Checking Out Cha Cha's Happy Hour

Cha Cha's Tacos and Tequila

110 W. Birch St.

Brea, CA 92821

Happy hour is something that I do not do nearly enough. There are probably a few good reasons for this. My first excuse is that Katie does not get off of work until six, and that is when most happy hours are winding down. I could go with some of my coworkers, but to be truthful, I am not too fond of most of them, and spending more than the eight hours I have already spent with them, makes me a little queasy. Probably the biggest reason I do not get to as many happy hours as I would like to, is because I have not found too many good ones around. That was all about to change when we were recently invited to experience the happy hour at Cha Cha's in Brea.

For those of you that have not been to Brea Downtown, it is a dining, shopping, and entertainment district located at Birch and Brea Boulevard. There are numerous shops, theaters, and some pretty good restaurants located within this three square block area. Some of the standouts around here for me are Bruxie, Merely Sweets. Yard House, and of course Cha Cha's. I had been to Cha Cha's one time before, when I went with my Mom for lunch. You can see that review here.

Cha Cha's comes from a guy that knows a thing or two about the restaurant business, Don Myers. Don opened the El Torito Grill at Fashion Island, he was a Joint Venture Partner at Roy's Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine, and he was a Managing Partner at The Catch in Anaheim. A very impressive resume, and now he also owns Bruno's Trattoria a few doors down from Cha Cha's. I have not been to this Italian restaurant yet, but it is now on my list after seeing how busy they were on this Wednesday night when we walked by.

Now a little bit about why the happy hour at Cha Cha's has got me a little excited. They have happy hour all day and night Sunday through Thursday, so there is no need to rush here after work to try to make it by a certain time. They even feature happy hour on Friday and Saturdays, from 11:30 til 7:30. What are some of the happy hour specials? Glad you asked. They have drink specials starting at $5, appetizer specials, and special pricing on all signature cocktails, selected wines, and draft beers. All of this has gotten the attention of a lot of people. Cha Cha's was voted best happy hour and best margarita by the Orange County Register. With this high praise, I was very excited to see what they had in store for my friend George and I.

When we sat down, the Chips and Salsa were already on the table. Don was positively beaming with pride over the tortilla chips they serve at Cha Cha's. They make them everyday, early in the morning. They were a very solid tortilla chip. I am almost always a red salsa kind of guy, but the green salsa gets my vote on this night. It really popped with flavor. The red was good, but a little more mellow for my taste.

We had been sitting down for less than two minutes, and we already had our first round of drinks sitting in front of us. My good friend George selected the Mango Habanero Margarita. This would have been the drink that I would have ordered, but George was my plus one for this event, so I let him choose first. This cocktail started with Pueblo Viejo 100 percent blue agave, mango, fresh lime juice, and a habanero chili infusion. Not only a good looking beverage, but one that kept my taste buds on their toes. Sweet, and then mildly spicy, this was a very unique drink, and one I would order on my next visit here. My drink of choice was the Cha Cha's Margarita. This refreshing beverage contained Siete Leguas blue agave, Elderflower liqueur, fresh lime, and ruby red grapefruit juice. While writing this, I learned that Eldenfower liqueur comes from Europe, and is actually made with flowers. What I liked about this drink was that it was not crazy sweet, and still had a nice pleasant flavor. Very refreshing.

I'm a real sucker for guacamole, and the Fresh Guacamole ($5.95) at Cha Cha's is not to be missed. Of course they start with fresh Haas avocados, then they add Serrano chile, and fresh lime juice. A simple, but effective guacamole. Too many restaurants complicate their guacamole, and sometimes less is more. I had a hard time sharing this with my companions at my table. Sorry if I took too much guys.

I have been on a real ceviche kick lately, so I was excited to see that Cha Cha's has Shrimp Ceviche ($8.95) on their happy hour menu. The shrimp here is marinated in orange and lime juice, Serrano chile, red onion, and is topped with cubed Haas avocados. I really enjoyed the flavor of this ceviche. The citrus flavors gave this ceviche a real boost. The shrimp was very plentiful in this dish, and you can never go wrong with the avocado that was on top of this. The only thing George and I thought was missing, was the tostada shells, but the chips did a pretty good job of filling in for them.

George made pretty quick work of his mango habanero margarita, and was onto the Fresh Watermelon Margarita before I had even finished half of my first drink. In this margarita they used El Jimador Tequila, fresh watermelon, hibiscus juice, lime, and agave nectar. With all of these ingredients I thought this was going to be overly sweet, but it was mellower than I had expected. Very refreshing.

