Cantina El Milamores Takoba does mezcal

For a cantina scene where there's no ambiguity about who shoots first, check out Cantina El Milamores: the back bar of Takoba, now hosting a mezcal-focused cocktail program designed by the dude who opened the Grackle, and a giant, somber mural of a 1930s Mexican actor done by Federico, most well-known for the musician stencils at the Drag's iconic Varsity Theater Tower Records Intellectual Property Qdoba.

To guide you through the smoky flavors of tequila's rough-around-the-edges cousin, they're serving mezcal flights (augmented by Oaxacan cheese, chili powder, and oranges) ranging from the Beginner (three types of Scorpion), to more specific taste-ventures showcasing factors like altitude (expressed through Del Maguey Single Village varietals grown at different heights) and region, via the States of Agave, which give politicians nightmares because they're all loose enough to be swing states.

New cocktailage ("Tragos") includes Old Fashioned takes with mezcal, tequila, and sotol (like mez but made from the Desert Spoon plant), and signatures like the Oaxacan Devil (mez, creme de cassis, fresh lime juice, ginger beer) and the rum/ mez/ fresh lime/ Maraschino/ grapefruit Hemingway en Oaxaca. Longtime Takoba fans fear not, as they're still slinging old favorites like the Mango Habanero Margarita, powered by a pepper that your Hans should avoid contact with if you plan on pulling your pistol anytime soon.