So,
Yes, I haven't reviewed anything of the restaurant nature.
You have to start somewhere so I'll start here.
The food, nothing out of this world.
The standard chips and salsa, just standard.
Green salsa better than average and the red salsa (perhaps w/ roasted peppers) was good/average but when I go out I want an experience that I can't provide for myself at home. Â (perhaps asking too much?)
Fellow diner had a three taco set.
I ordered the shrimp ceviche appetizer.
The tacos were good but not a wow.
The ceviche a consistency of one you'd throw together at home and leave in your fridge for a quick snack... not a wow either. To me a restaurant Ceviche should have a 'zing' and speak FRESH to me. Â This one lacked 'zing' and had it spoke it would sound more like Lurch from the OG Addams Family. Â Served up in a soup bowl of sorts, (there are pictures, not mine) Â also the menu claims "served with corn chips" Â which didn't actually come with the appetizer but brought as another bowl of chips. Meh, a minor point I know, but still a little different approach for the presentation?
Now the nitty gritty and why I have been spurred into writing a review:
I understand the economy sucks and everyone is trying to make ends meet. Â
Alcohol being the easiest markup I understand from a business end as well.
BUT how, for example, did it become standard to charge 5 to 7+ dollars for a bottle of beer? and even more for a mixed drink containing less than 3 oz of alcohol?  How did we allow this fellow drinkers?  Jimmy Mcmillan please take over  " too damn High!!!"  .... sorry almost started on a rant.
Granted  it was their "large" margarita  but margarita on the rocks with big ice cubes needs a larger glass.  (see my posted picture)
Taste: Â It was strong, Â I like that, at least I know there was some sort of alcohol in it.
The mix: Â It was tangy, a proper margarita taste but again not wow.
The size: Â It's "large", but with as much ice that comes with it I am pretty sure it would fill their standard margarita glass with less ice.
Ok ... wait for it... Sticker shock. Â
$$$15.95 for ONE margarita? Â Really? Â (wait am I in Vegas? did we get bottle service at my VIP table? are we at Staples Center? what happened here?)
Quick random expensive restaurant..Mastro's... drink: Grey Goose neat : 14.75. still not 15.95.... quick another Random expensive restaurant.. Spago... Specialty Cocktails all 16.00! there you go... Â same thing right? pshhh...
OK... my fault for not asking how much the "large" one was, especially not listed on the menu... Â (check the website... same menu)
and one should never assume, which I did, in my head  ..o0O((it couldn't possibly be more than 8-10 bucks right?))
I didn't even get to see the bartender make it so there goes that theory of paying for presentation/entertainment.
I felt tricked, really... or perhaps played the fool. A drink that cost on the average as much as their entrees. Â Well played, Cha Cha, well played.
How this method of customer service gains you repeat business is beyond me.
Overall just an OK, .. and not a terrific... and definitely not understanding the stellar reviews on here since I did not receive a similar experience.
I'm not saying don't go... but If you have to go, then go at Happy hour.
If this was a movie, I would say wait 'til it comes out on dvd... and there is no reason to get the blu-ray.
This place is the Apple computers of restaurants. Fantastic aesthetics, below average quality, and premium prices.
Go here if:
You like a happening atmosphere
That is the only reason you should EVER go here.
The food quality is only slightly above del taco (seriously) but you are paying 20x more. Service is decent at best... extremely slow but the wait staff is friendly.
That basically sums it up
Not many nice sit down restaurants on this street so we didn't have much of choice before catching Improv across the street. It was busy but only a 5 min wait. The chips were greasy and salty. There wasn't enough dishes on the menu. Either 3 tacos or 2 enchiladas plates for combinations. Couldn't they have 1 taco with 1 enchilada? It doesn't make any damn sense. Anyways, I decided to get the 2 enchiladas plate and my partner ordered the 3 soft tacos. Then we plated our own combinations ourselves, which is a minor hassle. They should have hard shell tacos instead, since the soft tacos were just so-so. Â Everything was salty (tacos, enchiladas, rice, and chips) except the beans. Besides the overpriced and salty food, our server was great. But I would rather go to El Torito than this place.
Review Source:Cha Cha's is just fabulous!
This is a nice, sit down mexican restaurant with a nice (but loud) atmosphere, and unique food style.