While George was busy downing drinks, I was getting excited for all of the food that was coming out of the kitchen for us. Up next were the Chicken Flautas ($6.95). No kidding, these were probably some of the best flautas I have had. They were fried perfectly, without being greasy, but what made them great was the fillings inside of them. The were filled with tender chicken, guajillo chile, and Oaxacan cheese. The cheese is what made this for me. The flautas were then topped with a mango habanero salsa, which added some sweetness. Very good appetizer here.

Another very good appetizer were the Nachos Cha Cha's ($8.95). Not a big mound of chips, where most of the chips miss a lot of the toppings, these were individual nachos that really impressed our table. The crisp tortilla chips were topped with chicken, black beans, and melted cheese, then served with pico de gallo, sour cream and jalapeno escabeche, which are pickled jalapenos. I really liked these a lot. Very easy to eat, each bite contained all the elements you would want in a nacho, and the flavor was right on point.

Oh, the Cha Cha Fries ($4.95) bring back some horrible memories for me on this night. It has nothing to do with the fries really. Even though I am partial to smaller fries, these larger steak style fries were fried nicely. Crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside, these Yukon Gold potatoes were then tossed with garlic and herbs, and served with a nice smoked chipotle aioli. Why the bad memory of an appetizer I actually liked? Tom, from Tom's Foodie Blog dared me to a chili eating contest. We each had to eat the pepper that was on top of the fires, and the first person to drink, would be declared the loser. I was feeling pretty good, so I took the challenge. The initial heat was not too bad, but after a minute or so, it really started burning my mouth. I knew Tom was not going to give in, so in order to end the agony, I drank about half of my next margarita in about three seconds. You may have won this battle Tom, but I will get you back someday buddy.

If you happened to catch my first review about Cha Cha's, you know that I am completely enamored with the Wood Fired Queso Fundido ($6.95). This traditional dish is baked cheese, served over roasted potatoes, poblano peppers, and chorizo. This is a very rich dish, that is served with corn or flour tortillas. I learned my lesson last time, and only had two tortillas filled with this. It was hard limiting myself, but I still had five more items to try. This is a must get when coming to Cha Cha's though.

I do not often get to have calamari when I am out, because Katie is not fond of it at all. So when this Crisp Calamari ($7.95) hit the table, I made sure to get my fair share of it. This squid was breaded with Mexican spices, and served with a lime-cilantro aioli. The calamari was a little thicker than I am used to, but it was cooked very well, not rubbery, and the breading had a nice flavor. The breading did break away from the calamari a little too easily though. The lime aioli was a very nice dip for this appetizer.

Sorry for the poor picture here, quesadillas are not exactly known for being photogenic. What the Marinated Grilled Skirt Steak Quesadilla ($8.95) lacked in beauty, more than made up for in taste. It was stuffed with Mexican cheeses, poblano chile, white corn, pickled jalapeno, and of course skirt steak. This quesadilla had a wonderful balance. The cheese was evident, but the steak was easily the star of this show. The meat was tender, and the poblano chile gave off just enough heat. A very solid quesadilla, and more than enough for two people to share.

I was not expecting to see clams on the happy hour menu, but these Fresh Manila Clams ($7.95) were a pleasant surprise. They are sauteed in garlic, chorizo, herbs, white wine, and a little bit of butter. Not exactly the largest clams I have ever had, but the sauce went very well with them. I would have liked some bread to sop up the rest of the sauce, but we still had more food on its way out for us.

Fittingly, we ended our night of wonderful food with two kinds of Cha Cha's famous tacos. My favorite of the two was the Mahi Mahi Tacos. These were filled with chipotle cabbage and pico de gallo, and encased by a soft organic corn tortilla. The fish was very fresh and flaky. The taco was dressed very plainly, which allowed each flavor to shine through. The Shrimp Taco was a little more flashy. There were plenty of pretty good sized shrimp in here, along with mango habanero salsa and chipotle cabbage. This taco was just a tad too sweet for me, but my buddy George really liked this taco best.

Needless to say, we were really full after this happy hour event at Cha Cha's in Brea. I walked in here already knowing that I was going to enjoy the food, just based on my first experience here. I was really wondering what George was going to think of the food and drinks at Cha Cha's. He was pretty impressed, and is already planning to take one of his many girlfriends here on a date night. I was pretty impressed with the freshness of all the food here. This is definitely one of my favorite upscale Mexican restaurants, not that the prices are upscale during happy hour. After eating at Cha Cha's, I may have to make more of a point of making it to more happy hours.

