I like the l31 vortec engines my self. You get the roller cam which is a lot easier to break in and the one piece rear main seal. They do make more horsepower but not enough that my once 19 year old self would get into too much trouble. They can easily run a carburetor with a vortec specific intake. The only downside is they don’t have the boss machined for the mechanical fuel pump. Here’s an example.
https://www.jegs.com/i/JEGS/059/0282/10002/-1