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Categories: Caribbean, Cuban, Tapas Bars [Edit]
Neighborhood: Haight-AshburyMon-Thu. 11:30 a.m. - 11:00 p.m.
Fri-Sat. 11:30 a.m. - 11:30 p.m.
Sun. 11:30 a.m. - 11:00 p.m.
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they need to triple the size of this place.
Great food
Went for dinner
I always get the shrimp, calamarie, both super good and must have
Mushroom are off the hook
I tried the steak its not too bad.
Everyone goes there for wine of course. try it you wont want to leave
Food coma will happen
You had me at sangria! The gf and I decided to come here bc of the infamous sangria we heard so much about. We came on a fri and was told the wait was 45 min. No problem! over to the bar we go! it was really crowded, but we didnt care as long as we had the pitcher of delicious ambrosia in our hands.
after about an hr, we were finally seated. we ordered the chicken wings, cajun shrimp, and mussels. I'm not sure if it was the buzz from the sangria that added to the deliciousness of the meal, but everything was superb! The chicken wings and mussels were cooked perfectly and were both very tasty. The shrimp was on another level on its own! I could probably take the cream sauce home just to eat over rice! yummm! can't wait to go back and try the other dishes but too bad they don't take reservations!
*nom nom*
Came here last night with the gf and some coworkers since we haven't been to the city in the while. One thing I hate about the city is parking, but fortunately we found parking a block away for free - a good start!
Cha Cha Cha is kinda known for its long wait time, and on a Friday or Saturday night it is usually an hour to an hour and a half. At least that's what the host may tell you. I know it definitely makes a difference if you have 5 ppl or under and you're all there when you put your name down. Just a tip.
Ambiance - dim lighting with loud music, not loud enough to kill the convo but loud enough to facilitate getting jiggy with it as the sangria works its magic. :) Tables are tiny, most are appropriate for 5 or under. Booths take a long time to wait for, and the tapas-style dining really encourages the wait time to elongate. Restaurant in the front, bar in the back - you can eat at either.
As this is a tapas restaurant, the dishes come small but cheaper, allowing you to control your eating to an okay-full so you're not gonna spill your guts on the dancefloor that you're most likely going to be on in an hour or two.
NOW THE DISHES!
Jamaican Jerk Chicken - my GOLDEN standard for jerk chicken is Back-A-Yard in Menlo Park. If you've been there, you know the chicken is spicy, tender and juicy. The major difference at Cha Cha Cha is the amount of jerk sauce. When the dish arrived, the mound of jerk sauce completely covered 2 pieces of chicken underneath (yes just 2, but big 2, this is tapas after all). The amount of jerk sauce did not equate the expected level of spiciness. The jerk sauce actually had a hint of sweetness to it, which is a nice little bonus. The smothered chicken was definitely tender, spicy and juicy. I'd say the quality of the jerk chicken is right up there with Back-A-Yard.
Black Mussels - Let me just say that i have never liked mussels, till tonight. I mean this dish didn't completely revolutionized mussels or anything but it was cooked in a broth that made the mussel meat very tender and likened it to some kinda clam - nice and soft, and the broth itself was just delicious. We had drizzled some steamed rice with it, and it was a bad mama jama.
Fried Calamari - I'm always a fan of the calamari, but I've been some pretty decked out calamari. This was not the case here, just run of the mill fried calamari. Nothing special here.
Cajun Shrimp - Tiger shrimp in spicy and creamy sauce. The sauce almost likened some kind of spicy orange Indian curry. I would have preferred some prawns cooked this way instead, and there were only 7 or 8 shrimps in this dish. All of this being said, the dish itself tasted excellent. The taste wasn't complex, it was simply spicy and creamy - an agreeable combo of tastes with these shrimps. Try em!
Fried Platanos Maduros - fried plantains with black beans and sour cream. Excellent! We all know how fried plantains taste, and the crisp sweetness of the plantains combined with savoriness of black beans cooked with sour cream made for a delicious mixture. Creaminess on fried plantains with an extra soft bite of the beans. Mmmmmmmm.
Seafood Paella - pretty much what it sounds like. Some shrimp, mussels, etc. in paella. Not bad, but I wouldn't call it the house special.
Spanish Rice and Black Beans - standard rice dish, nothing to write home about.
Great red sangria - a tad strong but kinda makes you want it more. Delicious. Get a pitcher for sure.
Overall excellent experience! Give this place a try. Haven't been to the one in the Mission district but this is definitely great place for small group get-together!
