Olive Garden Puts Pasta Nachos on the Menu in Time for the Super Bowl

We've seen a lot of mash-ups in our day, from sushi burritos to bao-meets-bagel. Nachos, on the other hand, are such a customizable dish that it's hard to think of many ways to improve upon them (except maybe by making them dessert). But if you're a fan of Italian food, Olive Garden (home of the life-changing Never Ending Pasta Pass) may have the item for you: a heaping plate of pasta nachos.

No tortilla chips or spicy hot-lava-like cheese here! According to the Olive Garden website, the Loaded Pasta Chips consist of "homemade pasta chips, lightly fried and layered with Italian cheeses and a hearty meat sauce. Topped with cherry peppers and an alfredo drizzle." Foodbeast clarifies that those chips are akin to fried lasagna noodles (and therefore probably a bit like the pasta chips available in stores), the cheeses are mozzarella and Parmesan, and the meat sauce contains the chain's Italian sausage. The dish is also topped with Pecorino Romano, more Parmesan, and parsley for garnish.

The chain's Loaded Pasta Chips have just arrived at stores nationwide in time for Super Bowl Sunday but will stick around for a couple of months, so don't feel like you have to swap your own signature nacho recipe this weekend if you don't want to. A plate of Loaded Pasta Chips is available for just $7.49—and can even be ordered online for swift pick-up service at your friendly, neighborhood Olive Garden—until April 1.

And heck! With the flavor floodgates officially opened by a national chain, the nacho possibilities are endless. Perhaps try an Indian take with chutneys and paneer atop these naan chips, or why not skip the chicken wings this year, make crispy chicken chips and top them with ranch or blue cheese dressing, and buttery hot sauce? No one's stopping you!