El Agave, Catonsville MD

Catonsville has a new Mexican joint. The restaurant has been open just a few months and seems to be very popular. Everyone loves Mexican, what's not to love. 

The space has been a few different 'package goods bar Inn' type joints over the years. The new owners have really changed it up. 

The decor is bright and cheerful. The entire place is sparkling clean and very inviting. If you are a sports fan the bar area has a number of big TVs with some game going.

We got some guacamole. It was very, very good. Most times I dread when my wife orders it because hers is so good. El Agave's held pretty strong. The salsa that came with the chips was good too. It was unusually light and fresh tasting. 

Halle loves any place with a mango jarritos. 

I have to say that the margarita was better than most. It was strong and did not have a ton of ice in it. The bar tender knows that tequila makes the customers happy and generous.

So, the food; I love Mexican food. To be able to get real tacos is a big bonus to me. They have a great offering of fish, shrimp, carne asada, barbacoa, chorizo, chicken, (now it gets good and what you see above) lengua(tongue), carnaza(beef cheek). These street tacos were spot on. They even roasted some jalapeños upon my request. This is the food of the owners and what they do well. They are Mexican and this is real Mexican food. The owners want to make it and the menu reflects what 'most' love about 'Mexican'. They love chimichangas, burritos, and hard tacos. Those items are on the menu and it was those items people around me were all ordering. I strongly suspect that the TexMex menu will dominate and become the main stay of this place in the future. I have seen this trend with many places. The gringos are the customers and they have their expectations of what Mexican food is. I saw this happen to the last Mexican restaurant that opened in Catonsville, El Nayar. It went TexMex and a year later it had lost its zing and was gone. I hope El Agave maintains it's Mexican menu. If it does, we will gladly return as regulars.

Rating 8