A desert-pink margarita built on the magenta syrup of the prickly-pear cactus fruit, tart and faintly floral, the Valley's signature patio drink.
Where to eat it: 3 restaurants across 1 city.
Prickly pear, the fruit of the nopal cactus, ripens magenta across the Sonoran Desert in late summer and has flavoured Southwest drinks for generations. Phoenix bars turn its syrup into a vivid pink margarita that has become the regional patio cocktail, served everywhere from cantina patios to resort bars during the cooler months.
Tip from the editors. Real prickly-pear syrup gives the electric pink colour and tart-floral edge; grenadine is not a substitute.
This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.
Los Sombreros on Scottsdale Road is a long-running regional Mexican cantina set in a converted house, known for its mole and one of the best patios in town.
Signature: Mole poblano, Cochinita pibil, House margaritas
Order: The mole poblano and a house margarita on the patio.
Tip: The casita patio is the seat to book; weekends and snowbird season fill the small rooms fast.
The Mission in Old Town Scottsdale is Matt Carter's modern Latin room, drawing on Spain, Mexico and South America in a dark stone-walled dining room.
Signature: Tableside guacamole, Pork shoulder, Latin small plates
Order: The tableside guacamole and the slow-roasted pork shoulder; Carter won the 2024 Arizona Food Pioneer Award.
Tip: The patio under the church wall is the seat to book; lunch runs daily and dinner fills the bar early.
Joyride Taco House on Central Avenue is a bright patio taco room from the LGO group, pouring margaritas alongside street tacos under string lights.
Signature: Street tacos, Margaritas, Patio dining
Order: A trio of street tacos with a frozen margarita on the patio.
Tip: Happy hour runs the bar; the misted patio is the seat for shoulder-season evenings.
More cities are in research. Want prickly pear margarita covered somewhere specific? Tell us where you want to eat.