11/19/07

Worst dining experience EVER

by reese797

I have never been treated worse at any eating establishment in my life, including McDonalds. We had a party of 14 under my name and checked in with the host twice before our actual reservation to let him know we were in the bar. He was clearly strung out and didn't seem to have any clue what he was doing. When we saw a large party get seated, we checked on our table and he stated "There are two parties of Marisa for 14?" with a dumbfounded look on his face. The host attempted to then seat us at two small tables and 8 chairs for 14 people, then another that only sat 10. When numerous attempts to speak to a manager (or anyone in charge that would help us) failed, we took an empty table nearby. The manager proceeded to YELL in my face that we were hustling them (because we asked for some free sangria to make up for everything), then said we could either keep the table we took or one pitcher of sangria (for 14 people). At that point, we didn't want to give them our money so we left and went to a Taqueria down the street. Never once did I raise my voice, yet I was attacked by the manager. Between the strung out host and the rudely inappropriate manager, I will never eat at this establishment ever again and urge prospective diners to STAY AWAY!

09/10/07

Wanna get pushed out during good convo and drinks with your friends? Then go here....

by tatooedlover

DONT GO HERE. I will NEVER go here again with my friends or family. We were pushed out!!!

We were happily enjoying our drinks until we noticed one of workers passing by an awful lot. Eyeballing all our drinks to see if we were almost done. He was so obvious about it we couldnt believe it. Our waitress didnt come by to ask if we wanted anything else i guess that was a good thing considering she was rude and dry as can be. Before we could finish one of our pitchers he helped himself to pouring our glasses into the pitcher. I would think think a bill of $100+ deserved better service. Plenty of other Mission jewels.

• Pros: none
• Cons: the service, rude waitresses

09/03/07

The Sangria sneaks up on you!

by foodluvr17

My friend and I went on a limb to try it out on a friday night (I've heard some say its almost impossible to get a table in an hour or even longer) We went in and the hostess told us tables were reserved for parties of 3 or more and to try our luck to find spots at the bar. The bar is HUGE! and we went around the bar looking for open spots. Almost coming around full circle, we got lucky enough to grab seats. As soon as we sat down, the bartender gave us menus and got us a pitcher of sangria (which was pretty tasty with the fresh fruits marinated in it) We ordered ceviche (very flavorful, esp. with lime), calamari (my favorite! the breading was seasoned and the butter-like dipping sauce is really rich! something to watch out for if ur on a diet, but definitely a must try) and the pork quesadillas (they were very tender and one is enough for two!) For a busy friday night, the the bartender and busboys were pretty attentive. The only downside was that the bartender thought we ordered 2 quesadillas instead of 1, so we had to pay for the extra and take it home, it was good though, so we didn't mind.

• Pros: Calamari! Sneaky sangria
• Cons: Busy, busy, busy!

02/19/07

Wanna wait a long time for good food?

by callis42

Went to ChaChaCha in the mission last night based on on-line recommendations. Having only had a cookie all day, was ready for tapas. Our party of 5 was the second group in the door at 5 pm. We ordered 5 tapas item and one hamburger. At 5:45, (after being promptly served a pitcher of mediocre sangria), we questioned our unattentive waitress on the missing food. Her response was that she was holding our appetizer order because she wanted it to come out the same time as the burger. Why didn't she ask if she should do this? Does it take 45 minutes to cook a hamburger? About 5 minutes later, all of our dishes arrived one after the other. Despite the wait, we would highly recommend the calamari, cajun shrimp, and warm spinach salad. The mussels were just okay, and the dreaded hamburger was awful. Would we go again? Maybe to order just appetizers and this time we'll let our waitperson know whether we're hungry or want to sit and chat for 45 minutes!

11/16/06

Great casual spot

by tf2001

This is our "go to" restaurant for quick weeknight dinners. A few tapas and a small pitcher of sangria is filling, relatively inexpensive, and surprisingly more flavorful than Cha Cha Cha on Haight st. Faves include the pork quesadilla, the calamari, the ceviche, the mussels, and of course, the shrimp (save the bread until the shrimp comes - the sauce is outstanding). It's not a great place to have a deep, personal conversation, but it's fun.

• Pros: Sangria

11/11/06

Not so good

by nwri

The place is always filled with a young lively crowd, but the food isn't great, and the service is worse.

11/08/06

Fun place for drinks and tapas

by kimterry25

Great place for drinks and tapas. The food is good, small portions, great for sharing. Very crowded and loud on weekends. Great place for small groups.

10/08/06

Tasty Carribbean Food

by malia707

Can't go wrong with any of the dishes at Cha Cha Cha's. I absolutely love their plantanos maduros and spanish rice and black beans. Portions are huge and prices are reasonable. Their sangria is the best, comparable to ones I've had in Spain. I like the Mission location over the one on Haight because its less touristy, you don't have to wait in long lines and easier to find parking. Also the hours are different, in Haight, it is open for both lunch and dinner, while the Mission restaurant is only open for dinner.

• Pros: Food, Ambience, Parking

09/18/06

Best place to go eat before going out.

by lasferias84

Cha cha cha's is a great first date place or dinner before hittin' up the bar or the club. The food is flavorful and great for sharing with friends. Its casual and always gets you ready for a good time.

• Pros: food, music, ambience
• Cons: loud

09/04/06

sangria not so great and food mediocre... why so pricey?

by kjoyiss

i've come here a couple times with friends for tapas and sangria. having spent time in spain, i can tell you that the sangria is not supposed to taste like that. it is too strong. it can make you buzzed really fast, but if you want authetic sangria flavor.. there are other places in the city (that are cheaper too!)

as for the food, i again, am not impressed. while it can be flavorful, it isn't anything that is out of the ordinarily good.

what surprised me the most about this place? the check! because i felt like i spent too much.. and didn't get much for my dollar. not even flavor.

• Pros: they left me and my friends alsone so we can sit and chat
• Cons: the food and the price