Jason J.
Yelp
Wow. Just....wow.
Benzina makes an art out of elevating simple to simply decadent.
It's an old service station. It's a really simple space. But they manage to fill it with tables and booths incredibly well, and somehow we happened to get the best seat in the joint, in a little two-top booth in a quiet corner. Speaking of quiet, other reviewers have mentioned noise, saying it's extremely loud - we did not find that the case at all. Noise level was really great - energetic but not overbearing or intrusive. We could talk amongst ourselves easily and without strain.
Hunter was our server, and he was absolutely fantastic. Fun guy, jokes, attentive and not overbearing. He had good recommendations on the menu - which is extremely easy with a menu like Benzina's.
Trout Salad: Good! Though I don't LOVE smoked trout, but that's on me. Almost served as like, little lettuce cups with a piece of trout in them, made it easy and fun to eat with your hands.
Arancini Balls: Whoa..... Not overly salty, but still very savory and complemented perfectly with the dipping sauce. Just wildly good. Great mouthfeel, good cheesiness without being all salt.
Spicy Soppressata Pizza: It's a pepperoni pizza, don't worry. Not really spicy, but as with most Neapolitan pizzas the story is in the crust. It's incredible. Perfectly "chewy" while still being perfectly cooked. It's just so hard to describe but really really great. the Soppressata is great, sauce was awesome, and the topping ratio was perfect.
Sausage PIzza: It's a white pizza, and has really great flavor with the sausage and some green onions. Again, all on top of a phenomenal crust.
We also did a bottle of house wine which is from grapes grown in Italy by the former owner of Snooze, but vinted in Denver. It was a really great "average" wine to go with our meal. It's not over the top crazy good, but it's solid and a perfect accompaniment to super elevated pizza.
Then came time for dessert. And...oh my god. The chocolate tort was unbelievable. Perfect salt content in the crust, amazing chocolate flavor - sweet and savory without being saccharine or cloying. And then the Panacotta....I have never tasted anything so creamy and delicious. I swear to god these two desserts are among the top 10 desserts I've ever had in my life. I don't really rank inside 10, so that's the only cut they can make, but it was just amazing.
Benzina is a fairly casual place with really really incredible elements, it's WELL worth the stop. Delicious and near-perfect. I absolutely cannot wait to go back.