Cha-Cha-Cha, Haight St. SF
- Josey Sadler
- Jun 26, 2022
- 1 min read
Updated: Jun 29, 2022

Cha-cha-cha has always been my family‘s favorite dining destination since we have discovered Cuban food as a very unique and delectable cuisine. Historically and culturally, Cuba hovers in our mind as an island nation able to defy decades of economic embargo imposed by the US. It also represents an armchair hero-worship of Che and Fidel for obvious reasons. For me, however, the name of the resto conjures the Latin dance popular with my aunts and uncles who would gyrate on the floor without warning when the lilting tempo of the chachacha played on the radio.

Our experience with Chachacha started when my work team held our holiday party. in their Mission St. location many years ago. To day the least, in this location, the mussels were phenomenal.
But in their Haight location, we normally order the inimitable fried plantains. They were deliciously caramelized with just the right amount of ripeness and softness. Their patatas bravas taste similar to patatas found in Spain—salty and doused with pimenton ahumado.
As for the calamarI, we couldn’t stop gorging on every piece. They just melt in your mouth like savory marshmallows.

The ambiance is typical: tie-dyed garbed individuals and Jim Morrison-Jimi Hendrix channeling mixed with suburban tourists from the Midwest.

The drinks, on the other hand, to be more specific, will transport you to paradisiacal tropical breezes, verdant palm fronds and mangoey turmeric-infused sunny vacations of vacations that will probably make you shout, Viva por Cuba!
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