El Zapata Restaurante Mexicano

Fort Benning doesn't have a whole lot of dining options... so we stopped into El Zapata after hearing it was collocated with an actual brew pub on post!

Walking in, we found the atmosphere to be pretty inviting actually.  A couple pool tables, dim lighting, a nice looking bar setup, copper brew kettles through the glass, and a mix of tables and high-tops throughout.

Unfortunately, that's where the warmth ended.

Out with a couple ladies... the three of us sat at a high-top table with the light shining right in our faces.  They have the curved table lamps that are poorly placed directly at eye level, so we had to move to get away from the shine (no wonder nobody was sitting at these things).

After quite a while, we were approached by an Asian lady who spoke really, really, REALLY bad English.  I'm not culturally insensitive, at all... and this IS an Army post where Joes bring back spouses and families from all over the world... but we seriously couldn't understand almost anything she said.  We barely stumbled through communications with a barrage of questions like "I'm sorry - could you say that again?" "What was that?" and "I think she means..."  I'm sure she's a nice lady... might even be very hard working...... but how can you hire someone, for the front-of-the-house, that can't communicate with your patrons?

We made our way through the ordering process (mostly by pointing), ensuring nobody made any special requests that could be misunderstood.  Then we asked to see a list of their beer...  Turns out... the brew pub is considered a separate establishment, existing only at the bar itself.  Huh??  Yeah... we had to walk over to the bar and start a whole separate tab if we wanted to drink.  Weird... but okay...... I'll leave the beer review for the Benning Brew Pub then...

When the food arrived, it was pretty much all luke-warm, made-from-a-box, Tex-Mex, tasteless garbage...... and that's putting it mildly...  There wasn't a single redeeming thing about anything we ordered!

Only the ambiance puts this place over a single star.  I'd definitely tell everyone to just head off post for your grub...

RUDE manager!!!!! And the food could definitely be better.  I only eat here because it's right around the corner from my job.

the food was so-so and it took a while to get, but our waitress Adrianna was very nice and made up for it. I might try it once more before i put it on my "not even if i'm starving" list.