Chaak Kitchen

Such good food and ambiance!Loved everything we ordered! Def get the octopus and lamb flatbread.

We had a late date night here and enjoyed the ambiance, but taking a star or maybe half a star down for how loud it gets inside the restaurant. We could barely hear each other at some points. We started off with cocktails while waiting for our table. They were strong and innovative and I would come back for those alone.For our food, we had a rounded meal being able to sample some of their popular items on recommendation from our server. I was worried it would be too much.Ceviche - bright, light, and spicy. The octopus was not gummy at all. Ask for extra chips.Pork Belly Tacos - thick piece of pork belly and super flavorful. But, something that needs a fork and knife to keep everything together.Prime New York Steak - This is an item to share! But, cooked perfectly medium rare with a salt crust. The petite potatoes were also a bit salty. But the accompanying were delicious.

Honestly I'm just here to give a shout to Orlando!!!! They were absolutely packed tonight and he still managed to provide absolutely warm & personalized service -- the friend I was with is both vegan and was in a rush and he made sure that everything came out perfectly and on time. (If you were wondering, the two vegan items on the menu are the chayote and the chaak 3 dip appetizer)The food is always great here, drinks are solid but the service can be hit or miss: sometimes I feel like I'm annoying them by being there but tonight was super solid so had to toss in a rave review. Thank you for not making us feel like a bother and getting us in and out on time, Orlando!!

This was one of the worst experiences I've ever had at a Mexican restaurant, especially surprising since they're known for their great hospitality! The host at the front was too busy on her phone to be attentive. Despite there being plenty of empty tables both inside and outside, she kept insisting they were reserved. While we were there, only one table was seated, but she still didn't bother walking us to a table. Instead, she pointed us to the bar top without offering a menu or anything. I had to ask a waiter for a menu, things were already off to a bad start.I noticed on the wall that this restaurant was Michelin-recognized in 2021, but it seems like those days are long gone. The food was overpriced, with tiny portions of raw meat and fish that were heavily oversalted. Even the chips were drenched in oil, overly salty, and way too spicy. We didn't enjoy any of it. Despite being ignored and never offered a proper table, we decided to leave.The only things we liked was the cocktail, a cucumber margarita that had a refreshing taste and ambiance. Other than that, it was a complete disappointment.

If you like Mexican food, but are searching for something a little different... Chaak is the spot for you.::Food::Chuuk Trio / Hiramasa Crudo / Parrillada Yucatan / BombasChuuk Trio: Next level chips and salsa. You get "spicy" guac, red salsa, and sikil pa' k which is like a pumpkin seed hummus-ish. The chips are a combo of homemade blue corn tortilla chips, chicharrones, taro root mini tostadas. Overall 5/5Hiramasa Crudo: Maybe the best thing I ate here. There is so much going on at once that I cannot even describe what I ate. The fish is fresh, the apple is total wildcard that works perfectly with the dish and everything else is just a vessel to the greatness. Use the chips from the trio to make small bites even better. Overall 5/5Parrillada Yucatan: Sausage, Chicken, Steak + homemade corn tortillas. The star of this was the chicken for me. It was nicely smoked giving it some depth of flavor. The steak was pretty standard for me, nothing too special. The sausage was unlike anything I've ever tasted. The flavors were unique and potent. Overall it was just okay imo 3.5/5Bombas: Beignets meet Churros. They were good and a nice way to end the meal. They are served with some dark chocolate and dulce de leche to add some sweetness. 4/5::Service / Restaurant::Issa, our server, was great. She was super attentive, gave recommendations, and was constantly checking on us. You will never run out of water here as they are always stopping by to refill glasses nonstop. The decor inside is very nice and fits the Mayan / Yucatan theme nicely!::Notes::Overall it was a very pleasant experience. Some of the flavors were not my cup of tea, but that's okay because at least I tried them!

Mexican food is an aphrodisiac which excites the passion for living. It courts, seduces, ravishes, then cherishes all five senses -- Richard Condon, The Mexican Stove: What To Put On It and In It, 1973Somehow my Chaak review has disappeared...my photos used to be featured too. Very weird. Anyway, Chaak in my mind is the best restaurant in OC. So it gets one of the first 2025 reviews from me. Been here multiple times including ordering takeout during the COVID years. Prefer the table for 5-6 at the corner window. Best items to order: Ceviche, Charred Octopus, Duck Salbutes, Smoked Pork, the meat plate, basque cheesecake...oh, also the charred carrots when in season. Cocktails and wine list are interesting. Corkage I think is up to $30. Service is usually very friendly. The ambiance is cool yet OC. It's nice when the food opens up in the summer. A huge missed opportunity for them not having live music or staying open later. Especially with the strong drink program. Highly recommended :-)

I came here for lunch with a party of 6 and we all enjoyed the Yucatán seafood and cozy, open ambiance. Our waitress was informative about the menu and cautious about the allergens we mentioned to her. Shoutout to whoever was in charge of the music! It was good vibes the entire time we ate at this restaurant. Apparently the menu changes in the evening? I'll definitely visit again to try their dinner.

