I saw a lot of marketing for Agave & Rye...and let the hype get me excited. After going there, I really want to know WHAT THE FUSS WAS ALL ABOUT? Yes, Agave & Rye has a fun, eclectic interior and I really liked our server. She was really nice and enthusiastic. Other than that (and their decent flavored margaritas), there was not much to like about Agave & Rye. For starters, we had their queso and chips for $2. There were a lot of specials... the queso for $2, a goetta taco, and select tacos were $1 off. (Tacos range from $3-4) It was kind of confusing. The queso was super sticky and almost like silly putty. Good luck trying to get some out of the containers after it's cooled down! As for the tacos, I was not a fan. I don't think it's necessary to put a soft tortilla taco outside of a hard shell...especially if you don't indicate on the menu that that's how it's served. It's like a cheap filler. I had a couple of tacos. One was a standard steak taco that had two pieces of super tough meat. The other was a fried avocado taco. I'm pretty sure they skipped the avocado part and instead dumped an ungodly amount of balsalmic vinegar on the taco. I only ate it because I was starving.... So... I think it's safe to say I won't be coming back here again... read more

Innovative, fun menu. Service is casual, but very friendly. If you are looking for an outstanding taco and cocktail, you need to visit!

Mimi is an awesome server / bartender and the tacos were fantastic. The egg roll is a must have. I will be back. (There Bourbon collection alone is worth the visit). read more

Mixed experiences with service - always nice, but a bit slow and inattentive. The tacos are delicious and the margaritas are worth it! read more

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As someone who loves a good taco, I wanted to love this place, but it really missed the mark for my husband and I. First off, the decor was stunning and very cool. The music played at a fair level and the atmosphere was nice. We were a bit thrown off by the self-seating idea, but there were plenty of seats, so it wasn't an issue. Our waiter came over promptly and was very personable and attentive throughout our meal. No complaints there. The table set-up was a bit odd to me. Well meaning, but odd. I loved that there were paper towels at every table but they are strangely set out on their own without a towel holder (looks a bit tacky) and each table has a bunch of menus set out ahead but no place to put them while you eat. Our booth moved around a lot when the table behind us sat down too, so not super comfortable. I ordered a Prickly Pear Margarita, which was okay but paled in comparison to places like Frida 602. We started with chips, salsa and guac. The chips were delicious, but the salsa and guac were both pretty bland. I ordered The Snitch and The Mole with some Mexican Street Corn Salad. I liked the street corn, but, unfortunately, it ended there. On first taste, both tacos were cold. They were ridiculously over-filled and the flavor profiles were confusing. The double tortilla is necessary to handle the giant tacos, but offer nothing aside from practicality. The ingredients inside the tacos seemed clumsily compiled with huge chunks of tomato and some flavorless pea smash in the bottom of my cod taco. The menu is overzealous and aiming much too hard for novelty. The website describes these tacos as "epic" and they are certainly unique (kangaroo--WTF?) but the flavors do not mesh or make sense together in most cases and generally disappoint. My impression is that Agave and Rye is trying desperately to differentiate themselves from competitors like Frida and Bakersfield when they should use such establishments as inspiration. Less is more, guys. Sadly, I do not expect them to be around long unless they undergo a complete menu overhaul. In fact, I won't be back unless I hear of some serious changes in this department. read more

It's a shame to see so many hit or miss reviews for Agave & Rye...it even almost deterred me from trying it. I'm so glad I gave it a chance! I've been here a few times now and I think the whole experience is pretty solid. The menu has lots of options, the art/decor is really cool, and the wait staff is friendly. First off, you MUST order something with chips; chips and salsa, chips and queso, chips and guac. pick your poison. Those chips are so crunchy and perfectly fried. I could just eat the chips for days. They have a variety of tacos, everything from kangaroo, shrimp to vegetarian options. I always order more than I can eat. Trust me, two tacos are enough. I usually get two of the Bang Bang: crispy cauliflower, corn fritter, queso cervesa, and spicy crispy carrot. What's really unique about their tacos is they serve them in soft AND hard shells. It keeps them from breaking apart into a complete mess. One suggestion I would make the owners is please add a cider to your beer menu. But overall, it seems like one of those places that become a go-to. It's not overly spectacular but you know you're going to get a good meal every time and your guests will love the ambiance. Plus, being right across the street from Hotel Covington and diagonal to Braxton, you can easily make a day out of it. read more

This was my first time here. Courtney was absolutely amazing. We were greeted with such a wonderful welcome, and it is such a great place. The food is just absolutely incredible. We had the carne asada egg roll, corn fritters, spicy kitty, filthy fajita, and went home with a piece of carrot cake. What a wonderful evening. Oh, also the OG Margaritas are amazing. One of the best margaritas I've had. The place is very, very loud, so if you come be prepared for the noise. But it is so worth it. I'm not quite sure why it's so loud, but that's the only reason I gave it for instead of a five. My husband could never survive here. LOL read more

