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| - 1 + 1 + 1 = 4
Sometimes, like at Cien Agaves, the sum of the parts adds up to more than each individual part.
Mexican food was on the minds of my party of 4 and the first place we tried claimed an hour-plus wait despite appearing 10% full. It was a blessing in disguise really, as Cien Agaves was much more what we sought: a busy casual environment, inexpensive fare, zero pretension, and no attitude.
During a brief wait at their upstairs bar, we learned it was Happy Hour and that theirs was voted "best of" by readers of Phoenix Magazine. How could it not, with 1/2 price Margaritas, 1/2 off all appetizers, $3-$4 beers, and Tinga Tacos priced at $2.50 apiece? The fact that it's every day from 3 - 7 p.m. just improves the value proposition.
Margaritas were in demand and many sat pre-made, at the ready. Large but not refined (and made in advance without salted rims), I really wasn't going to complain loudly about a big $3 cocktail. It was good enough, a category into which the rest of the offerings could also be said to fall.
At the table, chips and salsa were provided and an order of HH Tinga Tacos proved greasily satisfying. The rest of the offerings followed suit. During happy hour it's difficult to resist all those cheap appetizers so I can't really complain about them serving up fatty foods best designed to sop up alcohol. It is, after all, what I ordered.
Cien Agaves doesn't serve the best Mexican fare but what they do serve - at happy hour in particular - is well priced, good at filling you up, and your server will throw no shade even when your whole party orders from that happy hour menu.
That counts for a lot, thus the new math, where 1+1+1 = 4.
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