Ever since Jimmy Buffett wrote a song about a woman to blame in Margaritaville (fun fact: he actually wrote the song in Austin, Texas and finished writing it in Key West, Florida) people have flocked to his bars, restaurants, resorts, and casinos. The song itself may have only made it to the eighth spot on the US Billboard Hot 100, but it's spurred a multi-billionaire dollar empire. As soon as I heard a first-of-its-kind resort was to open in New York City, I made a reservation to visit. If you catch yourself in Times Square, here's the five menu items you must order:
Best Margarita: Blackberry Moonshine Margarita
Made with Ole Smoky moonshine, this marg is dangerous. It makes you pucker and unlike a few of the drinks we tried, it isn't too sweet or syrupy. This drink will put you in vacation mode after one sip.
Best Appetizer: Caribbean Chicken Egg Rolls
We almost didn't order this! Don't make our almost-mistake and get this for the table. The Caribbean-spiced chicken, corn, red peppers, and onions make this a filling app and the chipotle aioli packs the right mix of spicy punch and creamy fat to cool your mouth off. A close contender were the Volcano Nachos: Each layer is loaded with queso and beans so you don't get stuck with dry chips after the first few bites.
Best Cocktail: Lime In D'Coconut
I'll be honest: Bacardi lime, coconut rum, and Red Bull is not my ideal combination. But Jimmy Buffett knows his cocktails and this was beyond delicious and dare I say—chuggable.
Best Burger: Double Cheeseburger in Paradise
There's a reason Jimmy Buffett has an entire restaurant chain dedicated to this menu item. It's downright illegal how amazing this burger is. The American cheese is just the right amount of trashy that gives you a fast food feel (it smells like McDonald's... in a good way) while the meat is juicy. I'd go back just for this burger.
Best Dessert: Key Lime Pie
This has just the right amount of graham cracker to give you that sweet grittiness to go against the tart, smooth key lime. It'll make you smile as you go back for seconds and thirds.
Get the inside look at the new resort:
Watch season three of Julia Tries Everything on YouTube now.
Julia is the director of video at Delish. Previously, she worked on Food Network's Snapchat team as their "try" girl: trying new products and bizarre diets on the market. Currently she oversees the video team where content lives on YouTube, TikTok, onsite, Snapchat, and Facebook. She's also previously a host of the hit series "Julia Tries Everything" where she goes to top chain restaurants in America and finds her favorite menu items.
