Get ready to say "cheese" at Sacramento’s first nachos festival

It's all about the queso at the Sactown Nachos Festival, which will take place Aug. 26 at downtown’s Cesar Chavez Plaza. Billed as the first such event in Sacramento, the gathering will offer over 40 varieties of the addictive finger food.

Festival organizer Brent Sands says that nacho makers are already getting crazy with the cheese. “Some are going to be traditional carne asada [nachos], but some are barbecue nachos and some are ice cream nachos—you’re definitely not going to have the same thing twice,” he says.

For example, local pop-up Puerco Taqueria will be serving up Fritos pie and Tostitos nachos served inside the chip bags and piled with toppings like carnitas, cilantro, cotija cheese, sour cream and onions. East Sacramento Mexican restaurant Three Sisters will do their version with beans, cheese, pico de gallo, and three different types of meat. Sports bar Clubhouse 56 will be dishing out its popular house nachos—tortilla chips covered in melted cheddar and mozzarella cheeses and garnished with sour cream, black olives and guacamole.

The lineup of nacho-slingers also includes Mikuni and Blackbird alum Sylvanna Mislang, who runs the pop-up restaurant The Roaming Spoon and plans to offer her loaded vegan nachos at the festival, packed with chili beans, chipotle lime crema, jalapeños and tomatoes, as well as her German-inspired Das Nachos, which combine thick-cut potato chips with horseradish, sauerkraut, onions and beans.

As for those dessert nachos, Mislang will also make her “Oreochos” (Oreos dipped in vanilla or chocolate pudding, capped with cherries, peanuts and whipped cream), and OMG! Yogurt Treat Bus will top waffle cone pieces with whipped cream, chocolate and caramel sauces, your choice of fro-yo and add-ons like brownies, cookie dough and coconut flakes.

Festival-goers can also cool down with a margarita or cerveza at a beer garden, take in performances from the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera, and shop at the mobile boutique Wild Poppy & Co. Kings point guard Ty Lawson will be in attendance and is sponsoring the event, which benefits local nonprofit Project Optimism. A $25 VIP ticket includes 10 free nachos samples and early entry to the event.

$10 before Aug. 26 ($15 at the door; $25 for VIP pass). 2-6:30 p.m. (VIP ticket entry at 1 p.m.) Cesar Chavez Plaza. 910 I St. sactownnachos.com

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