100 E Grayson St, San Antonio, TX 78215
Mangonada
La Catrina
La Sandia
Margarita de la Casa
El Millonario Margarita
It’s Saturday night during Spring Break in San Antonio, and we picked a popular place to try margaritas. If you don’t want to have a lengthy 1 – 2 hour wait, this is not the place for you during a busy time. There is a walk-up bar and live music, with plenty of places to sit or go for a walk by the San Antonio River. We ordered three margaritas to keep us busy, and we were glad we waited for our table to finish our drinks and enjoy the refined street food.
These first three margaritas are worthy of a master mixologist who can pair flavors to improve familiar drinks and create new favorites. We have tried many mango and watermelon-inspired tequila drinks. These are exceptional. You must take a bite of the fruit, especially the apple in the La Catrina, and then take a sip of the margarita. As with food and wine pairing, the drink tastes different when paired with food.
Mangonada – Fresh mango, cantaloupe, Herradura Reposado, Patron Citrónge The tamarindo candy is perfect after sitting in the fresh mangonada. The tequila is present, but you may still think you are enjoying a fresh mango smoothy because of the consistency. This may be the best mangonada we have enjoyed on the hunt. We give it a 4.5 margarita glass rating.
La Catrina – Herradura Reposado, fresh pineapple, mango, granny smith apples, lime juice. The first sip was not the best. Interesting, but not excellent, until we ate one of the small pea-size pieces of green apple and took another sip. Truly unique flavor combination and raises this 3.5 rating to a 4.5 margarita glass rating with the pairing of the fresh fruit in the drink. Be sure to eat the fruit and then sip.
La Sandia – Fresh watermelon, St Germaine, Herradura Reposado, citrus fruit We had the same experience with this fresh watermelon margarita. A good margarita, particularly with the fresh watermelon juice. After taking a bite of the perfectly ripened watermelon slice on the rim with a sip of the drink, the rating for this margarita moved from a 3.5 to a 5. The reposado tequila makes a difference, but it is the measure of the ingredients with the fresh fruit that make this the best watermelon margarita we have tried in some time. La Sandia is an excellent watermelon margarita.
Margarita de la Casa – El Jimador Reposado, Patron Citrónge , lime juice, lime zest This is among the best house margaritas we have tried. We had the frozen and raised the rating to a 4.5 once it had melted some and was perfect for enjoying with our meal.
El Millonario Margarita – Herradura Double Barrel Anejo, Cointreau, lime juice, simple syrup. After all of the superior margaritas we enjoyed at La Gloria, we expected this $22 margarita to blow us away. Instead, we found it far too sweet and possibly not shaken well. Whatever it was, we were not impressed. We give this fancy margarita a 3 margarita glass rating.
Our server, Sebastian, delivered great service and recommended the La Sandia to us. We enjoyed the live music and the outdoor seating. La Gloria was worth the wait.
