Los Agaves - Milpas Santa Barbara.com

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Los Agaves - Milpas 600 N. Milpas St, Santa Barbara Phone: (805) 564-2626 Category: Mexican Hours: 9am-9:30pm Price: < $10 Serving: Lunch & Dinner Map Web Site Menu Write a review of this location!

Reviews by the General Public

Solid Food, Chaotic Ambiance, 9/13/2013
Reviewer: MB from Santa Barbara, CA
Tried LA Milpas for the first time last weekend. First, parking is a nightmare. Small lot and no street parking. Not a great way to start an evening out to dinner. Upon entry to the restaurant, the place is chaotic. You order at a counter and the food is brought to your table. Long line to order, no identifiable system to secure a table, so customers are milling around. Long line at the serve yourself salsa bar and self service drinks. So, you spend half your time in lines. The food is delicious. Home made with fresh quality ingredients. We had two different enchilada dishes and both were very good. They forgot to bring our side of guacamole, and it was okay, a little too much heat. LA does not "set" the table for you, you have to get your own utensils, which I think is unsanitary with so many customers hands reaching into the supply. For dining in customers, they should bring utensils and chips and salsa IMO. Overall, the food is great, but it is not a relaxing place for a night out to dinner.

Waited an hour and was not worth it, 9/12/2013
Reviewer: Conner from Santa Barbara, CA
The food here is not that good at all. I've had better tacos from Taco Bell! I think people just go here to go with the flow. The food here is not that satisfying and you have to wait roughly an hour to be seated! I don't recommend this place there are better mexican restaurants than this one.

Los Agaves, 8/23/2013
Reviewer: Sally Spork from Santa Barbara, CA
Atmosphere: Mexican-ish decor: not flashy, not fancy. Rustic appeal with wooden tables/chairs and colorful art posters/wall decor. There is quite a bit of indoor seating. Service: This is an eatery where you order from the counter, like many Mexican cafes/restaurants, and given a number to place on table. I was with Sam and has an aversion to this setup of ordering: higher end prices but less customer service. I don't have a problem with it. However: the restaurant was packed seating all taken, you do you have to scope out where to sit while staying in line and when a spot opens up quickly grab it (I put my sunglasses/phone book on table) When we went to sit at our 'saved' spot we found someone had put their number on it (and yes my sunglasses/book was right beside it.) Hmm. Food came out quickly, but we only ordered a cold dish. Food/drink: We ordered a beer and verde ceviche. It was so hot that we could barely eat it., too bad as there was plenty of seafood and avocado. In fact we didn't finish it, choosing to take it to go and give it someone we saw on the street. We told a passing server that it was extremely hot and can't finish it she said, "oh, yeah: three other people told me that." We said it would be nice if there was some indication of 'heat' by each item (as they do in Thai food), she agreed as that was a common problem. She also went on to say, 'it really depends who is cooking in the kitchen: one chef cooks a more tropical way another with more heat.' Boo on this! She also said, "just to let you know green sauces are hot, and red ones are more mild." Again Boo! Is this an insider secret? Consistency and clarity are key for a satisfying experience. Summary: Los Agaves has an interesting menu and I've heard many good thing from Anglos and Latins alike. The place always looks packed, usually a good sign! I'd go back again. I do know that we will have to be scrutinizing about the dishes ordered in terms of 'heat' every time we order.

COMPLETELY OVERRATED
Reviewer: Mike from Santa Barbara, CA
This place is crowded for some reason but the food is below average. I just don't get it. There are plenty of much better Mexican places in Santa Barbara. You have to wait in line to order. The guy taking orders (supposedly the owner) was rude. It was hard to get a table. All things you can put up with if the food is good. It is not. I think the owners must be very busy every day posting positive reviews of their restaurant.

