Hotel Riviera del Pacífico
Encyclopedia
The Hotel Riviera del Pacífico was a hotel
located in Ensenada
, Baja California
, Mexico
. It was one of the most prestigious and luxurious hotels in Baja California, and is one of several candidates for having hosted the invention of the Margarita
cocktail
.
sent North Americans south of their border in search of entertainment
and alcohol
, developing first Tijuana
, then Rosarito, and finally Ensenada as tourist destinations.
The North American Compañía Mexicana del Rosarito decided to establish in Ensenada a grand hotel
, initially called the Hotel Playa de Ensenada (Ensenada Beach Hotel), designed by Gordon F. Mayer in the most dramatic and luxurious style with materials sent south from the United States
. It opened with spectacular festivities in 1930, including the Xavier Cugat
band, under the management of Jack Dempsey
, a famous and fashionable boxer.
of Detroit, by then an old man and the only remaining shareholder, gave the hotel to a young lady with whom he was in love, Marjorie King Plant. Plant ran the hotel successfully with her Mexican lawyer and husband, Alfonso Rocha, changing its name to Hotel Riviera del Pacífico. Utley had been led to believe that Plant's marriage to Rocha was a "white marriage," that is a marriage of convenience serving only to give Plant the Mexican citizenship she needed to run the hotel, and when he discovered that this was not the case, he pursued Plant and then Rocha with court cases, leading first to Plant's leaving the hotel for the United States and then to Rocha's absconding from the hotel in 1956 to avoid a judgment against him. At this point the hotel was taken over by the Mexican government, which closed and partly demolished it in 1964.
is claimed to have been invented in several different places and at several different times. One claim is that it was invented at the Hotel Riviera del Pacífico for Marjorie King Plant at the time when she was the joint owner. Other versions refer to Marjorie King, an actress, and some move the location from Ensenada to Tijuana. Margarita is a Spanish version of the name Marjorie.
The hotel's claim seems unlikely, as the earliest stories refer to the 1930s, and Marjorie King Plant did not arrive in Ensenada until the late 1940s.
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
located in Ensenada
Ensenada, Baja California
Ensenada is a coastal city in Mexico and the third-largest city in Baja California. It is located south of San Diego on the Baja California Peninsula. The city is locally referred to as La Cenicienta del Pacífico, or, The Cinderella of the Pacific...
, Baja California
Baja California
Baja California officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. It was one of the most prestigious and luxurious hotels in Baja California, and is one of several candidates for having hosted the invention of the Margarita
Margarita
The margarita is a cocktail consisting of tequila mixed with orange-flavoured liqueur and lime or lemon juice, often served with salt on the glass rim. It is the most common tequila-based cocktail in the United States...
cocktail
Cocktail
A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink that contains two or more ingredients—at least one of the ingredients must be a spirit.Cocktails were originally a mixture of spirits, sugar, water, and bitters. The word has come to mean almost any mixed drink that contains alcohol...
.
History
The hotel opened with great fanfare in 1930, but was not a real success until the early 1950s. It finally closed in 1964.Origins
ProhibitionProhibition in the United States
Prohibition in the United States was a national ban on the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol, in place from 1920 to 1933. The ban was mandated by the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution, and the Volstead Act set down the rules for enforcing the ban, as well as defining which...
sent North Americans south of their border in search of entertainment
Entertainment
Entertainment consists of any activity which provides a diversion or permits people to amuse themselves in their leisure time. Entertainment is generally passive, such as watching opera or a movie. Active forms of amusement, such as sports, are more often considered to be recreation...
and alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
, developing first Tijuana
Tijuana
Tijuana is the largest city on the Baja California Peninsula and center of the Tijuana metropolitan area, part of the international San Diego–Tijuana metropolitan area. An industrial and financial center of Mexico, Tijuana exerts a strong influence on economics, education, culture, art, and politics...
, then Rosarito, and finally Ensenada as tourist destinations.
The North American Compañía Mexicana del Rosarito decided to establish in Ensenada a grand hotel
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
, initially called the Hotel Playa de Ensenada (Ensenada Beach Hotel), designed by Gordon F. Mayer in the most dramatic and luxurious style with materials sent south from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It opened with spectacular festivities in 1930, including the Xavier Cugat
Xavier Cugat
Xavier Cugat was a Spanish-American bandleader who spent his formative years in Havana, Cuba. A trained violinist and arranger, he was a key personality in the spread of Latin music in United States popular music. He was also a cartoonist and a successful businessman...
band, under the management of Jack Dempsey
Jack Dempsey
William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey was an American boxer who held the world heavyweight title from 1919 to 1926. Dempsey's aggressive style and exceptional punching power made him one of the most popular boxers in history. Many of his fights set financial and attendance records, including the first...
, a famous and fashionable boxer.
Decline
The hotel was never a financial success, however, partly because the road from the United States was poor, and the end of Prohbition proved fatal. The hotel only ever operated intermittently, and was put to military use during the Second World War.Revival and final closure
After the end of the War, one of the original shareholders, Jerome UtleyJerome Utley
Jerome Adams "Jerry" Utley was an American baseball player and coach, contracting engineer, hotelier and boxing promoter. He played and coached college baseball for the Michigan Wolverines baseball team in the early 1900s. He also briefly coached and played minor league baseball from 1905 to 1906...
of Detroit, by then an old man and the only remaining shareholder, gave the hotel to a young lady with whom he was in love, Marjorie King Plant. Plant ran the hotel successfully with her Mexican lawyer and husband, Alfonso Rocha, changing its name to Hotel Riviera del Pacífico. Utley had been led to believe that Plant's marriage to Rocha was a "white marriage," that is a marriage of convenience serving only to give Plant the Mexican citizenship she needed to run the hotel, and when he discovered that this was not the case, he pursued Plant and then Rocha with court cases, leading first to Plant's leaving the hotel for the United States and then to Rocha's absconding from the hotel in 1956 to avoid a judgment against him. At this point the hotel was taken over by the Mexican government, which closed and partly demolished it in 1964.
The Margarita
The MargaritaMargarita
The margarita is a cocktail consisting of tequila mixed with orange-flavoured liqueur and lime or lemon juice, often served with salt on the glass rim. It is the most common tequila-based cocktail in the United States...
is claimed to have been invented in several different places and at several different times. One claim is that it was invented at the Hotel Riviera del Pacífico for Marjorie King Plant at the time when she was the joint owner. Other versions refer to Marjorie King, an actress, and some move the location from Ensenada to Tijuana. Margarita is a Spanish version of the name Marjorie.
The hotel's claim seems unlikely, as the earliest stories refer to the 1930s, and Marjorie King Plant did not arrive in Ensenada until the late 1940s.