Review: Frankie and Benny’s

Recently we were sent a voucher to review Frankie and Benny’s new menu.  So we went to our local restaurant in Selly Oak to try out their offering.  I’ve been to Frankie & Benny’s many times, but always with the girls and never with my family, so I was intrigued to see what they thought of the restaurant.  Our group was me, my mum, my husband and H.

We arrived at 5pm and we had booked a table.  We were shown straight to our table.  I was surprised how busy it was at 5pm on a Friday night – not full to bursting, but more tables were occupied than empty.  H was given an activity pack on arrival and this was very good.  It contained a pencil with 4 colours on the tip (Is there a technical term for this?), a book with activities and puzzles and a pack of tiny dominoes.  This proved popular – some of the puzzles were for an older age group (H is 5), but there was plenty to keep him occupied.

Caesar Salad

There was a bit too long a gap between being seated and our order being taken, plus another nearby table had their order taken before us despite being seated afterwards.  That said, our meal and drinks arrived quickly and the waiter remembered who had ordered everything and handed it to the correct people without prompting. Service was prompt again around dessert ordering and delivery.  We did have to wait a little while to attract the waiter’s attention when we wanted the bill – the restaurant was much fuller at this point.

Children’s fishfingers and chips

The food was very pleasant.  Hubby’s caesar salad looked a picture and was hubby said that ‘ it was a decent caesar salad’ – he’s a bit of a connoisseur of caesar salads.  Mum had a lasagne which was pleasant, but it came without anything else apart from the lasagne.  My mother hadn’t realised this and was a bit disappointed, but my husband let her share his side order of chips.  I had scampi and chips which was nicely done.  H had fish fingers and chips from the children’s menu – this was quickly scoffed.

For dessert, H and I had ice-cream sundaes, mum had chocolate brownies and cream and hubby had a crumble. They all went down very quickly, but my husband’s dish was a bit on the small side.

Overall, we enjoyed our meal and the service overall was fine.  The activity packs were well thought out and I liked the fact that you could order 2 sizes of children’s meals.  We had the smaller size which was perfect for a healthy 5 year old’s appetite.  The food was nicely cooked and presented and the quality matched the price of the menu well.  We’d certainly consider going there again for a family meal.

Help Susanna Walk Appeal

A waiter who works at the Frankie & Benny’s restaurant in Widnes has a beautiful five-year-old daughter called Susanna who suffers from Cerebral Palsy. He and his wife are desperately trying to raise money to send Susanna to Missouri in the US for a life changing operation that will enable her to walk unaided. The operation has a 100% success rate. They have so far raised £15K but it’s been a struggle and there is a long way to go as they need £60,000 in total.

Frankie & Benny’s is determined to raise the money by the end of July 2012 and have promised that this beautiful little girl will walk properly like all of her friends. Frankie & Benny’s is embarking on a nationwide fundraising weekend on Saturday 30^th June/Sunday 1^st July in every single one of their restaurants where they will donate £3.95 from every child’s meal purchased as well as many other specific fundraising activities for each individual venue.  A Just Giving page has been set up where people can donate as much or as little as they can http://www.justgiving.com/helpsusannawalk.