Benton Park Café & Coffee Bar

This place looked cute, the staff was nice, and everything sounded good, but overall it wasn’t a great experience. My friend and I ordered coffee right when we were seated. It took so so long for us to get that coffee. When we got it it was piping hot and fairly good. After that it took forever for somebody to take our order and then even longer for our food to come out. The food was fine when we eventually got it. I had a breakfast sandwich and loaded potatoes. The potatoes were more room temperature than warm. While the food wasn’t awful or anything I don’t think that it was worth the wait. In the future I’ll be looking for a different brunch or breakfast spot.

The California omelet is perfection. Love this place! My daughter loves their pancakes

I have been here a couple times and it is always a great place for brunch. There are a lot of options for breakfast and lunch. Today I chose the iced chai latte and it was delicious. For breakfast I had the Woodstock as a breakfast burrito — egg whites, mushrooms, onions, cheese, and avocado. Pretty good. Fruit as a side was very fresh and good! Husband had chicken salad and said it was ok… I thought it was good but a little heavy. They don’t skimp on the portions though. I will be back.

Go, just go! This place has been in my bookmarks for a while and friends keep telling me I have to try it. Went around lunch on a Friday, not too crowded, waitress was attentive. I got the mcgrittle this and it did not disappoint!!! Easily enough food for three people!

Decent breakfast food but they are open very late and they do have alcohol which saves the review on this place. I have only been twice. The first time the food was great, second time not so much.

Good food and good service. The wait can be a bit deterring though. The best part (outside of the food) was that there are mimosas for only $ 4.

I had an eggs bennie with avo and a fruit cup– everything was really delicious, though I wish I had gotten the potatoes my friend had ordered– they were delicious. I also got a latte with extra shots of espresso and didn’t really expect all that much but it WAS THE BEST COFFEE EVER. Seriously, it was deliciously smooth and worth every penny. The food was really good, it just wasn’t anything special. But the coffee? Worth a second visit.
The space IS very cramped so plan your visit accordingly. Service was pretty good, though our server seemed a little overwhelmed. Will definitely come back to give it a second try (and also for that coffeeee!)

This used to be one of my favorite places, but in the past year it’s gone severely downhill every time I’ve been there. It kind of breaks my heart, especially since I recently moved to Benton Park and was excited to be so close to it.
I’ll update my review later but I took my mother there this morning as a treat before a hefty day, figuring it would be pretty busy and the food would be good. Well, it was surprising that on this barely-​busy morning, my mother and I sat and waited literally 24 minutes to receive cold biscuits and gravy (pre-​made and easy to plate), lukewarm loaded potatoes and rubbery pancakes (simple fare).
What’s worse is my excitement to share the loaded breakfast potato experience with my mother was also a fail. This is also pre-​made (meaning ready to serve), but now evidently they can’t keep it hot because they form them into a patty shape to put on the grill? That used to come and kind of a scoop but was always hot and good. This time there was no cheese and they were severely salty and inedible. My mother nearly spit hers out.
I’ve rarely walked out of a restaurant, but this was one of the few times that I had to. It was just surprising and so very disappointing. Of course, I expressed my disappointment to the server who was nice, but didn’t seem very responsive to the matter.
I would think they would up their game, especially to kick off the holiday weekend.
Sad to say that I was too short on time to venture to another sit-​down spot, but it’s even sadder to say you left Benton Park Café and opted for McDonald’s and found it to be the wiser, tastier choice in the end.

Second time here. The food was good as well as the coffee. The seating is limited but is extended with outside seating. Have added it to must visit frequent breakfast spot.

