitchen - cooking for my family so they could eat well and relax. That tres leches cake tasted like the cakes I've enjoyed at my Mexican friends parties. It was really nice to have a delicious big one for my birthday! Thanks Cardenas Market! read more

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I am shaking as i type this. Today the female staff at the self checkout had my sister followed to her car and harassed by security ACCUSING her of stealing!! Even with receipt proof!! She wasnt stopped at the door like Walmart or Costco does to check receipts as policy for everyone BUT HE FOLLOWED HER TO HER CAR AND TOLD HER TO SHOW HER RECEIPT!!!! THEN proceeded to take a photo of her receipt with his personal cellphone!! To do this to a BLACK WOMAN in the social climate we're living in at this time is ridiculous!!! When my sister goes back in to speak to a manager, the female staff LIED and said she didnt see my sister scan the items (water and gatorade) AGAIN THE RECEIPT WAS SHOWN THAT SHE DID INDEED SCAN AND PAY!!! My sister even informed the female staff that she's an officer and would never steal because she has integrity! To which the female MOCKS her and condescendingly repeats back "oh you're an officer". How fucking dare y'all treat patrons this way?!? The only saving grace was the manager Luis who profusely apologized, said that them following her was against policy and even acknowledged that the female staff was WRONG for what she did!!!! AND that he will be training her!! He refunded my sister and said he will help her for future visits because she is a REGULAR!!! read more

I like this store because of their pastry/bakery section. I enjoyed the different pastries I bought here like the empanadas de piña. Hoping to try them all one day. They also have some great prices for their produce. I like the 2lbs for .99cents deal that they have. At times you can get avocados for .50c each. I just enjoyed browsing on the products that they offer here. I feel like I'm in Mexico or other Latin American country when I'm in this store. read more

Cardenas Markets - Assorted chiles - International Grocery Near Me - San Rafael, California

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Very bad service it was barely at 9:15 pm and the cashier didn't want to charge me, she sent me to the self order, and if I can't use the self order, is this serious? read more

The grocery/market has fantastic selection with insanely low prices (especially for produce), but the catering options are amazing. We did the 25-person taquiza party pack for our son's birthday. Setting it up in-store was easy, and the price was much cheaper than other similar options. We got a TON of food, and it tasted amazing: asada and grilled chicken, half-trays of rice and beans, 180 (!) mini tortillas, their homemade tortilla chips, and containers of onions, cilantro, red and green sauces, and toreado chili peppers. We ate maybe 1/3 of the food at the party and froze the rest. We've been chipping away at the leftovers for three months now, and each time we are reminded of how delicious the food is. We know where to go if we need food for another party. I still want to check out the cocina for lunch or dinner one of these days. I'm kind of shocked by the reviews and overall rating I'm seeing. It seems like people are talking about a completely different place. read more

Love the Salsa their food and variety of groceries. The produce is great I love this store!

Here has a great with reasonable prices.. get to come every time we in the area..,stock up my fridge with vegetables / meats n seafood,,and bake goods.. parking is great too. Inside has cooked food area. So worth it.. yeah, I just think of Chicharrón in guacamole.... Lol... read more

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I'm giving two stars: one star is for the lack of cleanliness and the second star is for the long checkout lines. The only reason why I shop at Cardenas is for the convenience. If it wasn't for that I wouldn't shop here at all. The store is dirty and unkept. Since Mi Pueblo changed to Cardenas last year, the interior of the store and service has gone downhill. I understand there is a high volume of shoppers, but the floors are dirty and the shelves are disorganized. Not once have I seen an employee clean the floors. You will find a good amount products on the shelves at the checkout lanes that people end up deciding not to purchase while they wait in line. The lines to checkout are ridiculously slow. There are maybe three registers open at any given time if you're lucky. Ontop of that there is no register for 10 items or less and no self check out registers! So if you are like me where I only purchase a few items, I am stuck waiting an eternity. read more

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The selection of prepared food, as well as market products (fruits, veg, meats, dairy, bread, etc) is the best in the area. Prices are fair and food is delicious. Every staff member I've interacted with has been friendly and helpful. The store itself is always clean and playing music. Will keep coming forever and ever. read more

I never go to this market, but we went last Friday. We were in line to pay when the cashier asked us to use the self checkout because she was closing the line. We went to self checkout and saw the cashier helping other people at the same exact checkout right after telling us she had closed. AWFUL CUSTOMER SERVICE!! read more

