Micah's Read of the Week, Vol. 35
The birth of the frozen margarita machine, Dispo's founder forced out, Peloton, recipes, and more.
Hello, and welcome to Micah’s Read of the Week.
This is a newsletter filled with things Micah Wiener finds interesting.
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The Story Behind the Frozen Margarita Machine
As featured last week on my podcast, Mind of Micah, this is the story of the man who invented the frozen margarita machine: Mariano Martinez.
The story is full of fascinating details, including how he launched his now-legendary restaurant, Mariano’s:
Martinez had long been captivated by La Tunisia, a Middle Eastern–themed spot in Dallas with a sheik’s tent cocktail lounge, costumed servers, and a seven-foot-tall doorman decked in a fez. “The minute you drove up, it felt like you had been to another place and time,” he says. “That’s when I got the idea of elevating Mexican food and making it into an escape experience.”
Mariano’s employed sorority women from nearby Southern Methodist University as greeters, and they dressed in big skirts and gaucho hats. Mexican music pulsed through the restaurant’s sound system, and, upon guests’ arrival, a host would invite them into a cantina for a frozen margarita.
Despite having a full bar and cocktail menu from which to choose, almost all of Mariano’s guests ordered frozen margaritas, and soon, he says, his bartenders and blenders were burning out. A customer pulled Martinez aside one night to tell him that the margaritas weren’t tasty, consistent, or even cold. “Every time we got an order, the bartender would take the lime, cut it in half, squeeze it into a blender, measure the Cointreau, add simple syrup, then ice, and turn on the blender. Then repeat,” he says. “That process works in a small speakeasy, where people are ordering different drinks. But we were selling 99 percent margaritas.”
Inspiration to solve the problem wasn’t far away:
The next morning, Martinez walked into a 7-Eleven for a cup of coffee and found the solution for his margarita conundrum: the Slurpee machine.
But, it was proprietary to 7-Eleven. Undeterred, he bought a used Saniserv soft-serve ice cream machine and worked with a friend to modify it. It took about ten days of tinkering, which “seemed like a lifetime” to Martinez.
When he brought the machine back to Mariano’s, fellow operators warned Martinez against displaying it in his high-end cantina. “They told me, ‘No one is going to pay $1.25 for a margarita coming out of a machine. They want the romance of a beverage made right in front of them.’ But I had no place to hide it.”
So, you’re probably wondering why Martinez is talking to Garden and Gun considering he’s obviously a billionaire, right? Although he grew his restaurant empire to 6 locations and splits his time between Dallas and Pebble Beach, the 76-year-old Martinez didn’t exactly capitalize on his “invention”:
Martinez never applied for a margarita machine patent, and beyond driving restaurant sales, he hasn’t received anything more than public admiration (and a few bear hugs) for his invention. “I never dreamed that I invented anything,” Martinez says. “I took an old soft-serve ice cream maker, modified it, and started using it for another purpose. But I do believe this. It was godsend. All my ideas have come to me in a flash. I feel like all ideas are already out there in the world. You just have to be sensitive enough and quiet enough to tune into them.”
His original Saniserv machine moved from Texas to Washington, D.C. in 2005, joining Tupperware, Julia Child’s kitchen, and a Krispy Kreme Ring King doughnut maker in a permanent Smithsonian exhibit on American food and drink.
¡Salud!
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I’m still loving Dispo, but we need to talk about the app’s founder
David Dobrik is a YouTube star and the founder of the Dipso app I featured last week. And the week before. A quick refresher from ROTW33:
Dispo, a new photo-sharing app that mimics the experience of using a disposable camera, is taking off.
In the app, users frame photographs through a small rectangular viewfinder. There are no editing tools or captions; when the images “develop” — i.e. show up on your phone at 9 a.m. the next day — you get what you get.
In the initial write-up, I included a quote from Dobrik but didn’t touch on his role with the company. I also didn’t include anything about him because I’d never heard of him. Well, as of last week, that role in the company doesn’t exist and it seems that everyone knows who he is. And it’s not good. Dobrik is so toxic right now that even VCs won’t touch him:
The influencer has become persona-non-grata among investors and brand partners, several of which backed away from anything related to Dobrik after one of his former Vlog Squad members was accused of rape last week.
Spark Capital, which just led the $20 million series A that handed the start-up a $200 million valuation, is severing ties, and new reports contend that $8 million of the amount is on hold. Alexis Ohanian’s Seven Seven Six, the fund that led Dispo’s October seed round, is backing off, at least from Dobrik, and plans to donate any related profits to support groups for sexual assault survivors.
Apparently the Dispo founder’s resignation from the board of his own company — so he wouldn’t be a distraction, he said — and his two apology videos haven’t had the intended calming effect.
In his latest mea culpa, Dobrik expressed regret for his role in putting “Hannah” — the unnamed victim who accused former Vlog Squad member Dom Zeglaitis, aka “Durte Dom,” of assault in 2018 — in an unsafe environment. A video of Zeglaitis and Hannah reportedly filmed the night of the alleged attack earned five million views before Dobrik took it down.