I arrived right at 6:55 and waited until 7 (when they open) to try the door. I could see the employee (blond waitress) standing at the
register and she saw me. I sat back down and waited for about 2 minutes till it was 7:02 and tried the door again, still locked. I then sat back down and waited until for her to come and unlock the door. Which didn’t happen until 7:06 when what I assume is a regular customer came walking across the street. I can’t help but wonder how long I would’ve been sitting out there waiting if he hadn’t showed up. When I did finally get inside I was greeted with a dry hello after hearing the regular get a very cheerful «hey! how you been?» or something of that nature.
Now I might be reaching a bit but I know for a fact that she saw me at the door and while I was sitting there (with two dogs mind you) … I’m still slightly offended and I will not be coming back if favoritism is the standard here. If I was in a rush I certainly would have missed what ever appointment I was heading to. Luckily I wasn’t but still.
Now onto the food. I ordered the Mcgriddle remake. It was huge but unfortunately a bit mediocre, the pancakes tasted and smelled like the pancakes that you get in a public school breakfast. The sausage was good but the eggs were lacking seasoning. Loaded potatoes were awesome!

Great little breakfast and coffee place. I recommend the BP slinger with potatoes. Other reviews tell of problems with parking and waits, but all the times we’ve come here we’ve never had an issue with either.
The reason for four stars instead of five is because of the service. It’s ok, but it’s a bit slow. The food gets five stars though.

yum yum. I went here this weekend for a goodbye brunch with my friend. It was on a Sunday mid morning so I knew the wait was going to be long. Parking is really difficult near the restaurant so I recommend you driving a few blocks down and parking on the street near residential homes. There are always available parking and it is a nice walk on pretty sunday morning. The hostess was super nice and friendly and complimented my friend and I on our outfit (we dressed up for our last get together. Glad someone noticed).
While they said the wait was going to be 40 minutes I was surprised that they got us in in less than 15. We sat at our table and within a few minutes our waiter was asking for drinks (great service!). MIMOSAS PLEASE I ordered the french toast plate that came with diced fruit and my choice of meat. My friend got the Monte Cristo. The food was wonderful. It came promptly, it was hot, the waitress asked if there was anything we needed after we began eating which was appreciated. My friend ordered another Monte Cristo to go and took it home to her husband (Lucky Husband). I only have 2 more weeks left in St. Louis but I am glad I was able to check this place out before I go. I recommend.

We had the chance to eat here several times over the past few months. The athmosphere is great, very low key and fun. Service is always top notch. On my last visit I had the Cali Omlette and my husband had a breakfast burrito, food was well seasoned and filling. The kids had pancakes, bacon, fruit. Everything was great. I think this is a great weekend breakfast place for the whole family — including kids. Noticed on our past two visits, some other guests seemed turned off by my kiddos. (dirty looks) One table asked to move. My kids are well behaved, not wild. They go out to eat frequently and we are always very attnentive to thier noise level. But like I said we LOVE this place, food, service and everything and have always felt welcomed with the youngeters. Just an observation about other patrons. Can’t wait to go again.

I’ve been told I unfairly judge this place and that I should give it another shot. On a recent visit I obliged my drunk friends and allowed them to take me here for some late night breakfast. On their advice I got a breakfast burrito this time. Unfortunately none of the combinations whet my appetite and so I had to build my own, which totaled to a more expensive price tag. The burrito was a lot better than I remember their pizza and a large size. I ended up having enough for real breakfast 6 or so hours later. The potatoes are still not amazing, but the cucumber water does probably aid in preventing my hangover, so I’m bumping them up another star.

Stopped for coffee with a friend while I’m passing through town. Nice, quiet little spot with delicious omelettes, a nice atmosphere, and friendly staff. Would gladly stop here again.
Meant to post this a long time ago, still worth saying.

My go-​to spot for brunch! Love the french toast and the ultimate benedict is amazing.