Do you like a TAPAS? Do you like music with rhythm? Do you like an environment that is full of people with personality and fun? Well Cha Cha Cha is the place for you! It's sooooooo good that even on a Sunday evening it is bumpin'!
My cousins, sister, and I went and it was fab-u-lous because our waiter was super nice, helpful, and quick to refill our water. Such intentional efficiency!
The cool part about this place was the culinary twist of Carribbean inspired tapas. Sooooo delicious.
My favorite dish: Plantains with melted cheese over beans. Believe it or not it is a nice contrast between the sweetness of the plantains and the saltiness of the beans. Yuuuuum.
My favorite drink: Their homemade sangrias. Best part is eating the leftover fruit. Delicious!
Thank you Yelp for helping me find yet another great place. I probably would have never walked in here if I hadn't already heard about it on yelp. And I'm so glad I did.
The main thing to say is that the Sangria is AMAZING!
Most sangria I have ever had has been too much like fruit punch or waaaayyy to winey. This was another drink entirely! I would recommend it to anyone and everyone.
We also ordered a few tapas. The Cajun Shrimp was very tasty. We ordered another loaf of bread just to mop up the rest of the sauce. The Fried Calamari was unremarkable, I have had better at street festivals. The Ceviche Del Dia wasn't very fresh just really lemoney.
In general, I would come back here in an instant just for that sangria.
Dropped in here on a weekend excursion...
Skipped the table and headed straight to the bar...instant service. She was the perfect bartender/waitress and knew exactly when to check on us...
I highly recommend the sangria...if for nothing else but the fruit at the bottom (the grapes are the best). Also, the paella is decent enough to try it again...most of their appetizers are good.
A chill place to have a pitcher and talk about old times...
4 1/2 stars
My first time to Cha Cha Cha's was in the Fall of 1993. My girlfriend and I just arrived in San Francisco after graduating from College. Family friends took us here, and being young and innocent to the city, we were blown away. Some of the same staff work here since we first walked through the doors. Cha Cha Cha's is an experience. It's the great salsa music, the people watching, the fun loose atmosphere. It feels more like a restaurant/bar/club wrapped into one.
I admit that I write this review through colored lenses. Sometimes a dish or two is inconsistent, but the fact that I've eaten here almost 200 times, it's to be expected. It's the place you take out of town guests (which includes friends from less culinary endowed cities like San Jose and the Peninsula). The memories of getting drunk off sangria and stumbling down to the Haight Street bars and being thrown out of Persian Aub Zam Zam by the grumpy but lovable owner Bruno (RIP Bruno).
Description of food, what to expect:
The dishes are big tapas and rich. Unlike most tapas places, 4 to 5 dishes are plenty for a group of 4. A group of 4 should be able to get out of here full and a little buzzed for under $90, not including tip.
The seafood is good: Fried Calamari is great if done right, lately has been inconsistent. Order first, difficult to eat fried squid after chowing down 4 dishes. Mussels in broth is a bargin, always good. Ceviche is 6 of 10 (I was recently in Lima, Peru; sorry Cha Cha Cha's), and most of the specials are creative and well done.
The best dishes are anything with a cream sauce. Chicken Palliard and Cajun shrimp are amazing. Make sure to dip you bread in the sauces.
My Other perennial favorites are the guava chicken wings, the quesadilla's, the potato's (often skip because they'll fill me up), black bean soup. You can skip the plates, but venture into the specials if they sound good. They change daily, and often are very good.
Just to recap:
1.Great place to start your weekend night or bring friends to fun atmosphere. No reservations, so get there before 6:30pm to avoid an hour wait. Although, if they say 1 hour, probably more like 30 minutes).
2.Stick with the tapas and my recommended dishes above.
3. Order the sangria.
4. Still a bargin and fun place after all these years.
Can't believe I didn't already review this place. I LOVE THIS PLACE!
One complaint I've read about is that there is usually a long wait, but I NEVER mind the wait because we just head over to the bar and get a pitcher of sangria. time flies!
My friends and I will make the trip to SF from SJ for an evening of fun with sangria and cajun shrimp! The atmosphere is so Haight St.
I always make sure we have the cajun shrimp.
TIP: order it with extra sauce and enjoy with the free bread!!
The jerk chicken is really good
The chicken pallard is good - the sauce that it comes in goes well with the bread too
The new fried potatoes and platanos are pretty good too.
Conclusion:
Friends + cajun shrimp + Cha's Sangria = successfull night
This is and will be for years to come one of my favorite restaurants.
