Cha Cha Chicken

Best Ropa Vieja I’ve had ever. Friendly staff and great atmosphere. Try the Ropa Vieja and curry soup.

Came here while staying in LA. We had the Cha Cha chicken, coconut chicken, and a jerk tamale. This was chased with a watermelon Fresca and a mango Fresca. Food was really good and the guy who waited on us could not have been more helpful. We sat out in the patio area and totally enjoyed ourselves. The guy said we could BYOB if we had wanted to. Will definitely fight the LA traffic for more next time we are in town. Don’t miss this little spot in Santa Monica.

Just ate here for the 1^st time and it was fantastic! Cha Cha Chicken and Ropa Neuva were both so so good. Dirty rice, plaintains, sweet potatoes were great. Love that they have such awesome GF and vegan options! Homemade ginger beer… yum.
Geez, everything was so delish!

My favorite restaurant by far. It has yet to be dethroned and I’ve been going here for 6 years now. I should’ve written a review earlier, but why fight my procrastinating nature. Besides, the fact that I’d still give it 5 stars after all these years is a promising sigh right?
The restaurant itself is colorful and so fun. It’s Caribbean themed and though I can’t speak to the authenticity, I appreciate its quirkiness. There are few seats outside in a patio like area and benches in a covered area. You order and pay first; you’ll get a number to put on your table and they’ll bring the food to you. Very casual ambiance and appropriate given its beachside location.
Favorite items:
–Jerk chicken: of course! Comes in mild, medium, or hot. I stick with medium and I get a half chicken. A full chicken comes in 10 pieces I think. They also have a ¼ size if you have a smaller appetite.
— Coconut chicken: if you dig fried chicken, you’ll love this. It’s less doughy and has a sweetness to it that makes it mouthwatering. I don’t know that it’s actually healthier than regular fried chicken but I’d like to fool myself into thinking so.
–Jerk chicken enchiladas: your jerk chicken wrapped up in some goodness and sauce.
— Flan: comes with some whipped cream and berries
— Mango guava agua fresca: super refreshing and this combo makes me nostalgic for island adventures. It’s great for hot days.
They have water you can get yourself too. Ask for a cup. You can pick two sides for most entrees. All of them come with a salad with some of the cabbage slaw. Their default sides are plantains and the dirty rice (beans and rice), but the sweet potatoes and fries are good too. Also, you can bring your own drinks! Yes, alcoholic too. ;)
Gets crowded around 6 – 8:30, especially on weekends. By crowded I mean there’s a line out onto the sidewalk. It’s taken us 45 minutes to even order. Plan accordingly!

So bomb! Their Jerk veggie enchiladas were really good! My peers had the cha cha chicken and said it was official! Definitely coming back

Wow. just wow. Really good Caribbean food on the westside. so much win. Co-​Workers and I ordered to-​go here on a random day after deciding that we wanted to get something out of the usual lunch.
Get the Cha Cha Chicken! It comes in either quarter or half size, white or dark meat only. Then you can pick the level of spiciness (mild, spicy or combo). You get a side of salad, plantains and rice with your chicken.
One of my co workers who’s had real and authentic jerk chicken said that though this isn’t the most authentic as it would be in the islands, it was comparable.
Definitely recommend trying it out!

This place is awesome! Great quality and authentic Caribbean style cuisine. My favorite dish is the Caribbean jerk spicy wings. My god, they are freaking delicious!
This restaurant is BYOB which is a huge plus!
I can’t wait to come back!

I drive by here all the time but only recently tried it. Line was long and took forever, as there was only one person taking orders. I ordered the coconut fried chicken (couldn’t resist!) and cha cha chicken, with plantains, fries and rice & beans. Fries were blah. Just tasted like cooked potatoes… not crispy — but hey, maybe that’s just Caribbean-​style. Plantains were delicious! As for the chicken, I like the fried one better, but both were good. It’s definitely different… reminded me of when I first tried Nandos, which is Portugese-​style chicken. At first I wasn’t so sure, and then I got hooked. I feel like I am going to get hooked on Cha Cha, too! I usually don’t order soda or drinks, but their agua fresca looked sooo good, so I ordered the mango guava one. Such a good choice! I look forward to coming back to try other items on their menu.

