Benjamin Steakhouse Prime, New York NY

Went for our anniversary and sat in the outdoor dining. It was soo lovely, romantic, and exquisite experience. We had the Porterhouse steak, oysters, scallops, Italian wine. Our servers and sommelier were amazing! Steak was cooked to perfection, best oysters I have ever tasted. Beautiful experience for our special celebration!

The food was great, but our server was not. This was our first restaurant in New York while visiting from Texas. Our server did not check up on us a single time. We finished our drinks early and he never came by to offer for more. We continued to see him serve the same tables each time, but he would not stop by for ours. It was just a terrible way to end our first day in New York after seeing all the great reviews.

This Mother’s Day was a sad day. Sad day because after 5 years of spending at the least 5 figures of $$$$$ at Benjamin’s, whether with loved ones, guests, clients or friends out-of-pocket or through theirs (and through corporate events, with corporate sponsorship), the dinner had to be ruined by subpar Porterhouse and less-than-ideal way of addressing the same by the manager.

On my countless visits to Benjamins, never was I disappointed, not even once, so it was always a special occasion to look forward to. Granted, no one is perfect and there may be days when a cook makes a mistake by overcooking a medium-rare close to well done, what was intended to be slightly crunch charcoal on the outside really just feeling like dry and burnt bitter bacon without the tenderness on the inside that synchronizes the normally ever-so-slight crunchiness on the outside, the oxymoron of which creates wonders for any diner that is lucky to be chewing on at least $25/piece steak on what is supposed to be a plate that burns your fingers (even the plate came not-so-hot this time…).

Instead of acknowledging what really could’ve been a blip (and I would’ve treated it as such to give another chance next time), the manager only discussed how proud of the food they are, shoving the spoon on one of the rare (pun intended) pieces stating look how beautiful this piece of chunk of cow is. I never eat desserts at a steakhouse (cause they are usually bad), so the awful cake that was offered as a concession only made the matter worse (tho my friend who lives alone took it for future sugar-high amid the envisaged stressful times).

I am really sad. Everyone has their favorites, and of the countless options in the city - Peter Luger, Keens, Wolfgang, Quality Meats, Gallaghers, Del Friscos - you name it, Benjamins was my go-to and a super reliable option at that. Always left me satisfied. What makes me sad is I was not only disappointed with the food, but the way the issue was dealt with. “We will give you some more pieces”, treating my party as if we are some sort of gold-steak-diggers (and none was given lol), I am truly saddened that this long relationship had to come to a halt like this and that I must take my business elsewhere.

Adieu, Benjamins.

Of course this steak house has everything you'd expect in a NTC steak house. Good service and quality cuts. The mashed potatoes, my favorite food, were just OK. And be sure to get the bottled water as the regular pour appeared unfiltered and sometimes odd. Yes, I know it's a strange thing to comment on considering their other beverages include a quality wine list and perfectly brewed coffee to top of the meal, but it was off-putting enough to mention.

The restaurant: A beautiful and classic NYC steakhouse. We were quickly seated by the friendly front end staff and the dining room itself was relatively quiet. The wait staff on the other hand was just okay, speed of service was good, seemed to get a little bit of an attitude from the waiter but it's NYC I guess.

The steaks: Incredible, perfectly cooked and perfect crusts on them (felt like a thicker crust than both Delmonico's on Wall-Street and Peter Lugar's in Brooklyn). They were all 28 day dry age and had good flavor, although I prefer 45 day +. We tried the bone in ribeye, 2 person porterhouse, filet mignon and they were all outstanding. The Chilean seabass was also incredible. The steaks could have had a bit more salt on them but table salt helped.

The sides: everything was well executed and well seasoned. The highlights for us were the steak fries, which were among the best fries I have eaten, and the brussels sprouts which were perfectly charred and glazed in soy/ginger/balsamic, an odd combo that tasted amazing.

The dessert (my biggest complaint) : Everything was good except for the crème brule which had the sugar crust completely burnt to a crisp. I am not averse to burnt sugar flavor but we were served a dish that was acrid, bitter charcoal. This could have easily been spotted and swapped rather than "hidden" by fresh strawberries, but they served it anyway.

Overall: Although the dessert was a bit of a let down, the rest of the meal was superb and it very close to other top NYC steakhouses that we have been to, while being much easier to reserve. I would definitely recommend it.

My wife and I walked in without reservations and were not very dressed up. They seated us in 10 minutes in the middle of the restaurant and treated us like family. From the drinks, espresso martini and an Old Fashioned to the steak for two and the desert it was all perfect. In fact, it was so good that we went back the next night and sat at the bar for drinks and dinner. The bartenders are constantly making jokes and turning it into a party. Our favorite bartender was Geo, but the entire staff was great.

Incredible dining experience! Met up here with my friends who I haven’t seen in two years. We were seated on the balcony, which was intimate and quiet enough for us to converse. I ordered a medium Petit Filet Mignon and it was sublime! The steak was perfectly cooked, not overly seasoned, and generously portioned. However, one of my friend’s medium rare New York Sirloin arrived “charred” beyond consumption, but our server graciously offered to to replace it. Excellent service, ambiance, and steak. My only complaint is the chef’s selection of veggies and potatoes. The cauliflower, bell peppers, and carrots were not the best medley and the creamy mashed potato would be better off as sautéed mini potatoes. Would highly recommend checking out this place if you are in the New York City area and I will definitely be back if I find myself in New York!

Meh, mediocre at best. Started with the bacon which was fatty and burnt. Tartar was decent. We got the Surf & Turf. Steak didn't have much flavor. Surf was dry and uneventful. Potatoes were good and brought up the star rating a notch.

My friend and I each had a salad here—we both thought the food was quite great w/ ingredients were fresh. We also each had a glass or two of wine, but the staff kept asking if we were done w/ dinner, probing us to leave soon as there were others waiting. It was a weekday and we barely sat in for an hour. Is having a salad an issue here? Do you have a time limit? Fairly disappointed w/ the service and attitude and highly recommend staying away from this place.