The preeminent brunch spot, standing as a stronghold between soulard and Benton Park.
I wouldn’t allow the crowd nor the wait deter you in any way, the tables clear quickly and they offer coffee as you wait. Speaking of coffee, my most recent visit led me to the discovery that they now serve mudhouse brew. In addition to the coffee, there’s a cornucopia of lattes, iced drinks, mimosas, and bloody Mary’s; it’s so expansive that it fills an entire chalkboard!
The brunch is simple, a few omelettes, breakfast burritos, traditional eggs and bacon, rounding out with oatmeal. The main draw being the omelettes, which I enjoyed the «California» which comes with a healthy serving of avocados, cheese, and ham. It’s wonderfully filling and stuffed to the gills with flavor, but any of the other offerings are equally delicious.
One pitfall, you may find yourself having to remind the servers that you’re still a guest; they tend to forget amongst their break-​neck pace. Aside from that, I will continue to come here regardless of the day.

I usually enjoy coming to eat here, no matter which meal it’s for. The burritos are delicious and super filling, but they’re made with provel or American cheese which aren’t the greatest. The loaded potatoes are a great option as a side. The fruit is also generally fresh and good, but I’d try the potatoes of you haven’t had them.
The French toast is delicious. I don’t normally like butter on mine, but the butter on the side was really good. It always satisfies the sweet craving you could have for brunch.
On the weekends you can get $ 4 mimosas and you definitely get your monies worth!
The wait more recently has been better. The turnover was pretty quick and the food was out even faster.

Could not have asked for a better spot to eat just before the annual Mardi Gras parade.
There are two separate and clearly defined dining areas. My group of five was ushered to the back portion of the building and we greeted by a busy and bustling room filled with diners and great breakfast smells.
The menu is filled with breakfast burritos, omelets, scrambles, and other classics. One of our dining companions ordered Biscuits and gravy which looked great. The always welcome, Eggs Benedict was on our table and just about every other table in the restaurant. I will almost always recommend someone order this and be braced to look at the alternative styles available.
Several hot sauces were available for selection.
Bloody Marys and Mimosas were being poured liberally so put your boots on.
The service was fast, accurate, and courteous. We were well cared for and quickly moved out without feeling as if the clock was ticking. I would call this efficient service.
Parking is street side so that may be a drag. Nothing the owners can do about a lack of parking, but be aware.

Went on a wonderfully cold morning last week. Enjoyed a plain old breakfast sandwich while the boy had ultimate eggs benedict! I’m a much more boring eater… but it was still excellent. The croissant was super moist and yummy. bacon and egg were cooked right. The boy enjoyed his much more than most you can get around town. Make sure you pick up an alcoholic cocktail. A mango boozie made my choice. Only advice… I would add a touch of peach in some form to it for next time but still delicious.

This is hands down my favorite place to grab breakfast in the St. Louis region. In all my years I’ve never tried a better omelet. My personal favorite? The South of the Border Omelet.
I avoid this type of food now for health reasons, but their french toast is about as good as it gets as well.
Tremendous food, pleasant staff, and it’s reasonably priced. Everyone should try this St. Louis gem at least once in their lifetime – although, that does mean that you’ll inevitably go back, because I guarantee you’ll love it.

I joined my hubby and his coworkers here for breakfast last Sunday. Even though it was 8a, parking was already getting crowded. But we did manage to get a table for eight with no problem and no wait!
After browsing the menu, I decided to go with the McGrittl This — an enormous pancake with cheese eggs and sausage topped off with another enormous pancake. The pancakes had the perfect fluffy texture — as did the eggs! However, the eggs, cheese and sausage weren’t quite as flavorful as I wanted them to be. I would mostly blame the cheese — it was American. If I’d known, I probably would’ve asked for pepper jack or something else instead. I’d say that this dish is an awesome idea and gets major creativity points, but the execution could be improved. And that’s the main reason I’m giving a ³⁄₅.

I highly recommend the «BP Slinger», the beer biscuits are to die for smothered in the house gravy.

This place is so great for breakfast food. I absolutely love their breakfast pizza, the crust and cheese is just different and delicious. There is usually a wait if you go on Saturday or Sunday so don’t be surprised. The individual sized breakfast pizza is pretty large — which I like because leftovers! Great service and casual atmosphere as well.

