While in La Grande for a couple days we stopped here. It's a nice little sports bar with lots of beers on tap. Pretty good space with lotto towards the back. Friendly servers and decent looking menu. We were in late for a couple drinks so we decided to just get fried foods. Everything was good, maybe not great or special, but decent food and nothing to complain about. Just wasn't my kind of vibe so I can't say I'd return, but if you're in to sports bars I think this would be great. read more

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I was in town by myself and had a couple hours to kill..needed a spot to grab a beer, a snack and watch a game. This was a win!! Great local vibe!! read more

I'm not really the sports bar type, all those wannabe jocks living vicariously through the accomplishments of others kinda give me a headache. Plus all that screeching every time someone scores or dunks a ball. Bunch of little girls IMHO.... black guy bounces the ball... passes it to the black guy who bounces the ball..... watching this is supposed to be fun? Play the sport or just hit the tavern and have a drink. Don't try to do both, ladies. So I was walking around town taking pictures just before dark. I had just had a big dinner so wasn't hungry. I'm in a kind of sketchy area of town and I see this gin mill that looks like a dive bar to me. So in I go. The clientele ran the gamit. Mostly seemed like nice folks though. Friendly and attentive barkeep which is always appreciated. Struck up a conversation with a cute young girl who I would have thought was too young to be in a place like this. Nice girl. We wound up walking around later and her showing me the town. Had an early start the next morning so I had to behave myself. While I wasn't especially hungry she and I had some chow and the food was surprisingly good. I had some of hers and visa versa. This place is partly sports bar, dive bar, restaurant, locals hangout and what have you. Definitely my kind of place and as I said, nice people. Staff and the locals both. If I can ever find the place again I'll be back as I am out this way several times a year. It's just off the main drag around the corner from the train depot. Lots of parking, at least when I was there (Saturday night). read more

I been in dis joint a few times since my last review, was in last week and it was just peachy. Tonight my dame had ordered up some fries ta go. We was late because Mamacitas was 35 minutes late getting our food ready that we ordered to go from dem. My woman goes in ta pick up dem fries and I wait .. and wait .. and wait .. and am just headed inside myself to see what needs straightening out when she comes outside. She tells me the cat who is cook'in gave our order to someone else at the bar so they had ta do it all over again. The skinny broad waitress is: _______________________________ (fill in da blank about why you think she is a well ya know. ) No I'm sorry, nada. So the dummy cooking finally gets the fries done and ol' "skinny" says well ya missed happy hour by five minutes yas gots ta pay 3 bucks more. Sounds like something you'd hear in a clip joint. My moll says happy hour was five minutes ago, give me a break. "Skinny" says well it isn't my fault, I'm not the one was late. Then she goes on to say she prolly won't be getting a tip anyway. (Do ya think?) My ankle pulls her aside and tells her look; we just had to wait 35 minutes next door on our food there is why we were late. She tells her I'll pay whatever but you don't have to act this way. So "skinny" gives us the 3 buck less price. I hope I meet up with this dumb bunny waitress one of these days cause I do have a tip for her. Several of them. Truth is she is a rude frail that should be sent down the road kick'in rocks. Wait'in on customers is also called a "service" job right? I know, I know .. decent help is hard to find so yas often has to scrape da dregs outta da barrel in dese times. read more

Whenever we're passing through La Grande, we stop here for a meal. A recent stop did not disappoint. Super friendly staff. A good menu. Well poured drinks. Affordable. Lottery. We like "dive bars," that are for adults only and this definitely worked for us. Try the Nacho! Highly recommend when in the area. read more

Benchwarmer's Pub & Grill - A full sized Nacho. Delicious! - American Near Me - La Grande, Oregon

Their servers are OK - food was decent but this is definitely a sports bar for a younger crowd. Not really my scene - if you'd like a quieter place to play lotto and have some shots I'd suggest the place next door which was outstanding read more

We were just passing through and a local recommended this place. Did not disappoint. Good hometown atmosphere. Good food. Would recommend. Service with a smile. read more

We tried this on a Sunday afternoon enroute from Portland to Boise based on the Yelp app. My 4 star ranking is based on comparison to other pubs. It's pretty good. My husband was disappointed in his Rueben. But my coconut shrimp was absolutely perfect. The coconut batter was light and crispy. The shrimp inside avoided hardness and yet wasn't so soft you would wonder if it's raw. The sweet chili sauce served for dipping stayed off the blazing zone, but hinted at spicy. I ordered a dark ale called Quilters Irish Death. It's excellent. And the pub knowledgeably serves it at room temperature. Several screens here suggest this is an excellent place to watch major sports events. If I were in charge of an American Outlaws chapter in LaGrande, this would be our pub! read more

Chill atmosphere. Good service. Food was fast. Beer was good. No complaints and would stop in again!

