News: Cinco de Mayo on Long Island
(Long Island, N.Y.) Cinco de Mayo has long become an Americanized festivity, meant to be celebrated by drinking margaritas and eating burritos. Long Islanders have a variety of options, from Manhattan to the Hamptons, when it comes to where to spend the holiday. Regardless of where you party, Cinco de Mayo makes Long Islanders challenge the stigmas of drinking tequila and question the origins of such a festive celebration.
Many partygoers claim to stay away from tequila by saying “I just can’t drink the stuff,” and swearing that it causes angry, violent, or abnormal behavior. Many have wondered if the potency of tequila is really a fact or myth.
According to one report, it’s all an illusion. Unless you suffer from a specific allergy to something called a blue agave plant, the only thing potent about tequila is the quality of certain brands. Like wine, tequila can be rough on the body when it’s high in sugar, or blended with excessively sweet mixers.
For those of you bored with the traditional margarita, a good alternative is called “The Mexican Bulldog,” which adds in a miniature Corona. The “Toronja Habanero Margarita” blends grapefruit and orange liqueur, while the “Pina Con Chiles Secos” blends dried chili and pineapple juices. Both are available at Brooklyn’s Mesa Coyoacan restaurant, which is also known for its tasty entrees.
For Long Islanders wishing to celebrate the holiday in the city, reports have recommended places that are bound to be decked out in Cinco de Mayo garnishments. El Cantinero is a good venue for partygoers celebrating the festivities in larger groups. The Rodeo Bar and Grill is known for its large servings, ensuring that partygoers get the most drink for their buck.
If you’re headed out east for the holiday, Hamptons Coffee, located on Mill Road in Westhampton Beach, is known for its authentic food. It showcases everything from shrimp burritos to fish tacos and enchiladas. Bethpage‘s Mangoes Mexican Bar and Grill, located on Central Avenue, is known for its homemade guacamole. It will have raffles, specials, free jalapeno poppers, and a mariachi band.
The north shore’s Pancho Villas, located in Huntington, Glen Clove, and Huntington Station, should have more of the same kind of festivities in addition to a D.J. And the South Shore’s Don Ricardo’s, located in Babylon, is known for its unique menu. It cooks everything from veal to Spanish sausage.
Cinco de Mayo represents the Mexican underdog victory against the French during the Battle of Puebla in 1862. Four thousand Mexican troops took down eight thousand French troops and Mexican traitors, after a major military blunder led to a mass slaughtering. While Cinco de Mayo is commonly mistaken for Mexican Independence Day (which occurred on September 16th, 1810), it is a day of tribute to Mexican culture, victory, and pride.
So why should the United States take such a big part in the celebration? In addition to being known as an excuse to drink, Cinco de Mayo serves as a holiday that represents the cooperative efforts in history between the United States and Mexico.
While the United States was immersed in its own Civil War, France’s emperor Napoleon III planned on taking over the Mexican capital with the age’s finest weaponry. He also aided the United States’ rebel army. However, his struggles in Mexico made him unable to see to America’s demise.
Fourteen months after the Battle of Puebla, the United States fought in the Battle of Gettysburg, and virtually ended the American Civil War. Afterward, many American soldiers jumped the border to help their Mexican allies drive out the French in an effort that embodied freedom and liberty.
So, while you are sipping your cervezas and taking down tequila shots, think of this: it’s imagined that, had Cinco de Mayo been a day of defeat, America’s Civil War may have dragged on even longer and New Orleans could have extended to all of Mexico.
