Restaurant Review: Chicha

By Sherman Chan,
Special to The Post

For the second time, we went to the Latin restaurant, Chicha. Our dishes came out in a timed and orderly fashion.
We started with the Plantain Chips and Papas Fritas with  aji sauces . It was a nice combination of heat, herbs and creaminess. The Peruvian tartar sauce was chunky, creamy and slightly spicy.
We dug into the Baby Back Ribs with orange aji panca glaze with green beans and maple bacon potato salad. The ribs were fall-off-the bone tender. The cold potato salad had a sweet tang. The Chicken & Waffles had fried chicken breast, yuca waffle, bacon jam and maple syrup. The waffle was like bread pudding. The chicken was moist. The Lomo Saltado had Pemberton Meadows beef, kennebec fries, red onion, peppers and tomato.  The slices of beef were succulent, but there was very little of it.
The vegetarian item, Tacu Tacu de Locra de Zapallo, had crispy lima bean cakes, butternut squash stew, Parmesan and fried quail egg. The lima bean cakes were firm and chewy.
We had the Arroz con Pato which featured Yarrow Meadows duck confit, coriander and dark beer rice. It had a nicely rendered skin and the duck was well-executed.
For dessert, we had the Picarone, which was sweet potato and pumpkin Peruvian donuts with spiced honey and raspberry sauce. These donuts were super crispy and light. There was just enough honey for sweetness while the raspberry sauce added tartness.  We were pretty satisfied with the food at Chicha. Although it's not really Peruvian food, it is "Peruvian-inspired”. So on note, they do succeed.
Sherman Chan is the #1 ranked food blogger on the Vancouver portal of Urbanspoon.com. Read more of his reviews at www.shermansfoodadventures.com.

136 East Broadway, Vancouver, BC

The Good:
• Decent eats
• Okay pricing
• Hip

The Bad:
• Smallish portions
• Not Peruvian, for those food snobs

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