Bench Warmers Sports Bar

The bread on this Reuben was delicious, and the corned beef was tasty also. However the sandwich was miniscule, and the other ingredients were so few and mixed together that it was hard to make them out. The bar was rather empty when we got there at 11:30, and it appeared to be a pretty nice bar. The sandwich would have been better priced at $6.35. I did enjoy their french fries quite a bit--they had a good flavor to them.

It was cold, but it was apparent that spring had clearly bested old man winter. I saw a red wing blackbird last week in a field near to where I work. Strange creatures, their calls remind me of someone strumming a stretched rubber band. Apparently aware of winter's recent defeat by spring, they sang of glory and joy. Hopefully, the ladies they wish to attract will be enamored by their talent. It was in this mindset I started out to enjoy yet another adventure in eating. The trip to the airport eatery was uneventful. Traffic flowed easily on 465 despite it being lunchtime. Turning left on to High School Road from the Airport Expressway was tricky, but our driver, Chris, deftly performed the maneuver. Bench Warmers is the hotel restaurant for the Holiday Inn at the airport. It was warm inside, but not stuffy or uncomfortable. The lighting was somewhat dim. We chose couple of tables near the middle of the room in front of a large screen TV. An infomercial touting the advantages of a motorcycle mechanics school droned nearly silent four feet away. Our waiter approached with menus in hand, took our drink orders and quietly disappeared. When our companions showed up, they did not get menus. We shared them so they could decide their order (I'll have the Reuben). Meanwhile, I consider a career change as a motorcycle mechanic. The Reuben arrived on a elevated plastic plate with a cone shape design so that the contents of the plate tend to fall to the outside rim. The sandwich comes with french fries and a pickle. The sandwich was small by comparison with others. The first bite told the tale for the rest of the meal. It was tough and I had to bite clean through to get a chewy mouthful. The cheese may or may not have been Swiss; it so mild I could not tell. Sauerkraut was either non-existent or sparingly used. Upon inspection, I found that no more than a tablespoon of kraut could have been used for the entire plate. The meat was chewy and bland. The trip wasn't a complete waste however; the fries were quite tasty! If you're stuck in the airport area, Bench Warmers is an okay place to pass the time. Skip the Reuben for something else on the menu.

Bench Warmers is a sports bar in the Holiday Inn at the Indianapolis Airport. The first thing you notice walking in is the presence of TVs everywhere. You can see at least two no matter which direction you face. I can see how that would be a plus to some people, but I find it distracting. I didn't notice any smoke yet, but it was still pretty early in the lunch hour. The floor plan is interesting, broken with short walls and shifts of vertical space, rather appealing in an eccentric sort of way. If I recall correctly, there are a couple of pool tables as well. Service was friendly in a non-committal sort of way. The waiter didn't keep very good track of things: he charged me for a soda though I had water (and no lemon was offered, but then, I didn't ask), and he didn't bring the side of ranch dressing Brad requested for his fries. The food itself was served attractively--with lettuce, tomato, and pickle--on wax paper in a plastic platter/basket thing, like they used at Perkins: I only marked down on presentation because they didn't use real china, though they did provide cloth napkins and metal flatware. The fries were very good, especially when they were first brought out. The sandwich was small but tasty, especially the beef, a little light on the dressing but otherwise good. Even the tomato and pickle were good. Bench Warmers would deliver a decent value if they dropped their price about $2, but you expect extra expense from a hotel-based establishment. I won't return unless I'm actually staying at the Holiday Inn, and thus have to fight the airport traffic to get out instead of in.

The Reuben could have used sauerkraut and thousand island, they didn't seem to be present. The rest of the Reuben, while tasty, was very small. It was one of the few times that I've still been hungry after a Reuben meal. Everything else was decent, but nothing stood out as remarkable.

Not a very good value-to-cost on this Reuben. They skimped up on the meat and dressing. The taste was very good though. I especially liked the construction of the sandwich where they wrapped the kraut inside of the meat thus keeping the bread from getting soggy. Overall not a bad place to eat but would have enjoyed a no-smoking section. It was a bar so it could have gotten bad but we were there early and not many smokers were present.

This sandwich was made by a truly gifted sandwich engineer. The Reuben was built bottom up as follows: bread, corned beef, kraut, corned beef, swiss, dressing and bread. This is precisely how a Reuben should be built. The only down side to this sandwich was its size. This was another one of those appetizer Reubens. You do get fries with it (they are very good), a pickle, some lettuce and a tomato slice. But it still lacks for the price. The cost may be relational to its location adjacent to the airport. All in all not bad.

I really enjoyed the experience and the fun of doing the rating. Look forward to more!