UYE: Sunday Fun Day @ Benchmark Eatery

Thank you John and his Benchmark crew along with Danah D. for bringing this Unilocal-​a-​thon to fruition. It’s a great way for neighbors to get together and discover what makes this community special.
Dante’s Inferno (tequila, clément mahina coconut liquor, arbol chili, fresh lime, strawberry shrub) hit the spot… a few times to be sure. The lime and strawberry cut through the hot and steamy summer afternoon.
The Benchmark, a popular twist on the Manhattan with house bourbon, amaro nonino, benedictine, creole bitters is a classic, swanky cocktail, best served after dark.
When those are too swanky, the sangria is always a winner.
Poblano Pizza gets top marks
Fish Tacos coming in a close second
Pulled Pork Sliders were good but the buns were a bit dry. I’m feeling the pork slider has lost it’s luster. Sure it’s easy but everyone does it. Like the deviled eggs, it’s time to retire this app.
Hot Wings were more on the Asian sweet and tangy than hot. One Unilocaler said the wings are the reason he comes to Benchmark, «the best in town» he says. While I’m not sure on that, they were good.
Kale Antipasto salad was served but I steered clear. Did not want it to fight with the cheese, fried batter and pulled pork in my stomach. Others did enjoy its healthiness.
The evening was a great success, introducing many of us, including me, to the Benchmark’s fare. I’ll certainly be back to try the wings again along with the flatbread and some cold beer at the bar. Love their bar.
Cheers

A big thank you to fellow Unilocaler Danah and Benchmark’s GM John for making this event happen! You both were very welcoming to the event and restaurant.
It’s really impossible for me to want to give this event anything less than a 5, I mean unless it would have been a set up to have me ambushed by Unilocal mafia or something, but thankfully it wasn’t.
It was an enjoyable Sunday evening, the drinks, the food, the service, the company and of course the Unilocal goodies, loved it all.
Highlights:
Summer Sangria– Refreshing is the word that comes to mind, it calmed down some of that humid dry heat that came through Santa Barbara this past Sunday.
Dry Cider– I believe it was San Francisco Dry Cider? Blurred memory. It was one I had not tried before. It was sweet and tartery, would of been perfect with ice now that I think of it. Fairly good.
Pulled pork– The meat was tasty and tender, a good base recipe for these.
The people! It was great meeting a lot of people who are as in love with Unilocal as I am.
Great event, thanks again to everyone that was involved.

What a stellar event!!!
Santa Barbara’s Unilocal community’s got it goin’ on, thanks to our hero, the one and only Danah D!
Once again, she pulled out all the stops in flawlessly organizing another Unilocaltastic shindig:)
Benchmark Eatery was a wonderful host and the GM, John, made sure we were all treated like royalty.
The wide array of drinks to choose from was very much appreciated, as were the Unilocalerrific culinary offerings.
It was a great turnout. So happy to see and meet so many newbie Unilocalers!
Can’t wait for the next one!!!

This restaurant was very nice and clean. There is a lot of room on the patio and in the main dining room. The food was well made, tasted delicious and quite inventive. The atmosphere at this restaurant was very relaxed and conducive for drinks with friends or a nice, casual dinner with a significant other. I will be coming back to try out the rest of the menu.

Thank you for having us at the UYE event it was very fun and thank you Dannah for setting it all up. Great job:)

The Sunday fun day was fantastic, Danah our hostess was wonderful, very nice event, great conversations with other liked Unilocalers. Food was great my favorite
was the fish tacos and pablano pizza.
Thank you very much it was great

Danah was a fabulous host and it was pleasure to hear a warm welcome from the general manager of Benchmark. We also received top notch service at this event in particular.
The drink selection was quite extensive. I found the sangria and dante’s inferno to be on the weak side, but tasty and refreshing.
As for the food, the tacos really were the highlight of the meal. The beer battered fish and pickled onions complimented one another well. The chickpeas were my second favorite dish, followed by the kale and Swiss chard salad.
It was a delight to receive dessert as well, though I highly recommend that the Benchmark chefs look into a new churro recipe, moist and light in the inside with a crispy exterior. Also, I did not find the chocolate sauce complimentary. But churros are a great idea!
Thank you for having us!

Thank you so much to Benchmark Eatery, Dannah, and Unilocal for the fabulous Sunday Funday! Can this be every Sunday please? I love having the opportunity to ha g out with like minded people, my fellow Unilocalers, who always have food on the mind. Thank you Benchmark Eatery for your hospitality. I throughly enjoyed the wonderful patio on this unusual July rainy day. My favs of the day were the churros, and the kale salad. They are a must have. I can’t wait for another opportunity to share time with my Unilocal family.

