Benny’s Ristorante

My first time at Benny’s food was a good quality but the restaurant needs updating. For the prices that are being charged they need to update the interior especially the bar area.

I used to live in westbury 20 years ago. I remember bennys as one of the best italian restaurants there. I went there about a month ago with my family. I gotta tell you, the food was good but the portions were horribly small. I’m italian born and raised, and I was suprised because 20 years ago this place was generous now it’s high priced and these people are very stingy. Don’t take my word for it. If you got the money to throw away then go the food is good. But I was hungry after I left that place. Recommendation, drive out east and go to mama lombardi in port Jeff or Patchogue. The dinners are Huge family sized and much better than bennys. Sorry benny, stop being so cheap!!! Maybe you’ll get more customers!

I have had the pleasure of dining at Benny’s a number of times. Benny is there everyday to ensure his guests are happy and treated well, which is always the case.
I could recite to you the different dishes I have tried, but there’s no need. Everything on the menu is terrific. It’s all freshly prepared and presented nicely. The wait staff is extra attentive without being overbearing.
The ambiance is usually relaxed with an acceptable noise level. The crowd tends to be a little older and respectful of other diners. If I were to point out anything negative, it would be that the décor is somewhat dated, but it really doesn’t take away from the dining experience.
Will definitely be returning.

Went in for Long Island Restaurant week. Read a lot of reviews on the place and thought we’d give it a shot. Let me post a brief synopsis of the entire place to warn potential customers so they can save their money.
We ate there tonight (a Monday) so it was pretty dead. Benny extended the special for restaurant week until the end of the month, so we ordered off that menu. The waiter gave us some foccachia which was old and chewy and cold. Next, we got our appetizer, one lousy piece of sub par eggplant rollatini and a small caesar salad (the salad was probably the best thing there!)
What really irks me is when we got our main course. I ordered pasta bolognese and it came in a cereal bowl size. The sauce was watery and bland and just plain depressing. My s/​o got a fish dish which looked good and they liked it, albeit a small portion. For dessert we both got ricotta cheesecake. It came out, took one bite and it tasted like sand and was DEFINITELY not cheesecake.
Before we left I went over to the owner and asked him what was up with the child size portion of pasta? He IMMEDIATELY replies in a cocky and condescending tone that «how dare I expect a full size meal for restaurant week? I «apparently» am getting a super cheap deal. For 27 $ I got some lettuce, a quarter box of pasta, and some dollar store imitation cheesecake.
the point of restaurant week is to draw in new clientele and wow them with good food to get returning customers. You sir are a fool for being a pompous ass; the fact you still operate in business is amazing considering your attitude to new clientele.

Let me start by saying I almost never eat out Italian… I am way too picky and usually never like the food… So we arrived a little early and had to wait… no big deal… except we sat at the bar and there was no bartender there was another couple also waiting for a drink the host/​manager was making himself look really busy and completely ignored us we had to ask if there was a bartender and he didn’t even look up he just snapped «someone will be there in a minute» Okay we r not off to a good start… after at least ten minutes we get a drink we waited a pretty long time I was ready to leave but then this adorable little Italian man came out who I later found out was «Benny» and started joking around with the people waiting and telling stories I had to stay and was glad I did… the food was delicious we started with little neck clams oreganata style and the special of stuffed zucchini flowers they were both awesome then we had pan seared diver scallops and Pappardelle Frutta di Mare «amazing» no room for dessert of course… so the atmosphere was very nice but the 4 instead of 5 stars comes from the host and the very confusing service we had no idea who our server was because we had so many… one guy sat us, another took our drink order, another took our food order and then another took a different drink order but another brought our drinks and food they were all pleasant but I don’t know how they keep track of who ordered what the food took a little long to come out but was well worth the wait we will definitely be going back

One of the worst dining experiences I’ve had since I first tasted the British version of corned beef. We had reservations at 7:00, arrived promptly, and were made to wait 30 minutes for a table. After 15 minutes at the table someone came and took drink orders. Drinks never arrived. Waiter took our food order and the drink order again. One appetizer appeared after another 15 minutes; the drinks took additional requests, and the second appetizer was forgotten as well. Then there was a gap of about 45 minutes before our entrees came out. When we spoke to the waiter, he blamed the delay on another table of customers who were very demanding. Really? By the time we were served, we’d been waiting an hour and a half. Would have walked out earlier but some misguided soul had given us a gift certificate. The food was good, not spectacular, but way overpriced; the service was atrocious. We’ll never eat there again.

I saw a 4 star review in Newsday and so decided to give Benny’s a try since we were going to a show at Westbury. It was the evening of the 4 to 6 inches of rain so Benny’s was not crowded but we did have reservations for 6:00. We were promptly asked if we would like to order drinks which we did not. Specials were recited from memory and unfortunately a group was being seated in a small private area in the corner of the restaurant where wine bottles are stored against the wall and so we had a bit of a problem understanding the waiter since the people being seated were commenting on their private area. Plus the waiter had an Italian accent. Personally I would prefer if the could have the specials printed since they were quite numerous. For an appetizer I had the eggplant rollatini. IMHO not worth $ 11 but I figured I’d give them a try. Next we had the Tre Colore salad and Steakhouse salad. Nothing special. My entrée was the veal sorrentina. I must say the veal was exceptionally tender and on balance quite tasty.
We did not have desert so no comment there. I was a little disappointed to not see Benny. There was a young woman chatting with various tables who easily could have been his granddaughter. She spent extensive time at two tables. She gave us a cursory hello as she walked by. As to the décor, while it might be a little dated it still works. Good food can pretty much conquer all.

I was looking for a last minute reservation for Valentine’s day and I found Benny’s.
I saw many good reviews here and I was excited to have date with my hubby who loves Italian food.
First the wait was about 15min but it was worth it.
The waiter was very kind and friendly and the food… was amazing!
the tomato sauce is just delicious… the seafood di mare was so freshly made.
cocktail was also a winner too. to end the romantic dinner, we finished it off with
tiramisu and coffee… it was did it.
the music was great too… opera was so pleasant to listen to while was I was chatting with my hubby on a romantic dinner.
the service was excellent as well as the price of the meal.
over all I will give it an A+ and definitely going back again!

Benny’s is great great dining experience on Long Island. Benny, Claudio and Lisa are wonderful hosts. They really have a great passion for their restaurant.
The food is excellent and the waiters are very knowledgeable, courteous and very helpful. Their timing is just right.
Try it for that special night out and not only will you be overjoyed but you will be back time and time again.
Our favorite is the spaghetti carbonara as an appetizer and steak Diane for the main course which is prepared table side. The strawberry zabaglione is marvelous.
Step back in time for a real special treat.

This is a great little Italian gem located in westbury. The décor is ok, the hostess was friendly. we came here on a Friday night at around 6:30. We had reservations so we were seated right away. The place wasn’t that busy at that time but it started filling up arounf 730 or so. We started off with the long island littleneck clams, They were awesome. From there we had the roasted beet salad, which had candied walnuts and goat cheese in it. It was my first beet salad and I gotta say, I loved it. It was dressed with an olive oil vinaigrette.
For my entrée I had the chilean sea bass which was served with broccoli rabe. The fish was cooked perfectly, melted in your mouth. It was like heaven.
The only downfall of this place was the waiter service. I think there was only 1 waiter on that night. First off, it took forever to get the menus. I mean like we got menus 20 minutes after sitting down. It was 6:30 and we were hungry!!! The food came out at a reasonable time once we had ordered it. After we were done eating we ended up waiting for the check for around a half hour. I had to eventually ask the hostess for it because the waiter was so busy we couldn’t even get his attention. I dont really blame the waiter because he seemed like the only one there, maybe a couple of people called in sick, I really dont know. If it wasn’t for the bad service this place would get 5 stars but for that I have to give 4. I will def be back at some point though.

