Margaritas St. Petersburg FL: Central Avenue Favorite
You've got a group chat going, somebody said margaritas, and now you're the one who has to pick the spot. I get it. It's October 2026, the weather finally broke, and the patio-weather margarita itch is real. My honest answer, every time someone asks me where to get one downtown: Crafty Squirrel, right on Central Avenue, with the industrial garage doors rolled up so the whole bar opens onto the sidewalk. Here are my five tips for doing a margarita night there properly, in order of how much they'll actually improve your evening.
1. KNOW THE HAPPY HOUR WINDOW BEFORE YOU GO
This is the tip people skip and then regret. Happy hour runs Monday through Friday from 3PM to 7PM, and Saturday and Sunday from 3PM to 6PM. That's a generous window — you can leave work at five on a weekday and still have two full hours. The specific deals rotate, so I'm not going to pretend I know what's on the board tonight. What I will do is point you at the live specials page, which is where the current lineup actually lives. Check it on your phone while you're deciding, not after you've already ordered. The other timing note: they're open until 3AM every single night, so a margarita at midnight is not a problem here the way it is at a lot of places downtown that wind down early.
2. IF YOU SEARCHED MARGARITAS ST PETERSBURG FL, TACO TUESDAY IS YOUR NIGHT
Margaritas and tacos are not a coincidence, they're a system, and Crafty Squirrel leans into it with a recurring Taco Tuesday. The kitchen does tacos alongside wings, loaded apps, and handheld sandwiches and wraps, which means the table can split a spread while the margaritas keep coming. If you want to see what's pouring beyond margaritas — cocktails, pitchers, shots, beers, seltzers — the drinks menu covers the full range. My personal move on a Tuesday: get there before the after-work crowd settles into the communal tables, order food early, and let the night build from there. Midweek also brings karaoke and bar games, so a Tuesday or Wednesday here does not feel like a consolation prize for missing the weekend.
3. SCALE UP — PITCHERS AND FISHBOWLS EXIST FOR A REASON
A single margarita is a fine way to start. But if you're four or more people, ordering one at a time is just creating unnecessary trips to the bar. Pitchers solve that. Fishbowls solve it with more flair — there's something about a shared drink with a forest of straws that resets the mood of a table instantly. And if the night is a bigger deal than a casual round — a birthday, a bachelorette, a group that wants its own territory — they take VIP bookings. You can book VIP for your group ahead of time instead of hoping the floor gods smile on you. For a party of eight on a Saturday, that's not a luxury, it's logistics.
4. CLAIM A SPOT BY THE GARAGE DOORS ON CENTRAL AVENUE
The best seats in the house are the ones where inside and outside stop being different things. When those big industrial doors are open, the sidewalk energy pours in and the bar spills out, and a margarita there in late October — warm afternoon, cooling evening — is about as good as Florida gets. The people-watching alone earns the seat. Early evening, that front section is relaxed and easy to grab. Later, as the DJ gets going and the dance floor fills, it becomes the spot where you can still hear your friends while staying connected to the chaos. If you're the type who likes a margarita with some air and street noise rather than pressed into a crowd, aim for the doors and get there before sunset.
5. STAY LONGER THAN YOU PLANNED
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1. KNOW THE HAPPY HOUR WINDOW BEFORE YOU GO
This is the tip people skip and then regret. Happy hour runs Monday through Friday from 3PM to 7PM, and Saturday and Sunday from 3PM to 6PM. That's a generous window — you can leave work at five on a weekday and still have two full hours. The specific deals rotate, so I'm not going to pretend I know what's on the board tonight. What I will do is point you at the live specials page, which is where the current lineup actually lives. Check it on your phone while you're deciding, not after you've already ordered. The other timing note: they're open until 3AM every single night, so a margarita at midnight is not a problem here the way it is at a lot of places downtown that wind down early.
2. IF YOU SEARCHED MARGARITAS ST PETERSBURG FL, TACO TUESDAY IS YOUR NIGHT
Margaritas and tacos are not a coincidence, they're a system, and Crafty Squirrel leans into it with a recurring Taco Tuesday. The kitchen does tacos alongside wings, loaded apps, and handheld sandwiches and wraps, which means the table can split a spread while the margaritas keep coming. If you want to see what's pouring beyond margaritas — cocktails, pitchers, shots, beers, seltzers — the drinks menu covers the full range. My personal move on a Tuesday: get there before the after-work crowd settles into the communal tables, order food early, and let the night build from there. Midweek also brings karaoke and bar games, so a Tuesday or Wednesday here does not feel like a consolation prize for missing the weekend.
3. SCALE UP — PITCHERS AND FISHBOWLS EXIST FOR A REASON
A single margarita is a fine way to start. But if you're four or more people, ordering one at a time is just creating unnecessary trips to the bar. Pitchers solve that. Fishbowls solve it with more flair — there's something about a shared drink with a forest of straws that resets the mood of a table instantly. And if the night is a bigger deal than a casual round — a birthday, a bachelorette, a group that wants its own territory — they take VIP bookings. You can book VIP for your group ahead of time instead of hoping the floor gods smile on you. For a party of eight on a Saturday, that's not a luxury, it's logistics.
4. CLAIM A SPOT BY THE GARAGE DOORS ON CENTRAL AVENUE
The best seats in the house are the ones where inside and outside stop being different things. When those big industrial doors are open, the sidewalk energy pours in and the bar spills out, and a margarita there in late October — warm afternoon, cooling evening — is about as good as Florida gets. The people-watching alone earns the seat. Early evening, that front section is relaxed and easy to grab. Later, as the DJ gets going and the dance floor fills, it becomes the spot where you can still hear your friends while staying connected to the chaos. If you're the type who likes a margarita with some air and street noise rather than pressed into a crowd, aim for the doors and get there before sunset.
5. STAY LONGER THAN YOU PLANNED
