Benny's Bar and Grill
301-299-3377
How cool would it be to have a place that serves good food and craft cocktails close to your house? It is a dream I have....and one that is still a dream. I am no closer to it after Benny's opened than I was before it did. The Grilled Oyster Co., is my standby, but it's good to have options.
Yes, they have cocktails, and they are even created with some care and diligence, but they still use Maraschino cherries straight off the shelf at the Giant (or wherever they get those abominations). I'd stopped by a few nights before the lunch you'll see below and had cocktails with a friend, and they went and ruined my Manhattan with that fake, bleached, tainted/tinted poop.
Moving on to the lunch:
This is The Heavyweight. It's got various charcuterie toppings and they are good. What wasn't good was the crust. It is no better than anything you can get off the ready-prepared make and back shelf at Giant. It actually tastes like it came from a can. Will it do? Yes, but it won't excite and won't bring anyone back for 2nds.
This is the $13.99 Bacon Cheeseburger. BGR, about a 9 iron away from Benny's, has an $11.95 lunch special with a better bacon cheeseburger, fries, and a drink. If Benny doesn't want to end up like Bernie they're going to have to pick up their game.
When this dish arrived we noticed a couple of things: the fries were limp, and actually cold on the inside. It's ok to do hand-cut fries, but you've got to double-fry them...at least...if you want them to be palatable. Triple is better.
The cole slaw had no discernible dressing on it...shredded cabbage with a little celery salt, nothing else. I'm guessing there isn't a lot of tasting going on in the kitchen.
Lastly, my friend's wife and daughter joined us as we were finishing up and his daughter wanted a Shirley Temple. The server said they didn't have them.
Really?
We instructed her on the proper use of Grenadine and 7Up.
To be fair, this place only opened up a few weeks before I ate there, but one thing I can say, and they will learn, Potomac is full of very picky people. You only get one or two chances to disappoint before they turn their backs on you.
Where is Andrew McCarthy when you need him to prop things up?
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