La Chaya Bistro

Meh… It was ok. Nothing over the top but not bad either.
I figured there would be more Mexican options, but I think tortilla soup was all they had on the menu?
The appetizers were enjoyable, love a good cheese plate.
The entrees seemed inconsistent? Two of my friends ordered the same thing and tasted completely different?
The restaurant was very simple but nice. The only complaint was when the door opened you froze your tush off (not a fan).
The service was very good and attentive.
Wine selection was ok…
Just nothing special, so I don’t think I would add to my list.

Lovely little Latin restaurant that I wouldn’t have thought would be as good as it was. We’ll definietly go back. Nice flavorts and interesting selection. Really nice salads, and our 13 year old nephew– who is not adventuresome — enjoyed his pasta meal, which was interesting if not truly adventuresome. My wife loves scallops, and her scallop entrée did not disappoint. My salmon was perfectly prepared — still moist and very flavorful, with delicious accompaniments. My son had the hanger steak, which he thought was among the best he’s had (but he’s only 18, so still a lot of eating out to experience!). While not truly outstanding, this is a very solid neighborhood Latin-​infused restaurant. Presentations were nice. Atmosphere also nice. Outdoor table also nice, and Chaya does as best it can with the space, but it’s still next to the parking lot.

ALWAYS FANTASTIC! The fish preparations are always top notch! I cannot think of another place in the cities that does fish as well as La Chaya does. The specials are frequently beyond phenomenal. The patio in the summer is VERY charming. I highly recommend La Chaya.

I’ve known about La Chaya for a while now. I’ve always wondered why people don’t talk about it, or why I’ve never known anyone to have gone there. I think I know now.
1 stars might be a weeeee bit harsh, so I guess we’ll call it 1.5 stars.
First, what I liked. This place used to be a KFC. You’ve come a long way, baby. The atmosphere is simple and tasteful.
Now, what was meh/​annoyed me/​was super nasty. After we ordered our food, the hostess came by and offered us blueberry scones. They were decent, but we were later all charged for them. i guess I (wrongly) assumed that they’d be complimentary, and I really don’t mind paying $ 2-​something for them, but the «sale» of them just felt kinda sleezy.
The food was really boring. Everything we ordered sounded amazing, and I was starving, but when it arrived, it made me wish that we were immediately transported to Sun Street, or Café Ena or King’s where the food would have been just that much better.
After our brunch, I noticed that a chunk of my blueberry scone (that I felt bamboozed into getting!) had fallen on the floor and there were a ton of ants devouring it. I’m glad they liked it because I immediately lost any appetite that I had from not finishing my sub-​par breakfast. EWWWWW.
Finally, the coffee cups were tiny. But this is me just stomping my feet and having a bit of a tantrum. La Chaya, I’m kind of disgruntled, annoyed and a bit disgusted.

Normally I would not compare a lesser known neighborhood place like La Chaya with well known establishments like Alma, Heartland, and Bar La Grassa. But the check forces me to do so. Let me be clear: I am not price-​sensitive per se. But when I can get a meal for the same price at award-​winning establishments, price becomes a factor. (A further clarification – I know that Twin Cities prices are ridiculously low in comparison to the coasts… but that is the state of the competition.)
Maybe the problem is that the $ 35 price tag for the lamb special menu item went unannounced in its presentation. I felt duped. I urge the management to put the special menu items on paper, with prices. My guess is that this will both remove the sting of the sticker price to the customer and force management to rethink their price points.
How is the food? The restaurant says that it «specializes in fresh natural foods with flavors from the Mediterranean and Mexico.» This description reveals the problem – this food is suffering from an identity crisis.
The chef and staff are talented. But even their best dish is not quite worthy of its price tag. Yes, the lamb arrived perfectly medium rare, flavorful, tender, and with a complex Mexican-​inspired smokey peppery sauce. Accompanying fingerling potatoes had exactly the right amount of sea salt and rosemary, and nopal (cactus) salad was balanced well by avocado and red onion. Was it worth $ 35? No.
Homemade fettuccine resists the bite perfectly, but the cream, chicken, and spinach sauce begged for garlic, lime, and red pepper flakes. It was too bland, and was not sublime enough in texture and layering of comfort flavors to compensate. This dish needs more Mexican in it, less Mediterranean.
Baby arugula with strawberries, goat cheese, and almonds was also a «special» salad. I wonder why, as its ingredients are not in season. The arugula was dry and woody – La Chaya could take a tip from Al Vento and wait for tender arugula shoots to appear in local markets again.
Guacamole was very good, but not as good as it could be (Remember when Bar Abiline first came on the scene and was making the best guac in town?).
The crowd was energetic, chatty, and very happy. I sensed the presence of a repeat clientele. Décor is upscale Mexican.
My recommendation? Go, but be price aware.

