Agave Southwest Bar & Grill

I don’t understand why this place isn’t hopping! It’s a terrific little place with large windows, open concept, fully stoked bar, posh seats, deff style and the food is good like stupid good way better than rock bottom across the street and comparable if not cheaper in some areas. Come on Milwaukee get down here. I recommend the tortilla soup! Best in town also my personal favorite is the lunch salmon wrap so good so good. Also the staff is always exceptionally nice and personable. The bathrooms are clean and nice. The drinks are good (coffee is awful though stay away from that). I’ll be back soon!

My MKE food buddy and I initially opted to try this spot out during «Downtown Dining Week.» Oddly, the day we chose, the restaurant was closed. There were no signs indicating why.
Yet, despite this hiccup, we decided to visit again and try their cuisine, given their menu variety. What motivated us further was the Groupon we both had purchased.
We visited on a Tuesday night and shockingly the place was barren. We were literally the only individuals in the restaurant. Sure, the weather was frigid but that does not stop MKE from dining out. Clearly, others were dining out, as it was difficult to find a parking space in the area.
I am rather unsure how to classify the cuisine at Agave. They call it «Southwestern». I would say that is a bit of a stretch from the truth.
We ordered a variety of appetizers, entrees, and desserts. For starters, we opted for the fried calamari and the shrimp ceviche. My friend noted the calamari was not fresh and seemed to be sitting in the freezer for an extended period of time. The homemade tortilla chips were actually nice. The ceviche was below average; it honestly tasted like guacamole with shrimp. It was lacking flavor and could have benefited from lime along with salt. The portion size was abundant, particularly for an appetizer.
For the main course, we chose the pesto pasta with shrimp and the grilled mahi mahi. In addition, we ordered a side of macaroni and cheese. Again, while the pesto pasta portion size was abundant, the flavor profile was average. There was nothing exceptional about the dish. I could have easily made it myself at home. The grilled mahi mahi was our best dish of the night. This is largely because it was the only dish with a kick, which came from the poblano. The fish was served on a bed of risotto, which was overly clumpy. The macaroni and cheese was horrendous. The item was made with processed cheese rather than fresh cheese, which is undoubtably expected given this is the land of cheese. What is even more shocking is that our waitress advised us to order it when we were skeptical, as she noted it to be very good.
For dessert, we ordered the chocolate vanilla bean crème brûlée and the chocolate banana bread pudding. I only ordered the crème brûlée because the homemade Oreo ice cream cake was unavailable. The chocolate banana bread pudding was decent and that is saying a lot as I never eat bread pudding. The crème brûlée was average at best.
Overall, we felt that we were dining at an Italian restaurant rather than a southwestern spot. In addition, the prices were astronomical when compared to the (lack) of complexity of the dishes. During our 1.5−2 hour dining experience, only one other patron visited the spot.
The only salvaging feature of this visit was the ability to split the check and use two separate Groupons.

Food was good. Host was very nice and personable. Waitress was a little unsure, probably new. Only thing keeping me from giving another star was we used their Groupon for dinner for two. The bill came and they up charged on every item. It was only an extra $ 6, but it smacked of false advertising.

Great food, good atmosphere. The staff is quick and attentive and presentation is wonderful. Big recommendation.

Yum! We had a great lunch, fresh and delicious. Outstanding service and loved the music.

Fantastic surprise. Food was creative and delicious. Service was great. Very willing to accommodate dietary issues. This is our new go-​to lunch.

I went to the bar with my fiancé, we put our ids on the bar and waited for more than 20 min then left. I’m sure the food and drinks can be good though expensive. I have never gone to a bar and not even been acknowledge by the bar tender when I entered or shortly after I got to the bar. There are many bar and grills, I know I can find one with useful staff.

Disappointed! Based on the reviews, we were hoping for a good experience. The host and atmosphere were great! He was very welcoming and polite. The décor was very nice and the dining room was very comfortable. Rating that alone, I’d give them 5 stars.
Unfortunately when the food came that changed my opinion. The chicken was overcooked and extremely dry. The penne was over the top spicy and inedible, so I sent it back. They were very nice and offered me other things and I ended up with the soup of the day. The soup was less spicy but didn’t have a great flavor. So in the end I just skipped dinner and thus why the low rating.
Very disappointed and I won’t be back.

Great start to our day in Milwaukee! Eleanor was a fabulous bartender and very sweet to us! Thanks again you guys really enjoyed our time!

Went here for lunch based on Unilocal reviews with my sister and niece. SO glad we did!!! The atmosphere is clean and fresh, the staff were wonderful and the food great!!! Pleasantly surprised when they brought out Taro Chips made there!!! Surprised that the place wasn’t packed!!! Tortilla Soup, Agave Salad, Buffalo Burgers, Pommes Frites, and the Turkey Club wrap were excellent.

Love this place! Terrific, helpful staff and interesting array of menu options. One of us had a sumptuous plate of muscles and the other the short ribs. Both were delicious and fairly priced. Will definitely return.

Nice décor. Quiet. Salad $ 7 & grilled Mahi Mahi $ 18. Salad was ok, with a few leaves & 2 cut olives. Fish was cooked just right, but a little under seasoned. There was only me & another table, but the food came out very slowly. The fish portion was really small. Definitely not the best value. Maybe that explains why the restaurant is quiet on a Saturday night. & it doesn’t have any view. Next time I’ll stick to Rock Bottom where the food portion is bigger & the prices more reasonable. & oh, Rock Bottom comes with the river view!

I recently stopped in to try this new restaurant out in downtown Milwaukee. I ordered the tortilla soup for starters and the beef short ribs for dinner. Both were fantastic! The also have infused cocktails made fresh daily. What a great new find downtown.

Wow what a hidden gem. Very unique tastings. Most importantly what got me is the sugar-​free, yet amazing cocktails, each infused differently. Us 5 ladies had to try all 5 concoctions and we liked them all! From the scallops, to the tartar, to the salmon, to the vegetable soup, everything was fresh and delicious! Great service as well! Walk on down. YUM

First time to Milwaukee and decided to check grubhub to see what kind of restaurants were around. We looked at the menu for Agave and knew thats what we were craving. They delivered to the hotel very quickly and even brought it to our room. Steak was perfectly cooked even with it having to travel. Best NY strip ive had in a while!!! And their chocolate banana bread pudding is to die for!!! Overall delicious, quick and amazing service.

Unbelievably great new find in Milwaukee. Spectacular Tex Mex and great infusion drinks made in house. Warm greeting, great service — a have to go in down town Milwaukee. Loved the ahi tuna tartare at the bar with the «daily special» mojito. Taro root chips are A+.

Great service! The infused drinks in ball jars are tasty, they go down smooth. The chef has great skills. Try the taro root chips. I loved the red sangria.

Amazing, only third day they are reopened, stopped in to wast time before flying out. Ate everything on menu! I will never go through Milwaukee without stopping here

This place was a total surprise tasty creative Tex Mex food. Great Tortilla soup. had the pork burrito as well as a taste of the green chile pork sauces and chili beef… While not authentic it was true to the taste. Kudos to the chef Dwayne and the friendly staff