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Ratings and reviews

RATINGS
Food
Service
Value
Atmosphere

Details

CUISINES
Irish, American, Bar, Pub
Meals
Lunch, Dinner, Breakfast, After-hours
FEATURES
Seating, Television, Wheelchair Accessible, Serves Alcohol, Full Bar, Takeout, Parking Available, Highchairs Available, Table Service, Gift Cards Available
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features, about
Reviews (147)
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146 results
Traveller rating
62
50
22
5
7
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Time of year
LanguageEnglish
Traveller rating
62
50
22
5
7
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Reviewed 2 days ago via mobile

Where else would we go for St Patrick’s Day? Stopped in for dinner on Sunday evening around 7:30PM. The big celebration with live band had been Saturday ($5 cover) but we were here for the food. We ordered the Blarney Stone (peach flavor drink with...whiskey) and a tap beer. Loved the Blarney Stone! We decided we wanted to share the Rueben Fritters and a Rueben with fries. The starters came quickly and looked delicious. There were 8 fritters on top of a bed of onion strings with a side of the thousand island dressing for dipping. The fritters were corned beef, cream cheese, Swiss and sour kraut together rolled in bread crumbs and deep fried. They were very good! The Rueben was OK - corned beef, kraut & dressing on rye, nothing special but good. The fries were thick steak fries and were also good, but not as crispy as we prefer our fries. The server Vicki was great… very friendly and attentive. She kept our drinks coming and water glasses filled. Atmosphere is comfortable. Overall good experience… it had been a while since we had been at a Bennigans and thus one has a big renovation a few years ago. Nice place and good menu options and the potato soup is always fantastic.More

Date of visit: March 2024
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 12 September 2023

We love the atmosphere at Bennigans. No loud music and friendly staff. Nikki was our server and was very good at her job. We will be back many times.

Date of visit: September 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Carlee Potts, Owner at Bennigans On Merle Hay, responded to this reviewResponded 14 September 2023

Thank you Carlee!

Reviewed 24 August 2023

Amy and Amanda were amazing. Awesome service very friendly. Food was great ! Will definitely recommend this place to everyone.

Date of visit: August 2023
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Carlee Potts, Owner at Bennigans On Merle Hay, responded to this reviewResponded 14 September 2023

Thank you sunshine!

Reviewed 31 July 2023

Long day, on the road and various activities..... Was hungry tired and just needing a place to sit ...eat..have some coffee.....be left alone. Thankfully it was also the off-time in the afternoon, between lunch and evening bar and dinner. They were polite and willing to...make me a fresh pot of coffee. The waitress was perfect for me that day. Checked back but allowed me privacy to read and relax. For me the day was only partially over. Food was very good, much more than I could eat. I had the Guinness Burger which had a unique, bu also good flavor, Would have it again if ever near here. It is a fairly large restaurant and would probably be loud during the evenings. Lots of wood. The ambiance was wood and dark. Had a cold beer along with the coffee, but it wasn't a Guinness as it isn't my favorite beer. My rating was high because the staff allowed me time to relax and recover before having to leave.More

Date of visit: March 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Carlee Potts, Owner at Bennigans On Merle Hay, responded to this reviewResponded 9 August 2023

Thank you so much!

Reviewed 10 June 2023

Great service and atmosphere. Staff was very friendly and checked in often to make sure everything was good and if I needed anything. Would certainly return.

Date of visit: June 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Carlee Potts, Owner at Bennigans On Merle Hay, responded to this reviewResponded 9 August 2023

Thanks for your review!!!!!!!

Reviewed 27 January 2023 via mobile

Great food, service, and relaxing environment. Prices were reasonable. Staff personable. Newly remodeled and tables spaced so a comfortable distance between.

Date of visit: January 2023
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Reviewed 9 January 2023

John, our server was excellent. And the general manager even checked in on us a couple of times. Not a huge menu but very good selections. Everything we had was excellent and huge portions. Spotless inside, and although I didn't get to partake, it was...a great drink selection. Wish I had this place in my hometown.More

Date of visit: January 2023
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Reviewed 10 August 2022

Six of us ate there and the food was mediocre especially for the prices these days. Club sandwich was like eating lunch meat sandwich, ceasar salad was wilted. Kids meals was Kraft mac/cheese. Kids broccoli had an Italian spice on it which they didnt eat....One kids meal came with no plate....just a small dish of potatoes and a basket...making it difficult for a 3 year old to eat. Lemonade wasnt lemonade...it was some fountain drink. I could go on.....Serice was lousy too...not because of the waitress but because it was busy and there were only a couple of waitresses. They were overloaded.More

Date of visit: August 2022
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Reviewed 3 July 2022

Great place to stop for a drink,a snack or dinner. Food was great. Service was fast and friendly. Our waitress was great. Love the new look. This will now be our go to place for a relaxing meal.