I have been to both the one in the Haight and the Mission and they are both excellent.
One of the few places I have been in which I have tried 95% of their entire menu (it's actually a very small menu).
Can't go there without getting a full pitcher of Sangria.
The potatoes with the aioli sauce is superb (I know it's just just fried potatoes but that sauce makes it sooooo good!).
The shrimp dish has a sauce that makes you want to lick your plate.
Platanos are good, in general I'm not a big fan of Mussels but they are great.
Ceviche and the Calamari are both fantastic.
Good to go with a small group of people and get 1 full pitcher of Sangria.
As a vegetarian I wasn't too impressed with this place. I went with a large group and the vegetarian tapas we got were the fried plantains, sauteed mushrooms, fried new potatoes,and the black beans and rice. If you have had these items anywhere else then they probably will taste the same. I mean, can you really go wrong with these items? I was expecting something different from the plantains and the aioli that came with the fried potatoes but both were just meh - nothing to rave about. I was definitely expecting more spice from the chile aioli but honestly, I could barely taste the chile and there was no hint of spice. The plantains are equivalent to the ones I can get on campus at SFSU.
On the plus side the atmosphere is pretty cool and I really liked the sangria. And all my meat eating friends raved about the meat options, particularly the sauce that accompanied the mussels (ask for extra bread to slop it all up!)
I met up with my friends last weekend in the Haight and at random we picked Cha Cha Cha. The wait was long- 45 mins maybe more since we weren't watching the clock- and they were unwilling to seat us until everyone in our party arrived.
However the gentleman at the door was nice enough to let us use the bathroom while we waited. Once we got in the place was packed! We got seated in a booth- which was tight for me- so FYI if you want more legroom or just breathing room- ask for a table not a booth.
The wait staff was super attentive and we quickly ordered- my friend got the prawns, another the veggie dish, the other one - the mussels and myself the Plantanos y Crema with Black beans.
The plantanos were done just right and I would know.. since I cook them pretty regularly and was taught by my former roommate who is Nicaraguan.
We enjoyed our food- even if the noise levels keep rising as our time in the place increased.
I will definitely be back.. just on a weekday not a weekend.
A standard every time I visit the Haight.. sometimes, most of the time, I think it's the reason we make the 40min drive up!
I LOVE their SANGRIAS!!! Sweet, tart, chunks of fruit.. this drink will creep up on you!
As for the food.. I've had the chicken paillard, ceviche, cajun shrimp (my fav. by far.. I'll usually just get the extra sauce to dip with), and a mess of other stuff that obviously wasn't memorable enough to list. The food in general is decent/good.. I wish their Tapa's menu offered more since you're usually sharing with a group, but I only come here for their Sangria anyways.
The atmosphere is fun and sometimes there's a bit of a wait. .but just find a spot by the bar in the back and you'll be a happy camper.
This review is for the bar area only!
Left a house party, wanted to get some fresh air and of course drinks! It was close to 10 pm and this place was packed!
For six of us we ordered a pitcher of Sangria( http://www.yelp.com/bi...). The pitcher was filled to the top full!!! Each of us were able to fill our glasses and of course top off about two or three times. I think someone couldn't finish and I helped them with theirs. The Sangria is very smooth. Not strong or overpowering at all. A perfect mix!
The vibe is pretty random. I saw the Marina types, Haight types, business types but one thing was held in common. Everyone was either happy to be here or really enjoying theirselves. The servers and bartenders were really fast and on point with their orders. I saw plates brimming with delectable bites.
I would come back again, if not only for the Sangria but also to get some of those Crispy Calamari or tasty tapas I saw:)
Love the Haight!
I would probably give this 3.5 stars if I could. Sangria is pretty darn good. Tapas are ok, but I think if I wasn't veg I would be more impressed, the meat ones looked/sounded better. The mushrooms aren't really sauteed - I can tell they are boiled and then held hot for the day. BF liked them, but the restaurant I used to work in also did this and it makes me go ICK... also if you order a side of aioli, prepared to shell out an extra $2 - definately wouldn't have if I had known! Overall a decent meal.
The problem with going to restaurant with Tapas as their dish is I usually end up having to spend A LOT of money and STILL be hungry.
So I was skeptical into going to this place, but thankfully the dishes were a good size portion that was well worth the price. I was especially impressed by the full on access of as much bread as I want! Which made the bread dipping into the many different sauces of each dish splendid!
However, I still had to pay a lot because me and my friends ordered Sangria.
