Local pour · checked 2026-09-03

El Paso drinks the margarita like a hometown drink — because the legend says it is one. The city's tourism office tells it straight: legend has it the margarita was first introduced in the 1940s in the El Paso/Juárez region, when bartender Pancho Morales mistakenly created the drink at Tommy's Place in Juárez in 1942. The local pour is that margarita, priced for every day: $5 downtown, $1-off on the eastside, with $4 drafts alongside.

Downtown keeps it classic

Unbranded Tavern & Kitchen across San Jacinto Plaza posts Happy Hour daily 2 to 7 PM, all day Monday and Thursday: $2 off appetizers, $3 wells, $3.5 domestic draft, $5 wine glasses, $5 house margaritas, and $5 mimosas. A few blocks south, Taft-Díaz at Stanton House posts Happy Hour daily 4–6 PM in the bar and lounge only: tacos 3 for $15, half off well house spirits, half off wines by the glass, and draft beer $5.

Westside drafts and eastside deals

Gomez Mexican Food Bar & Patio on Canyon Creek posts Monday–Friday 3–6 PM: house chile con queso $6.50, house nachos $5.75, quesadilla $5.25, jalapeño poppers $5.95, and empanadas $6.95, with on draft 16 oz $4, 23 oz $5, and red beer setup $4.50. Cocktail names are listed on that menu without dollar amounts, so order the draft. Cabo Joe's posts Happy Hour Monday through Friday 11am to 5pm: $1 off house margaritas and $1 off Cabo cocktails, plus $4 domestic draft pints, $5 Cuervo Tradicional Blanco, and $5 Hoop Tea pints.

How to drink it like a local

  • Afternoon: $5 house margarita across San Jacinto Plaza (Unbranded) inside the daily 2–7 window.
  • Golden hour: tacos 3 for $15 with a $5 draft at Stanton House (Taft-Díaz), daily 4–6.
  • Westside: 23 oz $5 draft with chile con queso $6.50 (Gomez), weekdays 3–6.

Windows and prices move — confirm on the venue's own page via Deals or On now before you go. Home-bar versions of the margarita are measured out in six cocktail recipes, with the agave basics in our tequila primer.

Sources

Poured here: Unbranded Tavern & Kitchen · Taft-Díaz · Gomez Mexican Food Bar & Patio · Cabo Joe's