Ben Benson’s Steak House is clearly a businessperson’s place. A younger crowd hugs the rails with their libations while Bruce, or even Ben Benson himself, show diners to their tables. The bar is busy lunch and dinner. In the dining room, tan jacket-white apron clad male servers take over. Ben Benson’s employs seasoned help. They know what to do and how to do it. This is a place to come if you’re hungry.
The décor is reminiscent of a New York restaurant at the turn of the century. The table is set with linen cloths and napkins. High-backed banquettes against walls that proclaim regular patron’s names on brass plaques indicate “This is my table.” Reclaimed tin covers the wall.
A copious breadbasket containing raisin rolls, olive oil rolls, bread sticks, and small round rolls is served with fresh butter on individual plates. Care has been taken to offer a wine list for all palates and budgets. Frog’s Leap, another of the brash, eccentrically named wines, Sauvignon Fume Blanc is $43 a bottle, Oregon Chardonnay $83, Pouilly Fuse $51, Veuve Clicquot Champagne from Reims, Yellow Label Brut $116 a bottle. Ben Benson’s wine list tops out at $1450 for Chateau Mouton Rothschild but Beaujolais Villages Louis Jadot 2007 is $29.
Appetizers include crabmeat cocktail for $19, four large shrimp served with cocktail sauce for $18, Maryland crab cake for $21. Salads run about $10 and include spring greens and tomatoes.
I go through all this waiting for the beef. It comes by special purchase from Midwest purveyors and is select USDA prime cuts. A Ben Benson’s 18-ounce sirloin is $46.50, filet mignon, 16 ounces of delightful, tender meat is $44.50, T-bone is $48.50, and prime rib is $47.50.
I like the sirloin. It was done to perfection, well-marbled and tasty from first bite to last with juices seared in from special high-temperature ovens. The steak was tender and flavorful at the bone. Alas, I was in public so had to ask the waiter to bag it for my dog. The dog would take second place next day after I again savored the sweet morsels that clung to what was left on my steak bone. Thick asparagus and string-cut French fries were perfect. The rib steak at Ben Benson’s is an excellent choice. Bone in, it is broiled to order and served hot, as are all the dishes that are supposed to be hot. Nothing stands to get cold, a common complaint in some New York restaurants.
Desserts are glamorous with names like New York Blackout Cake. There is the classic New York cheese cake, and even pecan pie. Treats run about $10.
Reservations can be made for Ben Benson’s by calling 212-581-8888.
Dr. John Christopher Fine lived on a farm during his youth where they raised cattle for market. He is the author of 24 books and writes for major magazines and newspapers in the United States and Europe.
