The Margarita cocktail is a mixture of Tequila, Triple Sec (or Cointreau) and lime juice. The origin of the recipe is unknown, but there are 3 stories that are generally cited by one expert or another. All three stories will be presented here. The best Margaritas are made with silver tequila, rather than aged tequila. Roses Lime Juice is the brand of lime juice most often recommended, but fresh lime juice is acceptable as well. Most bartenders rim the glasses with coarse salt, but a mixture of salt and sugar is also acceptable.

The first story about the origin of the drink is that it was invented by a restaurant owner named Danny Herrara near Tijuana, Mexico. He had a customer named Marjorie King, who was allergic to all hard liquor except tequila. Since she did not like to drink the tequila straight, he invented this drink for her and named it after her (Margarita is Mexican for Marjorie). The next story is that a woman named Margarita Sames invented the drink by mixing together her two favorite liquors, tequila and Cointreau. Her husband gave her a glass for her to drink it in and it had her named etched onto the glass, thus the name of the drink.

The third story is not nearly as romantic as the first two. For years a drink was available that was known as the tequila daisy. It was made of tequila, triple sec and lime juice. It is thought that some bright bartender re-named the drink to Margarita, since margarita is the Spanish word for daisy.