Of all the fake food/booze holidays, National Margarita Day on February 22 is one of the best (sorry, National Peach Melba Day). Saturday’s forecast calls for highs in the mid-60s, making it unseasonably perfect weather for sipping tequila cocktails all afternoon. Here’s where to find them, plus a number of specials.
This Adams Morgan restaurant has teamed up with Tequila Fortaleza to offer a course on tequila drinking from 5 to 7, which you can put toward your next margarita. Guests can order a three-course meal with tequila pairings as Fortaleza owner Billy Erickson teaches a class on the history of the agave-based spirit ($65 for the dinner and tasting; $25 for the flight only).
For a fancier sip than most, try chef Victor Albisu’s Penn Quarter Latin steakhouse, which boasts a sizable bar. Order a classic, or try a different kind of drink, such as the smoky limonada sucia, made with vodka, grilled-lemon juice, and lavender bitters.
It’s brunch as usual at El Centro D.F.’s 14th Street and Georgetown locations, meaning you can get bottomless brunch drinks and endless Mexican small plates for $35. Margaritas aren’t included in the deal, but that shouldn’t stop you from ordering one on the side.
The popular 11th Street cantina opens at 11:30 and is offering its on-tap margarita for $4 and all frozen margs for $5 throughout the day.
Cabin John’s family-friendly spot offers a deal where guests can pair their tacos with a range of $6 margaritas, from the familiar frozen concoction to three new varieties: pomegranate-lime, hibiscus-guava, and passionfruit-prickly pear. Try the drinks alongside seafood tacos, or more meaty ones like slow-smoked brisket with mushrooms and chipotle-tomatillo sauce.
Head to Clarendon for Fuego’s brunch happy hour from 11 to 3, featuring a $5 house margarita and a $10 Patrón margarita, along with a few specials that run throughout the day. Try El Perfecto, made with Grand Marnier and agave, or the sweet-spicy Mala Suerte with a sugar rim and habanero-infused tequila.
One of our favorite Mexican cheap-eats spots in Arlington serves up tasty margaritas by the glass and pitcher, plus great queso fundido and lamb tacos.
If you’ve never sipped a pitcher of swirl margaritas from this Adams Morgan spot—or its sister restaurant, Cactus Cantina—then you clearly didn’t while away your twenties in DC. Channel your inner (or actual) millennial and head over for lime-and-strawberry swirls on the heated outdoor patio.
The Tequila & Mezcal Festival at this Penn Quarter spot doesn’t start until March 10, but you can still make like the Obamas and enjoy Saturday date night over salt air margaritas.
The signature frozen pomegranate margarita isn’t the only option at Rosa Mexicano’s branches in Penn Quarter and Chevy Chase DC. This year you can also celebrate with the 158-calorie skinny margarita, a chili-mango margarita and mezcal-based concoction—or have it your way with the margarita “al gusto,” made with the tequila of your choice.
More into baked goods than booze? Try a margarita cupcake (salt optional) at this beloved all-vegan bakery in Columbia Heights.
Both the Capitol Hill and Logan Circle locations—as well as sister restaurant Cafe Deluxe—are offering a $6 El Jimador margarita, made with lime and lemon juice. The DC-based charity Food & Friends receives $1 from every order, so the more you imbibe, the more you give back.
Anna Spiegel covers the dining and drinking scene in her native DC. Prior to joining Washingtonian in 2010, she attended the French Culinary Institute and Columbia University’s MFA program in New York, and held various cooking and writing positions in NYC and in St. John, US Virgin Islands.