This place was a disaster on their second night, and they clearly have A LOT to learn: 1. Self-seating: no one who walks in has any idea that you're supposed to seat yourself. Get a host! Or just put up a sign... 2. Number of waiters: the whole restaurant had two waiters. After self-seating, it took 10 minutes to even clean off the table and even longer to just order. The waiters also never communicated and we got the same questions multiple time. This place needs at least 4. 3. Drinks: we asked for margaritas and specified on the rocks. The waiter said "Okay good because the blender is broken so no frozen." But, 15 minutes later, he brings out frozen because the blender is fixed... We wanted on the rocks to begin with. Great. The margarita itself was way to sweet and didn't even taste good. Did it even have tequila? 4. Food: we only we're able to get chips with salsa, queso, and guacamole because of how long it took to order in the first place. There was a whole avocado seed in the guacamole. Was this intentional? The guacamole clearly had no lime juice, cilantro, etc. and was very bland. The salsa was okay until we found a piece of plastic in it. The queso was pretty good. Also, the tacos just sounded ridiculous and over the top for absolutely no reason. Tater tots and kangaroo? And who knows what you actually find in the tacos! 5. The check: it took 15 minutes to get the check because the waiter lost the check... It was in his back pocket. I don't care if this is their second night open - it seems like none of these people have ever been in the restaurant business. I won't be going back, and unless they seriously change their model, you shouldn't go either. read more

Kacie was fabulous!! Great recommendations and fantastic service! Could not have had a better experience for our first time there.

Yum, yum , yum!! great selection of tacos ! Guacamole is fanatic and the service is very efficient and fun. I had the Bang Bang taco which is vegetarian with cauliflower... my favorite! And the ultimate Margarita is delicious. For your taco selections you have a choice of Swim (fish) Graze (meat) or Grow (vegetarian) . If you like tacos, Guacamole or tequila give this place a try. Outside seating is available which is nice because we can take our dog with us. read more

Agave & Rye-Covington never disappoints. Food is always excellent but the service is what keeps us going back. Servers are always friendly, accommodating and attentive. Shout out to Server Nick from our last visit, went above and beyond. Ambiance is unique and very close quarters but I don't mind when everyone is enjoying themselves. read more

Had lunch here on a rainy Cinco de Mayo and had a lovely experience. Some of the things I liked included the excellent service, cool vibe of the place and the excellent house margaritas which were on special. The food (Tacos)was a May bit over-complicated for me. I'm a taco purist so Mac and cheese on a taco is just wrong as far as I'm concerned. That being said, the food was well prepared and tasty. The roasted Brussel sprouts were the highlight for me. I would give this place 5 stars for the bar and ambiance and 3 stars for the tacos so 4 stars overall. read more

Agave & Rye - Covington - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Covington, Kentucky

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Great service and amaaaaaaazing food! Very filling tacos for the price range you are paying. Highly reccomend read more

Agave & Rye - Covington - Restaurant Logo - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Covington, Kentucky

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If you are looking for great tacos, amazing margaritas and a cool vibe-try this place in Covington. Mimi is the epitome of a great server-friendly, fast and great advice. Don't miss this place! read more

This is my first time here and the food is absolutely delish! I used to live in Houston so my expectations for tacos is very high and this place lived up to them! Will definitely be back! read more

Agave & Rye - Covington - The All Nighter taco - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Covington, Kentucky

Had the Birria Grilled Street Tacos. Excellent. Also, had chips and queso, guacamole and salsa. Very good flavor. Hand made tortilla chips (half a six inch tortilla). read more

Meh. Pros: - Good service - chips were unique & good - beer was cold Cons: - cocktails are too sweet - not sure who or what they want to be (as a restaurant - cool art, but random rap music playing) - tacos just OK read more

Great environment and service was excellent! Nice food choices and we'll made snd very good!