I would like to thank everyone at Cha Cha's for their warm hospitality and wonderful service on this night. All of the wait staff seemed very excited to show off their food and drinks. Thanks also to Don Myers, for taking the time to share more about the food that they make here, and it was a real pleasure meeting him. I would also like to thank all of my fellow food bloggers that were here on this night. You guys make these events even better with your great camaraderie. Lastly, I would like to thank one of the best PR people in the business, Jennifer Morris from Ajenda PR. Thanks so much for thinking of us, and we look forward to seeing you again Jennifer.

For more information about Cha Cha's happy hour, or anything else Cha Cha's related, click here: http://www.chachaslatinkitchen.com/

A Little Bird Told Us to Eat at the Little Sparrow - CLOSED

Little Sparrow

300 North Main St.

Santa Ana, CA 92701

We get some culture every once in a while. Yes, it is true. We leave our DVR unattended for a night, I get out from behind my computer keyboard, and Katie gets a rare night off from household chores, (okay she does this on a regular basis, but I was trying to make her feel better). We had a friend of ours who was going to be in the play, Damn Yankees at the Mysterium Theater. As usual, I was in charge of making dinner reservations. I was not aware that the theater had moved from Downtown Santa Ana to over by Foothill High School. The problem was I made reservations in DTSA, at a place that has been on our list of restaurants to try forever. We decided to take a chance to be late to the play, in order to try the food at the Little Sparrow.

The Little Sparrow is located right on the corner of 3rd and Main. It is in the same place where the old Santa Ana Cafe was, but that was gone long ago, and this address sat vacant for the last fifteen years. The Little Sparrow has been opened for just three months now. In that time they have been reviewed by the tough OC Register critic Brad A. Johnson and been called one of the ten best restaurants of the summer. Gustavo Arellano from OC Weekly called the breakfast here, "one of the better breakfasts of his year". High praise from a guy that I respect his opinion on food immensely. So now you see why we took the chance to miss the opening act of the play we were going to see, just to try the food here.

We got here at about 6PM on a recent Saturday night. The parking situation can always be a challenge in Santa Ana, but the Little Sparrow is very close to the public parking structure that we always seem to have good luck parking in. When we got here, they were not exactly busy. They had maybe eight customers in a restaurant that can easily seat fifty. As the night went on the place filled up, as it was almost all filled when we left. The dining room here is dominated by the color white, from the tiled floors to the white walls and white linens. I really liked the relaxed, bright look of the place. Katie called this a "Pinterest restaurant". Not sure what that means, but she did seem pleased by the aesthetics here.

The menu at the Little Sparrow is not going to blow you away with its diversity. They offered eight starters, seven entrees, and four desserts on their menu, which appears to change monthly. They also have a few small plates on their bar menu as well. They do offer one each of the major proteins on their menu; beef, lamb, chicken, fish, and pasta are featured. I was ready to tackle this menu, so we made our dinner selections, and this is what came out for us.

We were not really feeling any of the starters off of the dinner menu, (okay I wanted to try the Bone Marrow, but I know Katie is not into it, and I could not eat it all by myself.), so we selected two things off of the bar menu, the first of which were these Onion Rings ($4). The onion rings are coated with a panko breading that was good but was kind of boring. The breading also broke away from the onion way too easily, one of my biggest pet peeves when it comes to onion rings. On the positive side, these lacked any sort of greasiness, they were crunchy, and the thick onion inside was full of flavor. These were served with house ketchup that was a little on the sweet side but went well with these. I have definitely had worse house ketchup's, which I generally do not like.

The other bar menu item we tried was the Lamb Merguez Meatballs with Harissa Pomme Puree ($7). While writing this review I learned that merguez is a spicy lamb, which is often featured in Northern African cuisine. Katie is a lot more sensitive to spices, so she noticed the spiciness a lot more than myself. The meatball was not smooth in texture, but rather kind of chunky, which I did not mind at all. It did have a nice bold flavor, and the brown sauce used here was very well made. The puree was very smooth and added a nice accompaniment to the meatballs. I would definitely get this again, but I probably would not share it with anybody. Sorry, Katie.

Now onto the entrees, and let's do the lady first. Katie got the Ricotta Agnolotti ($20). This pasta dish was topped with a roasted tomato sauce and an asparagus salad. This pasta dish was a contradiction for Katie, as she described it as both light, but with a hearty sauce. The homemade pasta was soft and well crafted. The sauce was sweet, but the garlic was very evident. The shaved asparagus used here was different, but it definitely worked for Katie, as she summed up this dinner as being, "excellent".

