Today was the birthday in 1895 of an inventor with a huge legacy: Ignacio Anaya Garcia, the man who gave us nachos.
For a guy who invented one of the most famous meals of our time, Anaya wasn’t a chef.
He did work at a restaurant, though, and that’s where he came up with his famous creation, mostly out of necessity.
Anaya was the maître d’ at the Victory Club, a restaurant in the community of Piedras Negras, Coahuila, near Mexico’s border with the United States.
In the early 1940s, a group of women walked into the restaurant.
They were Americans, married to servicemembers at a base in southern Texas.
They’d crossed the border for some shopping and decided to have a meal before they headed back home.
But they’d come past the restaurant’s usual hours; the cooks had all left.
Anaya improvised, putting grated Colby cheese and slices of pickled jalapeño peppers onto corn tortilla chips and putting the whole thing into the broiler.
His customers were so impressed they asked for seconds, and they joked that the dish should be called Nacho’s Special, because Nacho was the nickname for Ignacio.
“Nacho’s Especiales” ended up on the menu at the Victory Club, and then later at Anaya’s own place, called Nacho’s.
His creation got a boost in the 1970s thanks to Texas businessman Frank Liberto.
He popularized the quick-serve nachos where you put the liquidy cheese sauce on top and then add jalapeños or whatever other toppings you want.
And you don’t have to worry about whether your own personal favorite variation on the food might not be to the inventor’s liking.
Anaya’s granddaughter told the Tampa Bay Times that when she was growing up she didn’t like cheese, so he made her nachos with beans instead.
Starting tomorrow on Long Island, it’s the Laura Branigan “Spirit of Love” Memorial Gathering.
Fans will gather to remember the 80s star and her music, especially the 40th anniversary of her hit “Self Control.”
Don’t forget to sing a chorus of “Gloria” for me! Thanks etc
Meet Ignacio Anaya García, the Man Who Invented Nachos, In Today’s Google Doodle (Fortune)
Laura Branigan “Spirit of Love” Memorial Gathering
You can back this show on Patreon for less money each month than it costs to order nachos
Photo by jeffreyw via Flickr/Creative Commons
