In between all the large vendor stands selling fried pickles, turkey legs and elephant ears (circular pieces of fried dough with cinnamon and powdered sugar), a small stand stands out at The Big E.
The wooden booth sits at the entrance at The Bootin’ Scootin’ Saloon at Dolly’s Honky Tonk, only selling cowboy nachos.
In a paper bowl filled most of the way with salty chips, the hefty bowl includes black beans, small tomato chunks, corn and small, bit-size pieces of pickled kielbasa all cooked together as a chili base. Hot nacho cheese covered the base layer and melted in-between any cracks of the chili layer.
On top was a hefty scoop of sweet and hot jalapeño chunks topped off with barbecue sauce and ranch dressing drizzled on top.
The taste was just as mouth watering as it sounds.
A Cowboy Nachos vendor at Dolly’s Honky Tonk at The Big E on 09/22/2024.Kalina Kornacki
The softness of the chili base and melting nacho cheese paired with the crunchy chips were a solid ratio. The sweetness and spice of the jalapeño chunks added a good spice while the barbecue sauce and ranch dressing added a little bit more sweetness to the chili.
Despite the intense and smooth combination of flavors, I was nowhere near being able to finish the bowl alone. So if you’re interested in trying the nachos, be sure to bring friends or Tupperware (to bring home leftovers).
For the size of the bowl that could feed at least three people, the $15 price is fair. The bowl is a great size with a hefty scoop of multiple different flavor layers.
For those concerned with wanting to try a little bit of everything around the fairgrounds and are worried with the price and size, it’s understandable. There’s so many different stands and interesting flavors to explore, purchasing a large bowl of nachos for just yourself may not be the best decision.
Overall, cowboy nachos deserve an 8.5 out of 10.
