Florida has its own pepper. The datil is grown almost entirely in and around St. Augustine, and most people outside Northeast Florida have never tasted one. Bad Call is our datil pepper sauce, made the way St. Augustine likes it: sweet, tomato-based, and warmer than it looks.
In short: The datil pepper is a small yellow-orange chili (Capsicum chinense, the same species as the habanero) rated roughly 100,000–300,000 Scoville heat units, grown mainly around St. Augustine, Florida. It is known for being sweeter and fruitier than most hot peppers. Bad Call is a St. Augustine-style datil sauce — tomato-based and sweet, with honey, molasses and Worcestershire — rated Medium. It contains fish (anchovy). $12 for 5 FL OZ.
What is a datil pepper?
A datil is a small, wrinkled chili that ripens yellow to orange. It belongs to Capsicum chinense, the species that also includes the habanero and Scotch bonnet, and raw datils carry a similar kind of heat — commonly cited at around 100,000 to 300,000 Scoville heat units. What sets it apart is flavor: datils are sweeter and fruitier than most peppers that hot.
Why St. Augustine?
Nearly all datils are grown in and around St. Augustine, where the pepper has been part of local cooking for generations and is closely tied to the city's Minorcan community. How it got there is genuinely disputed. The popular story credits the Minorcan settlers who came to Florida in the 1700s; other accounts point to traders from Cuba or the West Indies in the 1800s. Nobody has settled it, and we will not pretend to. What is not in doubt is that St. Augustine made the datil its own — in Minorcan clam chowder, datil vinegars, jellies and, above all, sweet datil sauces.
What does Bad Call taste like?
Sweet first, then savory, then warm. Tomato paste, honey, molasses and cane sugar give it body and sweetness, the way traditional St. Augustine datil sauces are built. A Worcestershire backbone adds depth and a little tang, and green bell pepper and onion round it out. The datil heat shows up right behind the sweetness and lingers. It sits somewhere between a hot sauce and a glaze.
How hot is it?
Medium — the same level as our jalapeño bottle, Took The Bet. The datil itself is a hot pepper, but this is a sweet, tomato-based sauce, so the heat is balanced rather than front and center. See where it lands on the heat scale.
What to put datil sauce on
- Shrimp and fried fish. The classic St. Augustine pairing. Use it as a dipping sauce.
- Chowder. A spoonful in a bowl of seafood or clam chowder.
- Chicken and pork. Brush it on at the end of grilling like a glaze.
- Burgers. In place of ketchup.
- Eggs. Scrambled, fried or in a breakfast burrito.
- Bloody Marys. A dash in place of plain hot sauce.
Ingredients and allergens
Water, high-fructose corn syrup, tomato paste, onions, honey, distilled vinegar (20% acidity), datil pepper mash (datil peppers and vinegar), green bell peppers, pure cane sugar, salt, molasses, Worcestershire sauce (water, distilled vinegar, Worcestershire concentrate (molasses, vinegar, water, spices, natural flavor, garlic powder, caramel color, salt, anchovies, tamarind, and sulfiting agents), sugar and salt), onion powder, xanthan gum, garlic powder.
Contains: fish (anchovy). Contains sulfiting agents. Because it includes anchovy and honey, Bad Call is not vegetarian or vegan.
How it fits the lineup
Bad Call is one of three sauces added in 2026, alongside Sweet Regret (peach, Mild) and Wrong Choice (mango Scotch bonnet, Hot) — read about all three. It is the Florida bottle in a Florida hot sauce lineup. Try it in Pick Any 3, or browse datil hot sauce.
Frequently asked questions
What is a datil pepper?
A small yellow-orange chili of the species Capsicum chinense, grown mainly around St. Augustine, Florida. It is rated roughly 100,000–300,000 Scoville heat units and is known for a sweeter, fruitier flavor than most hot peppers.
Is the datil pepper hotter than a jalapeño?
Yes, much hotter as a raw pepper — comparable to a habanero. Bad Call, our datil sauce, is rated Medium because it is a sweet, tomato-based sauce that balances the heat.
Where do datil peppers come from?
Almost all are grown in and around St. Augustine, Florida. Their origin is disputed: one story credits Minorcan settlers in the 1700s, another traders from Cuba or the West Indies in the 1800s.
What is datil pepper sauce used for?
Traditionally with seafood — shrimp, fried fish and chowder — and also as a glaze on chicken and pork, on burgers, eggs, and in Bloody Marys.
Does Bad Call contain allergens?
Yes. It contains fish (anchovy, from the Worcestershire sauce) and sulfiting agents, and it is not vegetarian or vegan.
How much is Bad Call?
$12 for a 5 FL OZ (148 ML) bottle, about 30 servings.