Encore Saloon

Encore had been on my radar since they opened in Chinatown.  With the lovely ladies visiting from Alaska, we scheduled the January meet-up for Encore.  I went straight from work to secure a table and was greeted by a couple friends who had the same idea of some pau hana margaritas before the gang showed up.  We were able to have some more intimate conversations and catch up which was nice.  I highly recommend the paloma, seriously fresh grapefruit deliciousness.  As more and more of the nacho friends slowly arrived, we realized we needed a second table.  Tom volunteered to secure one just on the other side of the courtyard.  We were segregated but still on the same mission: NACHOS!!!! 

Encore is a lovely little place with brick walls.  I love the long skinny interior reminiscent of old saloons and bars.  My favorite part is the outdoor patio just out past the bar.  We got rained on just a tad, but the umbrellas helped to keep us 80% dry, as well as the nacho ponchos.  Our server was friendly and super helpful.  The drinks take a minute to arrive after ordering but once you taste them you know why.  They are so fresh and made with love.  The nachos fared well and are definitely a contender for top nachos on Oahu.

Apologies in advance for the quality of the photos, the lighting was weird and my camera is old. 

Put queso in my face-o!

Fresh ingredients and so delicious!

Grime Time Nachos - $12.75, with pork +$3, with beef + $3.75, with chicken +$3, with veggie medley + $3

 

Nacho Woman (5) – PRESENTATION: Good chips, looks nice and crispy, fair amount on plate. RAD: The flavor/crispy chips. LAME: Don't have a complaint. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 5, jalapenos, meat, good amount of cheese, cilantro. From Alaska, don't have much to compare it to.  Good atmosphere!

Cavern of naked chips...the layering can definitely be improved!

 

Nacho Libra (4.5) – PRESENTATION: Pretty!  Not huge, but big enough to share. RAD: Super crunchy chips! Lots of options for meat toppings.  Very fresh veggies and beans!  The homemade cheese sauce is fantastic!  LAME: Lots of empty chips, but they are tasty with sides of salsa! TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 4.  These nachos are practically perfect.  Love the patio area.  The drinks were tasty.

 

Brando (4) – PRESENTATION: I looked from afar, as the nachos made their way down the table.  The pork and the vegetarian nachos looked the same from a distance.  Feta cheese, jalapenos, beans, some other cheese, chips, delish. RAD: The cheeses.  The cheese united the vegetarian and pork nachos in a unison of delectable deliciousness.  It was as if a vegetarian and a meat-eater met for the first time and said, "F you," "No, F You," "But this cheese right?" "Yeah we are gonna be friends."  LAME: Not enough nachos.  As my ex-girlfriend once said, "you're a great side, but not a great dish."  Don't judge me. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: Lots of great toppings.  Fresh, gluten free, free roaming…chips.  I can't vouch for the rest, but those chips, mmm, mmmm.  I like more toppings than chips because I can scoop those extra toppings on my last chip and it's this amazing chip carrying the weight of the meal on it's back and I respect that.  I drank mezcal with these nachos, you might have gathered as much at this point.  But I though it was a great duo.  The hint of lime from the mezcal drink added a great finishing touch.  Which leads me to my biggest suggestion for these nachos…add lime!

 

Dillard (4) – PRESENTATION: Good presentation.  The contrast between yellow nacho and the green jalapenos draws me in.  RAD: The crispy chips are amazing and I love so much.  The topping quality was great. LAME: The way they don't come with salsa is very lame.  Also basic chips would be great. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: Toppings to chips ended up being great.  There were no extra which is ideal. I think the extras would have worked better.  Services are great.  Very amicable to the group and the atmosphere was very nice how it was lighted.  

 

Piggy (5) – PRESENTATION: Atmosphere is bomb ass awesome.  I don't see anything chemical/artificial on the plate.  LOVE Nacho Ponchos. RAD: Fucking amazing flavors.  Chicken nacho has the citrusness which I love.  Vegetarian nacho has the same amount of flavor as meat nachos ---> AWESOME.  Cinnamon kick! LAME: Nothing LAME, everything RAD. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 5, great!  My favorite so far.  Should have ordered a margarita earlier.  Nom nom nom nom.  Wait, where's my margarita…I think the waitress forgot.

 

Tango Tango (4.9) – PRESENTATION: Beauties!  Lovely drizzle of queso fresco and cilantro.  Do I spy homemade chips?! Looks like enough for 2 to share, maybe 1 if you are starving. RAD: They ARE homemade chips!  The drinks are so tasty!  The rear courtyard is such an urban oasis! LAME: Drinks are $$$.  Liquid cheese, however tasty, is still liquid cheese.  Also the gaps in the table tops look cool but silverware and pens fall right through.  TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: Love the home fried tortilla chips but many were broken and too small with only adequate layering.  The robust structural integrity of homemade chips lends themselves to proper layer.  My god I love these! My only regret is that I am full and cannot eat more.  Hurry ring the bells in the tower!  Crown these nachos the new KING!

 

Mucho Nacho (4) – PRESENTATION: Thy look good.  But the yellow cheese scares me.  RAD: The chips are definitely homemade. LAME: Cheese was not lame like I thought it would be.  I wish they were a little more inventive. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 4.5.  Their other food is much better than the nachos.

 

Nacho Marc (4) – PRESENTATION: Clean and elegantly prepared.  Nice juxtaposition of green, orange, and white.   RAD: Everything!  The spicy level is just right and well blended flavor. LAME: They make your mouth smile and burn with joy.  TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 5.  Could use more layering. Wonderful people and the best music.

Shananigans (4.5) – PRESENTATION: Looks fresh, homemade queso, excited to put some queso in my face-o. RAD: Queso, spicy jalapenos, cilantro, beans. LAME: Not layered well, needs more queso in my face-o. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 3.5.  Yummy chips, just needs a little more queso.  Love the music that was playing and the outside tables.  They don't take RSVPs so first come first serve.  Marcy was a kick ass waitress. I tried a few of the drinks, but the paloma was my favorite.

 

Flaco (4.5) – PRESENTATION: Looks good, looks like lots of stuff on there. RAD: The chips were extra thick and crispy which is good for keeping toppings on the chips.  20 minutes later, still crispy. LAME: The toppings covered all of the chips so it was hard to get to the bottom chips without getting your fingers messy. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 4, looks good.  Pork, beans, jalapenos, white cheese.  Didn't seem that hot but it left a good warmth in my mouth even without the jalapeno.  Would get a 5 if there were toppings that were more unique, but the chips were awesome!  Both tasty and held up even with time.  Cool, trendy bar, cool people at my table.  I like the flare on the top of the drink glasses.  Makes it nice to sip and easy to hold.

 

Whiskey Dick (5) – PRESENTATION: Good size, lots of crème fraiche. RAD: Homemade tortilla chips. LAME: Hint of cinnamon. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 4.  Very sweet waitress.

Arat (4.9) – PRESENTATION: Super lovely on arrival, nice looking white sauce, hopefully it's cheese!  Beef is full of flavor! RAD: Fresh chips! LAME: Having a hard time finding anything lame this week. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 5, plates emptied evenly.  Perfection is in-achievable.  Outside seating is awesome, nice lights and it's warm and not raining.  And it is not Alaska.

 

Andrew (3) – PRESENTATION: Looks really neat to be nachos! RAD: Love the ranch. LAME: Chips too hard for my taste. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 3.  Atmosphere really cool, back alley kind of feeling.

 

 

 

A few of us may or may not have popped over to Smith Union's to do some karaoke after nachos...I won't post the videos.  It was epic.