Nonetheless compared to going to other tapas places, this place I didn't go hungry.
Again, I was very hung over here, but I still know what good food taste like. I honest was not impress with anything there! Everything was just fine to me, but at least it wasn't nasty it was decent.
We ordered there famous Sangria it was aight, I've had way better. Had there cevichi, to American for me didnt have the authentic civichi taste to me. Got there spinach salad which look good, but was ok. There Calamari wasn't the best either it was calamari but I had much better. My fav had to be the Muscles that was good and the sauce they made it in was good, i even use the sauce to dip the bread in LOL.
Overall this place was ok to me. I would go back just for the vibe and the ambiance. Cool place to kick it you know!!
- Enjoy
The best Tapas I've ::ever:: had!
Lately, we've been finding ourselves in The City for dinner, and it's been a "Raving-Fan" sort of experience every time. Cha Cha Cha is no exception.
Directed here by a friend that has been frequenting the establishment since she was a almost ten, she set up a nice get-together for our group of 9.
While my boyfriend and I were "almost there" for about 20-minutes, our group arrived, ordered a two pitchers of sangria, drained one and nearly cleared the second, leaving one glass-full for me. We walked in the door just as they were being seated at a big table in the corner.
Amazingly, we got rock-star parking in front of Amoeba Records while there was an event going on, so parking wasn't the typical horror-story tale you get anywhere else in SF.
We sampled so much on the tapas menu, I have to list and comment (if you don't mind).
FRIED CALAMARI - soooo good! I love that garlic aioli sauce.
JAMAICAN JERK CHICKEN - this was a favorite of the boyfriend, and served more spicy than normal, by report. I only sampled a little bit, and not enough to truly have a strong opinion.
CHICKEN PAILLARD - well, well, well, more great chicken for this beast? I'll take some, please.
CAJUN SHRIMP - woah woah woah... hold the press! This is the best shrimp dish I've had to date, and the sauce... so much to write home about!
BBQ CHICKEN OR PORK QUESADILLA - this was good, reportedly, but I was too busy stuffing myself full of cajun shrimp to notice anything else on the table at this time.
FRIED PLATANOS MADUROS - of course you look at this and go "eww." Close your eyes and take a bite and I promise you'll never regret it.
SAUTEED MUSHROOMS - my oh my, was this absolute heaven in a mushroom bowl? Yes. Yes, it was.
CEVICHE DEL DIA - the assorted seafood could only have been made better if it were in the shrimp sauce, but it wasn't. It was served in a spicy lime vinaigrette, and absolutely delectable.
We ended up with two more pitchers of sangria (which was fabulous, by the way) and probably more bread than Cha Cha Cha has ever seen consumed in one seating.
Out of all the restaurants on the Haight, I picked this one based upon the great reviews (and my food craving today), and let me tell you, I wasn't disappointed.
There were 5 of us and we ordered 5 plates from the tapas menu: calamari, Cajun shrimp, chicken wings, pork quesadilla, warm spinach salad, and a side of white rice (one of us just couldn't have a meal without rice). All very flavorful, and service was fast, friendly, and efficient. Our water glasses never sat empty. Our mistake was not to order more filler items like Spanish rice & beans, or plantains (which looked so succulent), hence we didn't feel quite full when leaving.
Worth the trip from San Jose.
I love this place. It has such a great atmosphere. It makes you want to get up and dance! I've been twice and both times were great. My party got the cajun shrimp, mussels, guava wings, a cuban sandwich, and SANGRIA!! You cannot leave this place without getting the cajun shrimp. It is so good!! The mussels were cooked just right with a great broth. The guava wings had a nice kick. They were crispy, but the guava flavor made it something better. The cuban sandwich was the only disappointing part. I guess a typical cuban sandwich doesn't have mayo and this one had A LOT of mayo. It was kind of just a ham and cheese panini. They lose a star because the prices are a bit on the expensive side, but it's still worth it!
Tips: They have two locations: Haight and Mission. I prefer the Haight location because there is more parking and its a nicer area. Get LOTS of bread...Here is the order of dipping..1. Cajun Shrimp Sauce 2. Mussel Broth. You can't go wrong!! It's so delicious!!!
The first time I came here, I thought it's a wonderful little place that has great sangria, and tasty food.
The second time I came here, sangria was still great, but food was awful. EVERYTHING was over-cooked! Over-cooked halibut, over-cooked steak, heavy but bland salad dressing, yet the most disappointing thing: spicy cajun shrimps were so tough! The cream sauce was still divine, but I couldn't swallow the shrimps.
