Viral soft serve margaritas arrive in Houston, starting with Doña Leti's

Dona Leti's becomes the first Houston restaurant to serve soft serve margaritas. (Jason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle)

Margaritas can be ordered on the rocks, frozen or in a new soft-serve version at Doña Leti's, which may be the first Houston restaurant to jump on the latest viral social media trend.

The Mexican restaurant, with locations on South Post Oak and Washington Avenue, appears to be among the first in Texas to bring the internet sensation to customers after launching the drinks over the weekend. Margaritas made in a soft serve machine began trending only a week earlier, sparked by Ohio restaurant La Playa Mexican Food & Mariscos. The novelty quickly set off a social media frenzy, with users asking where to find the drinks and posting videos pleading for them in cities across the country.

Julio Lozano, one of the owners of Houston Mexican restaurant Doña Leti's, was among the early viewers to spot the trend. Because the restaurant is already known for its over-the-top drinks - including a lineup of brightly colored margaritas - he quickly reached out to the company that supplies its frozen margarita machines to ask about adding a soft-serve maker.

Kalli Lozano, co-owner Dona Leti's, makes a strawberry-mango soft serve margarita, which created lines over the weekend. (Jason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle)

Lozano and his family developed a recipe blending tequila, triple sec, a soft-serve base and a few closely guarded ingredients. The result is a smooth, creamy, boozy treat. Both Doña Leti's locations are offering three flavors: mangonada, strawberry and a strawberry-mango swirl. The drinks are non-dairy, a decision made after polling customers who said they preferred it that way.

"When (my husband) has an idea, he doesn't sit around and think about it. He wants to run with it immediately," wife and part-owner Kalli Lozano said. "To our knowledge, we are the first (selling soft serve margaritas), at least in our surrounding area. We just saw the opportunity and wanted to jump on it because we knew it was something that our customers would really love."

Lane Equipment Company, a 60-year-old restaurant supplier that provides frozen beverage and dessert machines, posted about Doña Leti's trying out the soft serve margarita with their machine. Doña Leti's followed with their own video that now has 159,000 views. It was teased for one week before it launched March 13.

Kalli Lozano, co-owner Dona Leti's, garnishes a strawberry-mango soft serve margarita. (Jason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle)

Doña Leti's - already a popular destination for tacos and drinks - drew lines out the door and into the parking lot over the weekend as customers flocked to try the soft-serve margaritas.

Kalli Lozano said it has been the restaurant's busiest month yet. Doña Leti's first opened in 2020 after building a strong social media following as a food truck at the height of the birria taco boom. The business was led by matriarch Ana Leticia Hernandez, known as Doña Leti, along with her three children: Carlos, Marcella and Julio. Hernandez died exactly one year after the restaurant opened. Today, the Lozano family continues to run the business; Kalli says it's a true labor of love.

"I don't think we expected this much traction behind (the soft serve margaritas)," Kalli said. "We have had many videos and things that have gone viral, and it's always just very humbling. We're excited about the way it's going to increase the experience for existing customers, but also bring in new customers."

Chet Raynor, general manager of Lane Equipment Company, said Doña Leti's was the first restaurant to ask about using its soft-serve machines for margaritas. The company supplies more than 1,000 restaurants in Houston, according to Raynor, and also has offices in Austin, San Antonio and the Rio Grande Valley. Since then, he said, more than a dozen Houston restaurants - along with others in Austin and San Antonio - have reached out with similar inquiries.

People dine at Dona Leti's on Friday, March 13, the launch of their soft serve margaritas. (Jason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle)

He thinks it's a category of margaritas that could gain momentum and stick around. Two days ago, Iguana Joe's, a Tex-Mex restaurant east of Houston, shared on social media that it was selling watermelon and lime soft serve margaritas.

"The profit margins are great for restaurants to be able to provide something that is different, but also be able to make money at the same time. And so I see it being a successful thing," Raynor said. "I'm not gonna lie, I'm kind of upset that I didn't come up with the idea."

He said soft-serve margaritas are the latest innovation in boozy beverages since frosé (frozen rosé) rose to popularity about a decade ago. While soft-serve margaritas are new, alcohol-infused ice cream itself isn't - several shops in Houston already offer their own boozy frozen treats.

"In the 15 years that I've been doing this, this is probably the most unique and kind of trendy frozen item that I have seen," Raynor said. "It is definitely one of the best frozen items that I've tasted in quite some time."

Dona Leti's is now serving soft serve margaritas, following a viral social media trend. (Jason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle)