Benson’s Grill
2515 Rogers Avenue Fort Smith, AR 72901 479.782.8181It’s appropriate we’re talking about Benson’s on a weekend. You’re driving around Fort Smith some weekend night, can’t find anyone. Where the bloody heck is everyone? Try Benson’s. Nine chances outta 10, the place is rockin’ like the back of a sunset-painted 70s van after dark.
The place is tiny and the parking lot is no better.
Can't argue.
Look how cozy! We luv that you can watch the cooks so closely, & also interact with the other diners if it's that kind of atmosphere. (at 3 a.m., it is!) Cozy.
The sign has a much-larger-than-real-size brightly lit picture of a burger. There's a reason for this. They're great.
We said: “We want to eat what’s on that sign.” This is what we got, with onion rings:
Benson's cheeseburger. Tasted better than the sign looked.
Hard to remember much about what this Reuben tasted like since we gobbled it down so fast. The Fort Smith Eats Tummy Log entry says, though, that it was grilled right, suitably meaty, not too messy. And look! Crinkle-cuts! Our FAVE!
In addition to our favorite, childhood-scarred-us-so-we-luv-them crinkle-cut french fries, Benson’s does great tater tots. That sounds like something simple, no? But you guys know food, too, so you know there are some less-than-tasty fried dishes out there. Not at Benson’s — their deep-fried stuff is crisp not soggy, tasty not greasy. Tater tots — Nom. Fried mushrooms — “fried mushrooms at Benson’s??” you might think. A resounding yes.
Breakfasts should be re-named Bensonsfasts. They are, almost without exception, sensational. Humongo fluffy pancakes. Eggs cooked the way you wanted. Omelets stuffed full of goodness (we’re partial to the ham-cheese omelet). Grits that aren’t gritty. Hashbrowns? Well, they’re TDF. They’ll make them any way you want — scattered, smothered, covered, crispy, oniony, delish-y. (I guess we can say with purpose that Fort Smith Eats basically can recommend any and all potato dishes at Benson’s). Another breakfast dish we recommend? Breakfast burrito. Yummo.
We said, though, almost without exception. We’ve eaten there long enough to know a fluke when we get one, but we gotta say, Fort Smith Eats had a bad steak experience there.
Ordered steak and eggs. Eggs are fine. See?
Fine eggs.
Hashbrowns were great, as usual:
The acres of cheese and onion covering this platescape of hashbrowns was better than Waffle House has ever dreamed of being. Seriously - we recommend the hashbrowns, if you haven't noticed that yet.
Then we have the left side of the plate, featuring in the starring role, Yummy Looking Steak That is Sadly Completely Raw Inside.
Looks pretty good, right? We thought so too until we cut it. We'd have taken a picture for you, but we like you too much. It was icky. Not rare. Raw.
This picture would be bitchin' in 3D.
Remember this Star Trek episode? Legend has it there are biscuits buried deep beneath the surface of Planet Toomuchgravy-437. OK, maybe we made that one up.
Fort Smith Eats Confession Time: We’ve eaten at Benson’s seriously more than we could count if we tried, almost always late at night. Other than our steak episode, we can’t think of a bad dining experience — and we have even ordered dishes with CHILI before (yes, more confessions, Fort Smith Eats doesn’t always have great judgment at 3 a.m.).
Here’s the awesomeness of Benson’s: They’re friendly, they’re hopping in the middle of the night, and you can walk in there stone-cold sober or stumbling-inebrieated, and you can rest assured that you’ll have a memorable — and tasty — experience.
fortsmitheats
No mention of the chump?
Benson’s signature item, especially at 3 a.m. and, best of all, not on the menu.
You had to ask for it.
I was always fond of their grilled cheese with tater tots and pickles.
It was delishosh …