Iron Agave — Restaurant in City of Binghamton

In short: Get food from this place. It's good, great even. There are some aspects that don't scream authentic but that's okay. It's a bit pricey but worth it.

To the owners: Everything was really really good. Being from Texas and craving actual real Tex-Mex has been hard but this hits those notes hard. Great service, great food. It's not a Texas taco stand but for what it is it's really good food. Not without some well intentioned critiques.

Great stuff about the food: -The empanadas were spot on. Probably the best i had in looong time. -I haven't seen a restaurant serve charro beans since leaving Texas. -The salsas taste fresh and like they make them fresh in-house, a rarity up here. Idk if you get it from a supplier and don't actually make it in house but it's perfect. -Not a single stale chip on the boat -The queso is called “QUESO” on the menu, not “cheese dip” for a reason. Most places call it “cheese dip” disappointingly. -The birria consomme was made the right way! Not just with some beef broth and onions like they normally do up north. It’s actually flavorful. -Churros were awesome. The dulce de leche served with them was also great.

I'm offering critiques just because I want to offer some Texas perspectives and I want this place to be as authentic as possible: -(This is not strictly a serious critique) the queso is not strictly "authentic". it's evaporated milk and maybe american cheese. I believe cantinas in Texas use this combination but with a different ratio. Abulas in Texas do this too but the ratio is different too so it varies. -the Mojo chicken meat was cold by the time I got to eating it. It might have been sitting there for a bit but the salsa was for sure cold. Have a good amount of salsa in a heated container. I know you serve your cold salsa with chips but you might want to take the extra step of having a dedicated heated-through salsa container for tacos. -Had to ask for limes for a side. Note to the owners: Serve every taco with at least one lime wedge -Lettuce comes on most tacos (of course you can ask for no lettuce but street tacos don’t come with lettuce. -PLEASE serve your tacos with cilantro. -No blended margs. This is a pretty big thing for an authentic Tex-mex experience. -The tres leches was not tres leches. It’s basically moist lady fingers with preserves. -The guacamole was basically unseasoned. Add some salt, garlic powder, pepper. Idk, just needs more flavor. -The street corn dip; it's clear you wanted to make something elote-esque but it didn't hit that cup of street corn note for me. ( I know you guys have to cater to northern pallets so a lot of these are forgivable. )

Again, I LOVED this place and so did everyone I was with and frankly floored us with how close to home this experience was. I know this place could be everything my little gringo heart craves from old school...

I went there with my wife for dinner. We had two cocktails, queso and chips, the beef birria tacos and shrimp a la diabla and the horchata creme brulee. The restaurant's atmosphere is very nice. I like the high ceilings, the painted mural walls, and agave shaped chandeliers. It was very clean and modern. Also the service was excellent. Everyone was very quick and we felt very attended to.

The food was only okay though. There were highlights and there were lowlights. First the highlights. The gin cocktail we had which was special for Valentine's Day was great. Well balanced flavors and not overly alcoholic or so watered down that it doesn't do the trick. The queso and chips were excellent as well, comparable to quesos we have had in Texas. We will definitely get it again in the future. However, there were no chips and salsa. it's weird to go to a Mexican restaurant where you don't get free chips and salsa. So that's a bit of a lowlight.

The shrimp a la diabla was kind of all over the place. The sauce was very spicy which is appreciated and appropriate for the dish. However the shrimp was rather hit or miss. It looks like their shrimp source has multiple sizes so unfortunately they cooked at different rates. The smaller ones were extremely overcooked and was mealy and tough. But the larger ones were done well. The charo beans that were on the side we're great and the rice was also fine.

As for the beef birria tacos, they missed the mark. The consomé dipping sauce was thin and watery and more of a broth while a true birria consomé should be rich and fatty with body and a certain unctous quality to it. The flavor was also not particularly well developed. Additionally birria tacos should have been dipped in the consomé and finished on the griddle but these were not. It would be more accurate to describe it more as a beef and cheese quesadilla. For what it is, it was decently tasty but should not be called a birria taco.

Lastly the horchata creme brulee was alright. The texture of the custard was too firm for my taste which suggests that it was overbaked. In my opinion, creme brulee should be silky and soft. The horchata flavor was subtle and I felt it could have been a bit more upfront on the horchata. The sugar top was nice, and it's always fun to break it with the spoon. It was also presented very well with raspberries and a palmerita cookie which matches the horchata theme well.

Overall, we had a good time at the restaurant and will probably return for cocktails and queso and will try some...

Atmosphere was nice, had an industrial look with cool decor on the walls. I ordered a $12 margarita, I believe it was a peach thyme marg. It did not taste like peach and it was way too sweet. I know a marg is supposed to be on the sweeter side but this was so sweet I couldn’t even drink it. I ordered Camerones la Diabla for my dish. We had a party of 7 and everyone’s food came out at different times, which was bizarre. My 2 sides were cilantro rice and beans. It was okay but the portions were kind of skimpy for a dish that costs $21+. The rice needed something, can’t put my finger on it, but it needed more flavor. The beans were fine…it’s hard to mess up beans. A person I was with ordered tortilla chips with a street corn dip and guacamole and those both tasted great. The chips were decent too. 3 people out of our party were unsatisfied with their food for various reasons. Overall, if this place had better prices I would consider returning but I will not because their prices do not line up with the quality of their product. They have the atmosphere down, I get the feeling they’re trying to go for a more hip vibe and they want to be more than just a Mexican restaurant, as they have wings and a burger on the menu. It’s a neat idea. I wish them luck and success but there are some kinks they need to iron out. With tip I spent $53 for a dish, a marg, and a corona and I was still hungry. That...