Santa Monica: Cha Cha Chicken
The Skinny: Cha Cha Chicken is a restaurant that was featured on Food Network’s “Best Thing I Ever Ate…” for it’s Coconut Fried Chicken. I didn’t know that at the time I was there and just ordered the Jerk Combo. The plate comes with a Jerk Chicken Enchilada, Jerk Chicken Tostada, some Fried Plantains, and Dirty Rice with Red Beans. I also got a cup of Agua de Watermelon and sat in the outdoor area, which is nice on a warm sunny day by the beach.
The Good: Everything tasted fine and the ingredients all seemed fresh to order. The Jerk part of the Chicken components had a sweetness that reminded me of Pineapples. I did especially like the Dirty Rice for some reason and the cold Watermelon Water was refreshing and not overly sweet.
The Bad: When I think of Jerk something, I think of spicy food that kicks your butt. So I was expecting the Cha Cha Jerk sauce to have some heat, but the stuff was hardly mild. I do think they use pineapple in the sauce and while it tasted fine, it was a little bit too sweet for me. I just wanted a little more savory and some heat to balance things out.
Would you come back again? Yup! They do have a large menu and I want to try their other stuff.
More Info: Cha Cha Chicken – 1906 Ocean Avenue – Santa Monica, CA
tmf247 