Four Helsinki Taquerias, Four Margaritas, No Two Made the Same Way

Anyone can order tacos. The glass next to them is the harder call.

Mexican Independence Day is Wednesday 16 September, and not many people go out midweek. So this is the weekend version. We visited four Helsinki taquerias in one evening, ordered a margarita at each and asked the person behind the bar what makes a good one. Four answers, four very different drinks.

Pueblo Bar

Eerikinkatu 27

Order: the Pink Paloma, or the Original Margarita with a double rim.

The most precise answer of the night came from here. The tequila has to be 100% agave or a good-quality blend. Skip the Cointreau for a better triple sec. And swap the sugar for agave syrup: "That way you taste more of the agave in the drink."

The Original Margarita comes with a double rim, salt on one side and Tajín on the other, so you pick which side to drink from. In the Pink Paloma the grapefruit soda is swapped for guava, with a dash of strawberry. Tortillas are made by hand every day, and three house salsas land on the table with every order. The roja is the one with habanero.

Lopez Tacos, Teurastamo

Työpajankatu 2, Teurastamo (the old abattoir complex, a short tram ride from the centre)

Order: the Spicy Lime Margarita, frozen.

Lopez runs two schools, classic and frozen, and the bar pointed us to frozen with chilli. "I like the jalapeño version myself, there's something about it. A bit like the ones they make in Mexico with fruit and chilli. That flavour reminds me of home."

On the menu they are the Spicy Lime Margarita and the Spicy Mango Margarita. Lime is the original. Next to the rich Beef Quesabirria Tacos, cold and spicy works like a sorbet halfway through the meal.

El Rey

Annankatu 20

Order: the House Margarita.

On the menu it is the House Margarita: tequila, Cointreau, lime and a hibiscus syrup they make in house, with a pink salt rim. Hibiscus is agua de jamaica, an everyday Mexican drink that existed long before anyone put it in a cocktail. If hibiscus isn't your thing, a traditional margarita is available on request.

The question of what makes a good margarita got a philosophical answer first: "There's no such thing as a good margarita. A good margarita is the one you drink on a beach at sunset." A pause. "But if I have to be commercial about it, the perfect margarita is at El Rey." The house also keeps a separate tequila and mezcal list.

TacoYa

Lapinlahdenkatu 25

Order: the margarita as it comes.

No syrups, no infusions. "A good margarita has real lime juice. And you have to shake it properly, that makes a surprising difference." The food is just as direct: Street Tacos with Beef, with the nachos next to them.

The one thing everyone agreed on

Fresh lime, every time. Nobody mentioned sour mix once. Everything else is a matter of taste.

We asked the same bars what to eat alongside the margarita. Those answers are in Mexican Independence Day in Helsinki.

Quick facts: Pueblo Bar · Eerikinkatu 27 | Lopez Tacos Teurastamo · Työpajankatu 2 | El Rey · Annankatu 20 | TacoYa · Lapinlahdenkatu 25 | Mexican Independence Day, Wed 16 Sept.

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