I really enjoyed photographing the food at the Little Sparrow. The food was very bright and came across that way in the pictures. This beautiful dish is the Grilled Heritage Pork Chop ($29). I was never really a fan of pork chops growing up, but this one makes two that I have had just recently that really knocked my socks off, (the other was at 370 Common). This good-sized pork chop came with beluga lentils, rapini, and kumquat. I'm not usually a fan of orange, but the orange zest used on this chop really enhanced the flavor big time. This pork chop had just enough fat on it to provide even more flavor. The meat was juicy and tender, so I knew it was cooked perfectly. The hefty serving of lentils with this dish really helped to round out this entree. I could not help but pick up the bone and make sure that I got every speck of meat that could be gotten from it. I would not hesitate to get this on future visits here.

Even though we were pressed for time with the upcoming play, we still made time for dessert. Katie tried the Crepe Cake ($8). This cake was created by using lots of pastry sheets, then the top was caramelized like the top of a creme brulee and garnished with blackberries. Katie liked the muted sweetness of this dessert, and it let the very juicy blackberries steal the show. The caramelized top was a very nice touch.

It's probably no shock that I did not get a fruit dessert, but instead got the Chocolate Tart ($8). This tart was garnished with hazelnuts. This dessert was very rich but still had a muted sweetness to it. The hazelnuts probably helped to soften the sweet blow, but I would like to have had them incorporated inside the dessert. The crust was solid but did not wow me when I tasted it on its own. This was a good-sized dessert and a nice finish to our meal.

After eating at the Little Sparrow, it is safe to say that they deserve all of the praise that has come their way in the short time that they have been open. A lot of people may not want to trek down to Santa Ana, but this restaurant is worth the trip. Even with the limited menu, if you just place your hands in the chef's, you are almost definitely guaranteed a great meal. The staff on the night we were here were all very helpful. Our waitress knew the restaurant very well and aided us in making some decisions. The owners were also very visible and were really excited to hear that we had enjoyed their restaurant so much. We had the play to catch, but I did have time to glimpse inside the backroom, where the cocktail lounge is located. This looks like a place that we will have to hit sometime in the future. The cocktail menu looks very promising as well. As for this trip, we paid our bill hastily and ran out the door, hoping not to miss a lot of the play as we made our way across town. Luckily, we made it just in time for the first number, and I still had the memory of a great meal dancing around in my head.

Out of five pirate ships, (because of Jack Sparrow of course), five being best to zero being worst, The Little Sparrow gets 3.5 pirate ships.

For more information on the Little Sparrow, click here to go to their website: http://littlesparrowcafe.com/

Bruxie Comes to Irvine - CLOSED

Bruxie

14376 Culver Dr.

Irvine, CA 92604

Bruxie is a real feel-good story. I'd like to say that I have been with them since the beginning, but that would be a lie. I was late jumping on the Bruxie bandwagon. My first visit was in January 2012, two years after they opened their first location in Old Towne Orange, across from Chapman University. I wrote in that review that I had considered myself a sham of a food blogger because I had not made it to Bruxie before that time. I am now happy to say that I have gone to Bruxie, made numerous return trips, and have been to three of their six locations. You can now add another location to that list because Bruxie just opened another spot, this time anchoring in Irvine.

For the two people unfamiliar with Bruxie, it is a sandwich restaurant, but they use a version of an authentic Belgian waffle instead of bland old bread. The waffle is light and crisp but not sweet. They offer about eighteen different sandwiches, some savory and some sweet. They also have a few specials that are rotated routinely throughout the week. This Irvine outpost is now their sixth location, and of course, the next question is where will number seven be? Of course, I asked Dean Simon, Managing Partner of Bruxie, but he was very tight-lipped about it, only saying, "I don't want to announce anything until it is final."  That is for the best. Why get people's hopes up when plans can suddenly change. If I had to guess, and this is a guess, based on where they are spread out now, they open in either Long Beach/Seal Beach or down in South OC, maybe Laguna Beach/Dana Point. Time will tell if I am right or totally wrong.

For now, we have Bruxie number six, which just opened. They are located in quite a busy shopping center. I had never been to this shopping center at the corner of Walnut and Culver, which features a Mitsuwa Marketplace, an Elephant Bar, and a Habit Burger. Bruxie is smack dab in the middle of the center, next to the First Bank. We were invited to their friends and family event the day before they opened to the public. Every employee we encountered was looking forward to the next day when they could start sharing their great food with the people of Irvine. As always, I was very excited to have this opportunity to get my hands on their great sandwiches. So, after walking through the door, we made a beeline for the registers, placed our orders, and waited for our food to be brought to our table.

While we waited for our food, I took a few shots of the interior of Bruxie. As with all Bruxie locations, they offer inside and outside seating. The roll-up doors, so popular in the RSM location, are also present in Irvine and lend to an open, airy atmosphere here. The high ceiling also contributes to this as well. The colors of the Belgian flag, red, yellow, and black, are well represented on the restaurant's walls, just as they are in their logo. Speaking of their logo, if you want to wear their name around town, Bruxie has plenty of shirts, hats, and other apparel to purchase.