Finally a TRUE Mexican restaurant in Santa Barbara!
Reviewer: Hector and Rocio from Panaroma City, CA
Fiance and I visit SB annually at least 1-2 times a year. We have searched and tasted various so called Mexican restaurants in Goleta, Santa Barbara, and Montecito. Without hesitation and with conviction Los Agaves is truly authentic. From the first to last bite along with their warm thick tortillas that my fiance and I had to go with our orders we almost placed a second take out order before we left SB to go back home. Yes, you read that exactly, TAKE OUT. That says a lot. The restaurant is quite busy but nothing that I could not get used to especially with the delicious food they prepare when we make our return visit to SB later in 2013. Definitely coming back and spreading the news of this great place to all of my friends in Los Angeles.

I love this place
Reviewer: Stu from Santa Barbara, CA
Best Mexican food in town. My wife and I have never been disappointed. The chicken mole was great and the steak Alhambrs plate was incredible. Very busy but very friendly staff. Fine salsa bar. Imaginative menu as well as the standards you expect. The crowd is half Anglo and half Hispanic and everyone seemed to be enjoying their food. They have wine and beer and bottomless soda refills.

I just must not get it.
Reviewer: Tony Sandrich from Santa Barbara, CA
I wanted to like this restaurant. I live blocks away. I have eaten there four times now and have never had a dish that I would call really delicious or even one that I would ever want again. Last week I went to celebrate a friends birthday and I had the mole enchiladas. Mole is supposed to be delicious. I have had mole that was delicious. This was not that at all. I ate it, but nothing more. Considering that there are five other Mexican restaurants close by, I will try to not have to go there.

Good Mexican food
Reviewer: Marie from Santa Barbara, CA
This place gets really packed for lunch an dinner! A little pricey I got the chicken nachos which ended up being $14 and my sister got the Los Agaves Salad w chicken which was about $15 they both were really good and a lot of food. The sevice is ok took them quit a while to bring our food. Would return but before noon or for an early dinner.

The most authentic Mexican dishes are served at Los Agaves.
Reviewer: Sergio and Veronica from Santa Barbara, CA
Los Agaves serves the closest to the most authentic mexican dishes, accompanied by little variance which I call it a fine delicious signature of it's own. I lived 16 years in Mexico where my mother worked as a cook at an upscale restaurant well known nationwide and visited by tourists around the world. I can simply say this place is the closest to my moms cuisine. My favorite dish is the Huarache " the sandal" I'm glad I don't have to wait until I travel to Mexico to have a good Huarache served as a fine dish. Only at Los Agaves. Atmosphere is great they greet you humbly with a smile and excellent manners. One thing I have to say the Parking lot is very small if you are lucky enough to find a space you can only fit a motorcycle or a compact car. Good thing we can park across the Street. Other than that I love to dine at Los Agaves.

Best Nachos!
Reviewer: Whitney from Santa Barbara, CA
Agreed with many of the previous reviewers that these are the BEST nachos ever! My husband and I are pretty much nacho snobs and this place really gets it right. Order it with your steak rare and it's divine! Always packed.

Best in Santa Barbara, One of the best in the State
Reviewer: Roy from Bakersfield, CA
I have always thought that Bakersfield has some of the best Mexican Restaurants in the State. This is no longer true. Los Agaves is by far has the best Mexican food in the State. My daughter who just recently graduated from UCSB took me to Los Agaves last Wednesday. The place was crowded but the wait wasn't long, we took a number for a table and shortly the food was served. I had the Carnita's dinner plate and it was three times the excellent. My daughter had the chicken enchiladas, the portion was so large she had enough for her lunch the next day. I have had many Mexican dinners from various restaurants in Santa Barbara but none of them compare to Los Agaves. I recommend this place to everyone.

Deee-licious!
Reviewer: Melvin from Santa Barbara, CA
I went to Los Agaves for the first time today and was very impressed by the most unlikely things. The side salad for instance. I ordered the tacos del mar and they came with the best salad I have ever had at a Mexican restaurant. Diced mango, dried cranberries, mixed greens and a fantastic dressing. The only negative comment I have is that the fish had a not-so-fresh smell. The taste was very good but they should watch how long they keep fish. My horchata was a full cup with no ice, which I like. Other places give you a 24 oz. cup full of ice and you get maybe 10 oz of actual drink. All the salsas at the salsa bar were really good also.

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