Easy Light Rail, bus, and ferry access right in Weehawken. A Happy Hour with $6 beers, half-off pizzas, and apps. Plus a dinner menu packed with chicken parm, grilled branzino, pasta flights, and a shockingly good burger—all with breathtaking NYC views.
There’s a Hudson County restaurant that’s flying under your radar, and it’s practically begging to be discovered with a ridiculously well-priced Happy Hour, seasonally rotating Italian-American dishes, hand-crafted cocktails, healthy pours of wine, and gorgeous New York City views.
Beneci’s in Weehawken isn’t new. At least not to me. I’ve visited the restaurant—which is located inside the Sheraton—in the past and wrote about how it far exceeded the expectations of a typical hotel restaurant.
But it’s Beneci’s location that primes it for more. Perched in the center of a bustling commuter hub, it could become your new favorite Happy Hour stop after work. Or for residents in the surrounding apartment buildings, a new spot to grab drinks or a sit-down meal when you just don’t know what to eat—or when the usual neighborhood offerings have grown tired.
The light rail, bus stops, and the ferry are just around the corner, creating easy access for most of Hudson County.
Your New Favorite Hudson County Happy Hour
For anyone stepping off the light rail craving a drink before heading home, Beneci’s Happy Hour is truly impressive.
You’re thirsty. $6 beer, $8 wine, and if you’re after something a bit stronger, $10 martinis should do the trick. Compared to the bars you usually hit in NYC before catching the train or ferry home, it practically feels like stealing—but the value is apparent even when compared to restaurants in the immediate area.
The drink might be what pulls you in, but food offerings are equally as alluring in both price and quality. During Happy Hour—which runs weekdays from 4 to 7 p.m.—select appetizers are half-off. Yes, half-off. And if that’s not enough, the pizzas are, too.
Beneci’s has also expanded the scope, adding more American bar staples to the menu to complement the already expansive Italian-American options. This is a welcome change, because what’s Happy Hour without hamburger sliders, buffalo wings, and crispy, golden-brown fries, showered with chopped garlic and Parmigiano Reggiano?
Wings and sliders aside, Italian-American is, obviously, still the main character. How about fresh bread with whipped ricotta, chili flakes and mint? A glug of rich olive oil on the side. Simplicity at its finest—good ingredients, left mostly alone to shine at their greatest. Moreover, it’s a nice change of pace from the usual bar dining, and it makes Beneci’s Happy Hour feel truly like an extension of their usual menu, instead of something entirely different.
Then there’s the pizzas. The same ones on the normal menu, but half the price. Classic NY-style personal pies, in several different iterations: plain with cheese, spicy soppressata, or even a dressed-up option with sheep’s milk cheese, arugula, Sicilian honey, toasty walnuts, and a ball of fresh burrata on top. Slice it, and spread the creamy cheese over each slice. Delicious.
A Proper Dinner Destination
But Happy Hour is really just the start to what Beneci’s has to offer. I’ve covered it before, but it’s seriously a great dinner option for the area—not just for hotel guests. Once you’re ready to settle in for a full meal, the menu shows the kitchen’s range with ease.
Plump mussels come piled high and doused in a broth of white wine and copious amounts of garlic. Again, simple cooking. The mussels are clean, perfectly cooked, and accentuated perfectly with crisp wine and aromatics. I’m a mussel freak, and even more so when they’re kept classic. My favorite bite doesn’t come in a shell—it’s the grilled bread on the side that I soak in that delicious broth, and I’m guilty of asking for extra.
For pasta, there are plenty to choose from. I ordered the slow-cooked bolognese once again because it’s that good—served with Cascatelli pasta and shavings of salty Parmigiano Reggiano. Seafood fans might opt for the lobster and crab pappardelle. I wouldn’t blame them. Lobster and crab caught right off the Long Island Sound, creamy garlic-butter, blistered cherry tomatoes, herbs, and chewy ribbons of fresh pappardelle.
Another new addition are the pasta flights. Your choice of three pastas if you can’t make up your mind: bolognese, penne alla vodka, rigatoni pesto, and Alfredo. It offers a versatile option for those who can’t make up their minds when scanning a menu (me).
Beneci’s has finally added a chicken parm—and it’s a good one. Nothing too out there: a large, thin-and-crispy chicken cutlet, zesty tomato sauce, melty mozzarella, and a side of pasta. It’s exactly what you want a chicken parm to be, and that’s exactly the reason to order it. What is it they say? If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Well, I think Beneci’s chicken parm is the embodiment of that saying.
I also thoroughly enjoyed a grilled branzino—the skin left on so it chars up into an almost chip-like crust, with flaky, succulent meat hiding underneath it. With a layered tomato chutney draped over top, tender-but-crisp broccolini, and roast potatoes, it’s a complete dish that shows a bit more of that range I hinted at prior.
Speaking of range, Beneci’s leans back into the American side of things with a surprisingly great cheeseburger. A beef patty made from a mix of Pat LaFrieda sirloin and brisket, char-broiled and cooked to temperature, melty Gouda cheese, lettuce, tomato, and a zippy burger sauce to complete the picture. I was genuinely impressed with this burger offering—I could picture myself frequently tucking into the bar just for the burger if I lived in the neighborhood.
Beyond Food, the Drinks Show Up
To go with the food, Beneci’s has debuted some new seasonal options on their cocktail menu. A tart and slightly bitter sour combines Casamigos tequila with Aperol, lemon juice, orange bitters, and sprigs of thyme, which add a gentle aroma with each sip. Its sweetness is balanced and it goes down maybe a little too easily.
A shaken bourbon drink really shows the turn of the seasons well. The Blacklisted mixes Bulleit bourbon and muddled blackberries together with honey syrup and fresh lemon for something that’s boozier than the easy drinking leads on. If you like a stiffer whiskey drink, the Frontier Coffee combines bourbon with coffee liqueur, Averna amaro, and a few dashes of chocolate bitters. If you ask me, it’s the perfect nightcap.
For the Locals
It’s past time that you discovered what Beneci’s has to offer.
You don’t need a hotel reservation to eat here. You don’t need a special occasion, either. Just a Light Rail stop, a quick walk from your apartment, or a reason to skip cooking during the week.
Next time you’re coming home from a long day in the city, or looking for Saturday night dinner plans, Beneci’s is worth the visit, and it’s a whole lot closer than you think.
Beneci’s is located at 500 Harbor Blvd, Weehawken, inside the Sheraton. Open for lunch and dinner seven days a week, with Happy Hour from 4 to 7, Monday through Friday.
Peter Candia is the Food + Drink Editor at New Jersey Digest. A graduate of The Culinary Institute of America, Peter found a passion for writing midway through school and never looked back. He is a former line cook, server and bartender at top-rated restaurants in the tri-state area. In addition to food, Peter enjoys politics, music, sports and anything New Jersey.
