Minutes from the December 6th Meeting: Asgard

"Never a boring chip."
The December 6th meeting was a new milestone in the history of Nacho Club. Instead of the usual roster of only Sean, Laura, and Mike, this week saw participation leap to a veritable horde of Nacho Club attendees: eight showed up, all hungry and suitably hungover. And those in attendance were no slouches. Far from it. Heavy-hitters Eric, Molly, Eoin, Kathleen, Katie and Mackenzie joined Mike and Sean to round out the lineup, traveling from as far as Brookline, Lexington, Newton, and Ireland specifically for the event. The only slight mar on the evening was the lack of founding member, Laura, who chose to study in the library rather than travel to Central square and indulge in a beer-fueled pig out of nachos, wings, and sweet-potatoe fries (a decision completely unfathomable to all).

From the beginning of the club, Asgard was considered a top contender for Nacho Club glory, and the nachos offered were bold ones indeed. Labeled as "Loaded Nachos" (no option of anything less), the nachos were indeed piled high. Plentiful guac and sourcream came standard, as did the salsa served on the side (a club favorite). There was no dead zone to be seen in these nachos, far from it. As new club member Kathleen stated, there was "never a boring chip" on the table.

As the nachos were consumed, evaluated, and discussed, a few trends in member critiques emerged. Asgard offers a very unique spinach dip substitution for chili, which the members tried on one plate. This, although a creative and genre-pushing attempt by Asgard, mixed oddly with the rest of the standard nacho ingredients. It was also noted that the nachos came with chili, but did not have a non-chili or alternative meat/vegi option for. And there were grumblings about the salsa served on the side, which was described as bland and watered down. The chips themselves, which are a crucial yet oft-overlooked part of the nachos, were standard fare, neither earning praise not condemnation from the eaters. But there were reports of unmelted cheese appearing on the plate, which drew audible gasps from the the newest inductees.

Once the last chip was eaten and everyone had his and her say, the club felt comfortable awarding Asgard a solid 3 out of 5 chips. The proliferation of toppings, and negated dead zone, drew praise from all members, and the spinach dip was received as a creative way to push the envelope and experiment with form. However, these positives were not enough to outbalance the lack of quality salsa, melted cheeses, and a wider variety of toppings -all crucial necessities for nacho success. As a member pointed out, the nachos were edible and enjoyable, but not memorable. It seems that Asgard should work on perfecting the basics of nacho success before moving on to the experimentation we saw in their menu.