Desserts were pretty nice, though nothing to write home about.
Will only return for sangria, or the sauce of the cajun shrimps.
Cha Cha Cha has the best Sangria in town! I mean it too. Anytime I meet up with friends from out of town there is a good chance we meet up here. Tapas are a great way to share with friends and to try new dishes. If you love Ceviche, Fried Plantains, Sauteed Mushrooms, and Fried potatoes this place is made for you.
Just a warning there is usually a wait to get in if it's towards the late evening, so get there early!
I absolutely adore Cha Cha Cha. Its one of my favorite spots to hit up in the city. Lunch time can be ridiculously crowded and the staff (at times can be a little neglectful [especially if you're not buying booze]) but the food and the atmosphere totally make up for it. Being 18 prevents me from partaking in the (in)famous sangria but I heard its amazing, if not a little strong.
Personally, I always, always, always order the Cajun Shrimp, the Dijon Chicken and the calamari. For the most part, the dishes are tapas so there are smaller portions. I like it better because I can order a greater variety every time. If you get anything with a sauce, especially the Cajun Shrimp and Dijon Chicken, make sure to ask for bread! The sauce is too good to waste. I'm not kidding.
For those who enjoy non-alcoholic beverages, the root beer is delicious. The overall ambience and decor is reminiscent of Santaria and there's a lot of interesting things to look at while waiting for your grub.
I recommend this place for anyone who likes Caribbean/Cajun/Tapas. Cha Cha Cha is an awesome place to eat in and hang out.
Tonight, I ate here at the expense of a lovely friend who would rather not have her name associated with this place. She is embarrassed to have eaten here... and she means it, really!
Anyhow, some three tasteless to disgusting dishes later, we were dissatisfied, disgruntled, and distraught. If I had a dime for every review this place has... it would double the cost of the meal and I'd still not be satisfied.
Pretty good food, unnecessarily loud/abrasive atmosphere for a Saturday lunch, and the shittiest customer service I've had in quite a while.
Me and the boy were starvin' marvins, and both tuckered out from picture-perfect outdoor activity during the morning, so thought we'd walk over to Haight to scope out some grub. Seated immediately, but that was the only thing that occurred immediately. I think it took 7-10 minutes for water to appear at the table, and another 7 minutes for our actual waiter to stop 'round to take our order (the whole while, our starvin' marvin selves were hoping for mind-reading line cooks so the food would magically appear, but no such luck). The first tapa arrived after a lengthy wait, but before either of the cups of coffee we desired. ...?... And somehow only one cup of coffee came through on the airwaves, the second cup needed a reminder-nudge after tapa #2 got to the table a little later on. Tapa #3 eventually got there, and at about that point boy announced that the crappy music was actually giving him a headache. My atmospheric-displeasure stemmed much more from the obscene amount of cultural vomitus on the walls, tablecloths and potted plants. Merry Cajun Dia de los Muertos Locos Christmas? Er something... I was surprised I didn't spy any required flair on the wait staff. Folks, we are the kind of people that enjoy a properly loud concert of heavy-metal/rock proportions, but this place is just crap noise (aural and visual), the kind that requires you to want to come in and get trashed so you can pretend it's not really happening.
At the end, we had to ask one of the drink-order-taking dudes to just close out our check, cuz the ambiance was so unsettlingly agitating and our waiter was so NOT walking by our table or making eye contact to see if we needed anything.
I'd consider calling in a to-go order, but have no intention of returning for another dine-in experience.
I came here a while back for one of my friend's birthday dinner. I remember the experience being mediocre and the food was rather different because I didn't really know what to expect.
I ordered a few things to share because I wanted to try everything. I think I got the fried calamari, saute mushrooms, the black mussels and bbq chicken quesadilla.
Mushrooms were delicious, juicy, and flavorful. The black mussels were rather janky, I felt like most of them either fell out of the shell or it was really small, between me and my friends I think we found way too many empty shells. The quesadilla was just mediocre. And the calamari was mediocre as well. I think eating here requires you to try all their "specialty dishes" .
So all the things you can't pronounce on the menu, order it! I will have to come back here sometime to do that. Then I'll write a more accurate and up-to-date review.
Hello Cha Cha Cha I was just here Friday with my two friends..
we order......
1. Warm Spinach Salad (bacon pieces, warm ,cremy.....
2. Mussels ( this i MUST have + dipping the FREE bread....
3. Calamari ( seafood heaven...love the dipping sauce.....
CUSTOMER SERVICE (+4 for me that night....