The pancakes are good here, I really loved how golden they were and the crispy edges just exploded with flavor. I guess now I don’t have to drive 250 miles for some great pancakes. These were delicious with a glass of milk. Order a glass of water and you will be surprised with it, I think it has some cucumber freshness in it and is like none I have had before, I really enjoyed it with a touch of lime to squeeze in it.
If you come by yourself or its just a couple like you and a friend, you can walk right in and sit at the bar to be served, otherwise you come in and wait for the hostess to sit you at a table.
The service here is not fast, so be patient. Eventually the waitress will be over to take your order and bring you some of that delicious water.
Trying this restaurant out, reminds me of why I dine out, to be surprised like this, with the little things like cucumber water and crispy delicious golden pancakes and some great fresh eggs that were great, and they cooked my bacon well done, which I love, it is like the knew how I wanted my food.
i enjoyed the atmosphere, just a cozy little café that does things well. It can be noisy in here, and the wooden floor, makes for a warm feeling and the cool décor, is a nice flare, nothing fancy here, just cozy and comfortable. This place feels good. When you first walk in the door you get this whiff of well known scents and fragrance like that pancakes and syrup, with hints of chocolate coffee in the air. Almost like moms kitchen on Sunday morning.
They don’t have a private parking lot, so you will have to park on the street. It did not present a problem for me, just let me get a chance to see and speak to some of the people who live and work near here. The people seem fairly nice in this quaint little neighborhood. After a good meal here, the walk back was welcomed to move around and I was stuffed with all sorts of good, warm sweet eats.
While reading the board I can tell they may have some good bloody mary’s cocktail here and coffee too for the morning start, to help you get going.
Even though they have delicious golden pancakes, they do not serve waffles. That seems to be typical of the better pancake places I have eaten at. I have been to a few that were great pancake places where they didn’t serve waffles and this appears that this is one of them.
As far as cleanliness goes, my table is still sticking to me, like they wiped it but not well. It could be some soft wood around the edge, but for some reason it feels sticky and mushy to me, perhaps it is the fake wood? I think it’s full of oil or dirt, but I will not be picky on this issue. I have seen a customer come in and she slid a little bit on the floor, that’s not a good sign, someone could fall and get hurt with the wrong type of shoes on.
Overall, the place looks clean to me, there or not clusters of dust or anything, there is a cup under the bar stand, but I can live with that. Also, they have a wet floor sign out leaning on the wall, which should be behind the counter which takes away from the coolness of the place, seems like laziness or forgetfulness on their part.
I can see a picture of a man and woman on the bathroom doors so I hope its not a shared bathroom. If it is that’s interesting, you don’t see those anymore.
All in all, the aroma, the food, the great pancakes with those crispy edges and they are huge. The rich buttery flavor, this place does it good!

I really like a breakfast spot like this but I’m happy to report the lunch is good too. I’ve come here twice over the lunch hour and ate outside both times. I love people watching and this area is great for that.
For breakfast, I love that many of the dishes can be done as a burrito or omelette. The hoofer is a fav of mine. One of these days I will try the slinger or something sweet but the savory options are good and I love that they have plenty of non-​alcoholic breakfast drinks available.
For lunch, I’ve only been the once but I loved it. My husband and I are basically a retired married couple because sometimes we can’t decide what we want so we each order a sandwich and split them. I got ½ of some sort of po boy that I can’t find on the menu which was good but the star was the ½ of the marinated beef tip melt that I ate. Oh baby it was good. I get everything here with the loaded potatoes because you have to.

The pancakes are good. Pretty typical and nothing special. Cooked well though.
Delicious Bloody Mary. Very peppery.
Breakfast sandwich is per expected. Cannot really go wrong or find much differentiation here.
Loaded potatoes are good.
Unimpressed and disappointed by the biscuits and gravy (side order) I didn’t find the flavor fantastic but was most disappointed by the biscuits itself. Almost seemed like it was a poorly thawed formerly frozen biscuit with the inside being very dry and dense. I took a picture because you can even see by looking at it that it wasn’t a nice soft biscuit. It would need way more gravy to even soften it.

