Cinco de Mayo is a celebration that honors Mexican heritage and pride: Mexican troops won an important victory over the French on this day in 1862 in Puebla. But here in Houston Cinco de Mayo is often used as an excuse to indulge in margaritas, the more the merrier. We decided to visit Houston’s best-known old-school Tex-Mex institution, The Original Ninfa’s on Navigation, to see what’s up in the margarita world.
The restaurant, which opened in 1973, is a Houston classic. The space has been tinkered with some over the years, and it received a much-needed facelift last year with a renovated back patio and bar, including a timeline mural of Mama Ninfa’s life painted by Mexican artist Cecilia Beaven. Chances are you know exactly what you will order when walking into the eatery: Start with queso and a Ninfarita (the restaurant’s 30-year-old margarita recipe), move onto beef fajitas for two and end with another Ninfarita.
Just before last Christmas, bar manager Nelson Serrano launched a cocktail menu featuring spirits like mezcal, pisco and whiskey in addition to tequila, as well as ingredients such as lemongrass, green corn, habanero and ginger.
At a recent tasting of Ninfa’s agave-based cocktails we first reintroduced our palate to the classic Ninfarita (photo below, at left), which is still mixed using the exact recipe from 1973. It is made with 100% agave tequila blanco, and it is what you might describe as a standard Tex-Mex margarita. While it wouldn’t be our first drink pick among all of the other options, it’s on the menu for a reason—it’s dangerously easy to drink, and people like what they know.
To compare the old to the new, we next slurped up its sister drink, the Navigation Margarita (photo above, at right), created for the restaurant by consulting mixologist Bobby Heugel in 2011. Made with Espolon Blanco Tequila, fresh-squeezed lime juice, agave nectar and Cointreau, this margarita is close to perfect. It is only slightly sweet with a bright tartness from the fresh lime juice.
The Ninfarita and the Navigation Margarita can both be ordered throughout the entire restaurant. The three specialty cocktails described below, however, are available in the bar area only.
This half of the tasting began with the Tomatillo Margarita (photo above, at left) made with Tapatio Tequila Blanco, Cointreau, epazote and cilantro with a spicy molé rim. If there ever were a cocktail more refreshing than a classic margarita, this would be it. The flavors are unique — less limey and less sweet than a typical margarita — without veering too far from the classic.
The La Mazorca (photo above, at right) is made with lemongrass-infused Vida Mezcal, Cointreau, green corn, fresh habanero and lemongrass. Each sip begins with the smokiness from the mezcal and then the heat from the habanero hits the taste buds. At the end you’re left with a sweet finish from the combined sweet corn and triple sec. In the words of My Table magazine’s creative director, it is like a “smoky hibiscus” flower.
Our fifth and final cocktail was the brightly-colored Chelly Belly (photo above) made with Altos Tequila, St. Germain, fresh lime juice, honey, ginger and serrano peppers topped with homemade blood orange soda. Don’t let the deep magenta color fool you, because this drink packs a punch of heat from the serrano. It is also nicely balanced with the sweet honey and effervescent blood orange soda.
We liked Ninfa’s new cocktail menu, especially La Mazorca with the surprise of green corn at the bottom. The next time you dine at this Houston Tex-Mex institution, follow the restaurant’s lead and mix the old with the new.
The Original Ninfa’s on Navigation, 2704 Navigation, 713-228-1175, ninfas.com