Vito's opened its doors in Saint John, N.B. in 1972 and was founded by four Greek brothers: Costa, Peter, Nick, and Demetri. Vito's prides itself on its customer service, pizza, and pasta. There are two locations in the greater Saint John area: Uptown Saint John and Rothesay. I tried the nachos at the Rothesay location about 5 years ago and recently had the ones at the uptown location. It was time to divide this blog entry into the different locations.
Vito's Uptown:
We were uptown and hungry for nachos, going back and forth between Churchill's and Vito's - we ended up at Vito's. Sometimes it's hard to pick a new place versus a place that you know would be good, especially since I did not have a good experience at the Vito's Rothesay location. However, it is important to have variety on the blog and to do the necessary research. Did the risk pay off?
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| Vito's Uptown Chicken Nachos - June 2023 |
Distribution of Toppings
The distribution of toppings was about average. There was a lot of salsa on the chips, always useful in case there is a chip with nothing on it.
Quality
The salsa really needed to be on the side and not directly on the chips. Sometimes there are people who like sour cream more than salsa and would like the option to dip the chips in salsa or to not have salsa at all. Thankfully, even though the chips were drenched in salsa, they did not get soggy. The chips were round and the toppings fell easily off of the chips. The veggies were undercooked and too large, making them awkward to scoop up and keep on a chip. It almost felt like a "salad nacho" with a poor toast factor. In addition, the chicken was very bland and could have used some seasoning.
Quantity
This was sufficient to share as a meal.
Service
The service was perfect! As soon as I finished my pop, there was another pop waiting for me. The server was very friendly and efficient.
Value
The small nachos are $16.99 (including meat) and the large nachos are $22.99 (including meat). If I based this on the quality, they are over-priced but the service and atmosphere were fantastic. Overall, they are a fair value.
Conclusion
When I go to Vito's, I know I will be blown away if I order pizza, caesar chicken, garlic bread, or mozza sticks. I also know I will receive excellent service from servers who have been there since the 90's who love their job. It is not really the place to go for nachos. If I want excellent nachos, I know to go to Costa Nachos or the Snooty Fox.
Nacho Blog Rating: B
Vito's Rothesay:
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| Vito's Chicken Nachos (9")- October 2018 |
Quality
I knew in advance that they would be putting salsa on the chips as well as having salsa on the side. When they put salsa on the chips, it made the chips soggy. In addition, the chicken was very dry and there was a hair on two of my nacho chips. Further, the cheese was one type of cheese (mozza) and was not fully melted.
Distribution of Toppings
A good attribute to these nachos is that there were plenty of toppings and cheese. I did not have one chip without anything on it. At the very least, it was covered in salsa. There was also a poor ratio of nacho chips and toppings (not enough chips).
Value
The chicken nachos come in two sizes: 9" and 12". You can have veggie nachos where they would put meat sauce on it for $12.50 or you can have the chicken nachos with salsa on them for $14.50. Now, the menu says $13.50, but I think they charged me $1.00 for my extra sour cream. The value of these nachos could turn into a philosophy paper because it all depends on your definition of value. Yes, their chicken nachos are cheaper than the average price of veggie nachos, but is the quality worth $14.50? These nachos are more expensive than the Vegas nachos and I think Vegas had better nachos.
Quantity
I do not have the after picture that I took, but take my word for it that I took a picture of all the toppings that were left over after I ate all the chips. I was full afterwards just eating a 9" by myself. However, I think I was more full from toppings than actual chips.
Conclusion
Vito's has excellent wings at a great price. Vito's also has great pizza! The customer service I received when I had the nachos today was fantastic. The waitress named Anna came to check on me about 5 times and was very prompt at bringing me my sour cream, nachos, and beer. If you are going to Vito's, I would focus on what is positive like their wings, pizza, and good service. To conclude, they have a lot of work to do on their nachos due to the lack of cheese blend and insufficient quantity of chips used.
Nacho Blog Rating: D-