Came to enjoy some tacos. I noticed how unorganized the staff was here. A total of about five workers serving and attending. All customers who are ordering food while only having one cashier lady charging for everybody. I noticed how the cashier lady was being overworked and stressed. While the rest of the workers were only serving the food instead of helping her by opening a new cashier register to take the load off of her. The rest of the workers kept informing her she has more and more plates of food to charge and this made me feel very sad for her. I am not the type of person to go on yelp and review places, but looking at her struggle really made me feel like Cardenas should be doing better in taking care of their employees. read more

Best place to get tacos. Tacos are 1.99 and of course on Tuesdays it's one dollar. Typical tacos with choice of meat, cilantro, onions, and sauce. They just recently installed self-checkouts so it's convenience if you're buying less items. read more

Cardenas is not like how it was 6 years ago. The hot food section is very low staff and unorganized. My elderly mother asked for a pupusa and then the lady just grabbed one already made not sure how long it has been sitting there for and sold it to us. She did not even ask us what kind of pupusa she wanted she just grabbed anyone. When I told her what kind she dropped that one and picked up another. Not sure how long they been sitting there. I know they were not fresh, for sure. I use to be a deli manager for Sprouts, so I do have some sort like bare minimum expectations. She was not considerate. So I'm really shocked how this all went down. When I asked for on the side she uses the same pupusa that is soaked in the juice. Gross! She then proceeds to blame my mother when I was doing all the talking. How unprofessional! I understand they do get busy. I think it was the manager who was nice enough to tell me if I wanted another one instead of the same pupusa that was soaked in the sauce. Then a worker in the deli name, Leticia laughed. Not sure what was so funny. I was upset. When I asked for her name, she seemed really stunned. She told her manager that she doesn't understand me, but she did understand me because she laughed so she understood something that was funny to her. So unacceptable. Moral of the story: you should always ask what kind of pupusa the customer wants as well, as if they would like the vegetables and sauce on top or on the side. -BW read more

There are many reasons to buy food at Cardenia's. I love their Papusa's. They make them to order and have bean, cheese, or pork. Or a combo of all three. It gets served with a side of Cole slaw with a tomato sauce. You can get them at the deli and they are delicious! They don't have them on Tuesday. They take a few minutes to make and you can shop while you wait. The woman who makes them is irreplaceable and deserves a raise! She makes the best Papsas I have had anywhere. Lots of other bargains here. I love the sweet cornbread in the bakery, Gatorade for 85 cents, great produce, freshly made tortillas and chips, Carnitas, and much more. These Papusas are my happy place. read more

Cardenas Markets - If you see this lady making Papusa's you are in for a treat! - International Grocery Near Me - San Rafael, California

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I'll let you in on a secret. Cardenas market makes great soup. I usually get the pollo de caldo (chicken soup) on mornings when I'm hungover. They always have chicken soup readily available every morning 7 days a week. Chicken soup is served with a side of rice and warm tortillas. For 12 bucks you get soup tortillas and rice. I always feel 100% better after chicken soup from Cardenas after a night of drinking. The fresh salsas are good too. I love the fresh salsa with their fresh made chips. My second favorite tip is, add a dollop of fresh salsa to morning scrambled eggs for a zesty breakfast treat! I loves salsa eggs with a little cheese. Guac and tamales are great too. Try them out read more

I love the staff here, they are real deal and passionate and humble honest folks. No Bougie stuck up earth food garbage. Scientists have stated many organic products don't perform better than conventional. Fresh daily tortillas, baguette, veggies are cheap, hot food deals, $6 for 8 pieces of grilled chicken comes with tortillas and salsa, can't beat the especiale de dia! Marinated al pastor chicken and pork, I ain't about to marinate my own and taco meat at Cardenas is the only marinated meat I buy. Fresh salsa, guacamole, pico de gallo. Delicious. When I say a sentence on Spanish , they continue to speak to me in Spanish and teach me and I get to learn. Not like the Chinese dim sum ladies in the pennisula with their busted engrish speaking to me when I speak Chinese, like who you trying to impress? I don't need your busted English I don't even know how to order dim sum in English. 你覺得你很聰明! Lumba one! Any love these down to earth folks, taco night can't wait. Thanks Cardenas for the value and freshness! read more

