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News, commentary, opinion on politics, government, books, social trends, American life, travel, cycling, books, other stuff
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Ben’s gets visitors from around the world. On a recent night in November, this man, otherwise known as hot dog head, was in from Taiwan shooting video and interviewing the owner and patrons.
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This is another photo of the mural on the outside the building, facing the alley way (Ben Ali Alley, in fact) that runs alongside Ben’s. The person shown at the left is Chuck Brown, who died only recently, and created the city’s only indigenous popular music form, GO-GO. To the right is Donnie Simpson, a long time local radio DJ and personality who is another local hero.
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Ben’s was founded in 1958 by a husband and wife team. Although Ben Ali died in recent years, his widow, Mrs.Virginia Ali, can frequently be seen at the restaurant, here chatting with customers. To the right of the photo is a guy who hangs out at Ben’s often and, when the spirit moves him, dances along with the songs playing on the Jukebox.
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These are the cooks and order takers behind the counter at Ben’s. The place has an unusual system: you place your order at the cashier and the person who takes the order then gets your food for you. Patrons take a seat wherever they can find it and the order taker brings it to your table. There is also a counter (not shown) just to the left where you can take a seat and order directly from there and be served. Only the “halfsmokes” have a special cook attending to them, everything else is fixed up as people order. At times, the line goes out the door waiting to place orders. People visiting from out of town are sometimes confused by the system and, in fact, don’t understand why Ben’s is so popular. Hint: its the chili, plus the relaxed atmosphere, like a community gathering place. Some people also go for the halfsmokes, which you can’t get just anywhere.
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Here’s the service counter with its well worn seats. You’d be lucky to find one available during lunch or busy evening hours, which stretch well into the night.
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