Went for lunch. Had such a great meal. The loaded potatoes I could have ate just as my meal. They are so good. Great flavor. Good service too and great price for the amount we had. Will go again. Must try.

Visited w/​two dining companions for breakfast on Sunday Sept. 20, 2015. The wait was long but the weather was nice so we hung outside and waited patiently.
We were seated inside which was tight as the place was packed around 10:45 am. The noise level was loud but this was due to some idiots that thought the entire restaurant wanted to hear about their drunken escapades from the night before.
Anyway, our server was friendly enough although not attentive as far as coffee refills for my boyfriend who said it was luke warm anyway…
I ordered and devoured my Off the Coast omelet $ 10.99, toast, and side of fruit. The omelet comes w/​crab meat and shrimp and although I got some shell pieces, it was good– I just wish they would have included the cilantro that was listed on the menu :(The salsa has cilantro so that kinda made up for it missing from the omelet. I left off the provel– maybe I’ll try it someday… I added some sriracha to my deliciousness and was all set!
My boyfriend had been here before and ordered the BP Slinger $ 10.49 and liked it. The other in our crew ordered B’s & G’s $ 3.99 and ham $ 2.59.
I would return!

Great kicked back place! Staff is friendly, fast and helpful. We came for breakfast. Loved the extra large mug for tea. Great selection of omelets and nice sized portions. Food tasted fresh.
Water came with cucumber slices! Loved the fresh take they had on everything. Got some sides too. Potatoes were loaded with cheese. Bacon was generous and crispy but ordinary. Sausage links side was smaller than the bacon. French Toast side was 2 huge slices. Our waiter, Kurt, was excellent.
The AC was nice and cool inside but they also had an outside area that was shaded with umbrellas.

Pretty good. Not the best breakfast I’ve ever had but their menu items are somewhat unique and overall not too expensive. I like the variety of coffee and alcoholic beverages which is great for when I get off of a night shift and want to have an 8 am post-​work drink. The beer biscuits are great. I’d highly recommend that.

Solid Breakfast experience and close to 5 stars. We came here at 9am on a Wednesday and you could tell that this place would be rocking on the weekend, however it was mostly empty during the week day. We ordered a California omelet, BP slinger and single pancake to try.
All the food was tasty and worthy of 5 stars but the biscuits on the BP slinger were burnt on the bottom while he interior was closer to raw or under-​cooked. It was tasty if you ate around the burnt bottom, perhaps the oven was too hot when they made them, otherwise the dish was outstanding with great sausage gravy. The omelet was made to perfection. and the pancake was good but not exceptional…
Another bummer was that we ordered a coffee to our delight they had almond milk, a big bonus but unfortunately it never arrived. We noticed when the food arrived and reminded our server but realized it would arrive well into our meal when we would get it so we cancelled it. he should have brought it out anyway since he forgot. oh well 4 stars close to 5 and we will definitely return

Benton Park I boycotted you for four years after such a downward spiral. Poor service, change in food quality, and a general expansion that just added more troublesome issues. I seriously left my last time after being ignored by a server and said «Never Again!» But today, I thought, it’s been long enough, gotta see if it’s improved. I’m sure it’s better.
Well, maybe not. The hostess was pleasant enough and put us down for a table for two outside. Fifteen minute wait? No problem, however there were three unoccupied ready to go tables just sitting there. A bit of confusion on the staff on who was waiting what section. Then, the hostess came to me, told me my table was ready. We sat, then realized we weren’t the party she meant (three menus instead of two). I politely told her I thought we had another’s table and she said «Well, I called Renee.» Okay… totally my fault you walked up to me and told me my table was ready.” great start to the experience.
As for the rest, it was okay. Our server was nice and did a great job. The food so-​so. Nothing bad, but nothing spectacular to write about. Super salty bloody Mary’s, an overlooked omelette, subpar. I just feel Benton Park is lacking what it used to have. A personable, funky vibe with great flavors. No more boycott, but no rush to dine there.

