Why Can’t I Find Good Nachos In Central Minnesota?

You don’t have to go to Culinary School to know what tastes good and what doesn’t. Thankfully our taste buds help us decide that without knowing how to put the dish together.  

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And when you know what you want and you think you’ve found it, that first bite is somewhat disappointing when you realize what you ordered is different than what you thought it was going to be. Honestly every bite after that is the same way. That’s the way I’ve been feeling lately about a dish that I felt was hard to go astray from, one that even with my limited cooking abilities, I’ve been able to craft at home. I’m talking about Nachos.  

I don’t mean just the chips in a bowl, or Chips that you dunk in some sauce. I’m thinking about Nachos that you order as an entrée and they come prepared with this magical blend of ingredients that alone are ok, but together they create magic for your mouth.  

Since moving to Minnesota, a little more than a month ago, my wife and I have ordered Nachos a few times, and to say we were disappointed is a bit of an understatement.  

Just this past weekend, we visited a place that was of course new to us, and they had a build your own Nachos deal where you could choose from a list of ingredients, and they would build them for you. The problem was that the two best things that go on Nachos were not on that list. To get them the way we wanted them, it would have tacked on an additional 8-12 dollars for a dish that was already 13 bucks. I love good Nachos, but there is a limit to that love and 21-25 dollars is beyond it. 

The two ingredients that I speak of are melted cheese dip (queso or cheddar) and Guacamole. Trying to eat Nachos with just ground beef and shredded cheese sprinkled them on leaves a lot to be desired. Even if the shredded cheese had been melted it would’ve made a big difference.   

And those aren’t the missing pieces of great tasting Nachos I can’t seem to find in Minnesota. Salsa or Pico de Gallo, and just a little lettuce is good on them too. Sour Cream has been the only other ingredient that has to be there that we’ve been able to find consistently.  

 There used to be a place in North Carolina that served what they called “Redneck Nachos”, which contained the chips topped with melted queso or cheddar cheese, pulled bar-b-q, jalapenos, a small amount of bar-b-q sauce among the topping goodness. As they say where I come from, “these nachos are so good your lips will jump up and slap your forehead”. Now, it was also likely a heart attack on a plate, but it sure was good and you didn’t have to pay extra to tack on the pieces of the puzzle that made it so tasty.  

Adapting to living in a new state sometimes comes with unexpected challenges, and thus far finding good Nachos has been one of the major challenges we’ve faced. Any suggestions?