It's true, the best part of the meal is the chips and salsa. Â The salsas have so much flavor that makes them really stand out!
Both times I've gone I've gotten the taco platter. Â I've tried all the different tacos now, and I have to say the carne asada and carnitas are the best. Â The carnitas have a pineapple salsa- usually I hate sweet, fruity salsas, but this complimented the flavor of the carnitas awesomely. Â Their carne asada is just fantastic. Â I thought the shrimp ones tasted really fishy, and they were out of control spicy.. I couldn't even finish it! Â The fish was good and the chicken was standard. Â My boyfriend loved his chicken and carne asada entrees on each separate visit, but he thought they were a little small portion-wise.
Also, the drinks are fantastic, and pack a kick. Â I was wasted after one margarita and one mojito. Â The mojito was awesome (though it didn't really taste like a mojito to me..) and it was a frozen drink. Â Looks really cute too!
They offer happy hour all day Sun-Thurs I believe, and have different special days (ladies' night, one night with a band, taco tuesday, etc.)
They really know how to compliment flavors, and I love how unique everything tastes. Â All ingredients are very high quality. Â Cha Cha's is one of my new favorites, along with their sister restaurant, Bruno's.
My girlfriend and I went here for lunch. The place was busy, but we were promptly shown to a seat, where we examined the menu. Cha Cha's has no burritos on the menu which was surprising to me and disappointing since I was in a burrito mood. After 20 minutes, a waitress finally came to take our order. I ordered the crab and shrimp enchiladas, my girlfriend ordered the shrimp tacos, and we ordered a side order of guacamole. The guacamole came promptly....but it was not good, nor large. I have made far better guacamole myself at home. The food came about 15 minutes after that. My crab and shrimp enchilada was decent, definitely nothing to write home about. My girlfriend did not much enjoy the shrimp tacos either, and I would have to agree with her review. The mango salsa was too strong, and overwhelmed the shrimp. The tortillas on all her tacos and on my enchiladas were burned as well. Finally, when the bill came, I looked at it momentarily and noticed that they had charged me $7.50 for the guacamole when the one we had specifically ordered was less than $4. I asked our waitress about this and she said that they had run out of the dishes for the side dishes of guacamole and had instead given us (and charged us for) the fresh guacamole appetizer without our knowledge or consent.This kind of upsize/substitution is incredibly dishonest and must be at least borderline illegal. The waitress thankfully agreed to reduce our bill to what we ordered when confronted. I wonder how many other people who do not look at their bills Cha Cha's has gotten with this little upsell. Needless to say, I was very disgusted and we will not be going back.
Review Source:While walking around downtown brea my fiancé & I stopped in here for a bite after seeing their sign "tacos & tequila" which is exactly what we ordered! We found a seat in the bar right away every though it was pretty busy so that was lucky because it was happy hour my favourite time of the day. We each got a classic margarita via suggestion of our server & they were really good & really inexpensive. Then we ordered the 6 tacos which we could get any combination of I got chicken he got carnitas, carne Asada & Mahi mahi.. I liked the chicken & carne Asada he said the mahi mahi was really fishy & didn't like the pineapple in. His carnitas taco. Their chips & salsa were really good too I'd definitely come back I'm hungry just reminiscing about it!
Review Source:I have visited Cha Cha's on several occasions, each time I look forward t going back. Â The food is always yummy. Â I especially love the Queso Fundido appetizer and the shrimp tacos are delicious. Â The drinks are tasty too. The Mango-Habanero margarita is particularly good. Â The service is consistently friendly. Â I can always count on Cha Cha's for good food, drinks and service.
Review Source:The absolute BEST margaritas ever! Â Wasn't a fan of margaritas until I came here. Â Now, my boyfriend and I make it a weekly date to come. Â The steak nachos and guacamole are incredible. Â The staff is always super friendly, especially Hillary!! Â She's always super sweet and remembers our order without even having to ask. Â We'll definitely be life long customers
Review Source:Perfect location (downtown Brea), great ambiance, best chips and salsa (salsa verde is my fav), great asada tacos, live music, and awesome weekly specials (e.g. Signature Enchiladas and wine Wednesdays)!! Love this place! Their chicken flautas are very good--they add a signature mango salsa which is delicious!
Love their happy hour and dinner!!
