Love margaritas? Here are 10 of the best in Lexington to celebrate Cinco de Mayo

With Cinco de Mayo fast approaching, it’s time to give a nod to our neighbor to the south, and to acknowledge its contributions to Lexington’s cultural landscape. And what better way to celebrate than with a margarita?

Nearly every Lexington restaurant and bar offers this favorite on their menus, either frozen or unfrozen, but these establishments take it a notch higher, offering some of the best margaritas in town.

Papi’s Mexican Restaurant & Bar

818 Euclid Ave.; 859-368-9369; papislex.com. Many swear this campus hangout has the best margaritas in Lexington. While they have all the usual varieties, they pay tribute to their location with the Blue Margarita.

Usually reserved for game days, owner Marcos Valdes says it will be on the menu for Cinco de Mayo. Made with triple sec, tequila, lime and orange juices, the addition of blue curacao gives it not only its color, but “more of a kick,” says Valdes. Go Big Blue.

Campestre Mexican Bar & Grill

910 Beaumont Centre Pky.; 859-368-7779; campestre.com. Two margaritas you should try here are the Green Lagoon Margarita (Avon silver tequila, Grand Marnier and Midori melon liqueur) and Casamigos Margarita (Cointreau, orange and lime juice added to Kentucky-born George Clooney’s tequila).

While you’re there truly salute Mexico by trying the Mexican Flag. It’s grenadine, white crème de menthe and green chartreuse layered in a shot glass to form the red, white and green of the country’s flag. Viva le Mexico!

El Rancho Tapatio

144 Burt Road; 859-373-9091; elranchotapatio.com. The multi-colored, multi-layered Tropical Margaritas look almost too good to be imbibed. If Georgia O’Keefe had painted margaritas instead of desert sunsets, this would be it.

Go ahead and take your picture, but don’t wait too long to tackle the Tropical. Customers choose two flavors of sour mix from strawberry, raspberry, peach, mango, pina colada and Blue Hawaiian which are swirled and layered to give it the full effect.

Slices of grapefruit, orange and cherries are added, and it’s served in a 30-ounce glass in the shape of a Patron tequila barrel with an additional 1.5 ounce bottle of tequila as a garnish.

Agave & Rye

3535 Nicholasville Road and Agave & Rye; 859-800-5334, 859 523-1170; agaveandrye.com. Stumbling on this place is a bit like stumbling on a desert oasis with a fully stocked margarita bar. So many to choose from, but for something really different, try the Agave Epic Rita. Made with aged Anejo tequila, fresh lime juice, agave and a secret ingredient (and no, they won’t tell you what it is – just that it enhances and sets this margarita apart from the competition.) The Agave Epic comes with a side of Gran Gala, an orange brandy-based liqueur which adds a slight sweetness to the aged tequila.

Corto Lima

101 W. Short St.; 859-317-8796; cortolima.com. One might expect a restaurant specializing in South of the Border and waaayyy South of the Border cuisine to have an assortment of margaritas, and Corto Lima doesn’t disappoint.

The Margarita de Casa has Sauza Blue Reposada Tequila, lime, agave and for $1 more, they will throw in Prickly Pear, which for the uninitiated, has a flavor resembling a hookup between a strawberry and a raspberry.

For a more unusual margarita, order the Mezcal version. This one has Del Maguey Vida Mezcal, lime, agave, charred jalapeno and a Texas-sized kick.

Carson’s Food & Drink

362 E. Main St.; 859-309-3039; carsonsfoodanddrink.com. At Carson’s, they believe that an epic cocktail takes time. For their margarita, they infuse barrel-aged Cabrito Reposada from the finest agave in the state of Jalisco with serrano chili peppers and fresh ginger. They let it infuse for one day before adding their house made sour mix and triple sec.

Jeff Ruby’s Steakhouse

101 W. Vine St.; 859-554-7000; jeffruby.com. If you think one day sounds like a long time to wait for the perfect margarita, the El Jefe at Jeff Ruby’s takes triple that time. Over a three-day period, they infuse Corralego Reposada with fresh jalapenos to achieve a spicy and peppery (but not overly so) blend that is mixed with their house pomegranate syrup, fresh lemon and lime juice and a half ounce of orange juice.

According to Keegan Corcoran, the restaurant’s Beverage Manager, “the three-day infusion is the magic number we’ve found for a well-balanced margarita.”

Blue Heron Steakhouse

185 Jefferson St.; 859-254-2491; blueheronsteakhouse.com. If there’s one thing that makes a good margarita better, it’s a dramatic presentation. The Blue Heron margarita starts out like most others – combining tequila (in this case, Cazadores Blanco), house-made sour mix, fresh orange and lime juice, simple syrup and St. Germain.

What takes it a step up is they float an inverted lime filled with a shot of tequila (a double shot if requested) in the middle. Sort of like a happy island in the midst of a tranquil sea.

Epping’s on Eastside

264 Walton Ave.; 859-971-0240; eppingsoneastside.com. The bartender here also uses Tajin seasoning on the rim of their fan-favorite Poppy’s Paloma a Fuego, an alternative to the margarita. To a house-infused grapefruit tequila, they add agave jalapeno syrup, Campari, fresh lime juice and spicy habanero.

Ethereal Brewing

1224 Manchester St.; 859-309-1254; etherealbrew.com. If you’re a man who thinks a margarita, like a Cosmo, is a chick’s drink, you can still manfully celebrate Cinco de Mayo with a brewski or shall we say, a BeerRita at Ethereal.

They use their own Key Lime Sour Beer in place of sour mix and combine it with tequila and triple sec. In a nod to the pandemic, they have dubbed it the Unemployment Margarita.

Try one of these signature margaritas on Cinco de Mayo and you may still be celebrating on Seis de Mayo.

This story was originally published May 3, 2021 at 6:00 AM.