Continuing on our trip to Costa Rica, a little ways down the road from the Punta Leona Hotel & Club was the beach town of Jaco. While visiting it, we decided to find a place for lunch. We stumbled upon Morales House, a fun-looking open-air eatery. Of course, I had to try a Margarita.

The good news with this Margarita was that it had a good flavor, with strong sweet and tart components. However, I didn’t taste much fresh citrus flavor, so I had to assume that it was made from a mix. Which has disappointing because I wanted to test Costa Rican limes. I would give the Margarita at Morales House a 7, as it was good but not great.

If you find yourself traveling through Jaco, I would say that Morales House was a fun place to eat and the food was good overall.

For those of you that don’t know, I was born in Costa Rica. My parents moved to the United States when I was 3 years old and I’ve been here ever since. My parents moved back around 15 years ago, but since having kids and starting my own business, I had not visited Costa Rica in about 30 or more years. So we finally made it a point to go visit my mom in Costa Rica and have her take me and my family on a whirlwind tour of the country. She and some of her family run a cultural immersion program in Costa Rica so they are very familiar with some of the nicer places to visit around the country. Of course while I was in Costa Rica, I had to sample some Margaritas (hoping to find if Costa Rican limes are any different than the standard Mexican limes, among other things).

The first place I tried a Margarita was in a little resort restaurant at the Punta Leona Hotel & Club on the Central Pacific coast of Costa Rica. It was very hot that afternoon and having a refreshing citrus drink certainly hit the spot. Of course, it didn’t hurt that we could see swimming pools and the beach from where we were at. The Margarita I had this day was made with Patron tequila. It was light and refreshing with a good balance of flavors, but unfortunately didn’t have enough fresh citrus flavor to make it great. Overall I rate this Margarita a 7.5.

The Punta Leona Hotel & Club was a nice place to visit and was definitely one of the highlights of our trip. Especially interesting was that we were there during the night of a Costa Rican soccer championship match so there was a lot of partying going on that particular night. Ticos love their football!

I’ve had a couple of different Margaritas at Five Bistro in St. Louis before. The first was ok, the second was better. It had been awhile since I had ordered a Margarita at Five Bistro, so I decided to try again. I’m certainly glad I did.

It was funny that the Margarita was served in a mason jar. Last year when my wife and I took a trip to Napa/Sonoma Valley with some friends, we stayed at a vacation rental home. The only glasses they had were mason jars and I made several rounds of Margaritas using a large mason jar as a shaker and smaller mason jars as Margarita glasses. I remember limes were really cheap in California, so I took full advantage of that to make many Margaritas for my friends on that trip.

Back to the present, however. Note that Five Bistro has a full bar and you can order almost any drink you like, even if it isn’t on the menu. The Margarita this night at Five Bistro was excellent. It had a great citrus flavor. I could definitely tell it was fresh lime juice. It was well-balanced overall, although it was a tad on the tart side. I would have preferred just a little more sweetness to even out the flavor. But all-in-all it was an excellent Margarita and I give it an 8.5 that night.

I drank about half of my Margarita before our dinner courses were served, which were paired with wines. In between courses, I kept sipping on my Margarita. I noticed an interesting effect that night was that the strong citrus flavor acted as an excellent palate cleanser. So feel free to order Margaritas at fancy restaurants with the explanation that the drink is great between courses. Not that you really need an excuse to order a Margarita, but you never know.

My wife’s uncle came along with us on my Margarita Run last year. As it turns out, he knows a thing or two about Margaritas. So when he recommended that we join he and his wife for dinner at one of their favorite Mexican restaurants, I happily obliged. As it turned out, the restaurant he recommended was Ruiz’, which claims to be the oldest Mexican restaurant in St. Louis, MO.

One can never quite tell about a Mexican restaurant from until they eat there. There are many a family-run Mexican places that serve average Mexican food. There are a few that serve amazing food. Some may have great Margaritas and others may not. So I was hoping for the best when ordering a Margarita at Ruiz’. Not having any detail in the menu, I asked the waitress about their Margaritas. Listening to her descriptions, I settled on their “top shelf” Margarita. The ingredients were better and I knew I would definitely like it over their house Margarita.

The good news was that the Margarita I had that night had solid and an overall smooth flavor. But it was a little on the sweet side and had a slightly bitter finish. Overall it was a good Margarita, but it could have been better. I rate it an 8, which is actually a little saddening to me. This Margarita had the makings of a great one, but I think the restaurant makes a basic error in the creation of their top shelf. Instead of mixing this drink with the great ingredients the waitress described to me, they simply add those ingredients to their house Margarita. The end result is a little on the heavy side and I can tell that the lower-quality ingredients of the house mix hold the top shelf version back. As a comparison, I took a few sips of the house Margarita. The drink was lighter, although sweeter, but with more citrus flavor. It didn’t seem to have as much alcohol in it, which made sense if they were adding more tequila and triple sec to the top shelf version. However, I think many people would find the house Margarita more refreshing than the top shelf, simply because it is lighter and not so thick with liquor. I would give the house Margarita a 7 for my tastes.

If you’re in the area and want to sample the fare of St. Louis’ oldest Mexican restaurant, I would definitely recommend getting the top shelf Margarita instead of the house. But while it is a good Margarita, perhaps you will find like I did, that it could be so much more.

Caleco’s is a very unique bar & grill located in the heart of downtown St. Louis. It is a popular place to go before Cardinal baseball games, and is one of our favorite places to go for a meal if we are in the area. Oddly enough, it had been quite a while since my wife and I had visited there, but we found ourselves nearby and decided to stop in. Of course, a Margarita was to be had.