The best part about eating with a group of food bloggers is that they always take plenty of pictures of their food before digging in and are always very gracious about others taking pictures of their food. These plates were brought out to the tables surrounding us. The Irish Nachos and Hot Pastrami Bruxie belonged to Tom from Tom's Foodie Blog, while the always charming Shelby from OC Mom Blog had the Smoked Salmon Lox and Dill Cream Cheese Bruxie. One of my favorite food bloggers, Suki, from Eat Suki Eat went for one of the specials offered at this event, the Country Sausage and Egg Bruxie. This one puts the Egg McMuffin to shame.

On this visit to Bruxie, I took this opportunity to try something I had never had here before, the Buttermilk Fried Chicken and Waffle Bruxie. This large, thinly pounded chicken was joined on the waffle with chili honey and cider slaw. You can also get their 100 percent pure maple syrup to accompany your sandwich for an additional dollar charge. I took full advantage of this. The chicken was well cooked, tender, and spiced very well. The chili honey had a good flavor, while the slaw provided some nice texture. The waffle was light, with a slight crunch to it. It did an admirable job keeping the giant chicken and the other sandwich contents together. Predictably, Bruxie does not serve french fries, but it offers waffle-cut fries. These were good but lacked the greasiness I had expected. An excellent solid fry.

Every time we come to Bruxie, it almost becomes automatic that Katie will get the same thing: the Albacore Tuna Melt. This one comes with cheddar cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes. Katie's always over the moon after eating this. She might have even more reason to get excited over this Bruxie in the future. Dean told us a secret: They will change their tuna very soon, and he seemed very enthusiastic about the new tuna they will carry here. He did not want to give too much away, but we could tell that this sandwich would be even better than it is now. Katie will definitely be first in line to try the new tuna. We will keep you posted when it is set to debut.

I like ice cream but rarely get shakes when we go out. They fill me up too much and take valuable space away from my eating. I might have to make an exception when we go to Bruxie. Bruxie does not use ice cream to make their shakes. They use fresh frozen custard from Wisconsin. The result is a softer but richer version of this dairy treat. We tried their limited-time shake special, the Blueberry Shake. Drinking this shake took me back to eating those frozen blueberry Eggo waffles when I was a kid. The blueberries here were fresh and vibrant and really packed a flavorful punch. This shake really had all of us at Bruxie buzzing.

My food and hockey friend, Rich, wanted to split the Bruxie Burger with me, and who was I to say no to this great burger. At Bruxie, they use an Angus beef patty and top it with cheddar cheese, tomato, lettuce, pickles, and mayo. I have had this burger several times, and it is cooked to a perfect medium every time. The beef is so tender; they don't overdress the burger, and I do not miss the absence of bacon on this burger. Not often I can say that. I'm glad we split this burger so I could save enough room for some of the sweet Bruxies on their way.

Some might argue that the sweet Bruxies are the best, and who am I to argue such a valid point. I have been on a real peanut butter kick lately, almost all my life, so we started with the PB and J. Bruxie uses all-natural peanut butter, and then you can choose between grape or strawberry preserves. Everyone knows strawberry is the best, so we went with that. This was unlike any peanut butter and jelly sandwich I had in grade school. The PB and J went very well with the waffle. This is a classic, but my favorite sweet Bruxie is the Nutella and Bananas with Sweet Cream. There are not too many words to describe this fabulous dessert. The bananas were very fresh, Nutella is always good, and the addition of the sweet cream binds everything together. Lightly dusted with powdered sugar, this is the sweet Bruxie to get here.

With my final bites of the Nutella and Banana Bruxie leaving my plate, it was time for us to end this visit to Bruxie. It was another great experience at Bruxie, and I am sure this location will also be very successful. When the doors opened the next day, there was a line around the building, but the line kept moving, and the wait was only fifteen minutes. I'm happy Bruxie has expanded to another part of OC, and I look forward to seeing what's in store for them.

We thank everyone at Bruxie for this excellent opportunity to attend their friends and family event. It was awesome seeing the passion that everyone connected with Bruxie has for their food and customer service. Everyone was so upbeat that you could not leave Bruxie in a bad mood. We would also like to thank one of the best PR people in the business, the great Mona Shah-Anderson, for the invite to experience Bruxie Irvine. Thanks for thinking of us, Mona, and we look forward to seeing you again soon.

For more information about Bruxie and to find the location closest to you, go to their website here: http://bruxie.com/