Papi’s Cuban & Caribbean Grill understands the tasty impact frozen margarita recipes offer restaurants. In 2017, founder/CEO Renaldo “Rey” Regalado Jr. purchased a Frosty Factory machine from ACityDiscount to add flair to his lunch and dinner menu.
Check out the frozen drinks in the photos, courtesy of Papi’s: a classic frozen margarita and a mango/strawberry frozen margarita. Enticing, right?
From frozen margaritas and daiquiris to piña coladas and hurricanes, frozen drinks are the stars of the summer (spring and fall too and depending on regional climates, some winter months). They are great additions to restaurants, bars, concession stands, convenience stores and poolside locations under the shade. Just pour in ingredients, press a button and in 30 minutes or less, it’s time to serve.
Owning a Frosty Factory margarita machine will pay for itself when you get the right type and size for your beverage service.
There are three different types of Frosty Factory machines: air cooled, water cooled and remotely cooled. Knowing which is right for your operation is the first step.
Margarita Machine Types
Air cooled. Is the most popular machine because it can be moved around and plugs in anywhere. It is also the one with the most common problems because often, operators will try to stack these against one another, causing issues. Since they are cooled within the machine, they need space around them to ‘breathe’. If your establishment needs more than three machines, you will need the next type – remote, air-cooled.
Remote cooled. These daquiri machine types are most recommended for bars and restaurants that want to install multiple machines in a designated place where they will stay indefinitely; like you would see at Wet Willie’s or Fat Tuesday. It has an air condensing unit that stays within 50 feet of the machines and cools all at once. The great part about this set up is that machines can be stacked against one another (side by side) because the condensing unit is housed outside and do not require room to ‘breathe’.
Water cooled. Only use water cooled if you’re not paying for water or sewer. Water-cooled are usually best for floating docks and island bars that use a natural water source. Using this type when paying for water and sewer can get extremely expensive.
Margarita Machine Styles
Now that you know what type of machine you need; you must decide on the appropriate size. It largely depends on whether you are serving cups at a time or dispensing pitchers. Will it be 50 at a time, 180 or more? It’s important to know your serving capacity before buying.
Machines can fit a variety of operations. Restaurants that need to make pitchers of drinks at a time, like Mexican restaurants, will want a machine that gets colder faster (137A and higher), so that there is little downtime in between batches.
Restaurants with a smaller frozen daquiri demand, that maybe serve one or two drinks at a time may opt for a 113A, 117A or 127A. You will also need a single machine for each flavor.
Check out Frosty Factory’s frozen drink machine profits calculator here.
No need to wait until Taco Tuesday or Cinco de Mayo. Every day is another day to increase foodservice profit margins with ACityDiscount’s list of 5 frozen margarita recipes every restaurant should master.
Which recipe will your foodservice operation try?
Classic frozen margarita recipe
- 1 container margarita mix
- 1.75 liters Tequila
- ½ liter Triple sec
- 3.5 gallons water
- Optional: fresh lime or lemon juice
Strawberry frozen margarita recipe
- 1 container strawberry margarita mix
- 1.75 liters Tequila
- ½ liter Triple sec
- 3.5 gallons water
- Optional: fresh lime or lemon juice
Peach frozen margarita recipe
- Sliced peaches or limes (adjust to taste)
- 1.75 liters Tequila
- ½ liter Triple sec
- 2 cups simple syrup (adjust to desired sweetness)
- 3.5 gallons water
- Optional: lime juice
Sour patch frozen margarita recipe
- 1 container margarita mix
- 1.75 liter tequila
- ½ liter Triple sec
- ½ liter melon liqueur
- ½ gallon sour mix
- 2 quarts orange juice
- 3.5 gallons water
Strawberry-Banana frozen margarita recipe
- 3 1/2 lbs. bananas (about 14)
- 1 gallon strawberry puree
- 1.75 liters Tequila
- ½ liter Triple sec
- 3 gallons water
- Optional: fresh lime or lemon juice
Frozen Facts from Frosty Factory
FRUIT JUICES with at least 32 grams of sugar per 8-oz. serving will freeze well in the frozen drink machine, remaining stable during freezing process while retaining natural color and flavor.
NEUTRAL BASES produce a neutral frozen cocktail base. A wide variety of frozen drinks can be created from one neutral base by adding flavors. Most brands of neutral bases specify a mixture of four parts water to one part neutral base. Before attempting this in the frozen drink machine, ensure that the “brix” level is 13 to 18.
ALCOHOL content affects the freezing process. As a rule of thumb, for the mix to freeze properly, the recipe should contain no more than 25 percent alcohol.
Ask an ACityDiscount Expert: Justin Kennedy
Justin’s favorite frozen beverage: Banana daiquiris
Frozen Margarita Machine vs. Blender?
"Efficiency and speed; it's the two reasons why the restaurant industry prefers frozen margarita machines. Pour and serve. That's it! Besides, no bartender wants to make frozen drinks in a blender. It takes too much time away from the rest of the customers. And unless you're at a beach-side resort, no customer wants to wait through four blender rinses for a margarita."
-Justin Kennedy, ACityDiscount Sales
Frosty Factory FAQs
Are frozen margarita recipes easy to make?You can’t go wrong with pre-made mix. Add water and alcohol. It’s that easy!
Is it better to rent or buy a frozen drink machine, and why?
Renting is a good option if your restaurant needs a frozen drink machine periodically. If you want to make money on a regular basis, buying a Frosty Factory machine is the only way to go!
How much ice does the frozen drink machine need?No ice is needed. Machines freeze the mix inside a cylinder and the blades scrape the yummy goodness to create a frozen drink!
Do you have to use alcohol to make tasty frozen drinks?Alcohol is optional. After all, kids love slushies!!
Can my foodservice operation make our own frozen drink mix?
You can, but it’s important that the “brix” levels remain between 13 – 18. Too little sugar in the mix will cause larger ice crystals to form. Too much sugar will lengthen freeze time.
A Brix refractometer is a hand-held tool used to measure the sugar content and gravity of any liquid. Often used in wine-and-beer making. Why do you need this? Because if it gives a reading between 15-23 then you will have the perfect daquiri.
If the content is too low the daquiri-like consistency will never form, and if it is too high than it will start to clump. However, you could always add more sugar water or just water to fix the batch. You want that perfect consistency to deliver delicious and consistent results to your customers. These meters can be found on Amazon.com.
How long does it take most mixes to freeze?Tasty question! Depends on the model in use, ambient temperature and temperature of the mix. In general, the time it takes to reach the maximum consistency is an hour to 1 ½ hours, but it should start to thicken (and be ready to serve) after 30 minutes.
You always want to wait about and 1 ½ hours before tweaking the mixture.
How many frozen margaritas can Frosty Factory machines create?
(For example) five gallons of mix will provide five gallons of frozen drink.
Yes. All machines have a QR code on the back that operators can scan to get specific cleaning instructions
Ready to try frozen margarita recipes at your restaurant, bar, concession stand, convenience store or poolside location? Start your frozen journey here.
Have questions about running a successful beverage service? Give ACityDiscount a call at 404-752-6715 or stop by our showroom in the Atlanta suburb of Norcross at 6286 Dawson Blvd, NE.