FOOD (+5 cause I love it....
Glad I came by, Cause I missed you...
Then I went to Milk Lounge right across the street!
The sangria is a definite must have...no doubt it'll allow you to take in the full cha ambiance. It's a great spot to pop into if your in the area, but there's a good chance you'll have to wait a bit for your food soif your looking for a quick fix this might not be your first choice.
However if your looking for someplace to kick back and nibble nip on some tasty tapas then this is your joint.
The name bodes well for the experience that you'll have here. After playing hooky with another couple on a random Thursday, spending it in the sun at Stinson Beach, we decided to head over the Golden Gate and to Cha Cha Cha for dinner. My knowledge of this restaurant didn't extend past hearing it on The Fast And The Furious so my buddy Justin warned me to expect a long wait. But adds that there's sangria at the bar in the back to pass the time. Sangria you say? Feel free to add another 30 mins to our wait!
Upon entering, you'll notice the environment is fast paced and energetic. The restaurant is not that big and has an interesting decor - mostly of dark colors and plenty of Latin American or religious dioramas. We put our names down and sat in the cantina engaged in conversation, all the while slurping sangria and nibbling on the fruit. After about 45 minutes (expecting hour and fifteen) and a pitcher and a half of sangria, we were seated.
Our double-date couple assured us that we each needed to order our own cajun shrimp. In fact, I think they insisted, meaning if we weren't getting our own we may not be getting any at all. So we ordered 4 cajun shrimp and also went with the fried calamari, BBQ pork quesadilla, and fried new potatoes. Everything was perfect but the cajun shrimp was an instant hit as expected. A generous serving of peeled shrimp arranged in a circle and grilled on individual serving size cast iron pans, simmering in a cajun flavored cream sauce. We were taught that the trick was to push the shrimp aside and slowly work on it, but dip the complimentary bread in as much sauce as possible. The first bite was exquisite and an absolute flavor explosion.
This is what I thought might be in the sauce - cayenne pepper, cajun seasoning, olive oil, maybe some white pepper, and maybe a dab of ground cumin or ground thyme to enhance flavor. Most importantly though, lots of heavy cream, reduced as the shrimp bathed in it. We were more or less eating a bowl of full fat ice cream, but it was such great tasting full fat ice cream. I actually hesitated for a second on finishing all of the sauce but come on, do I look like I'm ever on a diet? After about our 7th serving of bread we collectively sank in our seats and grunted in unison. It was time to go, if we didn't get out and walk now we were going to mold directly into our chairs.
The meal was not cheap but the experience was well worth it. I look forward to coming back. This is a great place for a casual date, or a double-date in our case. And I actually welcomed the wait as it created bonding time over a couple glasses of sangria before the meal. If your date doesn't like sangria, don't take her here. Actually, don't take her anywhere just get another date.
one of my favorite restaurants in the city - their sangria is fantastic, the atmosphere is fun and lively while service is prompt and friendly. The food is consistently good - they also sell a cookbook for their recipes if you want to try them at home. I usually get the cajun shrimp, their sauteed mushrooms, their calimari, and a bunch of other stuff - ALWAYS with sangria. This place is great for groups - keep in mind that they do not take reservations and tend not to seat you until your entire party is there. Street parking can be difficult, but it's totally worth it. Definitely stop by!
We went during the afternoon, so probably not the best time to go for the full experience. But as far as the food goes, expect small servings and the food is nothing special.
Gotta have the Cajun Shrimp w/ Bread and Jerk Chicken!
I've been to this place TWICE and I love it! The Cajun Shrimp sauce is to die for! It's creamy, thick, and very tasteful. The price is reasonable and ah ah so so good. My gosh! Too bad we don't have a Cha Cha Cha where I live. Anyhow, the Cajun Shrimp is nicely cooked. Don't worry, it's not overcooked where it's hard and tough to eat. It's just right!
As for the Jerk Chicken, the meat is very tender and seasoned. It's served with white rice. The dish is served with 2 pieces of thighs and can easily be shared for two people.
Oh, they also have these crispy potatoes that are fresh, hot and very crunchy.
As for the atmosphere, it's earthy, high ceilings, laid back, and hmmm.. casual.
Totally recommended.. I'm definitely coming back here again.. =)
This place is AWEEEEEEESOME!
I came here a couple of times and every single time I've stuffed my face silly. There are some things that I always order every time I come here to eat.