For as many times as I had been to Caleco’s, I honestly did not remember having a Margarita there before. Likely I had, but I just didn’t recall what it was like. Looking over their menu, it highlighted a 32 oz Margarita, so I figured that they took a little pride in their drink. Hopefully, anyway.

The Margarita I got that day was flavorful, but very much on the sweet side. It was also more on the “fruity” flavor spectrum than the citrus flavor I look for. All-in-all, it was a very tasty drink, but not so much like a true Margarita as I would like. For most people eating at a bar & grill, this drink would probably satisfy their Margarita craving. However, I wouldn’t necessarily stop here for a Margarita if that’s what you are primarily after. The Margarita that day garnered a 7.

Looking over their bar menu, they do offer a variety of nice tequilas. I know that Caleco’s bar can make some great drinks, so it is possible that if you ordered a hand-made margarita with fresh lime juice it could be a great drink. Perhaps I will try that on my next visit.

I can’t remember exactly when La Fonda opened in Edwardsville. I want to say it was almost 20 years ago. Looking back, it was the first of what was about to become several Mexican restaurants to open up in my hometown. When it first opened I would eat there fairly often. As more places opened up, we started visiting others and eventually started frequenting El Maguey almost exclusively. However, the other day my wife and I decided to mix things up and give La Fonda a try again. Of course, the fact that I wanted to sample one of their Margaritas and add it to this blog was a factor in our decision!

One of the things that I remember about La Fonda’s Margaritas from way back was the fact that they were inconsistent. I recall that often I would like their Margarita on a particular night, only to not like it quite so much the next time. But time has passed so I was curious what I would find on this night. We ordered a pitcher of their house Margarita and gave it a try. For the most part, it wasn’t a bad Margarita. However I would describe it an average Mexican restaurant Margarita. I could tell it was made with a mix, it was a bit on the sweet side, and the quality of the ingredients just didn’t stand out. For most people, this would probably satisfy them as a drink they would expect to go along with average Mexican food. But it doesn’t set itself apart as a Margarita to seek out. I give La Fonda’s Margarita on this night a 6.5.

Granted, this was just a house Margarita. It is possible that requesting a better quality Margarita might produce better results. But from what I’ve experienced so far, if an establishment doesn’t take their house Margarita very seriously, better quality Margaritas just aren’t really worth it.

This Margarita doesn’t look “unusual”, but the flavors definitely are.

For Christmas Eve this year, my family wanted to go out to dinner. What we discovered was that it is incredibly hard to find an open restaurant on the evening of December 24th! Luckily we found that Cielo Restaurant & Bar was open and serving a special tasting menu. We had been to Cielo once before and enjoyed it for a Mother’s Day brunch, but this was the first time we were going for dinner. I checked out the bar menu and discovered a speciality Margarita called the “Unusual Margarita.”

Cielo’s “Unusual Margarita” is made with jalapeño & thyme infused tequila, Cointreau, and cucumber & lime shrub. This is definitely a unique creation so I had to give it a try. The Margarita didn’t look “unusual”, but the first sip caught me by surprise. Even though I knew that the tequila was infused with jalapeño, the spiciness and combination of flavors was almost “shocking” to my palate. Now I’m a big fan of spicy foods, so spice doesn’t bother me. But this flavor was very strange in a Margarita. Behind the initial spiciness, I could tell there was a nicely balanced, flavorful Margarita lurking back there. Unfortunately for me, the jalapeño simply didn’t work. It wasn’t a truly complementary flavor to the Margarita and ended up just kind of just “getting in the way.” I’d describe the flavor as “twangy” overall and it would not be something I’d order again. For this drink as a Margarita, I would only give it a 6. However, I wouldn’t hesitate to order a regular Margarita from Cielo, as I could tell that the “Unusual” was made with premium ingredients and I have no doubt that a regular Margarita would be excellent.

As far as Cielo’s “Unusual Margarita” goes, it is definitely “unusual” and not necessarily something a Margarita fan would enjoy. However, if you are into unique drinks, I would say you should give it a try. Otherwise the food is excellent at Cielo and certainly worth the visit.

House Margarita, Diablitos Cantina

The first time I stopped at Diablitos Cantina, it was the last stop of my Margarita Run. The decor was very interesting and the Margaritas very good, so I wanted to come back again soon. I finally got the chance and made sure I took full advantage.

The first thing we did was order a pitcher of their house Margarita to share. The ingredients listed were 100% blue weber tequila, fresh squeezed lime juice, triple sec and a hint of sugar. Diablitos house Margarita was very good, although the flavor was a little more tart on the lime component than I usually like. I could tell they use sugar instead of Agave nectar, and perhaps this influenced the tartness. Still the overall flavor was good and well-balanced so I give Diablitos house Margarita an 8 that night.

Top Shelf Margarita, Diablitos Cantina

However, I wasn’t finished! I wanted to try another of Diablitos’ Margaritas so I ordered a “top shelf” Margarita for myself. The menu listed the ingredients of the top shelf: Hornitos reposado tequila, Pierre Ferrand dry curaçao, plus fresh squeezed lime juice and a hint of sugar. It was very similar to their house Margarita, but the tequila flavor was a little more pronounced and I could taste the flavor of triple sec. The top shelf Margarita that night had a better overall balance and I gave it an 8.5 out of 10.

By the way, the food that night at Diablitos was excellent. One of the neat features of Diablitos is their salsa bar. You can sample many different and unique type of salsas with a variety of flavors and heat levels. I think this definitely goes well with a Margarita, so don’t hesitate to visit Diablitos Cantina.