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Mexico, mangoes, margaritas, mariachis. What do these words have in common? They are all ingredients that went into making one of the top five favorite meals of my life.
Attempting to name the best five meals in my life is one of my all-time favorite games. There is no one that I like to play this game with more than my best friend. As a fellow foodie and frequent traveling companion, it is pretty likely that when we play this game more than one of our individual choices will overlap.
There are many ingredients to a top meal, and the food is only part of the equation. Atmosphere, people, service, and location can all contribute to the general mood that can make or break a meal. Perhaps this is why many great meal memories come during times of vacation. A beautiful view, the company of someone you love, and total lack of stress from the daily grind will always make the food taste better.
As my BF and I relish in our food memories, it is no surprise that a lavish dinner at Daniel in New York City still finds it way to the top of the list. Seven courses paired with wines, impeccable service, and cuisine that is unparalleled in perfection means that that dinner may be on the list to stay.
What is perhaps more of a surprise is that we both hold on to a little dinner in the beach town of Puerto Nuevo, Mexico as a classic favorite on par with the memory of Daniel. The company we shared on that day is questionable, as neither my BF nor I still talks to the girl who brought us there. But for that one day, I will remember her fondly and thank her profusely. It was Spring Break and the snowdrifts of New York were just memories as fleeting as the ocean breeze. Three girls, and a token male for safety purposes, hopped into my friend's silver bug for a drive from San Diego across the border to the beach hamlet of Puerto Nuevo. We bypassed the tourist restaurants that threatened to suck us in near the entrance to the town. We headed all the way to the edge of the ocean and ducked inside a discreet door. Through the door we found ourselves teetering over the water with a table and view so close to the ocean that we felt as though we may topple in.
The thing to order in Puerto Nuevo is the lobster, and the thing to drink in Mexico is the tequila. When in Rome, after all. We ordered 1 lb. lobsters for each of us. They came with a simple lemon for seasoning and were accompanied with a side of rice and beans. The mango margaritas flowed like water. Mariachis circled the room, seducing the women and taking their thank yous from the wallets of men. The lobster was sweet and luscious, the company was in its finest form and the margaritas were like a liquid tropical paradise. It was a lesson in the beauty of simplicity.
This weeks' recipe is one for the books. Start by inviting three fun and interesting people to dinner. Stop by your grocery store and have the seafood department steam four lobsters while you gather the rest of your ingredients. Spanish rice, canned pinto beans, chips and salsa, a lemon for seasoning, and the makings for mango margaritas should about do it. While the rice is cooking and the beans are reheating, have your friends dig into the chips and salsa. Whiz up the drinks. Put on a good mix of Bossa Nova or other Latin jazz. Linger over your lobster, being sure to lick the juices dripping from your eager fingers. Sit back and enjoy what could become a favorite meal memory of your very own.
©2026 CDKitchen, Inc. No reproduction or distribution of any portion of this article is allowed without express permission from CDKitchen, Inc.
To share this article with others, you may link to this page:
https://www.cdkitchen.com/cooking-experts/amy-powell/252-meal-memories/
Best Meal Memories
Mexico, mangoes, margaritas, mariachis. What do these words have in common? They are all ingredients that went into making one of the top five favorite meals of my life.
Attempting to name the best five meals in my life is one of my all-time favorite games. There is no one that I like to play this game with more than my best friend. As a fellow foodie and frequent traveling companion, it is pretty likely that when we play this game more than one of our individual choices will overlap.
There are many ingredients to a top meal, and the food is only part of the equation. Atmosphere, people, service, and location can all contribute to the general mood that can make or break a meal. Perhaps this is why many great meal memories come during times of vacation. A beautiful view, the company of someone you love, and total lack of stress from the daily grind will always make the food taste better.
As my BF and I relish in our food memories, it is no surprise that a lavish dinner at Daniel in New York City still finds it way to the top of the list. Seven courses paired with wines, impeccable service, and cuisine that is unparalleled in perfection means that that dinner may be on the list to stay.
What is perhaps more of a surprise is that we both hold on to a little dinner in the beach town of Puerto Nuevo, Mexico as a classic favorite on par with the memory of Daniel. The company we shared on that day is questionable, as neither my BF nor I still talks to the girl who brought us there. But for that one day, I will remember her fondly and thank her profusely. It was Spring Break and the snowdrifts of New York were just memories as fleeting as the ocean breeze. Three girls, and a token male for safety purposes, hopped into my friend's silver bug for a drive from San Diego across the border to the beach hamlet of Puerto Nuevo. We bypassed the tourist restaurants that threatened to suck us in near the entrance to the town. We headed all the way to the edge of the ocean and ducked inside a discreet door. Through the door we found ourselves teetering over the water with a table and view so close to the ocean that we felt as though we may topple in.
The thing to order in Puerto Nuevo is the lobster, and the thing to drink in Mexico is the tequila. When in Rome, after all. We ordered 1 lb. lobsters for each of us. They came with a simple lemon for seasoning and were accompanied with a side of rice and beans. The mango margaritas flowed like water. Mariachis circled the room, seducing the women and taking their thank yous from the wallets of men. The lobster was sweet and luscious, the company was in its finest form and the margaritas were like a liquid tropical paradise. It was a lesson in the beauty of simplicity.
This weeks' recipe is one for the books. Start by inviting three fun and interesting people to dinner. Stop by your grocery store and have the seafood department steam four lobsters while you gather the rest of your ingredients. Spanish rice, canned pinto beans, chips and salsa, a lemon for seasoning, and the makings for mango margaritas should about do it. While the rice is cooking and the beans are reheating, have your friends dig into the chips and salsa. Whiz up the drinks. Put on a good mix of Bossa Nova or other Latin jazz. Linger over your lobster, being sure to lick the juices dripping from your eager fingers. Sit back and enjoy what could become a favorite meal memory of your very own.
Mango Margaritas
Made with Margarita salt or Kosher salt, mangoes, ice, tequila, Triple Sec, orange juice
Made with Margarita salt or Kosher salt, mangoes, ice, tequila, Triple Sec, orange juice
Serves/Makes: 4
- 2 mangoes
- 2 cups ice
- 1 1/2 cup tequila
- 1/2 Triple Sec
- 1 cup orange juice
- Margarita salt or Kosher salt
Peel the mangoes and remove the seed. Add fruit to blender along with ice, tequila, Triple Sec, and orange juice.
Prepare glasses by dipping the rim in a shallow plate with some orange juice and then in a separate plate with the salt to coat just the rim.
Blend ingredients until smooth. Serve immediately.
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©2026 CDKitchen, Inc. No reproduction or distribution of any portion of this article is allowed without express permission from CDKitchen, Inc.
To share this article with others, you may link to this page:
https://www.cdkitchen.com/cooking-experts/amy-powell/252-meal-memories/