Did take out from Benchwarmer's while we were helping our youngest move in for EOU. First heard about Benchies on the EOU athletics Insta... and since the owner is a big supporter (especially of the restarted baseball program), this was top of our list to try. The food was REALLY good. A go-to test for my wife is coconut shrimp. Benchies gets her two thumbs up. The fries (got the brew fries) were spot on - more than passed the "in these times" test of being super tasty in the car... and really good after a quick reheat with the air fryer when we got back to the kids' house. Oh - and the tri-tip dip sandwich was REALLY good, especially the Au jus. Look forward to being back in the spring, and the wings special when EOU wins... With so many of the sports playing at the same time, hopefully lots of wings specials - especially baseball wings! read more

I thought I was going to like it here, menu was great, lots to choose from but it took forever to get the food. Maybe it wouldn't be such a big deal if we weren't on a lunch break but after waiting 30 minutes for a BLT we did let them know we needed to leave in 10 minutes but still it wasn't ready. I was told we were waiting for the bread to grill??? Really?? I said we'd take it the way it was and still I had to leave without the food. I came back 10 minutes later and took it to my husbands work. My salad had cold taco meat and no cheese after asking for extra cheese‍. On a side note the onion rings were very good! So if your looking for a bar to hang out and there is no time issue I recommend the Onion Rings yum. read more

We had a great time and fantastic service from Hanna. The food was wonderful. Side note I have severe allergies and Hanna was amazing telling me about each ingredient. It isn't often I get that kind of service. Thank you benchwarmers and Hanna. read more

This is THE Sports Bar in La Grande! If you think you're going to have a quiet, intimate conversation in here, think again. On a Saturday night, we actually walked out because it was so packed full of EOU fans, we knew we'd never get food. The time we went back... well, let's just say we got to sit down. The service was OK and the food was just OK. Typical pub fare pretty much. I had the special (beef stroganoff) and it was pretty good but everything else was geared towards the Drinking Pitchers of Beer crowd. If the food or service would've been a teeny bit better, they would've received another star. But that's not what Benchwarmers is about. At all. Pitchers of copious flowing beer attached to screaming men focused on the numerous TVs tuned to the same game around the joint? That's the idea! You were warned :/ read more

This is a great spot for lunch or an evening out in LaGrande for a beer with friends. I was just there Saturday night for EOU Homecoming. It is the place to be for Alumni after the football game. Matt seemed to keep the drinks flowing pretty well. On a night like that, there could have been a few more people working the bar, but they seemed to manage. Video Poker, games on several flat screen TV's, any drink you can imagine, amazing bar food (burgers, sandwiches, salads, etc). If you are visiting LG, this would be a great place to stop by. read more

We stopped here on the way to Idaho. I take it this is where EOU students hang out on their free time. There were several groups of them in the bar when we arrived. It wasn't too full so we were able to find out seat and the waitress arrived soon after to take our drink orders. The sweetheart put in a $5 into the good ole video poker machine and won enough to pay for our dinner and drinks. The food is your typical sports(?) bar fare. Burgers. Salads. Sandwiches. He had fish and chips. I had the Reuben. We both enjoyed our meal served with a side of steak fries. It definitely looks like a good place to kick back with friends. For us, it was a fine place to stop for a beverage and food before continuing on our journey east. read more

Drove through La Grande on my way home to Seattle and decided to stop here because of the good Yelp reviews. Everything about the pub lived up to my expectations: great prices, good selection of beers (local and national), tasty food, and friendly staff. I enjoyed the different options for fries that they had (steak, beer battered, regular) and the many local beers they had available (I'm always asking for the local flavors whenever I travel). Our server was friendly, knowledgeable about the menu, and helpful in giving suggestions. The next time I travel through La Grande, I will be stopping by again. read more

Stopped by on way to Seattle. My wife had the chicken oriental salad which she enjoyed. I had the halibut and chips. The fish was over cooked and not great. My wife got some chips and salsa as an appetizer and for $5 it was a joke. My wife also wanted her chicken on the side to feed a pet and they forgot. She asked for small side and they charged another $5. I gave it a three for the setting and the service. Pretty cool pub with good selection of beer. read more

Not being a local, I can't really make any huge judgments about this place. Me and my friend stopped in because it seemed to be the only happening bar in town. We sat at the bar and thankfully weren't oppressed by a wall of screens like you would expect at a sports bar. The bartender was nice, the drinks were mediocre, and the vibe was not anything special but nothing to complain about. If I had to spend more time in La Grande, I'd probably go back. read more

Katie is the best waitress ever! Always has excellent service and it's the nicest person this side of the Mississippi

Decent sports bar, definitely gets crowded a lot with locals and is always hoppin on NFL Sunday. I was not impressed with the food for the most part, but I do recommend the french dip. read more

Just a tip before you get seated, browse the menu and order your diet soda, No one under 21 allowed to eat here. A bit embarrassing to have to shirk out .... read more

Stopped into this joint before our deer hunt. Matt, the owner, was more than accommodating. He even told us some options regarding where to hunt! Had good sports on the TV's, fast flowing and cold beers, great food, and friendly staff. Thanks Matt for a good time and a successful hunt. Although, my deer was smaller than my dog I had a good time in OR and Benchwarmers. Thanks for the memories! read more

Benchwarmer's Pub & Grill - The owner and my brother in law! Ready for some brews and eats! - American Near Me - La Grande, Oregon

I liked the place it has great potential but , the Server was very rude , It took over an hour to get our food and it was just salads and fried food. Sad this place could be awesome read more

Atmosphere and Staff were good...The corn beef sandwich very depressing it was tough, almost like they had put it in the deep fryer.

we were traveling back home to Portland Or from our vacation wanted a cold beer and some food. every beer I ordered they were out that should of been our first clue to leave but we were tired and hungry. took for ever to get our food order in and then after it was cooked it just sat there. the food was cold and my steak fingers were over cooked, the bartender who took our order disappeared and the 2 waitress kept walking by the food guess they cant help out another co-worker and they were rude. I guess they don't know what team work is. I wouldn't go back and I certainly wouldn't recommend it to anyone read more