Benny’s is a great Italian restaurant that we save for special occasions!!! Meals here are always fantastic. The atmosphere and courteous service makes for a memorable experience.
Our most recent visit was for my 35^th birthday and the food did not disappoint. We started with the baked clams oreganata, which were absolutely delicious, I used the bread to dip in the leftover sauce! We then shared the beet salad with goat cheese which was also great!!! For my entrée I had Chicken Scarpariello and my husband had the Chilean Seabass, which was a special. Both entrees were absolutely delicious.
I don’t normally get dessert, but it was my birthday so I ordered the crème brûlée. It was decadent and delicious.
The only reason I gave them 4 stars instead of 5 is that the service was slow… I think they may have been short handed the night we came in, maybe someone called in sick. Otherwise this restaurant is an absolute gem!!!

What a hidden gem. Fantastic service and great food. Feels like Italian restaurant from 1980’s movie, yet food and service relevant today.
Had zucchini blossom as an appetizer, with eggplant rollatini and fettuccine seafood as entrees. All were fantastic. Highly recommend stopping by if in the area. We will definitely make this a weekly stop.

This was our second time that we had dinner at Benny’s Ristorante. After a very hectic day of heavy rains and flooded streets on a muggy August summer day we decided to go out. The hosts were Lisa and Claudio children of Benny and they made us feel very comfortable.
I ordered the escargot which was prepared and served in a dish especially made for escargot with individual ‘cubicles’ laden with a steaming garlic and butter sauce which enhanced the escargot. My wife who never tasted escargot ate one and said it was delicious and would have eaten more if I hadn’t eaten the rest.
Since this was Wednesday we found out only when we ordered drinks that all bottled wines costing $ 100.00 or less were reduced by 50%. We ordered a bottle of Smoking Loon Cabernet Sauvignon which cost $ 18.00 and it was great.
For our entrée I ordered the Taglialin the special consisting of seafood on thin homemade spaghetti. The seafood consisted of scallops, shrimp and calamari in a nice red sauce which tasted out of this world. My wife had another special which was pork medallions in a light brown gorgonzola sauce with roasted potatoes which was simply delicious.
All in all the service was excellent and friendly and there no noticeable noise level and we could talk without shouting to each We decided at the end of the evening that Benny’s is now one of favorite places to eat and moved them up to the top of our list.

Have not been to Benny’s for many years. The food was very good when it first opened but I was young then and did not have years of fine dining experiences to judge quality of upscale restaurants. About 10 years ago I went back and it was ok.
A couple of weeks ago we tried Benny’s again. Our apt was fine, however, my wife veal dish was no better than what one would expect at a good pizzeria. I had the duck special. It was very bad. Dry, flavorless with soggy skin. No high-​end restaurant would have allowed that duck to leave the kitchen. We will not be returning the Benny’s.

