My regular readers know that I love a good margarita or 'margie' as I affectionately call them. On our most recent trip to the San Francisco Bay Area, we had the chance to sample a few different ones and I thought I'd do a comparison.
The list of margaritas was quite lengthy but I'm a purist and opted for a house margie on the rocks with salt.
The bar area featured all sorts of the usual Mexican restaurant kitsch.
A huge variety of tequila was temptingly on display.
The verdict: Los Charros offers a solid margie with a nicely salted rim in a festive glass but it's not quite as tart as I prefer.
Next up we have Casa Lupe in Sunnyvale. The margie was sizable with a nicely salted rim. It paired well with chips and salsa but had a little too much of a 7-Up flavor for my liking...
I did enjoy my chile verde platter and the fun atmosphere inside.
Casa Lupe is a bit tucked away in a strip mall so it can be easy to miss.
The verdict: A respectable margie but I would like to see real lime juice substituted for the soda.Finally, we tried The Little Chihuahua in Noe Valley in San Francisco. I've been to the Little Chihuahua a number of times and it's my 'go to' place for a margarita in San Francisco. For about $6.00, you get a pint sized glass full of margie goodness. It's nice and tart and has lots of orange pieces floating in the glass (a bit non-traditional but it works!). They also do a perfectly salted rim.
The verdict: My favorite margie in the Bay Area at the moment...
There you have it, folks! We'll have to try another three on our next visit in the name of investigative journalism ;-)