If I could give this place no stars, I would. This place is BY A MILE the worst mexican restaurant I've ever eaten at. There is so much that is wrong with the food and drinks I wont even mention the bad service. To begin, I never thought I would turn down ANY alcohol. I am a fan of margaritas and you can tell a lot by how a restaurant makes them. for $12, you can have one of their "signature" margaritas. It was absolutely disgusting. It was like they used the cheapest sour mix they could find and added a box of sugar to the mix. Just because we live in the south and enjoy our sweet tea doesn't mean it will work on a margarita. I literally had 3 sips and was done. My girlfriend was shocked I actually turned away aclohol. Imagine the worst margarita and multiply it by 10 and you will have the garbage they serve at Agave & Rye. Now onto the chips, salsa and guacamole. The chips looked and tasted like fried cardboard. They were tasteless and seemed like they were made a month ago. Every bagged chip you can buy at the store tastes better than the chips. The salsa was watery and flavorless. The guacamole was mediocre at best. By the way, you have to pay $3.50 for the privilege of eating this garbage. Yes, garbage is an ongoing theme for this place. The tacos are not your traditional tacos but rather an attempt to be trendy. I have no problem with this and am by no means a mexican purist. However, these tacos missed the mark... Fist off, the tacos are served into a fried mess of a hard shell( kitchen manager, please change the oil in your fryer.) Then there is a soft taco around it. The epic taco has pork belly. It was all belly and no pork. It was all fat. Under cooked fat at that. I thank God I didn't get food poisoning. The Bees Knees was mediocre. To be fair, once you remove that disgusting hard shell, the Cha Cha was actually good. 6 tacos, 2 margaritas, chips, salsa and guac=$70 $70 for a steaming pile of garbage.... Do yourself a favor, STAY AWAY!!!!!! read more

Can't wait to go back! I got the cats meow and the Albetros I think it was called. Both were excellent. The salsa and chips were also very good. The service was excellent, our server Marissa was wonderful. Plus the music was on point. Definitely recommend and will definitely be going back in the near future. The drinks were strong, but not bad. read more

Agave & Rye - Covington - Cats meow - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Covington, Kentucky

Great place for tacos in downtown Covington! Our first time visiting was pleasant. Plenty of outdoor seating, food was delicious and the staff was attentive. I had The Rooster and Alderman tacos and my husband had the Portobello Torte sandwich. Will definitely go back. read more

Celebrated my birthday here. Tracey did a great job taking care of us. The birria tacos always hit the mark.

I have dinner at Agave & Rye about 3-4 times per month. I really appreciated our new waitress, Kacie. although I been there many times, no one ever sugg the "Love Cushion" option where you can have refried beans, queso or Guac added between the taco shells...excellent! she also suggested the Street corn that was also delicious. Thank you Agave and Rye, and thank you Kacie! read more

Great food. Open durning all the troubles but was still a good time. Would recommend.

I loved this place, and I'm just sad I didn't get any pictures! It's really classy and very unique in the way it's decorated. Their menu has a lot of gluten free options which is great. I got the basic "Plain Jane" taco and it was very good, especially since their tacos come wrapped in a soft taco (just request that they don't include that if you are GF). I will totally go back and try more of their options! This might become my new favorite place to grab a taco (they're also filling, really one is plenty). read more

As someone who works in the neighborhood, I was really excited for this place to open up just a hop, skip, and a jump away! I absolutely LOVE me a good taco, however, I think Agave & Rye has a few things to iron out before I give it another try. The self seating concept was completely lost on me when I wandered in, as there wasn't a host/hostess or a sign letting customers know that they can snag a table anywhere. I stood awkwardly in the doorway for a few minutes before another patron on their way out mentioned that I could seat myself. Once I sat down, though, the service was fine! The drinks were definitely the high point for me. The prickly pear margarita I ordered was super reasonably priced and very delicious - not too sweet, not too strong. The food itself, however, was a no go and I'm so sad about it! The guacamole tasted like the sole ingredient was avocado, which - in theory - makes sense, but isn't very exciting as an endgame. I ordered two seemingly interesting tacos and, surprisingly, neither of them stood out to me at all. There was a lot of tortilla but not a lot of flavor which was a real bummer. I'm really hoping that a few more months of operating will iron out the details! read more

This was our 5th visit. Each trip has been excellent. The drinks and food were wonderful. Everything came out fast and hot. Megan our server was very attentive and even helped answer our questions about the menu. We will definitely be back again. read more

This place is awesome. The menu is very unique and a little eccentric displaying tacos with duck, rattlesnake sauce, nashville hot chicken, and more. The shells are doubled with a hard and soft taco shell, which really made the taco. We ordered chips and guac and chips and queso as appetizers which were a good size for a reasonable price ($5 & $6). When the tacos came, I was surprised at how big they were. One was enough for me after the chips. Overall this place is awesome and I would definitely recommend to anyone looking for delicious, local tacos. I ate for less than $10 and was more than full. Great bang for your buck. read more

Edgy taco bar will hit the spot for people in their 20-40's. Unique taco and food options with a hip atmosphere. read more

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Agave & Rye is a great addition to the restaurant and bar scene surrounding Hotel Covington. They managed to convert an old diner into a eclectic bar and restaurant that had some crazy light fixtures and art work. A few things you should keep in mind about this restaurant: -we went the 2nd day they were open so there were a number of issues they still need to iron out. Give yourself plenty of time to eat or else you'll get annoyed pretty quickly -it is self seating so don't make the mistake like we did and stand around waiting for someone to greet you because you'll be standing there awhile. Seat yourself and waiter will come clean off the table -the food and drinks are amazing and fairly priced but as stated above you'll need to be patient in order to truly enjoy your experience Overall, I highly recommend checking this place out. Taco recommendations, try the Rima D (a nod to the former diner owner) and kangaroo (yep it's actually kangaroo meat but boy is it good) read more

