The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Case Agave a fun spot with solid food, great service
Painesville Township Mexican eatery resides in former home of Asian restaurant
beans, white cheese sauce, ground beef, pico de gallo, lettuce and sour cream. It sounds like it’d be sloppy, but it’s really not. As everything was during our visit, the presentation was pretty good. So, too, was the dish overall. It’s a great value — it easily could feed four as an appetizer and two as a main course — and was a little different as loaded nacho dishes go. As with the salsa, it’s on the mild side, not spicy. The same went for my white enchilada combination dinner ($10.99), which consisted of one chicken, one shredded beef and one cheese enchilada. They were topped with more white cheese sauce and served with a side of rice, pico de gallo, lettuce and sour cream. I liked the white sauce a lot, and the chicken enchilada went particularly
well with it. The meat was flavorful and tender, and it was juicy enough to be eaten without any sauce. The beef version was solid if not spectacular, and the cheese enchilada was fine if a bit of overkill. Cheese with cheese sauce may not be for everyone. My wife, usually the least into “spicy” of the three of us, ordered the spiciest thing I tasted all night. It was the chori pollo dinner ($12.99), grilled chicken cooked with chorizo sausage and served with rice, refried beans and tortillas. I thought it was really good, and she loved it but could only eat so much. The tortillas it came with are worth noting — they seemed homemade and were definitely warmed on a grill. A place with agave in its name and big green agave signs had better have tequila, and Casa Agave does not fall short in that department.
They have standard margaritas and quite a few flavored margaritas, all of which you can get on the rocks or frozen. They’re $2.99 for a small and $4.99 for a large on Taco Tuesdays (which also feature five-for-$5 beef tacos). My wife’s small pomegranate version was the size of a typical margarita glass, and the large one is huge. The margs are a bit better value than the $7.25 tall Corona Light was. I was really struck by how good the service was. Everybody we encountered was very friendly, helpful and fast. The place filled up quickly while we were there and was packed by the time we left, but, as busy as it was, the level of service was maintained. I always appreciate that. I tend to visit the Mexican places in Painesville that lean more toward authentic Mexican — street food
and simple home-cooked dishes — but I get the appeal of the more Americanized, or “Tex Mex” take on Mexican restaurants. Casa Agave is more in the latter category food-wise, but its modern bar-type approach and the hospitality of those working there definitely give it a place on the local scene.
The first thing you notice when you walk into Casa Agave in Painesville Township is a gigantic, brightly lit agave plant logo hanging behind the hostess stand. If the goal is to remind you of the agave theme, this glowing green focal point certainly does the job. It also serves as a reminder of how much this space in the Painesville Shopping Plaza has changed since it was last occupied by a restaurant, which vacated perhaps a year ago. The local owners of the restaurant, which opened early this year, have transformed it into a vibrant Mexican joint. The most stunning change is the long, contemporary bar that replaces what used to be a foodprep and sushi-bar area in the Asian restaurant that had been there. The front matches the brick of the entryway; it has a kind of rustic-chic hardwood top and barn wood-style bar back. Behind the bar hangs another brightly lit agave sign, slightly smaller than the one at the entry. It’s flanked by two big TVs, which give this Mexican place a bit of a sports bar feel. To that end, there are also three big prints on the wall dedicated to Cleveland’s big three professional sports teams, the Browns, Indians and Cavs. New bead board covers the interior walls that aren’t near the bar, and there’s a second dining room to the rear of the place. We liked the bar vibe of the main dining area, and the Indians were on, so we
sat at a booth near the bar. As would be expected, we promptly had chips and salsa delivered to the table. I would have liked a little more kick to the salsa, but it was extremely fresh — as in noticeably fresh compared to other places I’ve been. We also ordered a couple of dips from the appetizer: guacamole ($3.99) and queso ($3.59). I’m not sure this was a great idea. When you add the chips and salsa we’d already had, it’s a lot of chips. But everything here was fresh, too. I thought the guac was a little heavy on the red onion. The queso was solid, though my wife and son were a bit more excited about it than I was. I wouldn’t discourage anyone from ordering either. My son, who had actually been to Casa Agave without us, knew exactly what he wanted and ordered the ironically named simple nachos ($9.99), also off the appetizer menu. They are definitely more entrée-sized than appetizer-sized, and they are not simple. The dish consists of a giant platter of crispy tortilla chips (we couldn’t stop ordering chips, apparently) topped with, well, a lot of stuff. There’s shredded chicken in there, white
Reviews are based on one anonymous visit to a restaurant.