Name: Tommy's Margarita
Total time: 4 min
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 60 ml Reposado tequila; 30 ml Lime juice; 15 ml Agave syrup; 4 drop Margarita Bitters

Tommy's Margarita
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Glass:

Serve in an Old-fashioned glass

Ingredients:
2 fl oz	Patrón Reposado tequila
1 fl oz	Lime juice (freshly squeezed)
¹⁄₂ fl oz	Agave syrup (agave nectar)
4 drop	Difford's Margarita Bitters optional

Read about cocktail measures and measuring

Prepare:

Select and pre-chill an OLD-FASHIONED GLASS.
Prepare garnish of lime wedge.

How to make:

SHAKE all ingredients with ice.
FINE STRAIN into ice-filled glass.

Garnish:

Garnish with lime wedge.

Strength & taste guide:

No alcohol

Medium

Boozy

Sweet

Medium

Dry/sour

More cocktails with similar strength and taste profile

Review:

The flavour of agave is king in this simple Margarita, made without the traditional orange liqueur.

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Variations/similar cocktails:

Tommy's Mezcal Margarita; Matador Margarita (Tommy's Style; Smoky Tommy's Margarita; Hot Tommy

History:

Created in circa 1987/88 by Julio Bermejo and named after his family's Mexican restaurant and bar in San Francisco, the self-proclaimed "premier tequila bar on earth".

Tomas and Elmy Bermejo set up Tommy's in 1965 and Julio is one of their five children, all of which are involved in what is truly a family business. Julio has become a legend in the drinks industry for the Tommy's Margarita, his knowledge of tequila and his evangelistic quest to promote good tequila.

Tommy's Margarita now appears on the menus of bars all around the world, and in turn, the small family restaurant where the drink was created has become something of a mecca for bartenders and barflies wanting to experience the now famous cocktail in the bar where it was invented. Their journey is well-rewarded. At Tommy's, the classic Margarita trio of tequila, triple sec and lime is enhanced by using agave syrup in place of the triple sec and hand-squeezed Persian limes. The drink is served accompanied by plentiful tortillas and salsa. The bar's shelves groan with one of the largest selections of 100% agave spirit in the USA, and drinkers are encouraged to sample how different tequilas taste in the bar's signature cocktail.

Margarita cocktail history and variations

Nutrition:

One serving of Tommy's Margarita contains 180 calories

Alcohol content:

1.4 standard drinks
16.81% alc./vol. (33.63° proof)
19 grams of pure alcohol

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Difford’s Guide remains free-to-use thanks to the support of the brands in green above. Values stated for alcohol and calorie content, and number of drinks an ingredient makes should be considered approximate.

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Showing 10 of 17 comments for Tommy's Margarita.
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John CARR

22nd February at 12:10

Loved how the Margarita bitters really pulled the flavours together. For someone who’s not a huge tequila drinker this slipped down VERY easily! Tangy and fresh, but also some lovely mellow notes from the spirit.

Brett West

19th February at 18:30

Brand new minted member here. Has anyone contrasted this with Christine Wiseman's recipe? Thoughts? She essentially just adds 1/2 oz cointreau...

Simon Difford

20th February at 06:39

Welcome to our community, Brett. Here's a link to our page for Christine Wiseman's Margarita for comments etc. https://www.diffordsguide.com/cocktails/recipe/38026/christine-wisemans-margarita

Charles Greenfield

14th November 2025 at 17:10

Great Tommys recipe. If you use Monin Coconut Syrup (10-15ml) instead of the Agave and rim the glass with a mix of salt and dessicated coconut, you get an excellent variation

Mephisto

11th October 2025 at 05:41

I simply love this cocktail, it's so balanced and bright, but I really welcome a lil mezcal in it :)

Sterling Diesel

6th June 2025 at 17:03

Simon when you make agave syrup, is it 2:1, 1:1, or what?

Simon Difford

6th June 2025 at 20:22

I don't make agave syrup, I use it undiluted straight from the bottle.

1 reply

Florian Ruf

31st March 2025 at 14:50

This cocktail is simply perfect. I made it in the original version on the rocks with Corralejo Reposado and added 4 drops of saline solution. IMHO if you like the salty effect this is much preferable to adding the salt rim. Next time I will try Simons advice and serve it straight up.

Hunter Newsome

22nd November 2023 at 05:27

Pretty lime-forward and a little overly-tart. Can’t taste much tequila under that whole shot of lime juice. I tried with 1/4oz less lime and liked it more, though I suggest increasing the tequila to compensate for the added sweetness.

John CARR

22nd February at 12:08

Yes I hit the sweet spot somewhere around 20-25ml also. “Your limes may vary”!

Asher Günther

10th October 2023 at 06:36

Small typo - should be „At Tommy's, the classic Margarita trio of tequila, LIME*, and triple sec...“

Simon Difford

10th October 2023 at 07:44

Many thanks, Asher. I've fixed that and a couple of other howlers.

Chris Dimal

24th July 2023 at 08:35

And I thought Margaritas cannot be any better! I agree with Miguel, I slightly (just) prefer this over the standard Margarita. A lot more of the Tequila and Agave, balanced by lime tartness. Truly delectable!

Miguel Perales

11th April 2023 at 22:41

I tried Tommy's and The Original Margarita back to back and I would have to say that I like this one slightly more. This one has a more balanced feel and is quite nice to drink.

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