VELVET LOUNGE'S MEXICAN MARTINI

I’m impossibly lazy — the kind of lazy that makes people angry. I can never go out to lunch on a Saturday because I can’t get out of bed before noon. People hate that, especially the people I was supposed to meet for lunch…at noon. I’m so lazy I can barely drag myself to a new bar each week and write a few words to fill this space. Sometimes I totally mail it in. Oh, you’ve noticed? So there I was once again facing a deadline and nothing to write about. I’d seen the Velvet Lounge (5535 Memorial Dr., 713-880-0400) before, but never really paid much attention to it. It’s tucked between a dry cleaners and a Tex-Mex joint in the corner of a strip mall. Not ideal, but if you’re a tremendous slouch like me, it’s kinda perfect. I dropped off some dry cleaning, got a bite to eat next door and stopped in for a couple Mexican martinis. Don’t judge. This whole town is a strip mall. Four million people can’t be wrong. I wonder if this place delivers…

1 1/2 ounces Cuervo 1800 tequila

1 ounce Cointreau

2 ounces sweet and sour

Splash of orange juice

Shake with ice. Strain into a martini glass. Try not to strain yourself.

stirredandshaken@rocketmail.com