1. Sangria. And not just a glass, a WHOLE pitcher!!! Even if it's just me and my BF, I don't care. I'll never order just a glass of sangria, I'll order a pitcher. Whoever just orders a glass, just can't HANG!!
2. Potatoes. I love potatoes. I love their aioli sauce that it comes with.
3. Cajun shrimps! Dannggg the only downside of this order is that they don't give enough shrimps!!! Their cajun sauce is so good! My friends and I like to dip our breads into the sauce. Trust me, it's good. You should try it next time.
4. Mussels. Yea, they need to give more mussels too. I always feel like I'm in Survivor or something fighting with my friends just to eat one. I always tell them it's survival of the fittest and if you're too slow, you won't end up getting any mussels. (I'm greedy!)
I always order other things too and they're all really good! So far, I've like pretty much almost everything on their menu. The only thing I hate about this place is that it's so effing small and it gets so crowded. I'll be sweating it up a storm every time I eat here because of all the body heat. Other than that, go cha3!
Food is still delicious but the service just isn't very good. It took us asking twice to get a soda and my water glass was empty and did not get refilled at all. I kept trying to get someone's attention because I was dying of thirst, but to no avail. The host and servers looked our way so many times and did not come up to our table. Once we got our food we didn't see a server come to our table the entire time. We sat there waiting for the check for about 20 minutes just staring at each other with empty plates.
They're lucky the food is so good that I'll still go back.
LOVE this place! The number one reason to go here- the fried new potatoes with chili aioli paste.… Read more »
I LOVED TAPAS because you get to order a bunch of small plates to share. That's exactly how I prefer to eat! :) Heard lots of great things about this place but never had a chance to check it out until last night. It was a 45 min wait even at 9:30pm on a Sunday night... that just tells you how good the food is. You can also order at the bar and eat there if you don't want to do the wait for a table.
The decor is very different and dark and romantic. Great place to take a casual date and have sangria! Supposedly it's the best sangria. It's pretty good but I haven't had enough sangria to know what's the "best".
For our tapas selection, we had the following:
- fried calamari with lemon garlic aioli (this was so-so. I've had better calamari.)
- black mussels steamed in saffron broth with garlic, tomatoes, & onions (This was soooo good! The sauce of this is perfect for bread dipping.)
- chicken paillard which was grilled strips of chicken breast in a dijon cream sauce (the chicken breast was too dry. wouldn't get this again.)
- cajun shrimp sauteed in a spicy cream sauce (I LOVED this dish!!)
- grilled marinated chicken wings with guava-chipotle glaze (This was pretty good. Too sweet for my taste for chicken wings though.)
- sauteed mushrooms sauteed in sherry, garlic, & olive oil
- fried new potatoes with chile pasilla aioli (Not a big fan of potatoes but it's pretty good for what it is.)
- ceviche del dia - assorted seafood in a spicy lime vinaigrette over a bed of mixed greens (I LOVED how sour it was... you have to like the sour flavor though.)
For dessert we had the Chocolate Mousse Triple Threat (soooo delicious), El Mango Tango Mango mousse with white sponge cake with fresh raspberry sauce (so-so), and Homemade Caramel Flan (yummy!).
One star off for the bad attitude hostess and the 45 minute wait. But for the food, I will definitely come back here again!
Great vibe in this place. The decor is random and funky. We had a half pitcher of sangria and it was delicious! Will go back and try the food! :) Service is good as well.
This place has a lot of recommendations from other reviewers, I myself however, would not think of Cha Cha Cha as the first place to go when in SF.
I'f there were half starts i would rate Cha Cha Cha 3.5 Stars.
The service was good, i really appreciate the workers for being aware of my table making sure drinks were filled and that all accommodations were met.
I didn't like the food as much as it was hyped up. I've been to Spain and had tapas, and this place fell a little short in the flavor category.
Cajun Shrimp - ok, spicy, but no real flavor - didn't stick out
Chicken Cakdjaeijf (? something) - had a strong burnt flavor to it that wasn't very good esp if u got the edge of the chicken - stuck out the wrong way
Calamari - the breading was bland, but the aole sauce was AMAZING! what made this good was the sauce and the lemon/lime juice - ok
Mushrooms - these were the best of the 4 tapas we ordered! I thought the sauce and flavors were well balanced and the mushrooms weren't overdone - Very good
overall, it's a nice place with a creative decor, and great waiters... it's just lacking a little in the food category. I would go again just incase it was a bad night (and i heard their sangria is good but i wasn't able to order any this time around).