Oh my goodness, the eggs benedict here is TO. DIE. FOR. It’s topped with green salsa, which completely makes the meal. I had brunch here on a Sunday, the weekend before Christmas, and I was shocked to be the only patron in the place! Not sure if that was unusually slow, or if people just haven’t discovered the deliciousness that is La Chaya’s brunch. The service was excellent, and the price was reasonable. Not a lot of variety in the menu, but certainly enough to choose from. Highly recommend!

Nice lunch. Fish empanadas, great, wine list, great, achiote chicken sandwich, good.
The atmosphere refinement is a slight notch above what you’d get at Ice House or Ena or a lot of the places I usually find myself. The interesting/​awesome of the food is about a half a notch below, while being more expensive by a few bucks — so I think this is a good place to go when you need to feel a little more adult and civilized, but you’re not aching for anything creative enough to knock your socks off.
Oh, the salad greens — FINALLY a non-​fruit vinaigrette that kicks ass. That scored some serious points with me.

Im always on the lookout for Mexican/​Latin American restaurants, and there are certainly plenty to pick from the Twin Cities, but I was certainly not disappointed with La Chaya.
A friend of mine works down the street from it’s convenient location on Nicollet Avenue, and he recommened it to me for lunch one day. I had been wanting to check it out for some time, but was scared off by the high price points, particularly for their dinner menu. I had the chicken tacos which were also a little pricey, but I will say that it was worth every penny. The order came with two tacos and some of the best house-​made guac Ive ever tasted. The chicken was grilled perfectly, and it was kept simple. The best aspect was the pickled onion which was an outstanding touch that I had not experienced before when eating a chicken taco. If I had an opportunity to sample other dishes (and liked them equally), I probably would give this establishment 5 stars.
Pros: High quality ingredients, well-​prepared & tasty food, convenient location
Cons: Pricey – especially for the dinner menu

Let me begin this review with full disclosure. My roommate/​best friend used to work here and has a pretty good relationship with chef/​owner Juan. With that, I think this is one of the best restaurants in Minneapolis.
I love the patio, and the décor on the inside is just as comfortable and inviting. The menu is so simple and full of the freshest, simplest ingredients.
I highly recommend any of the salads. They are each only a couple of ingredients, but bright enough to stand on their own. I’ve had the scallops multiple times and they are by far one of the best scallop preparations I’ve had. I could have a full blown romantic relationship with the chipotle cream sauce.
This is the place you go to catch up with a friend, enjoy a class of prosecco, split a pizza and salad. Nothing on the menu is too heavy or makes you feel full.
Anywhere that throws spinach and arugula around as often as Chaya has 5 stars in my book.
This is the place you go where everyone knows your name. If only all neighborhoods could be so lucky as to have a gem like this tucked inside it.

I have been very impressed with La Chaya Bistro. It’s definitely one of those restaurants you might drive by a dozen times before you actually realize it’s there … but if you stop in, you’ll be greatly impressed by a very unique Mediterranean-​inspired Mexican menu. You don’t see that often!
We recently went to Sunday brunch with friends on Memorial Day weekend and enjoyed a perfect meal outside. The food was great… omelettes, molletes and the achiote-​rubbed chicken sandwich scored big points with us. Their smoothies are a nice offering, too. After our meal, the chef stopped by to check in on us… great touch. The restaurant itself has a very pleasing design and I thought it was a great deal for a price of about $ 15 a person.
We’ve also been there for dinner a couple times and their fish specials are usually can’t miss. The ingredients in all dishes are very fresh and the food just tastes well-​executed and always consistent. If I’m looking for a nice dinner outside of the city lights, La Chaya is always one of my favorites.

