I was going to Cirque du Soleil in East Boston with my family. Mario’s was on the way for a dinner before the show. We were able to secure a reservation for 4 easily and found street parking opposite to the restaurant. Atmosphere was old school Italian and the service was good. We were greeted by a nice lady and immediately got seated at our table. While it’s a simple menu of home cooked food, the pricing of the items was great. We loved the house Merlot. We ordered Lobster Ravioli, Fusili with Sausage and a vegetarian pasta dish. All entrees came with house salad, which arrived quickly. All the dishes were made fresh with fresh ingredients. Lobster Ravioli was excellent. Fusili with Sausages was good but the vegetarian pasta dish which was promised to be pure vegetarian contained Bacon. It’s a big no-no for my wife who is vegetarian. I had better Italian in North End, Hopefully next time here might be a better visit.
G B.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Somerville, MA
I’ve been going to Marios for a very long time, never had a bad meal and this time was no different. Everything I’ve had is always cooked to perfection with the freshest ingredients, and the service is great. Keep up the great work.
Joseph G.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Tualatin, OR
Visiting from Portland on the way to Santana Concert! Ursula was wonderful! The food was spectacular and so was the service ! Great Italian food the way it should be!
Mike B.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Brighton, MA
I got one of the specials of the day, it was the best pasta I had ever eaten. Also had the veal parm and very good as well. The desserts were delicious. Just like a homecooked meal.
Donna B.
Rating des Ortes: 5 New Orleans, LA
So glad we went here. .we had gone to another restaurant but there was a two hour wait… I checked Unilocal and found Mario’s…I called and they had a table ready when we got there… I felt like I was in my Grandmother’s dining room… food was great… with an authentic Italian restaurant feel… wonderful service!!!
Steve K.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Doraville, GA
A small Italian restaurant near airport with great food! I had homemade fettuccine a la dente, not too firm and not soft, with shrimp and mushroom with tomato sauce. It was excellent! If you are nearby airport and want Italian food this is the place to go.
K C.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Edwardsville, IL
I’m pretty picky and it takes a lot for Italian to impress me. I loved this place! Quaint and cozy ambiance. Owner and server were just lovely and so warm and helpful! The food was fantastic! I had the burrata app-doesn’t sound that exciting but it was so delish. The house salad dressing was tangy and yummy. Entrée was a chicken special-so tasty!!! Homemade tiramisu to top it off? Yes please! What a nice dinner experience!
Simon M.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Norton, MA
Went there as we needed somewhere close to airport. Completely fantastic. We had the lobster special and the lemon veal. The mozzarella was to die for, creamy melt in the mouth. Authentic, great service, great menu. Unpretentious, family ran. Do it.
Tim S.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Windham, NH
I had the pleasure of dining at Mario’s for a business dinner tonight. There aren’t enough superlatives to describe how fantastic our night was. Ursula was a welcome host and seated us ahead of our reservation. She described the appetizers and specials that she had prepared that day and our group of 7 was blown away! The apps were delivered promptly and set a high bar for our dinner expectations. When dinner was served we were blown away by the quality of the food, not to mention the taste. I could go on-and-on but will end here: go to Mario’s! You won’t be disappointed! It’s not a glitzy and glamorous place, more like eating at your Nano’s-which is always the best! Thank you Ursula and Barbara for a fantastic meal and great hospitality.
Madeline V.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Bloomfield, Pittsburgh, PA
I was in Boston for Head of the Charles with my rowing team, and several of us elected to stay on a houseboat docked at a marina located in the eastern part of the city. We went out in search of dinner on Thursday night and happened to find Mario’s, a real gem of a restaurant! There wasn’t a wait, so we were immediately seated by the friendly woman working up front. The atmosphere was cozy with adorable patterned oilcloth on the tables and nice lighting. We were taken care of by two awesome ladies during our time at Mario’s…the one who seated us brought our food, while the other one explained the specials and took our orders. Both made the meal exceptional due to their incredible hospitality and attention to our needs. I don’t often feel comfortable chatting and laughing across the room with the servers I encounter in restaurants, but these two were a different story! My dairy allergy was graciously accommodated by them having the kitchen modify the night’s special to something I could safely eat, which I really appreciated. I ended up with grilled shrimp and asparagus over ziti and drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette. It was some of the best shrimp I’ve ever had. The excellent service combined with the nice wine list and delicious meal I was served would lead me to come back to Mario’s in a heartbeat next time I’m in Boston. Well done!
Ang A.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Happy Valley, OR
AMAZING!!! Best authentic Italian cuisine I have ever had. Miss Ursula is awesome! You must get a cappuccino and cannoli for dessert as well.