Cardenas advertises Hatch chilis for $1.49 a pound this week and doesn't stock them, but instead stocks Anaheim chilis, which are almost the same, for $3.49 a pound. Cardenas does not serve customers well! read more

hola buenas noches, hoy jueves, agosto 1 fue a mi tienda favorita de preferencia que es Cardenas en San Rafael y gaste un poco más de 600 dólares en compra la cual no tuve la molestia de yo empaquetar en boldas y mi parej, y al final por un error de no cobrar Unas 3 cajas que por error no se cobraro, no me gustó en el modo que fui tratado como si estuviera robando todo lo que traí, unas disculpas por el erro pero, no está bien que traten a la gente as. read more

Metal/aluminum chunk found on a (mantecada) this morning, you guys need to be more careful packing or preparing food...this is not OK. If my daughter would've eat that bread I don't know what would've happened. I expect an apology ASAP. Or this will go to the CONSUMERS COMPLAIN DEPARTMENT. read more

Cardenas Markets - International Grocery Near Me - San Rafael, California

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When people ask me what this store is like I say it's a Latin Safeway. It has all the same departments and more. This is a really cool store with every kind of Latin ingredients you could want they have a full-service Taqueria they make their own tortillas they have a a sausage and cheese section. They have a massive amount of Latin beers and American as well. Plus, of course, tequilas. The produce is good and is well priced. You won't find that obscenely expensive organic stuff here just decent prices such as large avocados for a dollar each how can you go wrong with that. Probably the only thing that I would not buy here is fish from the seafood department because I don't like fish such as tilapia etc.. I think that the shrimp is OK but I wouldn't get any fish from there. read more

This store has great deals on produce. However, their customer service is awful and management doesn't even care. Cashiers are always on a bad mood and have zero interest in helping. I was recently in the self checkout and this guy that was in charge of the self check out didn't even bother to direct people or help out because he was too busy chatting with a young lady. On top of that he asks me to get out of the line because that's not where the line starts after standing there for more than 20mins and people before had been standing where I was standing. There's a long line and people lots of people standing behind me. If he had been doing his job he would have directed the line and help people check out faster. Later I asked to speak for the manager and no where to be found. If u are looking for great deals I recommend this place but keep in mind that checking out will be annoying. read more

If you are looking for items from south of the border, this chain store is the place. Especially if I'm making something local or something exotic. The have an impressive selection of fresh and dry goods that should set you straight whether you are from Mexico, Central America, even South America. With hard to find items like fresh loroco, or fresh nopales. Dairy special meat, in house tacos and hot foods. An amazing place for sure. A must see. Want to freak out the little ones. Take them to see the fresh made cakes. read more

It was our first time buying groceries from this supermarket since is on the way home. AVOID BUYING MEAT FROM THEM we have purchased meat and left it in the fridge for couple of days and as soon as we wanted to use the meat we've noticed that they have given us more fat then meat even on that day the guy refused to cut the meat for us. Selling is one thing but given your costumers fat for meat isn't honest thing to do. We try to save some meat but will never buy from this store again. read more

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Good selection of salsa, guac and other traditionally Central America food. Lines for checkout can be long. read more

Cardenas Markets - Long line at checkout - International Grocery Near Me - San Rafael, California

3.5 stars. I'm a little scared after reading all the negative reviews, but I can say that I have had some good experiences at Cardenas since it took over from Mi Pueblo, which I really liked. First, if you live a fairly gringo/ gringa life, it's a really fun grocery experience. I like to bring my almost four year old every once in a while because she loves the music, the decorations, and the pink sugared buns. In October, she loved/ was totally scared by the Halloween and Day of the Dead decorations. We also picked her birthday piñata here. And when my friend from DC visits, she always insists on making a trip there. She's Mexican American from a small Southern California mountain town and it reminds her of home. She likes the chile rellenos, too. I will say, however, you can find better tamales elsewhere in town. read more

I absolutely loved this market. The food, the selection, the people. Now the self-checkout is just terrible. People need jobs and I do not want to be a cashier. Really dreadful customer service now. read more

I was in the neighborhood and decided to try the " deli" section for some tacos. They are small "street" sized. I had three delicious pork tacos, with guac, pico, and cheese. I enjoyed them so much I went back the next week when driving through the area and ordered the same, but this time a man there tried to charge 40% more for the same number of tacos with the same ingredients?! The prices in the grocery section are about the same as safeway. Their meat section does have marinated meats like carne asada, which I'll have to try if I ever go back. I could give them a higher rating, but this experience deadened my enthusiasm for the place. read more