Pump cheese: An essential component of concession nachos that KeyArenas La Choza understands.
Pump cheese: An essential component of concession nachos that KeyArena's La Choza understands. Madlen/Shutterstock

Have you been to a Seattle Storm game lately? Judging from the decidedly less-than-sell-out crowd (mostly children and middle-aged lesbians) at KeyArena this past Tuesday night, I'm guessing the answer is no. Luckily, the 2015 season just got underway last month, so you have still have plenty of opportunities to go and cheer on two of our newest and most exciting players, Jewell Llloyd and Ramu Tokashiki.

If the prospect of watching Lloyd, the number-one overall 2015 draft pick, and Tokashiki, a 23-year-old, four-time MVP of the Women's Japan Basketball League who was so dominant in her home country that she came to the WNBA to be challenged, isn't enough to entice you, know this: The nachos from La Choza concession stand at KeyArena are really, really good.

I suppose it's a good thing that concession options at Safeco Field have grown to include things like Dungeness crab melts and craft beer, but, personally, I don't need anything more than rally fries, a spicy Polish sausage in a grill-kissed bun, or nachos to be happy at a sporting event.

I have very particular standards for restaurant nachos (layering is crucial; the cheese must be melted thoroughly, and a few crispy, bubbly bits are preferred; salsa should go on after the nachos are baked so as not to make the chips—which should only be yellow corn, never the unnatural shades of bright red or deep purple—soggy, etc.). But when it comes to sporting-event concession-stand nachos, only two things really matter: The jalapeños should be pickled, not fresh, and the cheese should be the liquid kind that is dispensed out of a stainless-steel pump.

Thankfully, food vendors at KeyArena aren't trying to get all fancy, including La Choza, which serves Mexican food like street tacos. While La Choza could easily try and "upgrade" its nachos with cheddar, pepperjack, or cotija cheese, it sticks with bright-orange liquid glop. But I was surprised and delighted to discover that it ups the nacho game in other ways, specifically through excellent layering of generous amounts of chips, refried beans, cheese product, pickled jalapeño slices, and diced onion, as well as by offering a salsa bar. The salsa bar has pico de gallo, a house red salsa made from roasted japones chiles, a salsa verde made from roasted tomatillos, and the all-important bin of whole pickled jalapeños and carrot slices.

The Storm played a good, close game against the Tulsa Shock on Tuesday, grinding out a 74-69 win in the last few minutes. Veteran guard Sue Bird still has it, and rookies Lloyd and Tokashiki combined for 25 points. I may have been on a little high from watching Tokashiki—a six-foot-three forward whose nickname Taku is Japanese slang for "strong," make four blocks, not hesitate to make a variety of shots and passes, and play with an obvious, quiet joy—but, damn, those nachos tasted goooooood.

In a post-game interview on the court with a translator, Tokashiki was asked what has made her play over the last few games improve. Her answer, an approach I wish more restaurant and home cooks would adopt, was simple: "I stop thinking and just play."