Nachojawn has a new goal for 2017. Eat nachos with Joel Embiid.

#nachoswithembiid

During Winter Break, Mrs. Nachojawn and Little Miss Nachojawn joined me for lunch at El Vez. They were still off from work and school, but I had to earn the nacho money for 2017.

We started off with the Nacho Mamma. El Vez’s nachos have gone through a few iterations in recent years, and i would put the newest versions below the originals, but above last year’s version.

They’re advertisted as having black beans, smoked chile salsa, crema fresca, white cheddar, and monterey jack. Obviously they’re some chunky tomatoes on top too, as well as pickled onion. Not a bad effort, and the Starr Organization’s commitment to single layer tray nachos is evident.

What does Little Miss Nachojawn think?

3.93/5 pickled jalapeños – Eat these with almost the whole family. Nachojawn Jr. was polishing his low post skills at Sixers camp.

Lost in the shuffle of Nachojawn’s Google Photos account were these snaps from one of my favorite non-nacho shore eats – Smitty’s Clam Bar on Somers Point.

Drinking some Sauvignon Blanc out of a soda cup while eating clam chowder.

Hell yeah, corn fritters served with honey butter.

I like the tuna special – on the menu above, and seen below.

The Nachojawn crew.

We’re going to close out 2016 with Nachojawn’s favorite cheesesteak in Philadelphia. In what was indisputably an overall shitty year, there are some beacons of light that remain. One is a Dalessandro’s cheesesteak.

When FON’s come to Philadelphia and want a cheesesteak, here’s what I say. If you want to stay in Center City, eat a Jim’s. If you’re willing to go a little farther, go to John’s Roast Pork. If you want the best, eat a Dalessandro’s.

Sit at the counter, order an American with fried onions, and enjoy. Nachojawn is a fan of the chopped steak style, while some prefer the sliced version that you’ll find at a place like Steve’s Prince of Steaks.

And if you end up by Cheesesteak Vegas, it’s ok, you can have a Pat’s. But Prima Pizza is right there, and better.

Happy New Year to all FON’s!

Do the best nachos in L.A. come from this mobile truck?

The L.A. Weekly seems to think so, hyping the guacatillo sauce. Made of garlic, tomatillo and avocado, with a little chicken broth thrown in as well, it’s their secret weapon.

Nachojawn hails from near our nation’s capital, and Thanksgiving weekend was my high school reunion. Which one? I’ll leave that for you to decide. Was it a 5th? 50th? Is Nachojawn 100 years old, eating nachos since time immemorial?

Nah, not really. It was Richard Montgomery’s 20th reunion for the class of ’96, and after the official party was the after party at Uncle Julio’s.

This is what they call nachos. HARD PASS. Can’t even melt the cheese. Lazy f@*s.

1.45/5 pickled jalapenos – eat these after kicking it with the class of ’96.

Up in Fishtown, Revolutions bills itself as a 52,000 square foot venue with fun for everybody. Bowling alleys, video games, a flair bar….but is there fun for Nachojawn?

This is a seriously big plate of nachos.

Revolution’s loaded nachos have house made tortilla chips, queso, jalapenos, pico de gallo, black beans, guacamole, sour cream, and scallions.

Those house made tortilla chips were the highlight, thin and hot out of the fryer. However, as with many of the institutional nachos you encounter, the ice cream scooper strikes again to top these off, and the tomatoes on the pico de gallo are an unappetizing shade of pink.

Those chips that were just queso and queso only were the best. Otherwise, a middling effort out of Revolutions.

2.88/5 pickled jalapeños – eat these when Dave & Busters is too crowded and after you lost all your cash except nacho money at Sugar House.

Revolutions
1009 Canal Street, Philadelphia

Nachojawn has heard that Charleston is a hot eating destination, and these BBQ nachos seem like the truth.

If you’re looking for a place to spend two hours waiting in line for brunch on a sunny spring day, Sabrina’s in the Italian Market is the place for you.

However, if you’d rather sit right down, go to the University City Sabrina’s when school’s out.

The whole Nachojawn Family, including Abuelo and Abuela Nachojawn hit up Sabrina’s for brunch recently. They’ve always had a strong Mexican breakfast take, and I went with the huevos rancheros.

The coloring is a little weird in the picture, but these are two tortillas topped with a chorizo sauce, lima crema, guacamole, two eggs, pepper jack, and a fried jalapeño, over home fries.

I could have used a little more heat, and I shook a bunch of Cholula on these guys before polishing them off.

Sabrina’s gets extra credit for coming up with at least a dozen creatively named specials every week. This week’s Mexican breakfast special was the Darren Sproles Won’t Fumble This Mexi Special:

Thrillist picks one cheap eat every week in NYC, and this week, it’s the $7.58 cheese nachos at Taqueria Diana. They look pretty damn good.