Date of visit: July 2022
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Reviewed 30 December 2021 via mobile

What a great stop. My husband had the Ruben sandwich which he said was very good) and I had a salad and 1/2 of a clubhouse sandwich. The bread on the clubhouse was outstanding! Our male server (with red hair , sorry I forgot His...name) was amazing and Personable.More

Date of visit: December 2021
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lauren H, Marketing at Bennigans On Merle Hay, responded to this reviewResponded 3 January 2022

Thank you so much for the kind words and five-star review! We hope to have you back again, soon.

Reviewed 21 August 2021 via mobile

The best thing about this was the fudge brownie ala mode. The salmon was dry and didn't taste great. The BBQ on the ribs was tasty but it seemed like the ribs were cooked the previous day. The fish and chips were not bad. I'd...probably rate this higher for half the price. I'll take my $100 somewhere else next time.More

Date of visit: August 2021
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lauren H, Marketing at Bennigans On Merle Hay, responded to this reviewResponded 30 August 2021

We are terribly sorry to hear about your experience with us. We will discuss with the team- moving forward we hope to give you a five-star dinner!

Reviewed 12 April 2021

The adjacent Holiday Inn has a breakfast deal with Bennigans next door. I'd rather do that than eat a lousy hotel breakfast any day. My kids liked their options and the pancakes were delicious.

Date of visit: April 2021
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lonnie P, General Manager at Bennigans On Merle Hay, responded to this reviewResponded 13 April 2021

Thank you so much!!!!!!

Reviewed 7 February 2021 via mobile

Okay food, service was terrible. 15 mins for waiter to show up, waiter didn’t seem to know anything about the menu, appetizer dumped on the table when it arrived, every plate handed to wrong person (only three of us), ordered a second drink and it...didn’t show up until the same time as the check, was told the appetizer would have something comp’d for the appetizer but never happened, we split the check but it it was messed up. Usually pretty tolerable with waitstaff but this was one tragedy after another. Maybe it was just a bad night but I won’t be back.More

Date of visit: February 2021
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lauren H, Marketing at Bennigans On Merle Hay, responded to this reviewResponded 30 August 2021

Thank you for the feedback, we genuinely apologize for the service issues. Moving forward, we will discuss and further train the team so we can avoid these issues.

Reviewed 23 December 2020

Stopped in on a long road trip and were looking to get in and out quickly. We realized they must have been a little short staffed this day as it took a minute to get seated and then for the waitress to come by. It...appeared she was the only waitress, but WOW was she good probably waiting on 10 different sets of customers and she was fast, friendly and attentive which was impressive given how busy she was. Food came out fast and was very good would highly recommend the Monte Crisco. Glad we stopped here.More

Date of visit: October 2020
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lonnie Payne, General Manager at Bennigans On Merle Hay, responded to this reviewResponded 30 December 2020

Thank you for the review Nathan!

Reviewed 25 November 2020

Good food, good beer, nice attentive manager. No complaints. Love the remodel! We will come back again!

Date of visit: November 2020
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lonnie Payne, General Manager at Bennigans On Merle Hay, responded to this reviewResponded 9 December 2020

Thank You Dana!

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Donna S
10 November 2020|
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Response from IowaAdvisor | Reviewed this property |
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BENNIGANS ON MERLE HAY, Urbandale - Menu, Prices & Restaurant Reviews - Tripadvisor

Frequently Asked Questions about Bennigans On Merle Hay

Yes, Bennigans On Merle Hay offers takeaway services.

Yes, Bennigans On Merle Hay is taking precautions against COVID-19. A full list is available within the "safety precautions" section of this page.

Bennigans On Merle Hay is rated accordingly in the following categories by Tripadvisor travellers:
  • Food: 4.5
  • Service: 4.5
  • Value: 4
  • Atmosphere: 4