On the brand front, SeatGeek — a sponsor so valuable to the Vlog Squad that Dobrik once considered it an honorary member of the crew — said it’s not working with the YouTube group, and it doesn’t plan to in the future. Others, like Dollar Shave Club, Bumble, EA Sports, HBO Max, Facebook and Audible, Honey and several food-related companies, including HelloFresh, Chipotle and Frank’s RedHot, are hastily putting some distance between them and him.
It’s clear that Dobrik’s star has fallen. The man who once inspired Chipotle to name a burrito after him, even spawned a fragrance last year, and scooped up a $9.5 million mansion can now only sit in his new Sherman Oaks digs and watch as his business sheds backers.
Yikes.
Anyway… I do like the app. And now that Dobrik is gone, I think I can enjoy it without feeling like I’m a terrible person? Anyway, here are some pics I snapped this weekend. Follow me on dispo @micahwiener.
Tweet of the Week
More entertaining than Cocktail.
Peloton Tweet of the Week
The article linked above didn’t do much for me, but the tweet kinda says it all about the appeal of Peloton. It’s simply an undeniably superb product. Pelly fam, come join #badboysofpelly, and I’ll follow you back. Let’s grow this #tribe.
Recipe Corner
Lemony Bucatini With Cauliflower and Bacon
Ten weeks ago, we featured a story about a national Bucatini shortage. Trust me, it's fascinating stuff. Anyway, as luck would have it, I saw some of the pasta Sunday as I made my way through H-E-B so I had to buy it. I had no recipe in mind, but then this came along my radar. This is a quick, simple, riffable weeknight dinner brought together with staples. Enjoy.
8 ounces bucatini pasta
Kosher salt (optional)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for pasta
4 strips thick-cut bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 small white or yellow onion (about 5 ounces), diced
1 small head cauliflower (2 pounds), cut into bite-size florets
1 lemon
1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup (about 2 ounces) freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, plus more to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, plus more for serving
In a large pot over medium-high heat, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil. Add salt, if desired. Cook the pasta according to package directions, until al dente.
While the pasta is boiling, prepare a towel-lined plate and place it near the stove. In a large, lidded skillet, at least 12 inches wide, over medium heat, heat 1 tablespoon of oil until shimmering. Add the bacon and cook until crispy, stirring occasionally about 5 minutes. Transfer the bacon to the prepared plate. Transfer all but about 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat to a bowl and set aside.
When the pasta is cooked, reserve 1 cup of the cooking water and drain. Drizzle the drained pasta with 1 to 2 teaspoons of olive oil and, using tongs or a wooden spoon, toss and coat the pasta with the oil.
Add the onion and cauliflower to the large skillet. Mix to coat with bacon fat, reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for about 10 minutes. Increase the heat to medium, uncover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cauliflower is fork-tender with a few dark spots, 8 to 10 minutes. The food should be sizzling, but use care that the onions do not burn.
While the cauliflower is cooking, zest and juice the lemon.
In a small skillet over medium heat, add the reserved bacon fat and heat until shimmering. Add the breadcrumbs, crumbled bacon and lemon zest and cook, stirring, until the breadcrumbs turn just a shade darker, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat.
Serve the pasta family-style in a large, shallow bowl or platter, topped with the breadcrumb mixture as well as torn parsley leaves and grated Parmesan, if using.
Grain Salad With Carrot, Herbs and Sesame Seeds
I’m trying to eat a little cleaner as we head towards pool szn. The best way I’ve found to do that is to prep several salads at once. Who doesn’t love a cucumber and tomato salad? Maybe a big slaw? How about something with grains?
Grilled chicken is boring. But grilled chicken with three fresh salads? Now we’re talking.
1 cup (7 ounces) uncooked freekeh, farro, barley or quinoa
2 tablespoons white sesame seeds
1 cup coarsely grated carrot (from 1 large carrot)
1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint leaves
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cook the freekeh (or farro, barley or a grain of your choice) in salted boiling water according to package directions, until al dente. Drain any excess liquid and refrigerate until the grain is chilled, at least 30 minutes and up to 3 days.
In a dry skillet over medium-high heat, toast the sesame seeds, stirring often, until golden and fragrant and beginning to pop, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
In a medium bowl, combine the cooked grain, sesame seeds, carrot, parsley, mint and lemon zest into a medium bowl and toss until mixed. Add the oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper and gently toss to coat.
Where else can I find Micah content?
Podcasts: Mind of Micah, Back Door Cover, Too Much Dip
Twitter: @micahwiener & @producermicah (Why two twitters? It’s a long story)
Instagram: @micahwiener
LinkedIn: @micahwiener
Peloton: #badboysofpelly@micahwiener
Dispo: @micahwiener
Clubhouse: @micahwiener
Email: micahwiener@me.com