Joey Lertora wins a month of nachos at Papa Grande's Coastal Taqueria

When Joey Lertora walked in the door of Papa Grande’s Coastal Taqueria Nov. 6, he was greeted with unexpected fanfare. Lertora, a frequent diner, was the 50th person to enter the Fenwick Island restaurant that evening, and since it was National Nachos Day, he received a month of free nachos. Papa Grande’s in Rehoboth Beach ran a similar promotion.

“Although nachos were inspired by Latin cultures, the dish has been embraced by Americans, so why not celebrate it?” said Scott Kammerer, president and CEO of SoDel Concepts, which owns Papa Grande’s along with six other coastal restaurants, Plate Catering, the food truck Big Thunder Roadside Kitchen, and hospitality marketing and consulting divisions.

Manager Emma Roughton said, “Celebrating National Nacho Day was a great idea and turned out to be a really fun night. We also had a tap takeover; Burley Oak Brewing from Berlin Md., came with a selection of great beer. Having the two events together was great, nachos and beer, the perfect combination.”

Celebrating the day also allowed Papa Grande’s chefs to get creative, said Doug Ruley, SoDel Concepts corporate chef. Both restaurants held nachos specials the week leading up to the event. On the big day, the Fenwick Papa Grande’s celebrated with such selections as beef tongue, cheddar fundido, peppers, onions and crema; duck confit nachos with spiced apples, Patron peppers, Mexican oregano and queso fresco; blackened rockfish nachos with queso fundida, pico, pickled jalapeno, crema and guacamole; and surf-and-turf tacos with blackened rockfish, beef tongue, beans, cheddar fundida, pico, cabbage pickled jalapeno, crema and guacamole.

For more information on Papa Grande’s restaurants in Delaware, visit papagrandes.com.