Try it, have fun, but look around more uness u really feel like tapas!
I didn't have a good experience at this joint. I've been hearing so many things about this place from several different people. I went ahead and took a friend from visiting from a different country to check it out.
We got there around 3ish? So it definitely was a late lunch. We began to order. I ordered the cajun shrimp and he did the jerk chicken. The portions are really small. I wish I would have known that. After finishing that in about 2 minutes, I called the waiter over to order some more food since I was starving. Apparently the waiter says the kitchen is now closed.
WTF? Why not warn me ahead of time so that I can order more before they closed? I left that place with a hungry stomach and a waste of money. There are many other places around the city that I'd prefer to go to than this joint.
I'm stunned that this place averages 4 stars. The food here is awful bland and tasteless. Maybe the larger plates were better - but the smaller dishes were crap. Sangria also tasted like kool aid. Blah - get me out of here-now!
I used to come here all the time when I worked in Upper Haight. The food was always very tasty & the Sangria was plentiful, affordable, and delicious.
I recently stumbled upon Cha Cha Cha's Yelp page and it reminded me of how much I used enjoy dining there. So, I took myself out to dinner tonight to reward myself for reading a gazillion pages of Kant for an exam tomorrow. I was planning on reading over my notes at dinner.... not such a great idea, the food, however, was wonderful.
The restaurant was packed at 7 on a Sunday night. The hostess offered me bar seating and after scanning the busy dining room, I realized it would probably be my only option. Cha Cha Cha is best for larger parties, there aren't a ton of tables for deuces and it's nearly impossible to get a table for one.
The bar was pretty cramped but the bartender greeted me immediately and was really friendly and helpful. I opted out on the Sangria as it's a "school night" and ordered two items I remembered as very good, and one that was raved about here on Yelp. The bar offered little room for me to study and it was loud. Can't really complain, it's just not the right environment for getting work done.
All my food came out quickly and pretty much at once. Everything was really good. All the portions are HUGE. I was anticipating bringing some of my meal home, but I easily could have gone with just one tapas plate as a meal.
Cajun Shrimp: I ordered this based on yelp reviews. I wasn't that impressed at first... The shrimp was cooked well, but a little fishy. The sauce is pretty much cream, butter, and spices. You can't really go wrong with that combination, but I thought it could use a little more kick. I ended up really enjoying the dish as I continued to eat, the cream sauce is wonderful when sopped up with the bread.
Fried Calamari: Some of the best calamari I've had. Nothing fancy, just executed really well. It comes with a to die for lemon garlic aioli. I asked the server for some of the chile pasilla aioli which is usually served with the new potatoes because I remembered it as being really good with the calamari. It was, although I preferred the aioli it was served with.
Grilled marinated chicken wings: These were as good as I remembered. The guava-chipotle glaze is fabulous... spicy, smokey, & sweet.
I had the bartender wrap up my leftovers & she was so kind as to throw in some extra bread and aioli. My bil was $34 with a 20% tip. Not bad at all considering I left stuffed and have another meal left over in my fridge.
Overall, everything was great. More like comfort food than the tapas I'm used to, which tend toward more exotic ingredients and strong flavors. Service can be a bit off because the restaurant is always so packed, but the ambience is great, the food is always spot on, and I've never walked away unhappy.
I just loooove this place! I never have a bad meal here. Anyone who goes to Cha Cha Cha must have the sangria. It is by far the best I've had in San Francisco...not too strong yet not too sweet.
My favorite dishes are:
CEVICHE: oh, I'm salivating just thinking about it. It's packed with a citrus lime flavor with a small kick of spicyness and tang.
FRIED NEW POTATOES: This is spiced potatoes bites that is served with an aioli sauce.
SAUTEED MUSHROOMS: button mushrooms that is marinated in a garlic and olive oil sauce.
JAMACIAN JERK CHICKEN: It's a pepper sauce drenched chicken over white rice. The chicken is just devine!!! Cooked just right and juicy.
They do serve paella here, but only on certain days. So if you want paella you should call in advance and ask. Also, they don't take reservations, so be prepared to wait 45min to 1 hr. I go on weekdays around 9:30pm (if you don't mind having a late dinner) and most of the wait is gone.
Neighborhood: Mission
Category: Tapas Bars
Neighborhood: Twin Peaks
Category: Cuban
Neighborhood: Mission
Category: Tapas Bars
Neighborhood: Mission
Category: Nightlife
Neighborhood: Mission
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