When it comes to bar food, the rule seems to be that you can never have enough cheese. This is doubly true for nachos. Whether you like your chips topped with chili, beans, or loaded with jalapeños, we can all agree that they should definitely be smothered in gooey cheese. Connoisseurs even quibble over the appropriate chip-to-topping ratio and whether soggy chips are ever acceptable. Here are our picks for the best nachos around town. Be sure to let us know yours in the comments.
Nachos at Busboys and Poets. Photo by Jason Anfinsen.
AMERICAN ICE COMPANY: American Ice Company’s swachos stretch the definition of nachos, but they are delicious. The swine nachos are simple: tortilla chips covered with melted white cheese, pulled pork, and jalapenos, and they are a gooey confection of Americanized goodness. —Andrew Wiseman
American Ice Company is located at 917 V Street NW.
BLACK JACK: Above Pearl Dive on 14th Street, Black Jack not only has two bocce courts, but great snack food and drinks to enjoy while you play. These nachos are definitely not the messy, cheap kitchen-sink style. Instead, there are four doubled-decker tortilla chips loaded with slow-roasted duck in chipotle BBQ sauce, melted pepper jack, and tomatillo-avocado salsa. This is the best kind of bar food: small finger food packed with rich flavor. Just remember to wash your hands between playing bocce and eating.—Josh Kramer
Black Jack is located at 1612 14th Street NW.
BUSBOYS AND POETS: Nachos are normally a very cheesy affair, which usually makes them off limits if you don’t eat dairy. Busboys and Poets is one of the few places where you can get a decent nacho platter regardless of whether you’re an omnivore, vegetarian, or vegan. The regular version comes loaded with the usual pico de gallo and guac, along with black beans and sweet roasted corn, while the vegan version features dairy-free cheese and sour cream and black-eyed peas and red pepper salsa. Meat eaters can add chicken or chili for some extra protein. —Alicia Mazzara
Busboys and Poets has four locations in D.C., Virginia, and Maryland.
DISTRICT TACO: Sometimes the best (and possibly the worst) nachos you can have are customized. That’s the case at District Taco, where you’re given not only a choice of meat, but toppings as well. The bare bones of their nachos includes homemade tortilla chips, black beans, sour cream, and, of course, queso, but you can add any other topping that District Taco has to offer, potentially making you a iconoclast in the art of consuming nachos. — Matt Cohen
District Taco is located at 1309 F Street NW, 656 Pennsylvania Avenue SE, 1919 M Street NW, and 5723 Lee Highway in Arlington, Va.
LAS PLACITAS: If you’re looking for the gooiest, cheesiest—perhaps even messiest—plate of nachos in the city, look no further than Las Placitas in Barrack’s Row. Chili is spread over chips, guac, pico de gallo, and sour cream, but the clutch is the waterfall of shredded cheese melted over it all. — Matt Cohen
Las Placitas is located at 517 8th Street SE.
Photo by Kevin Harber.
MERIDIAN PINT: No matter your dietary restriction, Meridian Pint’s got the nachos for you. Meat lovers can choose from chips toped with beef chili, pulled pork, or shredded chicken, and there’s a bean chili version for vegetarians (all topped with pepper jack cheese). No dairy? No problem: try the bean chili with vegan cheese. All styles come with a hefty glop of guacamole, while salsa, sour cream, and hot sauce are available on the side. Wash your nachos down with one of Meridian’s many rotating craft pints—you can refill your own glass directly from an in-table tap if you like. —Jenny Holm
Meridian Pint is located at 3400 11th Street NW.
THE PASSENGER: In my opinion, the meat makes the nachos, which is why I find The Passenger’s pork cheek nachos so hard to resist. Their rendition may not be for everybody; don’t order them if you’re expecting the usual guacamole or salsa. The focus here is on the chunks of tender, slow-cooked pork bathed in a sweet smoky sauce, sort of like a mole. The chips are topped with a hailstorm of jalapeño slices, melty cheese, and a dollop of sour cream to cut the heat. The result is messy, meaty, and wholly delicious. —Alicia Mazzara
The Passenger is located at 1021 7th St NW.
SMOKE AND BARREL: I have a theory that BBQ places make the best nachos (see: American Ice Co. above). Smoke and Barrel’s BBQ nachos help back up that theory. Your choice of pork, brisket, chicken, veggie chili, or tofu is loaded into a mountain of tortilla chips topped with nacho cheese, jalapeños, red bell peppers with sides of salsa and sour cream. It’s a nacho dream, you guys. —Matt Cohen
Smoke and Barrel is located at 2471 18th Street NW.
TRYST: For the fully loaded nacho experience, try the Nachos Locos at Tryst. These puppies come piled high with black bean dip, grilled peppers, sour cream, guac, jalapeños, and your choice of beef or pulled chicken. Hate it when your chip doesn’t have enough toppings? A hefty coating of melted white cheddar cheese completes this monster appetizer, ensuring that every inch of the plate is covered in melty goodness.—Alicia Mazzara
Tryst is located at 2459 18th Street NW.
VENTNOR SPORTS CAFE: Although the toppings may not be novel, these traditional nachos shine thanks to a successful chip-to-topping ratio and fresh ingredients. The homemade chips are stacked with a melted cheese blend, black beans, corn, salsa, guacamole and a zesty lime sour cream. The layered heap never get too soggy, as even the chips on the bottom of the pile maintain their crunch. These aren’t the cheapest nachos in town—an order big enough to share costs $13 with an additional charge for chicken or steak—but they’ll surely satisfy most cravings and critics. —Travis Mitchell
Ventnor Sports Cafe is located at 2411 18th Street NW.
