Td Homers

We decided to try Agave in Southington. What a waste of $100. We would have had a berter time burning a $100 bill. The restaurant was loud even though there were no customers at 3 pm on a Saturday afternoon. The noise was coming from the staff. Talking loud, yelling across the waitstaff station to each other, etc. The service was slow and never did inquire whether any of the food or berverages was satisfactory. The queso fundido appetizer tasted like a pile of warmed up cream cheese with a few peppers and onions sprinkled on top. The margaritas were watered down. The Sante Fe salad was completely tasteless and definitely not worth the calories to consume. We never received the ice cream that came with the children's meals. Our waiter didn't offer it. By dessert time after bad food, loud waitstaff, and bad service, we wanted to pay our bill and get out of the place. We will not be returning. If you want decent Mexican and are in Southington, try El Sombero. It isn't great but is much better than Agave. more

Agave is one of 2 restaurants, one in Hartford and one in Southington, run by the Hartford Restaurant Group. I ate at the Southington location last night and was disappointed by the food. Agave’s menu offered typical tex-mex, but tries to add new creations with a Mexican flavor. The restaurant’s name comes from the blue agave plant used to make authentic Tequila. There are murals depicting agave field harvesting decorating the restaurant walls. This might be a clue about the restaurant's forté which certainly isn’t it’s food. The meal started off well for me when our server made guacamole fresh at our table in a big green mortar and pestle bowl. I think its hard to mess up guacamole and though ours tasted great to me, one of my companions got large chunks of raw onion in her scoops. The ubiquitous baskets of chips were salty, which I liked, but tasted like they were out of a bag. If McDonalds can fry their own french-fries then how hard is it for a Mexican place to fry its own corn tortilla chips? Skipping the appetizers, I had the soft fish tacos as a main course. They were in a flour tortilla, not corn, and were served covered with a citrus salsa that I can only try to describe. The citrus was bitter and the whole thing tasted like vinegar. It kind of tastes like some one mixed cream and tequila and poured it over your fish. We sent this back and got the Lobster Enchiladas instead. These came covered in a white jack cheese and flanked on each side with a somber pile of rice and beans. The cheese was overwhelming and bland. The lobster, once we found a piece, tasted slightly fishy and frozen . It could be fresh as the menu claimed but it tasted off. A friend got the Tilapia en Tortilla, which I foolishly though was tilapia fish wrapped in a flour or corn tortilla. Instead what we got was a fish fried in a breading made of crumbed tortilla bits. This was actually the best thing we had. The fish was tender and not overcooked and tasted ok. The breading was a little weird but it didn’t ruin the fish. I really like good Mexican food, even Americanized tex-mex food. I grew up eating it in California, and I think there are also many places in CT to get really great tex-mex food but Agave is not one of them. more

I've been to The Agave Grille three times now ...each time was a tasty experience. I thought the food was unique and inventive, service very friendly, and the prices were quite reasonable! I liked that one can get a simple steak or burger, or one of the mexican dishes you won't find anywhere else. My server patiently explained all the dishes I had questions about. I'll definitely be back . Same Owners as Wood N Tap? No big coincidence there! I've never had a meal I wouldn't repeat there either! Lisa in Berlin more

Owned by the same operators of the Wood N Tap restaurant across the street, this is the latest entry to Southington's growing trendy restaurants. The restaurant features a large outdoor area which should be extremely popular in warm weather. Upon entering this building (formerly Bickfords) you are immediately struck by the noise level. Even the hostess greeting you will be using a louder than normal voice to be heard. The restaurant could use some draperies, table cloths, anything to help mute the decibel level. A roving Mariachi band added to the difficulty in carrying a conversation. I don't think the neighboring El Sombrero has anything to fear from this newest "Mexican" restaurant. Mexican items are hard to locate on the menu and are hardly authentic. I had a chicken wrap with French fried potatoes and my partner had a steak sandwich, also with fries. The closest thing to a South of the Border experience was the guacamole that is prepared tableside. In summary, we found the restaurant to be noisy, overpriced, and with only medium service quality. We'll probably repeat in Summer if only to experience the outdoor cafe but that would be the only reason. more