Margarita Machine Anniversary

If you enjoyed a frozen margarita over the weekend, you can thank Mariano Martinez. He invented the frozen margarita machine 40 years ago for his Dallas restaurant.

 His inspiration came from a 7-Eleven. Martinez tells the Dallas Morning News he needed something to attract customers and his bartenders were ready to bolt.

Margaritas from a blender lacked consistency and were a pain to make. Martinez says he stopped in a 7-Eleven for a cup of coffee and saw their Slurpee machine.

Martinez retrofitted an old soft-serve machine and used his father's margarita recipe. Today, that first margarita machine is in the collection of the National Museum of American History in Washington.

The frozen margarita also helped Tex-Mex cuisine to become a nationwide favorite. 

Now that you know the history, will you taost the inventor tonight or the next time you have one?

Source AP