The story
In 1943 a group of American women, wives of soldiers stationed at Fort Duncan in Eagle Pass, Texas, crossed the Rio Grande to Piedras Negras looking for a snack. At the Victory Club the cook was away, so the maître d', Ignacio 'Nacho' Anaya, cut tortillas into triangles, fried them, topped them with cheese and sliced jalapeños and warmed them up. He called them Nacho's especiales. The dish spread along the border and into Texas, then took off at American ballparks in the 1970s. Piedras Negras now holds an annual nacho festival.
Also known as Nachos especiales, nacho chips.
On the Meridish menu
Nachos was the starter course on menu No. 1 on October 1, 2026. Its clue in the game, which hints at the place without naming it:
A maître d' named Ignacio threw together tortilla chips and melted cheese for a group of U.S. Army wives in 1943.
In Meridish, every dish is pinned to the town or city most widely credited with creating it. A guess within 25 km scores all 100 points. How scoring works.
Sources
- time.com/4534655/international-day-of-the-nacho-history
- tampabay.com/archive/2002/02/27/nachos-had-humble-start
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nachos
Food history is often disputed. Think we've pinned it in the wrong place? Tell us at hello@meridish.com, ideally with a source.
