How Many Margaritaville Restaurants Are There In The World?
When visiting a Margaritaville restaurant, there's no need to search for that "lost shaker of salt" because every margarita comes salted to perfection. Since, let's be real, you should always salt the rim of your marg (and here's the actual right way to do it, if you're curious). Beloved Key West musical icon Jimmy Buffett wanted the entire world to experience the joys of Margaritaville, beyond the pleasure of listening to his music and imagining the real thing. Throughout his career, Buffett opened 32 Margaritaville restaurants, and although he sadly passed away in 2023, his love for all things tropical and laid-back lives on not only through his songs, but through his Margaritaville empire, too.
The colorful restaurants filled with breezy beats and massive "hurricane margarita blenders" can be found all across the United States, even in the colder, gloomier cities. From Chicago, Illinois, to Bloomington, Minnesota; from Tulsa, Oklahoma, to San Antonio, Texas; and from Hollywood Beach, Florida, to New York, New York, the Margaritaville restaurants are a reminder of Buffett's love for a classic frozen margarita as well as a testament to his entrepreneurial genius. There are even Margaritaville locations internationally, including in Canada, Jamaica, Mexico, the Bahamas, and Turks and Caicos. And who could forget 2022's Margaritaville x Crocs collab?
Margaritaville restaurants were created out of unusual circumstances
Believe it or not, the first Margaritaville restaurant wasn't opened because Jimmy Buffett dreamt of owning a restaurant business — it was mainly opened out of spite. Back in the early 1980s, just a handful of years after Buffett released his hit song "Margaritaville," a chain restaurant named Chi-Chi's filed a trademark for a drink special called the "Margaritaville." Buffett sued the restaurant, won the case, and began using the name in every capacity that he could. The food aspect of his empire began with the Margaritaville Cafe, which opened in Buffett's precious Key West in 1987.
By the end of the millennium, Buffett opened the first Margaritaville restaurant at Orlando's Universal CityWalk (which is still standing), and the rest is history. Margaritaville restaurants continue popping up across the globe, despite some locations closing in the last few years. It remains among the best restaurants owned by celebrities, encouraging a vacation-style atmosphere for people from all walks of life. Whether you visit a Margaritaville for the extravagant margaritas, the tropical music blasting through the speakers, or the Key West-style food, just know that Buffett is raising his drink and strumming his guitar right there with you.