District MX, the sports bar in Plaza Peninsula celebrated its nine-year anniversary, despite the challenges that the restaurant and the plaza now face with the construction of the roundabout in San Jose del Cabo. Michael and Dana McLoughlin welcomed their guests personally. On arrival, you could ring the bell at a special display outside and receive a complimentary glass of champagne or a beer. A photographer took pictures of arriving groups and couples at the front door. We were seated at our table at the front of the restaurants and some new neighbors from Pueblo Campestre moved their table over to join us. The regular menu was available but there was also a Prime Rib Special with mashed potatoes, gravy, a choice of gravy or peppercorn sauce for the meat, green beans and Yorkshire pudding. Servers were moving through the restaurant offering guests complimentary appetizers – empanadas, bruschetta, chicken kabobs, watermelon sashimi, and more.

After viewing the menu, Tanya ordered three different appetizers for the table – dry ribs, popcorn shrimp, and the field corn and avocado dip with tortilla chips. I was on a high protein diet and so I could only sample the dry ribs – delicious. Both Beth and Tanya ordered the Prime Rib dinner – the platter and the prime rib were huge and cooked to perfection. I ordered the Short Rib without the gnocchi (diet) and grilled onions. It was also huge, tender and the grilled onions were excellent. The ladies ordered some churros with four different dipping sauces for dessert.

Throughout the evening there was live entertainment, first with a DJ and then Soul Collective. As people arrived, they were given a raffle ticket. At about 9:00 Dana and Michael spoke to their guests and thank them and the staff for making District a success over the 9 years. Michael said that since opening 740,000 people had passed through the doors (admittedly some of them several times a week to watch sports and have their favorite beverage). Michael’s partner Tom from Vancouver drew the winning tickets for a whole series of donated prizes. Tanya won a $450 gift certificate from Dr. Cardenas’s MedSpa. She was elated.

The evening was a great success for District. There was a photo booth outside where guest could add costume elements and get their pictures taken. As we were leaving, however, we were immediately reminded of the challenges facing District and Plaza Peninsula. The road going south giving access to the Plaza was closed. One brave driver came up the wrong way and turned in by Starbucks. It turned out that lots of people were unable to make the celebration because of the construction. Despite numerous pleas to the Mayor and architects for the project, the road is regularly closed and no signage directing people on alternative ways to get to the Plaza have been provided. As a result, other than this night of celebration business for all three restaurants in Plaza Peninsula have been way down. PanSprings has stopped opening at night because of the regular closing of the access.

So, let’s all help these restaurants stay open by supporting them during this difficult time.