This was another great event hosted by Danah D., Unilocal and Benchmarks manager John and his great staff who made this an awesome event!
We had the whole patio to ourselves and, there was a lot of great food offerings;
First came the Smoked Hot Wings — house-​made hot sauce, bleu cheese dressing, and celery
I think the top was the Fish Tacos — beer-​battered fish, shredded cabbage, queso fresco, pickled onions, with salsa blanco and they kept them coming!
Kale Antipasto — shaved salami, prosciutto, swiss chard, kale, grilled fennel, roasted tomatoes, butter beans, crispy fingerling potatoes, garlic vinaigrette.
Next on deck was the
Pulled Pork — sliders, with house-​made bbq sauce, cole slaw, crispy fried onion, brioche bun… non stop!
Not to be under sold was the
Pablano Pizza — with pablano chile cream sauce, carnitas, mozzarella, red bell pepper, caramelized onion, queso fresco, jalapeño lime drizzle
finished with house-​made churros, dark chocolate dipping sauce they had a salty sweet fresh made delight-​fulness!
And the drinks…
Dante’s Inferno (its spicy) — 100% agave blanco tequila, clément mahina coconut liquor, arbol chili, fresh lime, strawberry shrubdrinks too,
Summer Sangria — fruity, sweet, and refreshing made from the pineapple, rose wine, orange, and hint of cinnamon.
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The Old School — redemption rye, angostura, orange oil, house infused cherry
the beer selection was great too i had the Telegraph Belgian Style Ale — love my red beer!
The Unilocal friends were off the hook, great and to meet a lot of you I have not met in person yet and to see some new, old friends too this was great!
This is the second event this weekend and the third over all for me. got some cool new swag too! looking forward to the next event!

A big round of applause should be given to Danah D. for once again dazzling us with her talent of hosting a fabulous party and in the process spoiling us rotten.
Also I would like to take the opportunity to thank the GM John for inviting us in to sample the many tasty dishes and drinks they serve.
I decided to be a risk taker for once and chose Dante’s inferno as my drink of choice Which consisted of 100% agave blanco tequila, clément mahina coconut liquor, arbol chili, fresh lime, strawberry shrub, it was love at first sip, I didn’t find it
necessarily spicy as listed on the menu, but it was smooth and I can see how easy it would be to keep them coming.
By far my favorite as many others have stated were the fish tacos, packed in mini corn tortillas topped with cabbage and Avocado, the fish was light and melted in your mouth.
The staff were nothing but gracious and went above and beyond to see to our culinary needs.
Congratulations on your 1 year anniversary #Benchmarkeatery & here’s to 50 more! ;)

First and foremost a big Thank You to Danah D. for putting together another fantastic UYE! And another big Thank You to the manager John for being a great host and welcoming us into your restaurant.
I’ve been wanting to try Benchmark for the longest time and I was so happy given the opportunity to try it during a Unilocal event.
Let’s start with the drinks.
Dante’s Inferno — Anything with coconut and strawberry will get my attention! This drink is semi-​sweet and spicy. You’re first sip will give you that kick from the Arbol chili but after a few more sips you will be fine.
Summer Sangria — OMG if you’re looking for something fruity, sweet, and refreshing this is the drink for you! From the pineapple, rose wine, orange, and hint of cinnamon this will have you wanting more.
Now on to the best part, the food!
Fish Tacos — These were a hit and amazing! Everyone I talked to agreed when I asked what was their favorite food from the menu. Beer battered fish, queso fresco, cabbage, pickled onions, and salsa blanco topped with sliced avocado. Wow great combo in this taco!
Poblano Pizza — The 2^nd best dish of the night and also my new favorite pizza! This amazing creation contains carnitas, a poblano chile cream sauce, mozzarella, red bell peppers, caramelized onions, queso fresco, and a jalapeño lime drizzle. Order this pizza! I promise you will love it.
Smoked Hot Wings — These were smokey and sweet not spicy and I enjoyed them. The bleu cheese dressing served with this is very mild and not too pungent like bleu cheese tends to be. It reminded me of a chunky ranch dressing. Don’t be afraid to try it if you’re not a bleu cheese lover.
Pulled Pork Sliders — These little guys were perfect! I’m not a big fan of pulled pork sliders but I would definitely order these. They aren’t too messy and they hold well when you bite into them. I like the brioche bun.
The Churros — Sweet, savory, and cinammony (I know that’s not a word lol) but that’s what it is! Served with a dark chocolate sauce. Think Abuelita Mexican chocolate melted into a dipping sauce. Yep this was quite a treat!
Overall my experience was great, the atmosphere is very welcoming and I look forward to going back to try other items on the menu.