A few weeks ago, I hadn’t seen my buddy Jasmin for a really long time.
Both of us had been busy with work and events and life, and suddenly a month had gone by without seeing her lovely little face.
So when Frankie & Benny’s got in touch and invited me to go and explore their latest restaurant opening in Wandsworth, we decided the time was ripe for a girly catchup meal!
We started with a couple of cocktails from their Happy Hour menu. Sunday to Thursday, 5-7:30pm, Frankie & Benny’s do a selection of cocktails for just £3.50. THREE. POUNDS. FIFTY.
Can’t say better than that now can you!
The choice is pretty basic, but the cocktails were both refreshing and delicious. Jasmin went for a WooWoo, and I chose a Cosmopolitan. Because sometimes a classic is just best!
For starters, we opted to share a garlic pizza bread topped with mozzarella. AAAAAALL THE CHEESE.
The base was light and crispy, the cheese (CHEESE) was melted and gooey, the garlic flavour was perfectly balanced… IT. WAS. YUM.
SO. YUM.
For mains: Jasmin chose a Classic Caesar Salad. Fresh gem lettuce, croutons, Grana Padano and a creamy Caesar dressing, topped with crispy fried calamari. It came served with two freshly baked breadsticks and looked very impressive!
She said it was a really good salad, with just the right amount of dressing and really yummy calamari.
I was on a cheese mission that day so I opted for the 4 Cheeses pizza. A dreamy creation of thin, crispy pizza base, topped with a mixture of cheddar, smoked cheese, mozzarella and salty goat’s cheese, then scattered with red onion and thyme before baking to perfection.
It was hot and cheesy and all kinds of comfort food heaven!
I was especially glad to see it without blue cheese. I hate blue cheese. And do you have any idea how hard it is to find a 4 Cheeses pizza without blue cheese?! #firstworldproblems
Overall, we had a really nice meal!
The venue itself is a good size, and decorated in the usual Frankie & Benny’s Italian-American diner-style. The waiters were super friendly and helpful, checking that everything was OK, and answering all our questions about the menu.
My only niggles were the side salad I ordered for my pizza, which was DRENCHED in creamy dressing, and kind of defeated the object of ordering something healthy on the side. And the red wine wasn’t great. Which isn’t exactly shocking. Especially as I seem to have become a bit of a red wine snob recently… (MALBEC ♥)
But the 4 Cheeses pizza was sublime. And the £3.50 cocktails are a total BARGAIN!
I’m not usually one for chain restaurants (cos I live in London and we are Kings of the Popup) but I’m pretty sure Jas and I will be back at Frankie & Benny’s again.
In fact… I feel it may be time for another catchup soon. Like, really, really soon. And I’m not just saying that cos I really want that cheesy pizza back in my life…
PS. We skipped dessert, but if you want to read about their sweet menu options, you should read my post about the Victoria Station restaurant tour!
*I was gifted a voucher for our meal in return for an honest review.
As always, all thoughts, words + photos are mine :)
