Benny's Big Time Pizzeria is the brainchild of Vivian Howard and Ben Knight, you may know them from the PBS show A Chef's Life, and it is their third restaurant, the other two being in Kinston. We decided to stop by and see what all the hype was.
The restaurant sits in an old factory in a section of the city that is up and coming, and should be a good draw to the area.
Inside it is well appointed with a modern design, an open kitchen, and a bar where you can sit and eat (a plus for single diners). The staff is friendly and for a place that's only been open a week, they have their act together.
There were three of us so we decided to sample a range of items. Of course one was a pizza, the Margherita, and it was excellent. We had the chicken fried parm, quite possibly the best fried chicken I have ever had and my mission now is to duplicate it at home. And we had the Risotto a la vodka, also excellent. Add in two beers, they have a nice draft selection including some local breweries, and the tab came to about $55. Not bad for an upscale restaurant.
Benny's Big Time Pizzeria is a place you have to visit sometime, but get there early as it started to get crowded at about 5:30 on a Thursday. Check out their website for more information.
