Ben michaels restaurant

We had their pork and chicken enchiladas. Both were excellent. Some Mexican restaurants try to overpower their food with heat, but this was both flavorful and nicely spiced. The margaritas are excellent.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Salsa and Organic Chips, Chicken Enchilada, Matanza Enchiladas Rancheras, Flan

food was cold shitty service don’t recommend go to blake’s across the street

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

We had a great dinner. The food is unbeatable—fresh and all homemade. Lovely patio and excellent, friendly service. Enthusiastically recommend!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Salsa and Organic Chips, Chicken Enchilada, Chardonnay, Matanza Enchiladas Rancheras

I'm no doctor, but I think Ben could possibly be bipolar. Somedays, he's happy to see ya. Other days, not so much. I think it's part of the quirky appeal to this place.
Definitely, go there. You'll probably have a great time and a really good meal. One thing that I respect about Ben's place is that he supports live local music. He also plays a great piano himself and is very entertaining.
Definitely bring cash because your CC is worthless.
If Ben insults you, brush it off. It's a quirky place, and he's a quirky man. We don't call it Albaquirky for nothin.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 4

Service: 2

Recommended dishes: Chicken Enchilada

Very rude when I went in...no air conditioning asked about it ...man asked me to leave

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

Ben's is a unique local treasure. The food is great. Well worth it. If you appreciate quirky, this is the place. Ben built that building with his own hands.

Tuesday is the jazz jam, a decades long tradition, and the place is filled with family & friends. It's sort of "Cheers" for the jazz crowd. On Tuesday, after about 7, go for the experience and the music, not for the sit down dining. It'll be well worth it but, like jazz, loving the unexpected is key. Share tables. Share conversation.

Other times, drive by. If he's open, stop in and have dinner. The food will be worth it. It will still be a quirky and different experience.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 3

Great atmosphere and food! Owner is friendly

The Flan was devine!!!

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

Came in for the first time today. Ben was alone and was amazing.
He was awesome to chat with. He was great with my kids and entertaining them.
He played us a song and sang on the piano: Only us and one other guest…. Super cool, and would definitely come back. BBQ sandwich and potatoes were AMAZING. He literally went and picked Rosemary from the garden to use on the potatoes.
Great visit!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

We were here on a Wednesday night, shared a delicious steak, chatted for a long time with Ben Michael and a regular patron, and got a little of history. Great experience and we will be back, hopefully for live music.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

This is as local as it gets! Ben & Lisa are Burquenos!

Closed. Don’t bother

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

Extremely disrespectful employees. The area is a total dump very sketchy looking bad ambience no good vibes. Food and drinks is horrifically overpriced for what it is. They don’t take credit cards, they only take cash… The only good thing was the music.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 2

Service: 1

CHIPS AND SALSA ARE NOT FREEOwner is rude before you even walk in. Only worth it for the jazz…

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 2

Service: 1

Do you like over-priced food, poorly made drinks, and getting an attitude from your server before you’ve even sat down at your table? If so, then Ben Michael's Restaurant is right for you!Last night, I went to Ben Michael’s with the intention of eating some food there, having a drink, and listening to some nice jazz. I walked in the door and was greeted by the man of the house, Ben Michael himself. Instead of a nice warm greeting, he immediately said to me, “How many?” I told him three people. He then said, “Are you going to order food?” I said yes, we would all be ordering food. Then he said, “Everyone has to order something, you can’t just hang out here.” Mind you, I just told him I and everyone else in my party would be ordering! I even told him, “Ok, I just said we would be ordering food.” And he then gave me the classic boomer stare. I’ve never experienced such rude treatment from a restaurant that I came to with the explicitly expressed intention of spending money there!I understand that you wouldn’t want to seat people at the tables there if they weren’t going to get food or drinks. But when I come into your restaurant and tell you that my party is going to be ordering food and drinks, and you still give me lip, that’s unacceptable.This is not the first time this has happened either! Last time I went with a group of people, we all intended to buy drinks and food. We sat down at our table and Ben again came up to us and said, “The tables are for people who are ordering food.” When I said “Yes, I would like to order food,” he simply walked away.On the subject of the food at this “restaurant”, it sucks! The food comes out on a very hot plate, and yet the innards of the enchiladas are cold, a tell-tale sign they rely on their Chef Microwave a little too much. If you want to charge $13 for cheese enchiladas, they better be damn good. If you like cheap tourist trap food, Ben Michael’s is the place to be!The vibes are off at Ben Michael’s. I felt like I entered an alternate dimension where I go to restaurants, tell them I want to eat there, and get reprimanded for it. Ridiculous. This place is literally only worth it for the jazz music. Much love to the jazz players, but I recommend you all take your business elsewhere.

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1