Benny's Tacos & Rotisserie Chicken in Santa Monica — Restaurant in Santa Monica

I've had a mix of service there but overall, its a pretty casual place with fresh food and friendly service. I've tried the rotisserie chicken with french fries and grilled veggies, carne asada plate with house salad, tacos, churros, and agua frescas. And of course they have a salsa bar with green tomatillo salsa, pico de gallo, onions, cilantro and radishes. Their rotisserie chicken was tender and not very seasoned but the salsa took care of that. This order was to-go so my french fries were soggy since they came in a plastic container full of condensation (which probably is a good sign since that means the fries were hot and probably fresh out of the fryer when they were put into the container). The grilled veggies turned out to be julienned zucchini, yellow squash, and bell peppers. The carne asada was pretty flavorful, but mostly average. The house salad consisted of chunks of cucumber and tomatoes on a bed of chopped romaine lettuce with sliced red onions. I tried their tacos on a Tuesday and the cashier informed me that they have a Taco Tuesday deal $5 for 3 tacos (chicken, pork, or beef). I have tried the lengua, carne asada, carnitas and al pastor. They were all pretty average, except the carnitas wasn't as pull-apart tender and was rather dry for me. It also came with chips and sometimes a little chopped up lettuce and tomato. I often find that this place has problems with consistency--service wise and food wise. Sometimes they leave off the chips, sometimes they leave off the lettuce and tomato. The churros were filled with cream and still warm when I got them. I tried their agua frescas and the lemonade one was quite good. The waiters/waitresses were friendly and attentive, considering it's a "order at the counter and your food will be brought to you" place. The cashier that I picked up my order from was detailed-oriented enough to pick out the staples on the handle of the plastic bag (they stapled the receipt to the bag) so I wouldn't stab myself. They have a couple parking spots and there's meter...

Dear Benny and partners,

I am retracting and adding two more stars. Came for dinner and used my credit from last time. Plenty of parking after 6pm no problema Understand about the bathroom and I also understand about lawyers! :). Had a bean cheese and rice burrito..flavor was on point and very satisfying. Salsa was above average good but still not as good as my grandfather's he babied his frijoles de la olla (spelling idk 😬). And his salsa was placed fresh and warm right on the table but somewhat close. Delicious hearty and homey burrito and Large!. Hit the spot. I am ready for a siesta!! 🪅

Previous review: (Santa Monica) no indoor seating area & no bathroom Bad from beginning to end. Got here needed to use restroom NONE. Not even for paying customers 😕.. man next to me ordering with employee that had bad attitude... Unpleasant to see... Parking 2-3 spots and 1 handicap.. got here about 1 pm. Had to look and park a block away got lucky. Food lots of chips, beans and rice tiny street tacos although lots of cabbage to make them look big. Guac included with combo see photo for yourself put in plate after scooping out of tiny cup.. Finally fish tacos were terrible!! And I have had a lot of fish tacos at other places. For $17 bucks I would expect a lot more out of this dish. Looked over at other customers quesadillas and the burritos looked large but never had them here. Would I come back? Not for fish tacos this not the place. I would come back only because I got a credit for the fish tacos plate I returned.. not impressed 👎. Manager Theresa was very nice and the flavor of the food on point. Beans and green...

Alright been here enough times.

I've had a few things on the menu here. But lets be real and just talk about the rotisserie chicken. I usually order one whole chicken for later to have chicken to make things at home. I also order their chicken quesadilla with cheese and chicken only. And HOLY giant quesadilla! They do NOT skimp on the portions here at all. The salsas are fresh and extremely tasty.

But lets talk about the chicken. So is it good? YES. Is it your average rotisserie chicken? NO This is far above your average rotisserie chicken without question. Seasoned well and cooked to perfection, not try at all. You will NOT be disappointed with the chicken.

The outside seating is nice. There is parking side/behind the building they have their own lot. And plenty of street parking as well.

The ONLY reason I gave them 4 instead of 5. Is because the inside is quite hectic. There are things everywhere and it just isn't organized/clean looking.

Is the staff good? yes no issues. They do A LOT of to go orders here. And you will see that when you walk in. Because honestly that's all you see when you do walk in... to go orders on a rack right in the front. ( you guys should really put your to go orders hidden away in the back etc ) it creates an odd presence and quite busy/hectic feeling if you're a first timer here. You might not even come back because of how the front is presented.

However I did look past that and the chicken was legit.

Do I recommend this place? most definitely if you like...