Decor and ambiance is great and on a Friday night it was packed! It does get very loud with the band playing up front, so be prepared to shout at your friends across the table to hear each other! I think the band only plays Thurs to Sun... so Monday to Weds is a better bet!
Chicken Enchiladas: has red sauce and was really good! The chicken was tender and juicy inside, the red sauce had a great flavor to it and tasted authentic, and the rice was delicious as well!!
The green salsa with the chips is amazing I wish I could bottle it up and take it home!! The red salsa was a bit spicy for me but it was good too. Although the chips were a bit too salty for me.
Employees were all very nice and accommodating. Even the manager came and asked how everything was going which was really nice.
I don't enjoy their food but their Tuesday happy hour includes half off all tequila shots! Â
Personally, I hate tequila, but this is where I learned to actually taste/sip the tequila. Â Good tequila means you don't have to 'chase' with lime, but... I still do it anyway. Â The bartenders can be nice and informative when they're not too busy. Â
Free chips and salsa though! Â That's usually enough to fill my munchies craving.
I love the live music more than the food. Â The salsas are flavorful but my favorite dish is the hearts of romaine with carne asada. Â Light and savory is the best way to describe the dish. Â Â
The fav dessert is the tres leches cake. I think we come to this place just for that cake. Â Muy bueno!
I had a good experience here thanks to a college friend who offered to celebrate my graduation. Â Nice to have generous friends. :)
We had some mahi mahi and shrimp tacos. Â Both delicious although I preferred the mahi mahi. Â The chips and salsas were delicious. Â Fresh chips and really tasty tomatillo and red salsa. Â Our tacos came with black beans and rice.
I only gave it three stars because it didn't blow me away. Â I mean it was good don't get me wrong but I don't have any burning desire to come back. Â I would come back but no reason to make a special trip for it. Â That's about a 3 star experience in my book.
PS - Personally, I think Matador Cantina is way better.
I absolutely love this place. The food is awesome, the environment is super fun, and the drinks are amazing! The frozen mojito is absolutely my favorite! They make a great drink and do not stiff you on the alcohol. The tacos are awesome as well as everything else I've gotten to try there. I highly recommend it.
Review Source:Special dinner with friends. Â Food was plentiful with the special prefixe menu selection. Â I had the salmon with salad and banana taquitos - delicious. And can't beat adding a house margarita for a reduced priced. Â Service - no bum's rush, so friends who had not seen each other for 6 months were able to gab away.
Review Source:Fiancé likes the chips/salsa; he ordered the taco trio and it looked delish but he said the shrimp taco was a wee bit too spicy. I had the chicken enchiladas and the enchiladas were awesome! Rice was okay, beans were hard so no bueno there. The waitress was always rushing and didn't seem to care but we forgot about her once we heard the live music...qué romantico! Will prob come back again soon!
Review Source:so busy! but why?!
pros:
- food is decent
-service
cons:
- price
- loud
plain and simple this place is just way overpriced. if you live in the area then you know that its just one of those places that people go to on a friday night because its kind of the area to be in since theres not much else to do in DT brea.
the food is way overpriced. even worse the drinks are overpriced.
save your money and spend it on another smaller local eatery. (except for bruxies)
THREE STARS- decent food. bad price. loud.
Service is really good but I've had better Mexican food. Had the chicken and shrimp tacos with the pinto beans side. The pinto beans was overly salty and the shrimp tacos with mango salsa was too sour for my taste buds.
The restaurant itself has very good ambiance and as I already mentioned great service, but their food negates everything good!
Overpriced. For 2 adults and a 2 year old our bill came to 78! We each got the taco trip which were very dry and the Shrimp ones too sweet. Margarita was decent, modelo beer was room tempature.
Very disappointing...wish I would have saved my $87 (10) tip. I could've made tacos at home, bought a 12 pack, and put put Spanish music on pandora!
I've been here twice. Both times the drinks, food, and service were all awesome. I'm glad that I've moved closer and can start coming more regularly. Yes, it's pricey. Yes, it's loud. However, I think it makes it fun. Just don't come here expecting to have an intimate conversation with someone.
Review Source:Go for the weekend brunch all-you-can-drink mimosa deal. You get soup or salad, an entree, dessert, and most importantly mimosas galore.
The food was standard Tex-Mex fare, can't go too wrong with it. I ordered the shrimp & crab enchiladas which I thought was a bit too salty and fishy. But the steak and eggs my sister ordered was delicious!