Tried to get reservations at Gabbi's (their sister restaurant Orange), but they couldn't accommodate us and suggested we try here. Came here on a Saturday night and it was pretty busy.The host and hostesses at the front were very nice and friendly!Our waiter Ryan was awesome and very patient with us as we didn't know what to order. He was very knowledgeable about all the dishes! Service was amazing too! We got drinks to start, the Orange Margarita and Copal (Ryan's great recommendation). The Orange Margarita was good. My husband REALLY liked the Copal. We ordered a bunch of stuff...Chuuk trio - chips and salsa - it was served w/ three different "dips". Guacamole, salsa and sikil pak (pumpkin seed). The best was the guacamole!Carne Crudo - beef tartare - it was served with chips. It was pretty good. I had a nibble as my kids gobbled the rest up.Pulpo Al Guajillo- grilled octopus - had a nice char/smokey flavor. The octopus was good too! It wasn't chewy either which was great!Esquites - grilled corn w/bone marrow - this was very tasty! With the marrow mixed into the grilled corn, it gave a different flavor!Castacan - pork belly tacos - something in there was pretty spicy for my kids. The pork belly was also a bit salty too. Cochinita Pibil - smoked pork shoulder was big enough to share with another person. The pork was soft and tender. The tortilla that it comes with...sadly I don't know what "fresh" tortillas taste like...I'm not sure if this was the case, but it wasn't the American style type of tortillas that I'm used to buying from the stores. Overall, delicious drinks! Amazing service! Great food! I'd recommend checking this place out!

Nice interior, kind of open lighting/jungly bar concept. Went at a brunch time and it was rather empty. Had some expectations being in the bib gourmand, pricing is like $15-20 per dish which was less than expefted. Ii thought we wouldn't be full with the portions/ number of dishes but we were. I kind of didn't like the service, menu wise was rushed, they cleared our plates too early, and barely came to give water or check on us until the end, the male buser was nice. However, I do admit this might be partly a mistake on our part as our reservation was at 1 and they closed at 2, with kitchen closing even earlier so I'd recommend to change the reservation times available on yelp. However, there was a party seated after us (midway through eating) that seemed to have a smoother interaction. The food arrived fast and close to each other.Anyways food!Tacos- yummy flavor profile, corn tortilla, not too strongly smoked but had good flavors without being too oily Habanero cream sauce but not too spicy. Huaraches- if i were to colonise this I'd say its like a flatbread on a blue corn based bread. Again nicely executed with not making it too oily despite a fattier meat and I enjoyed the toppings. The cheese was yummy too and had a nice pull as expected. Recommended if mexican food isn't your forteCeviche- strong flavor, actually had a bit of a kick. They have a tin of what looks like house made blue corn tortilla chips. The chips are a bit thin to hold the ceviche, but i enjoyed the flavor. I think this was my favorite Overall, the food is well executed for the design, after all its quite rare to see mayan food. I would say its sort of gentrified ish, definitely not like hit your soul, bang for your buck mexican food. Besides the service, I think it would be a nice dining experience to try if you are a foodie.

I used to see this place while passing by the aesthetic old tustin neighborhood and decided to try it out, but it doesn't live up to its reputation.You can reserve ahead online and on weekdays or early weekend hours, there's free 2 hr street parking on the lot. But the lanes are pretty busy so I'd plan accordingly. They have a huge space but it's neither arranged nor managed well. They have too many 4 seat options that are always empty and they're holding for some reservation so if you're a party of 2 it's just the bar and high tops, both of which are not well insulated from the outside and if it's cold like it was when we went, then good luck getting through. We asked the server if there was any other seat since the booths were all empty and it was freezing and he said it's just the bar and high tops and we can leave if we wish to. Which was incredibly weird way of addressing a question. We sat at the corner end of the bar and the only saving grace is the bar staff. They're really nice and knowledgeable, the previous server had to do double takes on every dish or item we were asking about. At the bar, we tried two of their signature beverages and called for the trio chips/dip, enchiladas (only vegetarian entrée), beets, chicken tamal, n the chocolate mousse. My fav was the light,dark, slightly bitter sweet dessert, my partner liked the enchiladas. Having had authentic sikil pak and Yucatan food from the province, this really falls short of what it advertises. L Drinks were alright, we also got the desert egg nog drink and that shot was really bad and way too eggy not in a good way. That and the overall bad seating situation make for a mid experience which is pretty steep. Would not recommend