Cha Cha Cha
Wednesday, March 22, 2006 10:06With a name like Cha Cha Cha, it has to be fun, right? Right. On a recent Saturday night a group of us headed over to the “Contemporary Caribbean” restaurant for some tasty chow (and sangria).
We called ahead to see if we could get reservations, but they weren’t taking any more. We were told that we probably wouldn’t have to wait much longer than 30 minutes and that there was a bar that we could wait in. Sounded good, so we were on our way.
When we got to Cha Cha Cha, it was full and bustling with activity. The host was very friendly and told us that the wait would be about twenty minutes. “See that table over there?”, he asked “they are finishing up and I will shoo them out”.
We ordered a round of sangria from the bar and about thirty minutes later, the seven of us were seated.
The menu is deceptively large. There are about two dozen Tapas to choose from, in addition to the appetizer, pasta, paella and main menus. We did have a debate over what makes a small dish an appetizer versus a tapa. Unfortunately, we have no answer.
With seven hungry stomachs, we were able to order a variety of dishes, and ultimately decided that a second visit would be needed in order to taste the ones we missed. I started with the Spicy Corn Chowder. It was spicy indeed, in a good way.
Corn Chowder
A couple other dishes that came in the first round were the Guacamole and Dirty Chips, Banana Boats, and Ceviche Guadalupe. The guacamole was chunky, the dirty chips spicy, the ceviche had nice sized chunks of marinated fish served in a coconut and the banan boats (plantains stuffed with ground beef and vegetables) got rave reviews from our table.
Guacamole and Dirty Chips
For round two, some of us stuck with the Tapas, while others went for the main dish. I ordered the Mejillones Costa Brava - Steamed Mussels with Tomato, Garlic, Basil and White wine and some yuca fries on the side.
Mejillones Costa Brava
The mussels were huge. This can be good and this can be bad. Sometimes big mussels come out chewy, particularly is they are over cooked. These mussels came out perfect. Meaty and tasty, and the broth was thick and flavorful. The yuca fries and left over bread was great for dipping.
Platano Frito
Everyone was stuffed before the food was gone. We had assumed that the tapas would be smaller plates, but they were pretty hearty. Next time, we will be able to order better.
One downside was the service. The waiter was nice, but obviously very busy. Also, the kitchen was way overloaded and the food was a bit slow to come out. We managed, munching on the bread and appetizers. The table next to us gave up though and ended up confronting the manager. Ultimately, they left before their food came out and didn’t have to pay for their drinks. I’m not sure if it is normally like that, it did seem very crowded that night, even as it got later.
There are two Cha Cha Cha locations, one in West Hollywood (where we went) and another in Silver Lake. There are slightly different menus between the two. The Silver Lake location has more options, including a brunch menu. Both menus are online at their website (with prices!)
ChaChaCha
7953 Santa Monica Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90046
By Jonah (see more of his posts). Jonah is the founder of la.foodblogging and also created Digesty, a food blog aggregator and Cheww.com, a spam free foodblog search engine.
eecue says:
March 22nd, 2006 at 10:29 am
The paella is absolutely delectable as is the jerked chicken and coconut shrimp. I love Cha Cha Cha, I’ve been to both the LA and LB location and it never disappoints.
Jonah says:
March 22nd, 2006 at 11:18 am
Is the LB location the same company? I noticed that the website is :theoriginalchachacha.com” implying that there are some copies out there.
The paella did look great and a couple people got the jerked chicken at our table. Next time, paella!
Paul says:
March 22nd, 2006 at 4:43 pm
Interestingly enough, I just went to Cha Cha Cha’s for the first time too. The decor and ambience are first rate, they put a lot of love into designing the interior. I thought the jerk chicken was great, I didn’t get to try their Mole sauce because they were out that night. Next time I think I’ll go not so hungry and have the patience to try out several tapas, because they are unique dishes. I’d say it’s one of my better Los Angeles eating experiences.
Hilary says:
June 12th, 2006 at 3:55 pm
My friends and I tried Cha Cha Cha on Saturday night. The food ranged from good to excellent (the tortilla soup and black bean tamales being our faves), but the service was VERY slow. Our server had too many tables, and the place was quite crowded. I would go back, but probably only on a weeknight.
Joel Jacobson says:
June 16th, 2006 at 9:33 pm
Dinner tonight was horrible. I haven’t had such a bad meal in at least a year. The waiter served the wrong appetizer with the meal and then argued with me about what I ordered. The jerk Salmon dinner (@ $18.95) with rice, beans, et al, was over-salted, dry, and unedible. I will never eat there again. My how the food has changed since I first ate at the Silverlake location in the late 90’s. After spending %57.00 on crap, I will write this one off.
Hope you don’t make the same mistake as I did.
Taken aback in LA,
JJ
Foodie Universe says:
June 20th, 2006 at 10:18 am
Is there any connection between Cha Cha Cha and Cha Cha Chicken?
oscar says:
January 10th, 2007 at 5:19 am
Hola vendo platano frito en bolsa de 24 libras si estan interesados oscarroo@hotmail.com gracias espero poderlos atender
lloret holidays says:
April 13th, 2007 at 12:02 am
Yummy, especially the dirtychips look awesome. But why are they dirty?
I need some chipsright now :(
MaxMillion says:
April 14th, 2007 at 5:43 am
I was wondering what exactly is that white sauce served with the plantains. Yoghurt? Creme fraiche? Ice cream?? — just kidding… I know plantains are sweet, so I’m curious to learn if they serve a tangy or a mild but creamy sauce accompaniment.
Jonah says:
April 14th, 2007 at 7:58 am
After consulting my dining advisor, we believe that it is the Latin version of Creme Fraiche - Crema Fresca (sour cream and whipping cream). It’s a slightly tangy sauce, very tasty.
CincoDeMayo says:
April 14th, 2007 at 9:25 am
I’m a big fan of Cha Cha Cha. As for lloret holidays question, the chips are “dirty” because they’re sprinkled with what I remember being cumin and cayenne pepper. So they take on a dirty look. They’re delicious and the guac is really good too.
I haven’t been in a while, but I remember the yucca chips being really good (I’m from Miami originally so I have a lot of experience with yucca) and the guava quesadilla was great too. I usually stick to the tapas but everything here always looks great.