One
thing my friend and former colleague Lindsay and I have in common is our love
of pampering, so when she let me know last month that she’d be in the Southern
Tier for a day and had some free time, it was an easy decision to spend part of
that time at the August Moon Spa at La Tourelle, in Ithaca. Fortunately,
another thing we have in common is an epicure’s disposition, so if we were
going to Ithaca for the morning, you know we were on the hunt for a good place
to eat lunch. I called in an expert, Big Hungry Morgan, recent Ithaca College
grad and fellow foodie, for the assist, and she recommended Agava, which is
over near Cornell.
Once I
perused Agava’s Website, saw that they’re sourcing meats from Autumn’s Harvest,
and even an in-state tortilleria, I was in. You’ll want to head to Agava if you
like wood-fired treats, traditional street tacos, rice and beans, or inventive
sandwiches. Do NOT head there if the starting chips and salsa are what makes or
breaks a Mexican restaurant for you – Agava’s tortilla chips were on the thick,
nearly stale side, and even though the salsa was fresh and light, with just
enough chile and cilantro punch to spark, it wasn’t special enough to save the
chips. Luckily, it was the only weak dish we were served, and since we didn’t
pay for it, we weren’t all that put out.
What
they DO have on the menu here is some fun cocktails, and you know I had to go
for the beergarita-adjacent offering, which they call at cerveza-rita. This was
made with Sol cerveza rather than Corona, and two kinds of tequila with no
limeade, but I loved it all the same. They also have a gin drink called the
Bamboozler that sounds right up my alley, made with jalapeno and thyme. We
shall meet soon, Bamboozler.
Another
puzzler, after those not-great chips, was that the appetizers we ordered didn’t
come out first. I noticed this phenomenon in Atlantic City this past weekend as
well – the waitress brought our food when it was ready, rather than the order
in which we selected it. Fine when warned, but strange since we weren’t on this
occasion. But once the mary jame flatbread did hit our table, we were thankful.
This behemoth of a pizza sans toppings is a carb-lovers dream, greasy in a good
way, and shatteringly crisp on the surface. Get a look at it:
The
black salsa listed on the menu was a little confusing, as there was no
traditional salsa flavor in this bread, but we were in love nonetheless.
The
Mexican street corn, one of my favorite dishes to hit our table, isn’t on the
menu anymore – I’m assuming because corn on the cob season is pretty much dunzo
– but look for it next summer. The gorgeous, almost sticky sweet cob of local
corn was char-grilled, slathered with savory, rich roasted tomato mayo, a tick
shower of grated cotijo cheese (sort of a Mexican feta-like crumbly, salty
wonder), and cilantro. It sang of sweetness, savory umami, verdant lightness
and caramelized depth. It was a three-wet-nap veg, for sure, but worth every
messy, gooey, drippy chomp.
Four our
mains, Lindsay chose the del mar tacos, with lime crema and slaw. I snuck a
morsel of the fish, and found it sweet and clean-tasting, not a bit greasy
despite a deep fry. Very well done. The light sprinkle of cilantro across the
top inspired her utterance of today’s post title.
I went
for the padre tacos, you know, the pork carnitas. I would love to surprise you,
ordering the tofu ones or maybe the chicken, but I gotta be who I am, guys!
These babies were resplendent with lime, tomatillos and lip-smackingly fresh
guacamole. The pork itself was particularly strong flavored next to the tart
salsa verde, but the soft, lush texture was so achingly tender, I wasn’t
complaining. I will add that they should think about doubling up the small corn
tortillas, because for both Linds and I, the structural integrity of our meals
had us again reaching for napkins.
Other
than the corn, the dish I’m still thinking about from Agava is, surprisingly,
the rice and beans I ordered as a side dish. Looks, I like rice, and I like
beans, and I have had some pretty good examples in my day. But nothing can come
close to this simple, ample bowl of delicious, steamy, Heaven. The beans were
just to die for – the amount of savory flavor packing the liquid of the beans
alone was maddeningly good. Our waitress remained coy, claiming they were just
cooked with aromatic vegetables, but I’m reporting that her pants were on fire,
because there was some magic afoot with these beans. They were so rich! You
need to go get them and help me solve this tasty riddle.
Agava
has a very cool interior, all industrial eclectic, a very different vibe than
typical tex-mex restaurants. Our waitress wasn’t particularly wonderful – she
was kind of a pill – but I wouldn’t go so far as to call the service bad, as
have some of the other reviews I’ve read on Urbanspoon. We very much enjoyed
our meal here, and I am dying to go back for a Sunday brunch, for a bacon
bloody and some housemade corned beef hash with charred tomato hollandaise. Linds
and I gave Agava an eight on the BHS scale – high above average, and with some
truly standout dishes that are not to be missed, even among Ithaca’s crowded
pantheon of good eats.
I’m off
to London for work on Monday, but I have two good dispatches from Atlantic
City, NJ on deck for you, and the promise of a couple excellent meals in
Londontown to brag about when I get back. It’s my birthday week, so I can’t
promise I’ll get those two New Jersey posts written this week for posting while
I’m gone, but if you’re nice to me and buy me something pretty, I may be able
to get around to it. My hunger is big; my personality is bigger!

Good chips are a must for me. It's not a proper mexican meal to me without them as a starter!
ReplyDeleteI also want my food in order of course, not when it's ready!
Very strange, not getting the food in order.
ReplyDeleteI feel sorry for people who don't like cilantro.