Ben’s Best
“everything from their hot dogs to their pastrami to their chicken pot pies.”
“Not fantastic — and, if you've eaten at Katz's, or even 2d Ave, or Mill Basin, or Liebman's — you'll know — but great.”
“Sours, half sours, cole slaw, Gabila's ,Dr. Browns oh an then the Corned Beef on Rye!”
Ben’s Best
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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Food: pickles are great of course; ordered the pastrami sandwich for a whopping $16.20… They don't even put the mayo on the bread for you! Just bread and meat for that price… Meat was ok but not amazing, probably would not order it again
Service: I have to say the front deli staff was great… The waitress however was so rude! I had left with my sandwich and came back in with a friend to eat.. The waitress scoffed at me because I already had my food (from her restaurant!!!) she didn't give me water or a plate, I was appalled
I probably won't be back
Had the Daily News Sports Final Special – just fantastic. Pastrami is sliced thinner than Katz, but this is some damn fine stuff.
Talking with a childhood buddy of mine the other day, we were reminiscing about all the times we ate here when we were kids. Him being a nice Jewish boy, he always ordered the right foods. Me being the goyem, we laughed at the looks of horror each time I'd order pastrami or corned beef on white with MAYO!!!!! Oy vey!!! Hahahaha!!!
Those were the good old days. We agreed that during my next visit to the big apple, we will forego a visit to White Castle (another favorite from back in the day), and grab a bite at Ben's instead.
Hopefully I won't get kicked out if I order mayo for my sammie. 😉
Ben's Best in Rego Park (not to be confused with the namesake Ben's Best chain of restaurants) is the standard bearer of the traditional Jewish delis that once were in abundance throughout NYC but are now in rapid decline. The primary culprit for this phenomena, I believe, is the nouveau dietary trends that make it fashionable to eat rabbit food. And while Ben's offers a salad or two, Ben's is a Kosher carnivorous oasis of Yiddish delights of Hanukkahs past.
I'm partial to the brisket on rye. Since I can seldom make-up my mind on whether the sandwich should be dressed in mayo or gravy, I typically select both. The Hebrew National hot dogs are excellent too and the non-Yiddish speaking folks behind the counter seem to know how to grill them correctly. Many years ago while working in Great Neck, the sage and fellow foodie Roberta Rose introduced me to potato salad topped hot dogs; the origin of my quarter century-plus romance with such a delicacy. In my humble opinion, the potato salad laden hot dog–along with a side of Lipitor–are the perfect accompaniments to any deli sandwich.
Other favorites of mine at Ben's include the roast beef and turkey–that is whenever the turkey isn't too dry. And on occasion I cheat on the brisket with the pastrami. Regretfully, Ben's doesn't offer Reuben sandwiches (pastrami or corned beef on rye bread with melted swiss cheese, sauerkraut and Russian dressing) because the Reuben sandwich isn't Kosher. Oy vey.
Service is either good or spotty, luck of the draw I suppose. Service tends to be better whenever proprietor of 35 years Jay Parker (Jay took over the family business from dad) is lurking about, which is often. I suppose this is one of many reasons why Ben's continues to truly be 'Best.'
Walked in at 930 am and was seated immediately. It was a group of four of us and our server was an elderly old man who was so nice and cute!
We had two order of half soup and half sandwiches. Mushroom barley and corned beef. The mushroom barley was a little cold but our server was able to heat it for my dad. The corned beef was great. Not too salty. Perfectly balanced.
I had a pastrami with the chicken noodle. The pastrami was a little salty, but paired with the slaw it was great. Very delicious. The bread was soft and chewy. The chicken noodle had a lot of flavor. The noodles were not too soft. No chicken but that's okay.
My brother had the matza ball soup with chopped liver. Too much liver!! However, our server brought out some cold cuts for him. So nice and sweet. THe matza ball soup was delicious.
The omelet with fries were great too! Fries were crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The omelet was great. Eggs cooked perfectly.
Great service. Great value. Love this neighborhood joint! See you next time.
I ate the corned beef sandwich, which came with pickles and cole slaw for the table… It was a good sandwich, but the price of the sandwiches are unreasonable. Sandwiches are $16-$25 here.
This place had great reviews and I love a good soup and sandwich but when I came here, it did not live up to its hype.
The chicken noodle soup was good but generic.
The pastrami sandwich that everyone hyped about was severely disappointing. The rye bread was not heated or toasted and it had an odd sweetness to it.
Not sure if you are suppose to special request heated/toasted bread but its usually a given at other places.
I was expecting a hot pastrami sandwich but the meat was lukewarm and honestly nothing special.
One thing that they do right was the pickles. Those half sours were pretty delicious.
Sorry Bens Best but you were not even close to being the best and sadly I will not be back.
I've lived by Bens Best Deli for about 17 years now and I have yet to set foot inside here. Until last night, when my friend and I were walking around thinking what where can have something out of the ordinary. I dont know why or how we never noticed this establishment. This place has been open for 70 years and they've had a lot buzz. From having a Food Network appearance to catering for the president. I loved my food ! The pastrami burger was on point!! Very well done and for 15$ and kosher? That was a bang for my buck. They have sit down and to go. Can't wait to come back! 5 STARS