The Willows (Narragansett, RI)

Every time I step into the Willows I am reminded of Saturday nights after Y swim meets playing Golf Pro or bowling while waiting for our food to arrive.  I've never been a patient person, especially when it comes to food, so entertaining distractions are a must and the "bathroom trick" works well too.  What is the bathroom trick you may ask? Well next time you're waiting for your food to arrive at a restaurant, excuse yourself to the bathroom and surely enough on your arrival back to your table, your food will be waiting for you.  It has a 93.4% success rate.  But, don't be that asshole that leaves the table seconds after ordering and questions my trick.  Back to the Willows and long, exhausting Y swim meets.  If you have read my previous post about Polly's nachos then you would know that there was never a shortage of my favorite snack in between races.  However, the nachos that I really craved after an exhausting 25 yd freestyle were the chili nachos at the Willows.  A Saturday night after a swim meet would go a little something like this- finish up swimming at 6pm, eight hours after you arrived for warm-up, take a 45 minute steaming hot shower-your muscles are killing you, butterfly's tough for an eight year old and wait impatiently in the Y lobby as your parents and their friends decide where we'll be eating.  This process usually takes about 20 minutes, even though 9 times of out 10 we ended up at the Willows.  We'd arrive at the Willows and demand that they find a way to accommodate all 43 of us immediately.  The next grueling task was deciding how many orders of nachos would be enough for the kids table.  Maura and Mollie were usually in charge of this- they'd recommend 6 or 7 orders and I was always grateful that I had found friends who had an appetite like mine.  We had decided that one order for every two kids was fair.  Our parents usually looked to us and shook their heads in disapproval.  Then, we'd counter with-"Well did you swim three races today? I didn't think so" and they soon realized they were never going to win this argument and quickly caved.  Then, we'd rush over to the game room, and distract ourselves, usually cheating the bowling game, until our food arrived.  Now, I haven't been to the Willows in a long time, but every time I step into the restaurant I am reminded of these Saturday nights.  I was feeling nostalgic after an exhausting day of drinking on the beach and decided we should stop in for some nachos.  Between the four of us we ordered the chili nachos and some mozzarella sticks-always a staple.  I was starving as rum and pineapples had served as lunch that day and couldn't wait a second longer for the nachos to arrive.  So I attempted the "bathroom trick" and sure enough, it worked!  When I arrived back to the table and saw those nachos my mind immediately reverted back to Saturday nights where all the kids would ferociously devour the nachos three minutes after they were set on the table.  I sat down looked at the plate and immediately was disappointed by the size.  I was always so impressed with how large the order was when I was younger and I thought to myself- did they just look bigger when I was eight? or has the Willows gotten cheap.  I knew it was the latter because I've never been intimidated by food.  I took my first bite, however, and was no longer worried about their size.  They tasted exactly as I had remembered.  The chili was sweet, the cheese was cheesy and the chips had an amazing crunch.  Now, the Willows do not serve a particularly fancy plate of nachos.  They arrive with Tostitos rounds, chili with beans, cheddar-jack cheese, lettuce, tomato, jalapenos, salsa and sour cream, but they sure are delicious.  They are evenly layered and loaded with toppings.  The soggy chips on the bottom are the delicious piled high with kidney beans and sour cream.  But, the best thing about them is the memories that they remind me of.  So, if you're ever visiting little Rhody I wholeheartedly recommend the nachos at the Willows.  They get a 9.1/10 because I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for them.

"BBQ Chicken Nachos" The Mews (Wakefield, RI)

Just got back to RI this week and have been spending a lot of time on the beach working on my glow...pretty much a bronze goddess at the moment.  And aside from the beach I've been dreaming of nachos and last night I went to the Mews, one of the best restaurants in RI, hands down-awesome vibe, great selection of food and 69 beers on tap!! Woooo can't beat that magic number.  Of course after ordering a little cocktail (Flirtini to be exact- it was delicious!!) I was starting to get the nacho munchies.  I decided I wanted to try the BBQ chicken nachos because I've tried all the other ones on the Mews' menu.  Now, I'm not the biggest BBQ fan, don't get me wrong I love a good breast of chicken marinated in BBQ sauce and grilled alongside a big ol' baked potato and corn on the cob in the summertime...I'm just not too fond of straight BBQ sauce all over my nachos.  I learned this last night.  In perfect Mews fashion the nachos were huge and they had all the toppings you could ever need-black beans, jack and cheddar cheeses, diced tomatoes, jalapenos, red onions (not my favorite), sour cream, salsa, shredded chicken and BBQ sauce.  I'll admit I was expecting the chicken to be doused in BBQ sauce, instead the BBQ sauce just seemed to be poured all over the top of the nachos.  This wasn't ideal, I would say the BBQ sauce overwhelmed the nachos.  It gave the nachos great flavor and it was surely something that I've never had on my nachos before, but it was just too much.  I would definitely recommend the nachos if you're a BBQ fan, but if not maybe asking for the sauce on the side could solve the problem.  I have three suggestions for the Mews-marinate the chicken in BBQ sauce, cut it in strips rather than shredding it and take the nachos out of the oven a little sooner because sometimes the nachos dry out.  All in all it was a great time at the Mews and the nachos really did hit the spot once you got below the first layer of BBQ madness.  Definitely something to try! I'm giving them a 7.9/10.