Came here with my fiancé around 10 on a Friday night. Had no problems finding a place to seat quickly (its seat yourself.) We both ordered frozen margaritas which were delicious. They add black salt to the rim which is a nice touch. We both ordered the 3 vegetarian tacos. The first was a falafel taco with a cold salad topping. I enjoyed this one but was a little confused when biting between the hot and cold parts. The second was the "mole" taco which was my least favorite of all. It was friend avocado and portobello but the balsamic flavor was overpowering. The final taco was fried cauliflower. This was both our favorite by far. One thing to note, the tacos both have a hard and soft shell. Overall I was pleased with the food drinks and service and would definitely come back. I do wish they had salsa options for the tacos and a spicy vegetarian taco. read more

Came here as a spot to grab some food and do some work and i was not disappointed at all! Tish the bartender answered all questions and made the experience incredible ! highly recommend the food, atmosphere and staff! read more

Amazing experience!! Came down for taco Tuesday and despite being busy got the best service of my life my the bartender, Bridget. She took great care of me and everyone else around, not to mention best drinks in the city. 5 star place with 5 star staff read more

Agave & Rye - Covington - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Covington, Kentucky

Nothing beats the original location. The Covington location of Agave and Rye was our first experience of Agave and Rye and we were not disappointed. My wife is now obsessed with their queso and is always wanting to go and get some! I am also quite obsessed with the Duck Confit taco (The All Nighter) because it has garlic rice and hoisin sauce. Service was good and we were constantly being checked on. I'd suggest going for classic marg, the chips and queso, and a plain jane taco for a classic Agave and Rye experience. Then come back again and get adventurous​ with Kangroo, duck, and swanky wonton nachos! read more

This place is off the hook! Food is amazing, drinks are delicious, ambience is eclectic yet comfortable. Service is excellent! You simply can't go wrong with this place. If you haven't been here, go!! If you haven't been in awhile, go again! They just updated their menu. So good! The Crown Jewel Taco is crazy good! And if you're a tequila or bourbon fan, it's pretty close to heaven. read more

Great food (casual lunch), even better drinks (who waits until 5 anymore?), and a relaxed atmosphere, looking out on a 'Main Street USA' that entertains while enjoying good company. I'm not a food critic, a cocktail maven, a 'foodee' or anything like that, just a regular customer who was pleased, and satisfied...and one that will visit again when I am in the area. read more

Agave & Rye - Covington - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Covington, Kentucky

Posted as vegetarian from Texas- Tried this place out with a friend on a busy Friday evening. On first look this place definitely looks like it's a happening spot on the street. Ambiance, Service and Prices: ambiance is casual but could be date night cute as we with a decent amount of seating for when they're busy. The wait staff is very friendly and manager came around a couple times to check on people to make sure service and food was good. The prices are reasonable because the servings are pretty big here. Food and Drinks: this is where I think it's gets tricky..we enjoyed our margarita pitcher and the drink selection is up to par. The food menu as a Mexican style taco joint was quite extensive, and they had a vegetarian section. The Tacos are all HUGE servings and very filling. I ordered the Buffalo Cauliflower taco and the Rancheros one. Sadly, as stuffed with ingredients as the veggie tacos were I felt they were lacking in any complex flavor profile (I've been spoiled from Texas). If there was just a little more seasoning in everything I would definitely consider elevating this place to a solid 4 stars! read more

Went to Agave & Rye for the first time and was really looking forward to it! I have to say I was pretty disappointed in the food. We went for Taco Tuesday. The Plain Jane taco was great and I would recommend that. I also had The Alderman. The meat was incredibly overcooked and it was supposed to be spicy but the taco had no flavor. The margaritas also kind of tasted like soap? As a person who loves cilantro I thought maybe I was finally experiencing what others do when they say cilantro tastes like soap. Maybe they put cilantro in the margs, who knows! All I know is that I love margaritas and this one was not great and very oddly flavored. The ambiance is nice in the Covington location, but we will probably not be back. read more

ITS TACOS!! SPECIALTY TACOS! I would love to tacobout how delicious they are but no need to tacobout how delicious they are! Just go here! ITS TACOS! read more

Just set up a bachelorette party reservation with this business and it was the most stress-free event planning I have ever done! The manager, Eddie, was such a great help with everything and was kind enough to send me videos of the area that I am renting and also gave me lots of suggestions on food and drinks to order in advance for the reservation. The prices for the reservation look to be an amazing deal for the uniquely beautiful private room at the restaurant, not to mention the highly regarded food and drinks included. Now that the planning and reservation process was such a breeze, I can't wait to try the delicious tacos that I keep hearing about! read more