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Overview
Head to any bar, and you're likely to find a margarita on the menu. The tequila-focused cocktail is a pillar in the drinks world, a staple of Friday nights and weekend celebrations. From sickly sweet pre-made mixes to a spicy marg that sets your mouth on fire, it can take a while to find a margarita that truly impresses. One of the most essential ingredients of the margarita, however, is the salt rim. Get it wrong, and your tipple can taste more Pacific Ocean than refreshing Mexican drink. Get it right, and your tastebuds can dance the perfect line between sweet and salty.
Maldon Salt is one of the most reliable salts when it comes time to put that finishing touch on any dish, not just a drink, with flakes that taste refreshing, balanced and ooze flavour into whatever meal or drink they're paired with. These three Sydney venues use Maldon Salt as their secret cocktail ingredient to craft unique margaritas that value quality over quantity.
The Boathouse, Rose Bay
The Rose Bay Marina outpost of The Boathouse group keeps in tradition with the group's other venues — in that it's a nautical eatery with a view over an iconic Sydney waterfront. Focusing on classic Australian seafood fare and the freshest local produce, the restaurant also serves a margarita that'll surprise you.
With pineapple-jalapeño-infused Olmeca Altos tequila, triple sec, lime and Maldon Salt, the Boathouse Margarita is one to put at the top of your cocktail wishlist. The Boathouse also offers the El Tropo – a coconut and mango-infused margarita featuring a Maldon charcoal salt rim for extra flavour, and the La Trajinera, a margarita crafted from mandarin liqueur, key lime, sugar syrup, and the classic Maldon sea salt rim. Pair your margarita with The Boathouse's Yellowfin Tuna Bruschetta, Crab Toast or Crispy Fried Eggplant, and your tastebuds will be thanking you in no time.
Alegre Bar and Dining, Darling Harbour
If you want the best margarita, head to a Mexican bar. Alegre Bar and Dining is Darling Harbour's premier Mexican restaurant with a menu inspired by Tulum cuisine. Alegre fuses native Mexican ingredients, including poblanos, pasillas chiles, varieties of corn like pozole and Mayan chocolate, with Australian ingredients like finger lime, saltbush, and pickled cumquat.
Alegre Bar and Dining offers a number of classic and signature margaritas with tequila upgrades for any willing connoisseurs. The standout, however, has to be the Pepino Picante. It features muddled cucumber and mint, jalapeno-infused El Tequileño reposado, Domaine de Canton ginger liqueur, Cazcabel honey tequila, freshly squeezed lemon juice and a Maldon Salt rim. If you like to keep it simple, opt for the classic margarita with El Tequileno blanco, Cointreau, lime juice and Maldon Salt.
The Depot, Bondi
You may not look to a Bondi cafe as your first stop on a margarita tour, but The Depot may surprise you. It's open for lunch seven days a week and dinner on Thursday and Friday nights. The cafe's traditional margarita is the classic you know and love. But this time it's served with a Maldon Salt rim, creating a seaside-infused cocktail. Its spicy margarita features finger lime, cucumber, and spice, complemented by native lemon myrtle and Maldon salt for seasoning.
The coastal-inspired menu features ceviche of kingfish with fried tortilla guacamole, coconut-crusted prawns with Tajin and Maldon Salt and Sydney rock oysters with smoked Maldon Salt and fresh lime — best enjoyed while taking in a classic Bondi sunset.
Find the art of the salt rim at Maldon Salt.