ABOVE: El Agave Restaurant, located at 62 Downtown Plaza in Fairmont. The popular restaurant keeps the first few blocks of downtown busy all afternoon and through the evening as people stop in for lunch, happy hour and dinner.

FAIRMONT– El Agave Mexican Restaurant in Fairmont is a pillar of not just the downtown, but the community. It’s long been the gathering place for families and friends and its popularity was confirmed when it swept the Sentinel’s Best of the Best contest, earning first place in every category it was nominated in including best family restaurant, best waitstaff, best taco, best catering service, best bar and best atmosphere.

Once known as El Mariachi, part owner Elfego Acosta started working at the restaurant in 2003. Then in 2007, part-owner Noe Juarez bought out El Mariachi and turned the restaurant into El Agave.

Since 2009, Acosta has been at the helm of El Agave in Fairmont while Juarez mainly oversees their other location in St. Peter.

As for the building itself, there had been minimal work to it, such as painting and bathroom updates, prior to the big remodel project that started in 2022 and finished in 2023.

“At the beginning the idea was just to replace the flooring but some other things came up,” Acosta explained.

They ended up working with an interior designer and exposing the brick walls. The end result was a more modern restaurant with a fresher look. All new light fixtures were put in, along with new art work. A grass wall was also put in which serves as a fun backdrop for photos.

“It was something I saw south in Florida. It’s used in a lot of different restaurants. We added a neon sign,” Acosta said.

Perhaps the most notable part of the remodel was the work done to the bar, which really opened up the space.

“Customers can actually look into the kitchen. To me it gives a lot more trust when you walk into a restaurant and can see back there. I think people like that concept,” Acosta said.

The bar is spacious with room for seating and bottles of liquor, mostly tequila, sit on tall shelves that go up to the ceiling. Acosta admitted being nervous with how the large display would be perceived by the community, but said it’s gone over really well.

“If we’re going to have something like that, we wanted new and different cocktails, handcrafted by us,” he said.

Of course margaritas are still their number one drink and Acosta said their skinny version is very popular. Along with that, he said their mojitos and Palomas are a big hit.

Not all of the drinks are tequila-based though. Acosta said they researched bourbon in order to make a good old fashioned.

“Turns out we needed bitters, sugar, oranges and big balls of ice for it. But when you look at it, it’s nice,” he said.

Presentation has been key when it comes to their cocktails. Acosta said they use fresh fruit and dehydrated orange and lime slices as a garnish, along with colored salt for the rims.

“It takes a lot more time to prepare, but then people can take a picture of a nice cocktail and somehow it tastes even better,” Acosta said with a laugh.

In addition to cocktails, they offer margarita flights and margarita towers for more fun drink options to be shared with friends and family.

When it comes to food, Acosta said their new protein bowl is popular. He called it a cleaner choice for Mexican food with rice, beans and a protein like chicken or beef.

“For new dishes, that’s the one that’s been selling the most. That and our birria tacos. It has different flavors to it. It’s a more complicated dish to make,” he said.

Classic dishes like burritos are always a popular choice and Acosta noted they do have a large menu with many items. They also have lunch specials, which many people take advantage of.

“It has a lot to do with all of the businesses downtown. We are fairly busy for lunches. We’re very quick. You can get out within 30 minutes,” Acosta said.

They also do to-go orders which people can place over the phone or through food service app like ChowNow and DoorDash.

El Agave employs about 16 to 18 employees in total. On the weekends there will be six waiters, two hostesses and a bartender, plus kitchen staff.

Speaking to El Agave being recognized for the best waitstaff, Acosta said many of them have been with the restaurant for a long period of time.

“The number one chef in the kitchen has been with us for 12 years,” he said.

Many of the servers, including manager Rodolfo Rocha, have also been with the business for 10 or more years.

“We have to take care of our customers. We get business from our locals. We’re not close to the highway so we don’t usually get business from people traveling. It’s locals after work or on weekends with their families,” Acosta said.

El Agave can accommodate large groups and it’s a popular destination for birthdays and other celebratory occasions.

“The atmosphere is a little different than other bar/restaurants,” Acosta said. “Kids seem to like our food a lot. The chips, the salsa, the cheese sauce. Who doesn’t like cheese sauce?”

A few years ago they added some other items, like cheeseburgers, chicken tenders and Mac and cheese to the kids menu, too.

Looking forward to the future, Acosta said they would like to start doing more catering. However, they do a fair amount now and can cater larger events like weddings, and also smaller events like business meetings.

“A simple taco or fajita bar. We don’t require reservations or to be notified weeks ahead of time. We can make it fairly quick,” Acosta said.

El Agave is open seven days a week, from 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

Acosta expressed gratitude to the community for its support and business over the years.

“It’s very important to us. Locals, that’s what makes our business,” he said.