Monday is celebrated as National Margarita Day and most Texans pair their favorite tequila with margarita mix. Did you know the frozen margarita machine was invented right here in North Texas?
The machine that changed the drink forever was created nearly 50 years ago in East Dallas.
Dallas' own Mariano Martinez, the owner of Mariano's and La Hacienda restaurants, is the man behind the first machine, which earned a spot at the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C.
Martinez came up with the idea on May 11, 1971, when he was just 26 years old, after a customer complained about the quality, consistency and coldness of his margaritas.
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Martinez says he was inspired after a trip to 7-Eleven.
"I saw the Slurpee machine sitting there and the light bulb went off in my head and I said 'that's it!'" Martinez said.
The frozen margarita machine ranks tenth on the Smithsonian list of Top 10 American Inventions. Martinez said he was so surprised he had to pinch himself.
"To us at the Smithsonian, it's a story about American innovation and entrepreneurial spirit," said Dr. Rayna Green, curator of the Smithsonian's National Museum in Washington, D.C. , "and it coincides with a very interesting story of Tex-Mex becoming a phenomenon."
