La Chagra (Amazonian Flavors) — Restaurant in Medellín

I booked this reservation months ago for my Birthday Trip to Medellin and was looking forward to it and it was very disappointing. Before I leave my review I want to state that I work in the restaurant industry, specifically fine dining. I’ve tried numerous cuisines throughout my life and I am not a picky eater. I understood going into this that it would be a unique experience and would not be like other tasting menus that I’ve experienced. From the moment we arrived the restaurant was relatively empty that should’ve been our first warning sign. Then, I inquired about the menu that I saw on their website and they told me the menu on their website is wrong and old and they would only be offering one menu of the night with an option to add on a drink pairing. Not only was the menu wrong on their website but the price listed online is less than what they actually charge. We then began the courses and I can honestly say I didn’t enjoy any of the courses. The presentation was beautiful however all dishes lacked flavor and depth to them. Which is extremely disappointing because when you source ingredients from the Amazon rainforest you have an ABUNDANCE of options and flavors to choose from and for them to choose lackluster dishes especially at the price point is a huge let down. By course 5 ( jungle flower) I asked to stop the tasting menu and be done with the experience. By that point I was so disappointed and dissatisfied. The server then spoke to me like I was a child and informed us the flavor would get better as we continued through the menu because they cannot start the menu off with “too much flavor”. But honestly for a tasting menu the first bite should grab your attention and have you wanting more and this menu just made me want to leave and go somewhere else. After the server tried to convince me to continue on I told them I had no interest in continuing an experience that I could not enjoy. At La Chagra you can tell there is an emphasis on presentation and giving a show but that means nothing if the food fails to live up to the aesthetic. I offered to pay for my drink and half of the experience even though I only fully ate one course just so I could leave and go somewhere else and they said it was not possible because nothing like this had ever happened to them before. No one has ever tried to end the tasting menu. Maybe it’s just me but I would never make a customer pay for a full experience if they didn’t even eat the food. However we paid for the full experience even though we only made it to course five just so we could leave. Such a huge let down and definitely not worth the money. Definitely a money grab...

I had seen good reviews in the past and their upscale Amazon based menu looked interesting. The space is attractive and the service was attentive but it had the worst food that I've eaten in almost 10 years in Medellin. Four of us went for my girlfriend's birthday and ordered 2 appetizers, 4 main courses and 4 Amazonian fruit drinks. I couldn't drink mine. It smelled off putting and tasted disgusting. The girls were able to force theirs down. The ceviche appetizer was okay but tiny for 20mil. We also had a flavorless, very dry fish croquet. My main was porked that was supposedly smoked for 8 hours. It has 0 smokiness and was as tough as leather. The sauce was cloyingly sweet and the veggies overcooked. My GF's kid got a vegetarian tamale. It tasted like dirt with no redeeming flavors and at almost 40mil was served with a garnish of flavorless onion and tomato salad. My mother-in-law ordered an Amazonian river fish. She received three small cubes of dry, flavorless white flesh fish without sauce or a side for 40mil. My GF got a shrimp chaufa which was the standout meal since it was edible. It was also about 40mil and was a smaller order than you would receive at Peru Mix for half the price. It also had the tiniest, least expensive variety of shrimp. We didn't stay for desert. I'm sad that I picked this place instead of Carmen or OCI or El Cielo. This is the most disappointing meal I've eaten in Medellin which is...

This restaurant has all of the attributes that are important for a great restaurant - delicious food, creatively conceived and created items, thoughtful presentation, comfortable and nice setting, and great service. On top of that, you are helping indigenous people in the Amazon Basin by ordering their dishes that all use ingredients mostly from the Amazon Basin. You also receive a gift rosewood carving created by these people, providing additional income to them. I cannot remember when I’ve ever eaten so many courses with mostly unfamiliar ingredients (even the drinks!) They ranged from very good to incredible in flavor. To me, the incredible items included pork in borojo sauce, fermented pineapple panna cota, and Mapinguarí (a flavorful cocktail made from cocona, arazá, etc.). Other people will likely have other favorites. An added observation: the entrance was a little obscure (take the stairs to the right of the sign near the street). It is a very fun place to dine. People can eat the same familiar dishes at the same familiar restaurants, or try something totally different. I was very glad I did and couldn’t wait to tell...