Frozen margaritas — Super Megas Strawberry, Blue Curaçao and Raspberry — at Cesar's Killer Margaritas in Chicago
By Ed Avis
Aldaco’s Mexican Restaurant in San Antonio is known for hand-crafted, on-the-rocks cocktails, such as its famous MPO Margarita (so named because it won a “Margarita Pour Off” contest) and the Chilton (Tito’s, lemon juice and Topo Chico). But an important percentage of customers prefer frozen cocktails.
“Overall, probably 65 percent of our customers order on-the- rocks drinks, but the younger generation is more likely to order the fruity drinks and the frozen drinks, and those who are 75 and up are more likely to consume a frozen than a rocks [cock- tail],” says owner Blanca Aldaco, adding that the percentage of frozen drink buyers increases when the temperature rises.
Cesar’s Killer Margaritas in Chicago, famous for its rotating selection of 32 flavored margaritas, sells an even higher percentage of frozen cocktails.
“With summer coming up, we’ll be selling probably about 65 percent frozen cocktails,” reports owner Israel Sanchez.
Avocado Margarita at Aldaco's in San Antonio
For both Aldaco’s and Cesar’s Killer Margaritas, and countless other Mexican restaurants, serving frozen cocktails is essential to keeping happy customers and a healthy bottom line.
Machines Are Key
Frozen cocktail machines are essential to the frozen drink programs at Aldaco’s and Cesar’s Killer Margaritas. The machines turn each restaurants’ custom lime margarita blend into a slushy mix that forms the base of a variety of frozen margaritas.
Sanchez says they previously made frozen margaritas in a blender, but it was hard to create a consistent product. The machines make a consistent slushy lime margarita and speed up service.
But the machine-made base is just the beginning — any variety beyond the lime margarita involves other steps. Consider the Avocado Margarita, the most popular frozen drink at Aldaco’s.
To make that cocktail, the bartender dispenses 10 ounces of the frozen lime margarita into a blender, adds a splash of sweet and sour, then adds half an avocado. But the bartender doesn’t just toss the avocado in — she adds it to the blender in five pieces.
“We do the avocado in five stages so that it blends softer and easier and evenly,” Aldaco explains.
Aldaco’s Fiesta Margarita, prepared with four layers of flavor, also requires careful preparation. The lime base is the same as in the other frozen margaritas; creating the layers is a “labor of love,” Aldaco says.
Aldaco's Fiesta Frozen Margarita
“That’s one that we have to take very seriously,” she explains. “We have all the [different flavored and colored] mixes right next to the frozen blend in squeeze bottles that we can control. We open the tap [of the frozen blend machine] halfway, then we’ll do the blue layer, then we’ll add some more blend and another color, and so on.”
At Cesar’s Killer Margaritas, flavored margaritas including the popular mango, strawberry, and raspberry varieties are made by adding fruit puree to the frozen lime base. The base is created in the machine, but the fruit puree is added in a blender.
“To get the best out of all the purees, we add the purees to the bottom of a blender and then we add the frozen lime mar- garita [from the machine] and then mix it up to make sure that the puree is all the way through,” Sanchez explains. “That way you’re getting flavor all the way.”
Guests can order enhancements, too.
One popular combination is a frozen mango margarita accented with a squirt of chamois at the bottom and Tajin on the rim.
“It’s a unique flavor,” Sanchez says. “People who like the sweet and spicy flavor ofthe chamois always ask for it with the mango margarita because they go so well together.”
Beyond Margaritas
Frozen cocktails aren’t limited to margaritas at Aldaco’s and Cesar’s Killer Margaritas.
At Aldaco’s, the Frozen Mojito is a hit. Bartenders use a separate frozen cocktail machine to create the slushy blend of rum, lime powder and other ingredients that forms the base. When an order arrives, staff dispense the frozen mojito slush into a blender, then blend it with fresh mint so mint particles are dispersed throughout the drink.
The Frozen Paloma is another popular option, Aldaco says.
“It wasn’t easy to find the flavor that we wanted for the Frozen Paloma, so we created our own mix,” she says. “We use a little bit of Margarita Man to get the soluble mix that will freeze, then we add grapefruit peel and fresh grapefruit.”
Cesar’s Killer Margaritas’ customers are fans of the restaurant’s frozen piña coladas. Those slushy creations are made in a blender (not the cocktail machine) with a pre-measured volume of house-made, coconut-based colada mix and ice, plus strawberry, mango or guava puree.
“The piña coladas have almost taken on a life of their own because of the flavors that we’ve added,” Sanchez says.
The Right Mix
Finding the right combination of sweet and tart flavors to pair with a frozen cocktail’s alcohol content can be challenging because the ice cold, slushy texture affects how customers perceive the flavor.
The alcohol content is obviously important — customers definitely want the “buzz” — but most people who order frozen cocktails are more interested in the sweetness than in the alcohol flavor. Customers looking for the taste of tequila or rum order drinks on the rocks or straight, Sanchez notes.
However, as Aldaco notes, an overly sweet drink can be a turn-off for some customers. For example, she sampled a mix for a frozen version of an espresso martini but found it far too sweet.
“You can probably do that when you have younger generations who are barely starting because they want things sweeter,” she says. “But I try to make our frozen drinks not so much on the sweet side. We add fresh lime juice to our mix, so you have that citrus flavor going on. They’re not too sweet and they’re not too tart. I think they’re just balanced.”
Glassware is another key to the success of Aldaco’s frozen cocktails. The restaurant previously served frozen drinks in the thick goblets commonly seen in many restaurants. But they take a long time to cool down after coming out of the dishwasher, and you risk cracking the glass if you add an icy drink to a hot goblet, Alcado explains.
Her solution: switching to square old-fashioned glasses.
“Those stack really nice, they wash really nice, and they cool down really fast,” she says.
Aldaco and Sanchez realize how much frozen cocktails add to their restaurants’ bottom line. They keep customers happy and the cash registers ringing.
“It’s important to serve responsibly but make sure your drinks are good enough that your consumer wants a second drink or third drink,” Aldaco says.
SIDEBAR:
Frozen Cocktails Celebrate the Seasons
With all of the ingredient and color combinations available in your frozen cocktail repertoire, why not get creative when holidays (official or otherwise) roll around?
That’s just the approach owner Israel Sanchez takes at Cesar’s Killer Margaritas in Chicago. One very popular example — the Pride-Rita, a special, rainbow-themed frozen blend of strawberry, lime, mango, and blue curacao that the restaurant features in its annual Pride Month promotion.
“We actually donate $1 from each margarita to the Howard Brown Health Center from the sale of those margaritas during June,” Sanchez reports. The Chicago-based non- profit organization is a healthcare provider specializing in LGBTQ+ needs.
Independence Day, Halloween, Christmas and Valentine’s Day are other occasions that Cesar’s Killer Margaritas’ customers can celebrate with themed frozen drinks that are color-coordinated with the season