Nachos in Paradise: Growler USA - National Nachos Day!

For National Nachos Day, we visited Growler USA on Kapahulu. They were super accommodating for party of ever changing RSVPs. They set up a big, long table for us and were super attentive to our trickling in guests. They do their nachos a little different at Growler USA. And while some argued that they aren't real nachos because the queso and toppings came on the side, we were all in agreement that the queso was absolutely delicious. And when it's served on the side, your chips NEVER get soggy, you always have the perfect topping to chip ratio, and it's easy to eat. But seriously that queso though, perfectly seasoned and bursting with cheese flavor. Put the queso in my face-o! The servers and manager went above and beyond to make sure we had a fabulous time for National Nachos Day including splitting our checks without worry.

#nachovirgin

#nachobffs

KALUA PORK NACHOS - $11
Kalua pork, Sriracha cheese sauce, guacamole, pico de gallo, sour cream and green onions served with crispy tortilla chips.

Tequila Cat (4) – PRESENTATION: Nice presentation. Non-traditional, with toppings served on the side. RAD: The restaurant made a special batch of queso for our event, 4 cheeses with sriracha and Worcestershire. LAME: No liquor. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 4, we ended up with more chips than toppings. Queso was the bomb.com. Lovely attentive staff, good 80s tunes.

Señor (5) – PRESENTATION: Beautiful! Great presentation. RAD: Cheese on the side keeps the chips nice and crispy! LAME: I wish they had gin. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 5, There are a bunch of chips leftover, but it’s probably ‘cause the cheese was so good. Pretty much the best nachos of all time. Great service! Very friendly. We’ll be back. 👍🏻

Matt (3.47562) – PRESENTATION: Prettyyyyy. RAD: Beer. LAME: TBH kinda runny. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: Chips on the side. Ran out of queso but it was homemade. 80s playlist, YASS! Cloth napkins very fancy ooooh.

Don Frijoles (3.75) – PRESENTATION: Robust flavored cheese. Beer lovers version of 7-11 nachos. RAD: Queso flavor is very nice. Pork was tasty! LAME: Chips a little stale. Look a little like mush. Not spicy enough for the DON! [COMMENT FROM SHANANIGANS: Have you ever met anything that is spicy enough for you Don? LOL!!!] TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: Use one chip to scoop up the goopy goodness onto another chip. Repeat. Atmosphere: Nice American style beer emporium.

Shananigans (4.25) – PRESENTATION: Comes in a bowl with a side of chips. Interesting. I like the idea of having exactly what I want on my chip when I want it. I heard the cheese sauce is made up of cream cheese, Parmesan, cheddar, provolone, Worcestershire, and sriracha. I love all of these. RAD: Chips never get soggy. Queso is full of magical queso flavor. LAME: I forgot to say no tomatoes and those evil creatures are all over my dip. They are harder to pick off when they are in the queso and toppings. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 5, you make it how you like it so it's perfect to anyone and everyone's taste. Jessica was an amazing server who took care of us as we rudely trickled in. The restaurant is a little chilly so the nacho ponchos came in quite handy to stay warm. Put the queso in my face-o, so amazing, my favorite queso in a long time. Super fun restaurant with excellent staff and management. They took such good care of our party.

Don Juan Filipe Del Helado Cortez: Lover, Conquistador, Friend (3.92) – PRESENTATION: Ostentatiously non-descript. Plain, yet thoroughly approachable in its unassumingness. RAD: The cheese gives me sexual pleasure. LAME: The chips look store bought. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: Perfect! If you run out, it's your own damn fault. Atmosphere is growingly comfortable with delightful and awesome service.

Oriane (4.5) – PRESENTATION: An appetizing mix of colours and texture. RAD: Melted cheese! LAME: Not liking these nachos. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: A decent amount of toppings, nicely mixed together. Would bring on a date. I'm never taking this nacho outfit off.

Liam (4.5) – PRESENTATION: Good dipping bowl. RAD: Full of flavor, surprise beef chili. LAME: Not enough spice. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 4, a few more chips.

La Quesa Princesa (3.14…) – PRESENTATION: Whaattt!?!? The chips are on the side? Love that you can dip, but does that make them nachos still? RAD: The queso cheese sauce!!!! Delicious. I think it's the same sauce they use for their mac and cheese. LAME: The chips. Meh. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 10 or N/A, you choose your own topping ratio. Maybe we should develop an app for nacho reviews???? [COMMENT FROM SHANANIGANS: We totally have a digital google form you can submit to review the nachos at nacho night! No app, but it's a start ;)]

Saksy (3.6) – PRESENTATION: I love it! I smiled immediately! There are enough toppings for the plate. RAD: Beer selection. LAME: Not enough cheese in it. Sauce is watery. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: Love the avocado and the sauce is delicious. Music could be a little better but it's not bad.

Nacho Libra (4.5) – PRESENTATION: Separate chips and dip…are these movie nachos? RAD: It works! You can load up what you want on each chip and they don't get soggy! The queso sauce is ono! LAME: I want more pico. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 4.5 - We had more chips than dip, more pico would have been perfect. Way better than movie nachos (and I love those.) I want that queso dip on everything. Love the drink variety.

Quesorita (4) – PRESENTATION: Toppings are generous and you could use a spoon! RAD: Pork is flavorful and juicy. Toppings on the side so no soggy chips, yum! Yeah! LAME: Round chips? Really??? TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: Perfect, it's a two chip scoop kinda thing. Jalapeno beer compliments the nacho theme.

Fibonachos (4.75) – PRESENTATION: The plating is awesome! Half plate chips, half plate cheese & pork. No chip shall be soggy! RAD: The house made cheese sauce was sooo good. And being on the side means I can dip them myself. There was a lot of kalua pork too which is always a plus! LAME: Well it’s more like a nacho dip than traditional nachos. That didn’t stop me from finishing it. TOPPING TO CHIP RATIO: 4.5, Ran out of nacho dip before we ran out of chipsI would totally eat these again. That cheese sauce was sooo good. And that cheese sauce with the kalua pork... 🤤 Staff were very friendly and helpful. So many great beers to wash down the nachos.