30 bucks for 4 tacos, bad service and at least a 45 minute wait.
First experience = really crappy. The tacos were good, but a little soggy and well, they were 45 mintues in the making. We almost walked out but had little options on a sunday at 1:15.
To quote the wife: never again.

I must preface my review with the following disclaimer: this was my first experience at La Chaya, and I have a feeling that it was a very «off» night for them. However, tonight’s experience has left me with a very negative impression of the establishment; it would take a lot to get me to choose to visit again.
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I have lived in the neighborhood for over a decade, and was very excited to try La Chaya. The menu, the space, and the positive reviews were all working in their favor.
My party of three arrived, and we were able to place our order right away. Our order consisted of a bottle of wine, a salad and soup, and three entrees. In the 45 minutes that followed after we got the wine, we didn’t have a single check-​in by our server, and it took a full hour for one mixed green salad and one cup of soup to arrive. The entrees arrived shortly afterwards, presented by an apologetic server. Others guests around us were also encountering the same long wait; in fact, I heard the woman at the table next to us ask the server if they should just leave (they had arrived before us and still hadn’t been brought their entrees when we were leaving.) The small establishment was only about ²⁄₃ occupied, so I was struggling trying to understand what was going on.
I thought the menu itself was interesting. There was a good selection of well-​curated dishes — enough to be intriguing, but not so many to be overwhelming. When we received our food, it was good, but none of us were especially impressed. (By this point, it would probably have been very hard to impress us with the food anyway.) I will say that the food certainly tasted fresh, and you could tell that care was taken with selection of ingredients.
For me, the unbelievably slow service completely ruined the experience, and the fact that there was virtually no acknowledgement was just more frustrating. When we got the bill, it was clear that we paid for a much better dining experience than we received.

I can’t say enough good things about this place. It is super friendly and attractive, not too casual but not stuffy at all. And the food is great. Not experimental, not kitschy, not gimmicky, but just great. The clean, fresh ingredients they use can be tasted in every bite. I have been twice, and both times had the soup of the day, which was excellent. Deep, complex flavors and clearly made with care. Even the side salad, which is so often a throw-​away in other restaurants, was perfectly seasoned and delicious. I have also had the mahi-​mahi tacos, with the same sense — tasty, clean, fresh, great quality. Nothing gives you that bad after-​restaurant-​food feeling.
The only reason I didn’t give 5 stars is because I reserve it for higher end or really unusually great experiences. This place is as good as it gets for the cost, cuisine, and atmosphere of a relatively casual restaurant.

Yum. If you are looking for something a little different, yet familiar, this is your spot. They use some great spices and the food is top notch.
I particularly enjoy the Halibut when it is on the menu.
They’ve got a tiny little parking lot if you arrive early or are lucky. Can get busy so it is a good idea to make a reservation. They are on open table.

The interior of the place is cozy and charming red walls and wooden pillars around the area — the bread that they brought out was some sort of olive loaf and the butter was delicious — there was some sort of spice /​flavoring added and I kept forgetting to ask — but it was good.
I got the chicken with caper relish — that was delicious as I love capers — I usually don’t order chicken at restaurants — just because you can make it at home, but the capers pulled me in.
There were a lot of other things i wanted to order — soups, etc that sounded amazing, but my appetite was sadly not that big.
I was dying to trying the chipotle chocolate crème brûlée, but they had a chipotle chocolate mousse last night instead — which was a good substitute with a red wine reduction and blackberries — spicy and sweet — warms the back of your throat on a cold night. It was good — but i still NEED to try the chipotle chocolate crème brûlée!
Chef Juan came out and greeted us on our way out and made sure that everything was good — he said the crème brûlée would be back on the menu in a few weeks!