Came here again yesterday and I had a bad experience with customer service.
Ordered cha cha chicken entrée with 2 sides. The girl who took my order didn’t ask for what sides I want. I wasn’t aware until I realize later that you can choose your sides. I also decided to change ½ to ¼ chicken due to miscommunication issue and the girl gave me an annoying face. At the end, when our food arrived, we got the wrong order.
The food suppose to be really good, like melt-​in-​your-​mouth chicken, make-you-realize-what-you’ve-been-missing-out type of chicken, but we weren’t please with the service. It really affected our experience.
I think it’s a hit or miss with service. Last time we came here. the service was amazing and everything tastes like heaven.
***COME HERE EARLY because the number of parking meter by the restaurant is limited.

This place deserves a 5 star, but I am giving it a three Bc the girl at the cash register today 6÷4÷16 was SUPER rude. She had an attitude the whole time we were ordering, it’s unfortunate Bc we were used to this place having excellent customer service the first time we can.
It felt rushed and it wasn’t even busy! She didn’t even ask us what sides we wanted. She rushed the whole order AND she even got our order messed up!
The kitchen staff quick fixes the problem by replacing it with the proper order immediately.
All and all amazing food, but for today, bad service.

When you’re by the beach, soaking up the sun and enjoying the ocean breeze, you should definitely stop by chacha chicken to get a taste of the Caribbean!
A few blocks away from the pier, you will find the colorful restaurant on the corner, with a line out the door. The interior is heavily decorated with paintings and so much color! There was seating outdoors and it looked just as festive as it was inside. On a nice sunny SoCal day, it gets pretty crowded if you want to sit outside.
The ambiance is wonderful, it definitely sets you in the mood. The menu was to the point, and they even offered suggestions as to which ones where most popular. The coconut fried chicken felt like the right choice, it came with the famous jerk sauce on the side, in both mild and medium!
The exterior was crispy, and not too oily. Though I was disappointed that the coconut flavor wasn’t as strong as I’d hope it’d be. But the medium jerk sauce saved the day, the seasonings in the sauce were like nothing I’ve ever tasted before. It’s strong and definitely adds that much needed kick. The mild jerk sauce was a totally different flavor, it was more sweet and tasted like mangos! Both were interesting but I would definitely recommend the medium.
All entrees come with two sides, the Cajun potatoes were quite average, but the dirty rice was surprisingly delicious. The seasoning was light, but it was quite tasty!
It’s definitely a fun place to go eat, and the flavors are tasty and unique! I just wish I could taste the coconut flavors in the coconut chicken!

Jamaican jerk chicken pizza is my favorite. So when we went to Santa Monica over the weekend and wanted to try a new place, we gave this place a try that served Caribbean food. The décor of the place is really nice and funky with bright colors. There is outdoor as well as inside seating. If you want to avoid the birds eating your food or watching birds eat someone else’s leftover food, you should sit inside :)
The place has reasonable prices and the portion sizes are good. My husband and I ordered the Coconut fried wings with Jamaican jerk sauce, Jamaican jerk chicken tostada and the Cha Cha chicken. The tostada was okayish (not very crunchy). We loved the Coconut fried wings and the sauce. That was the best of all the dishes that we ordered. The Cha Cha Chicken was gravy based and was okay too. Nothing great. The prices were reasonable. We also got one of the mango guava drinks they had. It was tasty
All in all, we will definitely go again and order the wings. Everything else was just okay nothing great. However, the ambience is casual and nice.

From the bamboo, the electric bright colors of the tables, excellent service to delicious food I LOVE! The vibe of this place just makes me feel like I’m actually somewhere in the Caribbean, hence its near the beach. I shared a picture of the Jerk Chicken Enchiladas which I love! This is my new go to place!