This is my 2^nd review and sadly nothing has changed. It’s still just ok.
We were seated quickly, as we know to go early to avoid the rush. Our order was taken somewhat promptly.
My iced chai with almond milk was the star of my breakfast. It was a little spicy and not too sweet. The hubs enjoyed a cup of coffee.
The hubs ordered the Farmer’s Burrito — egg, pepper jack, prove, green peppers, mushrooms, onion, and onion dill sour cream @ $ 8.49. He said it was ok but the eggs were over done and it came with no onion dill sour cream. Which is the star of that burrito. I ordered the Woodstock Burrito — egg white, American cheese, avocado, mushrooms, and onion @ $ 7.99. 1^st off the the hubs came on a large plate to hold his massive burrito but mine came on a tiny plate that held a baby burrito. The plate size is whatever but it looked like they forgot to put filling in my burrito and they did. It had absolutely no avocado, tiny pieces of onion, and I could count the small pieces of mushroom on one hand. Also, they gave me potatoes when I had requested fruit. On the plus side the runner fixed the fruit part fast. However our waitress was barely there and I didn’t want to ask to have anything fixed as we didn’t want to have to wait forever. The food, again, was ok. The food, again, came out missing something just lie every other time here.
Will we be back? Maybe as it is close to us but there are better options, in my opinion, that are’t too much further.

Benton Park is probably my favorite breakfast place in St Louis. They just do it right, all of it. The breakfast burritos here will match any that I had out in California. The ingredients are fresh, and the house hash browns will make you have dirty thoughts in your dreams.
Coffee is top notch, as are the lattes. I would be shocked to see anyone not enjoy the food coming out of this kitchen.
With that said, service has always been a little slow. but, when you come to a place like this, you’re there to relax, have some coffee and breakfast, and chill out. So no problem letting that slide.
Keep up the great work!

Okay food, good service.
We were seated at the bar and were waited on almost immediately. The service was nice, constantly checking up on us.
Ordered the Ultimate Eggs Benedict and would rate 3.5÷5. The loaded potatoes that came with it was good: kind of like a casserole based on the level of cream. The eggs were not poached at all. The yolk was solid and over/​done, however the hollandaise sauce was delicious enough to make up for it. Good helping of bacon on top– and I’m a sucker for avocado so that was a nice touch on top.
The worst part about the experience (besides the egg) was the wait. We waited almost an hour for our food to come out. The staff was nice about it though and constantly checked up on us.
Overall, I would consider coming back again but I would try something without egg next time.

I was looking for a Bloody Mary and this was a great place to have one. The place was really pretty crowded for an early Sunday morning. A few people were complaining about how they had to wait and was just grabbing coffee to go. I grabbed a seat at the counter and was greeted the minute I sat down. It did not take long for my Bloody Mary and water to arrive. They have a pretty extensive menu for breakfast. I opted for the egg, cheese and bacon bagel sandwich. You have a choice of fresh fruit or cheesy potatoes. It took a bit for the food, but the place was really busy. I was amazed at how many people called in their breakfast and picked up to go. I was not disappointed with the sandwich, but the potatoes were a little mushy… Great place, I will go again.

Went for dinner before the AB Christmas Lights across the streets. BPC is still a great spot for breakfast food at any hour. I’m updating because of the root beer pork belly sliders on their dinner menu. These little guys floored me. I can’t believe how tasty they were-​sweet, savory, crispy exterior with a fatty, porky center. The root beer bbq glaze went with it perfectly.
The burger was more of a miss, and reminded me of a chain burger. Still, cool spot, with elevated breakfast offerings

Popular place. Casual and fun. Would recommend for those visiting out of town. (long wait but fast to get food out)
Good day drinking menu. Boozie smoothies, $ 4 mimosas on weekends, frappes. Pretty sure they are happy to add alcohol to anything.
Hostesses and bartenders are friendly.
Cucumber water, if you like that.
Best side potatoes.
Reminded me of Snooze in Denver.