Our booth smelled like an old dirty rag but there was pleasant live music. You give a little, you get a little.
I'm at odds... I know people who love this place. A neighbor highly recommended it as well. However, a recent adventure lead us to Cha Cha's to have a few drinks and somewhere, somehow, something took a wrong turn. The menu was not impressive, and quite honestly, overpriced for the selection. I'm willing to shell out lots of money when the dishes include high quality meats, fish, etc. But, really, how much are you willing to pay for tacos.
The drinks were pretentious, loaded, but lacking in taste. They sound innovative on paper, but we struggled to find the distinctive flavors actually come through. I am in the area often, and I know that they get a good crowd with their live music, so perhaps if we come already loaded, our expectations will be lowered and we will stick around for dinner.
Food was average. Â Too expensive! Â Loud! Â Decent, but not worth the price. Â
Food:
-Chips and salsa: Â the salsas given with the chips were both unique and really good!! I loved both! One was red, more of a tomato base and the other was green, and I don't know what that one was made out of but it was good!
-Quesadilla: pretty much your standard quesadilla with cheese.  On the menu it said it had jalapeños in it, so that got me all excited cuz I was expecting a nice spicy kick to it, but unfortunately I couldn't even taste it.  They might as well have not even put the jalapeños inside because it gave no flavor.  I asked for guacamole on the side and put that on top so that definitely made it a lot more flavorful.  Guacamole was good!!
-Cha Cha fries: fries were whatever but the chipotle aioli dip given with it is awesome!
Atmosphere:
I came on a night when there was a live band playing...I have never screamed so much while having dinner just to talk to the person next to me. Â While trying to have a conversation, I either could not hear the other person or that person could not hear me. Â I gave up after awhile and just stopped talking. Â WAY TOO LOUD for dinner...but the live band was nice, and they were playing very well. Â
Overall, food was good, but nothing amazing that I would come back for. Â Probably will never come back on a day they have a live band, my throat still hurts right now from screaming...Seems like fun for happy hour though! And plus, unless your doing happy hour, it's expensive!! Food is not worth the price or quantity of food given!!
Parking:
It's located in Downtown Brea so parking is a bit of a hassle. Â I went on a friday night!! You can park in the parking structure across the street for free, but sometimes the structure gets full so hopefully you get lucky!
I don't like the food, maybe HH is different. Drinks are strong, but too sweet or something. Â My friend loves the HH here so my review is just for basic lunch portions. Â Certainly better than el torito...portions big here, there will be take homes. Â
Margarita comes in pretty big bowl..i mean cup. Â Might be back for more libations, not food.
i had gotten a groupon for this restaurant. I Â was a bit surprised at the prices of things for the dinner menu. Â everything is very beautiful looking in regards to the food. I normally wouldn't see myself going to this place. more of a special occasion type restaurant. Â Everything was pretty tasty.. and the price was much more convenient for the groupon discount i had purchased hehe...
all the sauces for the food were quite tasty and different which was really nice so I enjoyed... a new take/idea for a very common/staple food. Â
I would definitely go back.. from time to time but this is not a casual sit down place i could frequent..
What can I say? I've been coming here for years and have always had good experiences. The service is always friendly, the food delicious and light (not your average lard-filled Mexican food) and the drinks...ahh, let me just savor the thought of their yumminess for a moment.
They'll start you off with chips and both a red and green salsa - neither are spicy but I was told to ask for the habanero version to get salsa with a kick! For food, my favorites are the Crab and Shrimp Enchiladas, the Chicken Nachos and the Salmon. Also, if you're having apps don't miss the Cha Cha Fries or their guacamole. Both are delish! Honestly, I am not a fan of Flan but the Cha Cha's flan is a-m-a-z-i-n-g! Seriously so good. But to really kick off your night go for a margarita. The Mango-Habanero is my favorite or the Mojito. Either will rock your world.
As you can tell, I'm a fan and I'll be back!
YUK! YUK! & YUK!
My friends and I decided that ChaCha;s would be a good place for us all to get
together and chat. Â The food was COMPLETELY OVERPRICED. Â What I'm saying is $16! for a margarita and $14.00 for 3 of the smallest tacos you've ever seen with a dash of rice and beans "on the side". Â I ordered the portabello mushroom tacos and I estimated they used 1/4 to 1/2 a mushroom (that's being generous), to make all 3 tiny tacos. Â Ridiculous.
