8 Great Mexican Restaurants Where You Can Get a Fresh-Fruit Margarita in Brooklyn

As any longtime New Yorker knows, Mexican food was a rarity in this city for many years. That’s no longer the case, fortunately — but it can still sometimes be a challenge to find a place that serves tasty Mexican food and has a liquor license. Luckily, quite a few have opened recently in Brooklyn. Here are eight with outstanding food and tasty margaritas — made with fresh-squeezed lime juice.

Amaranto
Bushwick
887 Hart Street

Bushwick’s Amaranto prides itself on making dishes from scratch using fresh produce from a variety of regions in Mexico. Employing recipes with some well known ingredients and others less common, Amaranto’s contemporary cuisine includes menu highlights such as crab meat tostadas, shrimp ceviche, and slow-cooked pork with radish and morito sauce.

Casa Publica
Williamsburg
594 Union Avenue

The recently opened Casa Publica takes its interior design inspiration from the architecture and art styles of Mexico City — and the visuals aren’t the only attractions there. The restaurant blends Mexican street food and home cooking. In the hot summer months, cool off with one of the eatery’s many ceviches or bacon-larded cold corn soup.

Chavela’s
Crown Heights
736 Franklin Avenue

Run by Mexico City native Arturo Leonar, Chavela’s explores the flavors that reminded Leonar of the cooking from his childhood. Menu highlights include queso fundido and a wide selection of tacos. We recommend the fancy $11 Margarita Tradicional, but if you’re on a budget, there’s a $7 Happy Hour margarita special.

El Atoradero
Prospect Heights
708 Washington Avenue

The famed eatery founded by chef Denisse Chavez moved from the Bronx to Brooklyn in 2015. It serves up fare inspired by southern Mexican traditions — items like Costillas en Pipian and Mole Poblano de Pollo — in addition to a selection of margaritas.

Gran Electrica
Dumbo
5 Front Street

Housed in what may be the oldest commercial building in New York City, Dumbo’s Gran Electrica has a large and beautiful backyard. The menu is vegetarian friendly, and fresh fish and barbequed lamb are specialties. We recommend the cucumber margarita.

La Lupe Cantina
Bushwick
9 Jefferson Street

Bushwick’s La Lupe Cantina has been serving up Mexican bar and street food in Bushwick since 2015. There’s some interesting menu items, like Perros Gordos, literally “overweight dogs,” and the delicious and filling Mexican Burguer, which is made of pork and beef with pico de gallo, guacamole, cheese, bacon, coleslaw and chipotle mayo.

La Slowteria
Carroll Gardens
548 Court Street

La Slowteria serves up modern Mexican fare — menu items include a unique take on grilled cheese with a crust of herbs and seeds on a handmade tortilla with black beans, and a Sunday night taco special.

Mesa Azteca
Bushwick
91 Wyckoff Avenue

Mesa Azteca serves up not only Mexican cuisine, but live entertainment — there’s a mariachi band that plays on Friday nights. We recommend the restaurant’s well-made margaritas and ever-changing daily specials, and the garden out back for meals al fresco in the summer.

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