Fans of M Cantina knew the award-winning Mexican restaurant in Dearborn had an impressive spirits collection, but now it’s official.
Tuesday afternoon, representatives from the Guinness Book of World Records certified that chef Junior Merino — also known as “the Liquid Chef” — is the record holder for the most varieties of agave spirits commercially available in a restaurant.
“Achieving this record is an honor,” said Merino in a press release. “And it inspires us to continue exploring and celebrating Mexico’s vibrant spirit culture while elevating Americans’ understanding thatMexican food and beverage isn’t cheap — and is just as rich as any other storied culture in the world.”
“Of the 1,825 bottles, they’re all the most high quality and authentic in nature,” said Chloe McCarthy, the Official Guinness World Records adjudicator in a press release Tuesday after confirming the availability of each individual bottle. “As part of Junior’s effort to dispel the notions that tequila is hard to process or makes you feel sick, the most high quality spirits don’t do that. I was touched by that.”
Merino told The Detroit News that their inventory has more than 1,800 agave spirits. That is hundreds more than the restaurant that previously held this record, Meximodo of Metuchen, New Jersey. According to Guinness, they set the record last summer with 1,033 spirits.
Artful and cozy M Cantina, which serves a gourmet take on fresh, authentic Mexican cuisine, has a bar on each of its two levels as well as wine storage in a private dining room. Merino says he’s the first chef in Michigan to offer a list of exclusively Mexican wines.
His agave spirit selection is jaw-dropping, but those interested in bourbon, Scotch and Cognac should visit the second level, where the selection is equally impressive.
M Cantina, 13214 Michigan in Dearborn, is open 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Mon.-Sat. and 10 a.m.-10 p.m. on Sun. Call (313) 399-9117 or visit mcantina.com.
mbaetens@detroitnews.com