Ginormous food is a trend, and Benny Scarpetta's, which offers ginormous pizza for incredibly cheap prices, has been following this trend in Lynchburg for two years.
Benny's has ginormous, amazing-tasting pizza at prices that are college budget friendly, and if you're looking for a quick bite, or even a hot spot for a date, then Benny's is your go-to restaurant.
Pizza
Pizza is great for college students because it tends to be less expensive. Benny's specializes in insanely low prices and wicked good pizza. The slices are $5 each, but the slices are insanely ginormous; literally BIGGER THAN YOUR HEAD.
The best part of Benny's pizza is the perfect balance between thin and regular crust. The dough has the snap of thin crust with the bite of normal crust. The combination gives the pizza insane crunch while still having enough thickness to serve as the foundation for the rest of the pizza
Benny's Menu
With a concise, classic menu, Benny Scarpetta’s offers cheese, pepperoni, sausage, and garlic mushroom along with a rotating monthly special. The special for April was the “Wake and Bacon.” This pizza featured bacon, eggs, sriracha, and ricotta cheese; achieving the pizza heaven with the ultimate combination of salty, spicy, and cheesy.
The May pizza special is Sweet and Spicy Chicken as well as Roasted Peppers and Onions. I haven't gone to Benny's this month yet, but just thinking about the Roasted Peppers and Onions Pizza is making my mouth water.
My favorite slice to get is the sausage. When I first saw the slice, I was confused because most pizza joints top their pizza with crumbled up sausage on the gooey cheese. Instead of crumbly bits, the pizza was scattered with slices of sausage links.
Regardless of my surprise, the sausage was the best part of the pizza. It is one of the best sausages I have ever eaten. (And I have eaten a lot. Sausage is my go-to pizza topping.)
The Vibe
The ginormous pizza is not the only reason that this spot is popular in the Lynchburg area; the alternative pop music along with the murals and the writing on the walls create a young, hip vibe that is perfect for college students.
With the cool atmosphere, cheap food, and low lighting at night in the back, this would be the ideal place to go on a date (hint for every future boyfriend!) Especially at Liberty, where finding a place to be alone with your significant other is a constant struggle, this is a great place to go out and be uninterrupted.
And if you’re considering asking a girl out, but don’t know where to go, eat here. Benny’s relaxed vibe creates a no pressure zone and the constant music and pounding of pizza dough creates a constant buzz of noise that eliminates the tension from awkward silences that are bound to happen.
The Benny's Challenge
Benny's pizza is so big that they offer a contest that anyone who can eat an entire 28-inch pizza in under an hour by themselves wins $500 and their picture is put on the wall of fame.
If this magnanimous challenge is accomplished, the winner receives $500, a champion t-shirt, and "infamy" (picture on Benny's wall of fame). As of today, only three people have been able to accomplish this feat, and that is including all 17 of Benny's locations.
Virginia Born
Although Benny's originated in Virginia, the company now has 17 locations in four different states: Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Pennsylvania.
The Lynchburg location was established because of a boy named Cooper. who wrote a letter to the owner of Benny Marconi's in Roanoke, VA. He told the owner that he and his family love the pizza and "think it's hilarious how big the pizza is...", but the location in Roanoke was too far for them to visit on a regular basis. Cooper created a fully fledged argument for a Lynchburg location that would make a lawyer proud. Needless to say, there is now a Benny's pizza in Lynchburg, VA.
If you live in Lynchburg and go to Liberty University or any other college nearby their locations, it would be an injustice to not go to a restaurant designed for college students! Benny's offers insanely ginormous pizza that fits a college student's limited budget.