Also, when the bill came, the server decided to add her 18%! Â yes 18% gratuity for the 6! of us dining! Â ROTTEN! Â Didn't think that servers do that unless the party was more than 8 but we didn't argue...just won't eat there again.
I am convinced that this place only has business because of where they are located. Â People go to Downtown Brea to hangout, go to a movie, walk around, Â etc, and here's this place that's seemingly nice to go eat at. Â I don't think anyone would step in the door if they actually had to make a separate trip to go to it. Â I wouldn't. Â
I will never eat there again.
I'm shocked by the bad reviews on here. This is one of the best all-around restaurants in Orange County. A great combination of quality, service and price!
I work in the area and have been coming to Cha Cha's once a week for nearly two years, I also tend to stop in after work for HH and occasionally for dinner. There's a reason for this -- the ambiance is good, the food is delicious and the service is outstanding.
I've had everything on the menu (no joke). The salmon, seafood caldo and carnitas (dish or taco form) are my three go-tos, but are by no means exclusive choices. The caldo is outstanding, just don't wear white and be sure to utilize your napkin in bib form!
The service is the real kicker: the girls who work here are phenomenal. They're attentive, prompt and genuinely nice. Service is big for me (you'll notice that in some of my other less-than-complimentary reviews). I've probably had over 80 dining experiences here and have not once been disappointed... not once. Every time there are clients in the office; the choice for lunch isn't much of a choice at all.
Mind you, I rarely give out more than 3 stars to a Mexican or Thai place, due to the usual simplicity of the food, but this isn't your average Mexican joint. There's a new quality standard here and I'll keep on coming back for it.
Not bad.
I would give this place an overall rating of 3.5 stars.
In the mood for Mexican, I decided to check out Cha Cha's for a late Saturday dinner. The restaurant is located on Birch Street in Downtown Brea near the Edwards Movie Theater and Bruxie's.
Cha Cha's has 3 different areas to eat, drink, and/or mingle: at the bar, dining room, or the covered patio area. Since it was raining and I am always cold everywhere I go, we chose to wait for the dining room. After about a 10 minute wait, the hostess kindly asked if we would dine in the patio area instead and with the heat lamps in there that I would be equally warm. Â With my usual luck, of course the heat lamp closest to my table isn't working. Leaving me with no other alternative for warmth...I turn to best friend/worse enemy Don (Julio that is) to help heat things up. Â Surely enough, once I got a few drinks in me...all the icicles melted away. Â For a sipper, try the Mango-Habanero. It's sweet. It's spicy. It's packed with a punch.
For food, the waitress brings around one of the best chips and salsa I've had to start us off. Â The chips were so good! Â Thinly fried to a perfect crisp with just the right amount of salt and served hot at your table, along side two different types of salsas. Â (Did I mention it was endless?!) After looking over the menu a few times, there wasn't anything that jumped out at me so we ended up settling on the shrimp ceviche appetizer to share, along with the enchilada combination plate and their house special roasted chicken as entrees.
I thought the shrimp ceviche and roasted chicken were both okay. Â The chicken wasn't full of flavor but it was cooked well. Â For those who really want food packed with flavor....definitely do not order the chicken because it's definitely light and "healthy" tasting. Â I didn't try the enchiladas, but the presentation looked alright.
The portions aren't very big and the prices are a bit high for what they serve, so luckily the chips and salsa was good and endless.
If I do come back, it will only be for drinks and....of course the free chips and salsa.
The carne asada tacos were the highlight of our meal, juicy and full of flavor. Â I also enjoyed the shrimp tacos with pineapple, nice heat on the back end. Â The chicken tacos were just okay. Â Unfortunately, the meal was served sort of lukewarm and I like my food hot.
Avoid the happy hour blended mojitos - good God there was way too much sweet & sour mix (and since when do mojitos contain sweet & sour mix?). Â The fresh mojito on the rocks was much better. Â Service in the bar area was friendly and efficient.
And for everyone who has complained about the unauthentic Mexican food here - it's not a Mexican restaurant! Â Latin food encompasses cuisine from Spain to South America, so please consider that when setting expectations.
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