Photography and Story by: Steven Hicks

If you live in Suntree/Viera or frequent The Avenue, you know that the restaurant on the corner has changed owners more than once. It was built as a family-style chain restaurant, then an expensive steakhouse moved in. But new owners have once again taken over, and if the food, drinks and service are any indicator (as they should be), Tequila Azul will be on that corner for a very long time. SpaceCoast Living sat down with two of the owners, father and son Sergio and Ashlin Romero, to get their take on why this place will last, and what makes it special.

Sergio Romero began instantly. “Tequila Azul is a family-owned business we opened in 2016. All the recipes, everything here is made from scratch. It’s all Mexican, but the presentation is different; it’s a little more gourmet.” Ashlin Romero added, “We have a better quality of food. We make all the salsas; some we make with tequila or agave, some are made just for a specific dish.” Tequila Azul is not just about the tequila, but about the agave itself. The agave plant comes from Mexico, and they use it in the salsas and the sauces, and then, of course, there are the tequilas and the margaritas.

“All our margaritas are all fresh squeezed — made with fresh lime juice — and premium tequilas,” Ashlin Romero says. Tequila Azul features Avion tequila, which just won “The Best Tasting Tequila” at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. It is one of the world’s best tequilas. “Our signature margarita has won best margarita in Brevard. That happened a few months ago,” Sergio Romero added. “Candice, our bar manager, has created an amazing drink menu that combines our drinks with the dishes. She pairs Chef Rick’s creations with her margaritas or other drinks so our guests get a better taste with the food.

“That’s just us,” Ashlin Romero explains.  “We want to be apart from everything else that’s just enchiladas and burritos. We create our own dishes. We create our own drinks. We’re always trying also to update the menu every four or five months. We want everybody getting new tastes.  If something is a hit, we’re going to stick with it. But we’re always trying new things. On Fridays and Saturdays, we always have specials that Chef Rick creates.” Sergio Romero also wanted our readers to know that Tequila Azul just won first place at Uncorked in Cocoa Beach. “Not just Mexican, but for everything. The best food.”

(If you’re keeping score, that’s two events entered, and two events won. Not bad against some tough competition.)

Sergio Romero has been in restaurants for years and has the wisdom of those years behind him in making Tequila Azul successful, but what brings a young Ashlin into the family business? He smiles and explains, “I wanted to play professional basketball all my life, but after an injury, I turned toward engineering. I’ve always liked technology, so even though I liked the family business, I’d been in that business since I was 11 years old.” He has done most everything in a restaurant, including working in fine dining restaurants in Vail, Colorado. “I started with polishing silver, and then wine glasses. I moved up to busing tables, and then serving.” But then a basketball scholarship to Florida Tech intervened, and that’s where he graduated as an engineer. “I was actually going to go work as an engineer, but my father talked me into opening a little taco place.” So, with the help of his grandmother and his mother, the father and son opened Sergio’s Tacos at the Mobil Station in Viera. “They are always cooking. They make fresh corn tortillas every day, and they have the best tamales. It’s exactly what they cook at home. Obviously, without them, we wouldn’t be where we are today.”

Tequila Azul features Happy Hour on Monday all day, and Tuesdays through Fridays from noon to 6 p.m. They also have Taco Tuesdays with all-you-can-eat fish, shrimp, al Pastor, carne asada, carnitas, chicken, and ground beef tacos. Wednesdays is ladies’ night with $5 martinis and margaritas from 6 p.m. to closing. “And we also have our Sunday Mexican brunch, which is really great,” Ashlin Romero adds. “Our brunch is something unique, something that you’re not going to see anywhere else.”

The Romero family can also handle your events, as well as just a family night out. They can offer you a private banquet room for parties. And with two bars, one can be reserved for your special event. With space for 40 people to 85 and more, discuss what you’d like and watch them make it happen. They can also cater your event off-site for up to 300 people.

Sergio Romero wanted to be sure we told you this: Tequila Azul is not expensive. He said, “I heard from some people that they were afraid it was going to be expensive here. But no, we’re not expensive. When the steakhouse was here, it was very expensive, and now they have that opinion of this location. But we’re a family place with family-friendly prices.”


Tequila Azul

6630 Colonnade Ave, Melbourne, FL 32940

(321) 636-3291

www.tequilaazulviera.com