Don’t get me wrong, Cha Cha Chicken is not an elegant dining experience, but if you are on the hunt for some soul-​feeding Caribbean food, relaxed social atmosphere and all the booze you can bring, you’ve found it. Although it looks like a corner hole in the wall, Cha Cha Chicken boasts authentic-​as-​it-​gets Caribbean fare with friendly staff and an «anything goes» typa experience. I’ve never been to a BYOB dining establishment but my god, GENIUS! Bring a bottle of wine (or three), a couple friends and you have a perfect night.
With dishes ranging from friend coconut chicken, mole, gumbo, and wraps, everything is made with love and full of tender, scrumptious chicken. All of the dishes are served with rice and beans and fried plantains. so yum.
I think what I love most about this place is that it is a total contrast to so many snooty Santa Monica/​LA dinner spots. Cha Cha Chicken keeps it real, and I respect that.

A friend was in town, we both lived in Miami back in the day… she found this little gem and… yes, its brilliant. It feels like Miami and it tastes like Miami /​Caribbe food, so delicious. Everything you want on a plate.
You must have the coconut fried chicken and the original cha cha chicken. You must have their platanos and their watermelon agua. You will not be disappointed and it is cheap (drink and plate for around $ 15). The outdoor seating is really nice on a Friday after work, pre-​gaming and enjoying life.
The place is BYOB so if you are looking to have a serious situation hollering and hallelujah-​ing, then don’t forget it.

I’ve honestly never had Caribbean food before so I don’t have anything to compare too but I throughly enjoyed my meal today! I ordered the ¼ chacha chicken with rice and plantains. All around good flavor and the chacha chicken is very saucy so you can mix it up with your rice and clean the plate with ease! I tried the coconut chicken and thought it was ok not as much flavor as the chacha. Which I’m assuming is what they are known for, since the place is called cha cha chicken. Also got the watermelon agua Fresca and it was to die for. I am a die hard watermelon fanatic so it was hard not to impress me with this drink. Plantains are crispy which was interesting but still delicious
Only thing to complain about is their menu had no prices):
And the receipt wasn’t
’Twas a great first encounter with Caribbean food!

I cannot express to you guys enough about how amazing the food is here!
I’m getting too excited to even write this review right now lol
Let me start off by saying BEST ENCHILADA’S ever to exist!!! Holy crap, I don’t even like enchiladas, or maybe I never had such a mouth watering flavorful one like this one.
The enchilada wasn’t even mines to begin with. I had some of the hubby’s & I kind of finished it. oops. :D
1 is not enough.
2 is not enough.
Get like 4 – 5
I’m serious.
And for the homemade juices?!
My favorite would be the pineapple, lemonade & Ginger mix. Yummm (:
I also ordered the Cha-​Cha chicken plate with sweet potatoes & purple coleslaw that came with rice & beans. UGHHH
All these flavor just melts in your mouth good. I have absolutely NOTHING bad to say about this dish.
My hubby got the coconut fried chicken. I’ll pass on that. He didn’t really care for it much either because it was a bit too dry. He actually took the chicken and dipped it in the enchilada sauce which somewhat made it taste a little better lol
Also, the outdoor décor was super cute! I would definitely take all my friends here when they visit. It’s the perfect place to eat when you’re by the beach.

This Caribbean casual dining spot serves up reasonably priced chicken with a charming atmosphere. The self seating and bring your own alcohol policy is pretty unique and goes well with the island décor and warm heat lamps. Great for a cold night out with friends!
FOOD
Chicken is doused in sauce, making breast meat almost flavorful. Corn on the cob is healthy but bland tasting. Go for the fried plantains!
TIP
Mild on jerk chicken = very spicy at chipotle!
SERVICE
they serve you your food and then they clean it up. What more can you want? Perfect for impatient types!
DOWNSIDE
One bathroom!

