Nacho, Nacho Man: Worcester Guy Instructs on the Ins and Outs of Nachonomics

WORCESTER, MA — Many years ago, Derek Sotak realized that when he would go out to eat with a friend, which was frequently, he’d pretty much always order the nachos, “as they are the greatest food ever created.”

Was the cheese evenly distributed throughout the chips? Was there enough cheese in the first place? Were the chips homemade? Was the salsa fresh?

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Sotak and his friend would talk long and eloquently about the differences between the nachos, and other nachos they had ordered in the past. The nacho conversing was to a degree that they thought that their knowledge could be a resource, a website.

“We never actually did anything then, but years later I thought maybe I should go and make a website dedicated to all things nachos,” said Sotak, who grew up in Worcester County and went to school for film and creative writing.

That’s how Nachonomics was baked. The site was featured in a segment on “Good Morning America,” and the books - of which there are now two - were shown at the Sundance Film Festival this year.

Two guidebooks now complement the site as part of Sotak’s all-about-nachos package. He’s also got a Podcast in the works. 

“The Field Guide to Nachos” came out in the winter of 2014, and it was followed by ”Nachos & You: Living Your Life the Nacho Way,” which was also funded on Kickstarter in the winter of 2015.

“Where the first book was about the history of nachos,” said Sotak, “the second was more about the philosophy and science behind nachos. I’m currently working on the final book of what has become the nacho trilogy, tentatively titled ’Recipes from the Nachonomicon,’ which will be a cookbook. Once all these are out, I’ll go about trying to get them published as one book with some other ancillary material.”

“The Field Guide to Nachos” is a pocket-sized reference to the history, types and background of “the greatest of Mexican delicacies.”

Sotak explains that there were a few books on the market with nacho recipes, but none that examined the history of nachos, the major players in the nacho world, and what “makes nachos nachos.”

Sotak thought this was quite the travesty.

“I set about to correct it with a book that would tell the rich history of the food and how to identify which nachos you might come across at which restaurants,” he said.

“The Field Guide to Nachos” and ”Nachos & You” are available here. Nachonomics is also on Facebook and Twitter.

Look for excerpts and contributions from Sotak and his exploration of nachos soon on Worcester Patch.