Beena S.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Cambridge, MA
A friend had mentioned that East Boston has some great Italian eateries comparable to the North End, so we checked this one out. Enjoyed the food and service overall. Huge chunks of sesame seed crusted bread(locally made) that I dipped in olive oil and my husband spread butter on. We couldn’t stop eating it. Not a good idea because by the time the food came we were full on the bread. Then waitress brought each of us a side of salad — in the best tradition of the old mom & pop’s places. Not many restaurants do that anymore. Mixed greens, tomato, onion — all nice and fresh with a great lemony dressing. The Chicken Limone was really good. Our young vegetarian friend liked her Eggplant Parmesan. I wasn’t crazy about the special I ordered — the grilled veal with asparagus and mozarella cheese. The owner Ursula(who’s been running this place for 32 years she told us) said I should have ordered Veal Parmesan. On the grill it tends to get a bit dry and she tells customers that(the waitress we had didn’t voice that caution). We ended up parcelling at least half of all our orders. What was outstanding was the homemade tiramisu and the other homemade dessert — icecream ball with dark chocolate sauce frozen on it(can’t remember the name, it wasn’t on the menu). Our rating: Food overall = 3(Chicken Limone = 4) Service = 5 Homemade desserts = 5 Ambience = 4(comfortable, relaxed, not romantic)
Tim H.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Bridgewater, MA
Cozy neighborhood little Italian restaurant serving all the classic favorites(and some great specials) and perfection. Our server was truly 5 star, very friendly and accommodating. Good was cooked perfectly(veal and chicken parm were pounded SO thin and perfectly sautéed. Loved the house-made Italian salad dressing. The red sauce(gravy!) is also simple and perfect — great flavor, the kind i always wish I could make myself at home. Do yourself a favor and go!
Jessie C.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Yonkers, NY
Glad the other Italian place was packed because we got to find Mario’s restaurant and WOW it was delicious! Ursula was so sweet and very hospitable. The food was fresh and authentic. Glad I found this place, will be coming more often in my short stay here in Boston.
GJ B.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Boston, MA
Definitely Not! This place has disappointing food. I really do not know how it could have a 4 star rating. We ordered the chicken broccoli Alfredo which instead of coming out with an Alfredo sauce was like a milk soup with chicken broccoli and noodles. It looked so awful I wasn’t willing to try it. My wife ate a ¼ of it before giving up. I got pasta with a bolognese sauce, not good at all. The meat in the sauce was disgusting. Would never recommend and we are unwilling to go back.
Rachel R.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Boston, MA
Love it here! This place is decorated like your grandmothers kitchen. It’s nothing fancy, but the quality of the food is spectacular. I always go for the veal cutlets. Definitely one of the best italian places in East Boston, if you don’t feel like waiting hours at Renos.
Daniel G.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Pittsburgh, PA
What a fabulous little neighborhood place. I was in town with a couple people that I work with. We found Mario’s by a recommendation by our hotel. The staff was amazing. By watching how they chatted with the other tables it is obvious they have a great local following. Oh my the food. I’ve spent a fair bit of time in Italy and this was as good as any place there. Homemade pasta made on site and everything we had was excellent. We will definitely be back.
Donna M.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Canyon Country, CA
Just found this little gem near Logan Airport! Fabulous home cooked food and great wait staff! Highly recommend! ! We will be back! !
Russell W.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Lynn, MA
This is our favorite Italian restaurant. This is the best intimate neighborhood restaurant we have ever found. My wife had the veal and vegetable which consisted of three thinly pounded out breaded veal cutlets and broccoli, onions and red peppers, hold the mushroom, and all covered with a delicious lemon butter sauce. My wife has never found another restaurant which prepares veal as good as Mario’s. The lobster tails were in the shell.(I’m a lobster person. I was also offered just lobster meat so that I wouldn’t have to get the lobster out of the shell.) I will take the leftover fettuccine for my lunch. If you have never tried Mario’s, love Italian food and want a dining experience in a comfortable neighborhood setting, then you can’t go wrong by programming Mario’s into your GPS.
Joanna C.
Rating des Ortes: 5 ASTORIA, NY
I was here on a cold Monday night — my flight to BOS had been super delayed due to weather and I was hangry by the time we landed. My hotel was in Canton but I needed to eat immediately and was hankering for some good old Italian food. Eastie is the best place to get that, so hopped on Unilocal to find myself some Veal Parm. I called ahead to Mario’s since one of the reviews mentioned they were closed on Mondays — they’re not, they’re open on Mondays and I rushed right over! It really is like going to a friend’s house for dinner — super unpretentious, super sweet ladies who pointed me to a corner table. I was one of two tables filled that night, no idea why since the food here was excellent! I had the veal Ursula and it blew my socks off! First, it was HUGE. I could’ve easily made 2 meals out of it. But I scarfed down most of it(and the small side of pasta!) and was super satisfied. Wish I had left room for dessert, but I had to get on the road to head on down to my hotel reservation. Will DEFINITELY be back, makes me miss living in Winthrop, wish I was closer to this gem. And the ladies who served me were SO sweet and so attentive!