CHA CHA CHICKEN IS PERFECT. I love everything about this place from the ambience, wide array of different types of foods and quick service. We had ordered both ¼ portions for both plates, but I think I would recommend getting the ½ because I wouldn’t mind having leftovers.
Highlights:
— Cha Cha Chicken: Delicious, juicy and the Jamaican jerk sauce it comes lathered in… so yummy! All of their plates come with two side orders and I got the slaw and plantains. The slaw was delicious, but I’ve had better plantains.
— Coconut Fried Chicken: Just as delicious and I love that you can actually taste the coconut without it being overpowering. The coconut fried chicken comes with two dipping sauces… but the mango dipping sauce really hits the spot!
Their portions are very reasonable for the amount of food they give you and I can’t wait to try all the other things they have on the menu from their sandwiches to tostadas and drinks!

Delicious food at Cha Cha chicken.
Ordered the ½ chicken combo with medium sauce (spicy is pretty hot so beware!) comes with fried plantains, beans and rice, and mixed salad.
The chicken was very juicy and the sauce was delicious– smoky, slightly sweet, just the perfect amount of spice. ⁵⁄₅
Fried plantains: outrageously good, some of the best I’ve ever had. They smash them and fry them until they’re extra crunchy.
Beans and rice: I normally don’t even like beans and rice but this was fluffy and delicious. Mix with Cha Cha sauce for best results.
Agua Fresca: I ordered guava and mango which I would recommend! They have other flavors like watermelon, lemonade, etc.
½ chicken combo with Agua Fresca came to about $ 18 before tip.

Super endroit kitch et coloré
Plats excellents
Serveuse impatiente et peu accueillante

Quand on est dans une station balnéaire, on a toujours tendance à vouloir manger sur la plage, et à Santa Monica, ça voudrait dire passer à côté du Cha Cha Chicken, et ce serait bien dommage!!! Lé décor faire penser à un resto de plage, il né manqué vraiment plus que le sable sous les pieds.
Le système est simple, on commande au comptoir, on se pose à une table, la commande arrive (ça a été assez rapide, l’histoire de 10min) et on se régale! Nous avons goûté au Cha Cha Chicken et au Chicken Gombo et je dois dire que les deux étaient vraiment délicieux! De la cuisine caribéenne (en anglais ça existe), c’est ce qu’on nous promet, et c’est ce qu’on a dans l’assiette, sur fond de Bob Marley et autres sons de la Jamaïque, on se sent comme téléporté l’espace d’un repas et je le conseille vivement à tous les gens qui se trouvent dans le quartier!

Este fin de semana probamos Cha Cha Chicken, restaurante de comida caribeña famoso por ser recomendado en Food Network’s. Así que no me podia quedar atras sin conocerlo y saborear sus famosos recomendados: Jerk Chicken Enchiladas, Coconut Fried Chicken, Guizo de Puerco y los caribeños acompañantes, Plátanos fritos.
Las enchiladas pueden resultar un poco picantes dependiendo de los gustos — no en mi caso — pero dependiendo del acompañamiento que se escoja, puede resultar una combinación perfecta! Yo me decidí por los plátanos y las papas picantes. Por otro lado, el pollo resulto ser una gran sorpresa, me esperaba un plato mas bien plano, pero el sabor del coco con un poco de picante para sazonarlo es una verdadera delicia.
El guizo de puerco es delicioso y como los demás platos, tiene un toquecito picante en la salsa que se mezcla deliciosamente con la tortilla y el arroz con frijoles. Sugiero añadirle unas gotas de jugo de naranja! El local tiene un aire encantador y aunque no es precisamente elegante, la decoración lo hace diferente de la zona.
Es permitido traer tu propia cerveza sin ningún costo. Tambien en su menu ofrecen exóticas bebidas como «limonada de sandía» y jugo de guayaba con mango.
Conclusión: lugar agradable para pasar un día entre amigos y familia. Mi gran inconveniente es el parqueadero, al estar cerca de la playa, se hace bastante caótico durante el fin de semana, encontrar un espacio para dejar el carro.