Frankie & Benny’s

Well this place is right out of Happy Days meets franchise manual. It’s all bubblegum tunes and 50s and 60s photo’s on the wall. I like the booth type seating and there’s plenty here — the whole private but public thing is very Americana. But none of it’s real. It’s all a facsimile of retro cool. It’s done well enough but really one for the kids! I think we grown ups demand something more authentic #oldtimer
Food wise I was happy with my Hawaiian Pizza. It’s got a super thin, perfectly formed crust without too much cheese and toppings. It’s decent quality cheese for a chain and the ham and pineapple are fresh. Much more satisfying than Dominos, Pizza Hut, etc. which are actually more pricey.
I also had a Strawberry Shake. It’s advertised as made with real ice cream and maybe the best shake you’ll ever have. No, sorry, but not by a long shot. It was very watery … and I mean very. Doubt there’s any ice-​cream in it. It was like strawberry flavour Nesquik with a dollop of whipped cream on top. I suspect it’s a powdered mix from a tin. Very disappointing and for £3.95 it’s a rip off plain and simple.
Service was worth a tip, friendly and prompt from Shannon.
So I could score an overall 4**** for Pizza and service, but a 3*** for that rubbish rip off milk shake. It felt closer to a 3*** because of the prices — good restaurant prices for the mains but it’s more towards the fast food quality end of things. I would go again as it’s close to where I work and so an easy stopover if I need quick and comfy, but I’d avoid the shakes! I’d also suggest heading to the back of the menu as you’ll find cheap lunch options there and served up until 5.30pm.

Frankie & Bennys is an American Italian style restaurant located across from Odeon cinemas. It’s a great spot to grab dinner before a film, although it seemed like it was the only restaurant close to the theatre. In fact, that is the only reason we ate here.
We were seated quickly on a Wednesday evening. The restaurant didn’t appear to be very busy. It took nearly 10 mins for a server to come over and take our drink order. In his defense, I think he was the only server on. I ordered a bramble which was seriously mostly ice. Highly disappointing. It was a happy hour special though So I forgave them. The second drink I ordered was a martini and tasted very weak. I’m not sure if they were watered down due to the price or if all drinks are just plain weak.
As far as food, we ordered some garlic dough balls which came with a wonderful jalapeño cheese sauce. I liked the sauce so much that I ordered a meal with it. The potato skins were pretty good. There was one favour with pulled pork that was well worth the calories! As for a main, I had a baked wrap with chicken, lettuce, tomato, cheese sauce and bbq sauce. Also came with a strange salad and a sad serving of coleslaw. What bothered me here was the wrap was baked with the veggies. So the lettuce and tomatoes were boiling hot and soggy. Maybe I’m being too picky, but it kinda ruined it for me. And the fact that our dinner sat under the heat lamps for a bit because our poor server was running his butt off. Not sure why the two managers doing nothing did not deliver our food…
The dessert menu looked amazing so I was hoping it would make up for the underwhelming meal. I ordered a cinnamon crunch waffle that as you’ll see from the photo was mouth watering. However, it looked better than it tasted. The ice cream had frozen ice chunks in it from being thawed and re frozen. And the waffle didn’t taste fresh. My partner’s dessert was a chocolate brownie sundae and he thoroughly enjoyed it.
Our server was named Don or Dom. He was lovely and friendly. Very good server. Despite all the disappointment, I would try again. All the 50s rock and roll reminded me of home (although our italian restaurants do not play any music remotely close to that). The menu is large enough that I’m sure I could find something that works.

Can’t beat F&B for breakfasts. Massive portions and all you can drink coffee for £1.95.
This is the same clean, tasty Italian American food you get in any F&B restaurant and I love it!
(Try the meatball calzone for dinner, it is amazing!!!)

This American/​Italian themed restaurant is perfect for those who likes the 50’s period and doesn’t mind listening to music from the 50’s, which I personally don’t. If anything, I love the atmosphere in this specific Frankie and Bennys’ franchise as it’s located on (I would see as) the outskirts of central Birmingham, only two minutes away from the busy strip of Broad Street. As this being one of the aspects of this Frankie and Bennys’, you wouldn’t find this franchise overly exceeded with the public and therefore would be a perfect place to dine along with the family due to this slight discretion. I find that the wait for a table to be unnecessary, especially when there’s not many parties within the restaurant, as the wait to even get acknowledged by the staff takes around 10 minutes. The food and refreshments, I would say is reasonably priced. The only negative view I have, is for the staff members to greet customers as quickly as they can as I feel that welcoming for any restaurant business is crucial.