I live within walking distance of Benny’s and it has become our hang out of sorts. My husband and I like to go in and sit at the bar after dinner at home and have an after dinner drink, maybe a little dessert or a snack. We’ve been doing that for a couple of years now without ever setting foot in the dining room. The staff is friendly. They always offer to bring us a plat of «something to pick on» while we sit at the bar and that is usually olives, cheese and some bread. No charge. Nice. The hostess/​owner is chatty and friendly as are the bartenders. This week we decided we needed to have dinner there if only to try it one time. It was good, parts of it were great.
We were greeted warmly as we’re regulars at the bar. The hostess/​owner was very sweet to my 90 year old mother in law who accompanied us on this occasion. Yes, the décor looks to not have changed for a long, long time. It’s not shabby or dilapidated or in disrepair it’s just 1970s elegant for lack of a better description. I don’t mind. The ambiance is nice. Warm light, tables not too close together.
They brought out a plate of olives, parmegiano cheese, and bread right away and this bread anointed with red sauce. The olives are lovely, I don’t know what they do to those olives but they’re fantastic. The rest was good. A nice little gnosh while we were scanning the menu and wine list.
We ordered two appetizers for the three of us to share, the zucchini blossoms which were an appetizer special even though it’s January, and the spiedino. The waiter brought our appetizers split on to three plates which I thought was a nice touch. The spiedino (pan fried mozzarella and bread loaf with anchovy & caper) was very good, not greasy, not too salty, nice. The zucchini blossoms were stuffed with ricotta and gently fried. They were tasty if a little bland in comparison to the salty spiedino.
I ordered the chilean sea bass special which was served with caper berries and grape tomatoes over a bed of broccoli rabe. The fish was amazing, perfectly cooked, tender, succulent, buttery, delicious. There was exactly 1 grape tomato on the plate and three caper berries so I question the description of this dish which was mostly fish and broccoli rabe but it was so delicious I don’t care what they call it.
My husband ordered risotto with crab meat, asparagus and tomato. This dish was a fail technically and conceptually. First of all, they used long grain rice and not the arborio rice that is necessary for a real risotto. The texture was wrong, more like a rice in sauce than a risotto. Second, the fresh tomato just didn’t work with the crab and asparagus. The ratio of the crab meat to rice was good but the flavors just didn’t work together. That dish was a disappointment.
For dessert we ordered zabaglione and if my husband was disappointed with his entrée they made amends with dessert. The waiter prepares this dish to order and while he wasn’t exactly table side while he made it we could see him prepare it at the front of the room. A delicious rich, light custard of wine and egg served over fresh berries. Perfection! I’ve never had it before and this was so good. My husband has had it many times and said this was excellent.
The service was almost good. We had a bottle of wine and my glass never went empty. The wait between courses was a little long but not too and we were lingering over our meal so we didn’t mind. But they failed at the end of dinner. We got our dessert and espresso, we ate dessert and drank the espresso and then we waited, and waited, and waited 10 maybe 15 minutes for the check. Finally the waiter brought the check over and again, we waited and waited and waited to pay the check. Total time to pay the bill and get out after we were finished was close to 30 minutes. That’s unacceptable.
We’ll probably keep coming here for drinks now and then and might even try dinner here again some day but given that there is an Italian restaurant just about every block on Long Island we’ll probably just keep trying new places. Still I like Benny’s. It’s comfortable.

Had a great meal here. Classic old time Italian, great service. Owner Benny is old school, and brings a lot of character to the experience. Its a bit formal, but nothing over the top. It is what it is, and if that’s what you are looking for you won’t be disappointed.

Could possibly be the absolute worst restaurant on long island
Rude owner. Rude staff. Unless ofcourse you are Italian. Our party of 4 had the absolute worst dining experience a few years ago and I’m Unilocaling about it now because I didn’t know about Unilocal then. They made us wait 45 minutes for our table with the reservation. They sat us in the back at the worst table in the place. They didn’t come over to the table for 20 minutes. When we complained the owner started talking to his regulars about us, pointed at our table and was an asshole. The food was cold and horrible. Bennys is basically a joint for wise guys and their friends. Others are treated like shit. Good luck

Before a concert, we had a wonderful dining experience here. I was able to have the mushroom tortellini as an appetizer. For the main course, I had the veal scaloppini which was as tender as could be and delicious. We were there fairly early so that we could make the concert on time. Service was prompt, friendly and attentive. The restaurant had their own parking facilities which is very convenient. Highly recommended. Will be back.

The most amazing Italian restaurant ever!!! The food is AMAZING and the service is impecable!!! The waiters are the most attentive tou will ever see in a restaurant. And the owners make you feel like family!!! This restaurant is an absolute MUST! You won’t be disappointed!!!

Old line Italian.
When you walk in you are immediately greeted by a picture of olé blue eyes so that you are immediately reminded of what kind of restaurant you are in .
Benny’s has been around forever and has a wall full of Zagat reviews to let you know how long they have been an area favorite. To be honest, it doesn’t look like much from the outside — you could almost drive right by it thinking it is a corner pub.
The inside is, in my opinion, pretty dreary — not that it is in disrepair, it is just blah. I think that in terms of décor, they can do much, much better — especially when you look at that 1970’s vintage drop ceiling…
Décor aside, the food is solid if not spectacular. Bread was standard issue, tasty, but came out cold. The complimentary zucchini straws were really good — perfectly salty and crispy.
Dinner was fine, if unremarkable. Veal was done just right and the sea scallops were plentiful and broiled just right. Sides were just ok– nothing spectacular. Wax beans were tender but boring. All in all, it was good but it didn’t leave me wanting more.
The wine list is pretty decent with something for everyone and every price range.
Service was perfect. Would I go again? Maybe.
Small parking in the rear.