We brought our grandsons out for a Friday date night. Seated right away. Server was pleasent and obliging. Ordered spagetti and pizza for the kids and we has the veal and chicken parm. Italian wedding soup was delicious. Wish I could say the same for the pasta sauce. Was very bland no flavor. Tasted as if it was straight from the can...the kids would not eat their pasta at all. No amount of cheese could mask the flavor. Will be a very long time before we return read more

Free unlimited fresh bread and soup(or salad). Entrees are around $25/person but worth it for the free appetizers. Service was great. Very busy Saturday 5pm. Loved my 3 cheese ravioli. 10/10. Chicken parmesan 7/10. Spaghetti was bland and I was underwhelmed. Bathrooms.are tucked way in the back and was awkward to walk so close to so many other diners to get too. read more

See all

Eastside Mario's is somewhere between Olive Garden and Boston Pizza definitely more of an Italian influence than Boston Pizza. I enjoyed the unlimited garlic loaf and Caesar salad. did find the creamy potato bacon soup kind of bland. I had the garlic shrimp Alfredo. I enjoyed it but would've liked more shrimp but for the price do you think my meal was pretty fair dinner for two was under $60 with non alcoholic drinks. More of a family restaurant and was very bright. The wait on a Friday around 7 PM was 15 minutes. I was quoted 20. Our service was good we didn't go without anything, but I also could not tell you our servers name. Ample parking available even being busy. read more

The unlimited salad and soup alone are a good deal. I really like their italian wedding soup. I'm not a big fan of their entrees and the rest of the menu but we also tried the dessert sampler and that was decent. Staff is friendly and the service is actually pretty quick. Good for dining with family as the restaurant is pretty spacious read more

East Side Mario's - Italian Near Me - St Albert, Alberta

Amazing service! Came with as much free food as you could eat such as bread and salad. Chicken parm is delicious! Great ambience. They have so many crazy inventions like the straw belt. I asked for a straw and they had a belt with straws. Easy 5 stars. read more

See all

Had ordered takeout and then called to pick up. They said it wouldn't be a problem. We arrived at the restaurant and they apologized and had sent our order to the location. Would not give us a credit nor did they apologize. Ended up waiting and they made the meals again. read more

We used to come to East Side Marios and havent been here in a while. We went to my nieces birthday during the holiday season and the food was not quite as tasty as I remember. The fresh bread was good but my daughter ordered the seafood with mussell in tomatoe suace and they didnt taste very good to her so I had a bite and neither of us could finish it. My lasagne was pretty good and my husband enjoyed his fettucini but probably not a great idea to order seafood here. The service was really good and the salad was really tasty so we will be likely be back but wont order the seafood. read more

It has been a hot minute since I stepped into an East side Mario's and now I am remembering why it used to be such a staple in my early 20's date night routine. The hot load of bread off the bat to start, the all you can eat items the kitchy but warm atmosphere, what more could you want. Well not much has changed and in a good way. All that I used to love is still there and now with having young kids we get to explore that side of the menu. I had the balsamic flat bread on this visit and a all you can eat soup. The flat bread was just so delicious. I wish I had more left. The soup was okay as well. The kid's pizza was a great size and they had some fun drinks. The overall value was definitely there and we left with tons of leftovers. We Also had a very lovely server who was very attentive but not in a bad way. Overall a nice family dining experience that brought me back a few years. read more

My god this place was a waste of time and money. Expensive food that was the equivalent of eating cardboard and the service was absolute trash. Took takeout dishes and fed it all to our dogs when we got home. read more

My mom and I popped in for a drink while Christmas shopping. She loves their ceasers and we love their appies. Today did not disappoint either. We had the cauliflower pizza and prosciutto wrapped cheese. Omg they were both to die for. Loved them and loved that we shared. Service was amazing and love sitting and watching the games on the TVs. read more

Came to East Side Mario's today to give them a 2nd chance after an abysmal visit last summer. The hubs and I were pleasantly surprised today - better service, better food, and better value this visit (at lunch). Was it phenomenal? No. our water glasses sat empty for 20 minutes and the Wedding soup was missing pasta today - weird. But overall, a huge improvement. Would order the soup, salad, and pizza again. They have different specials on different data of the week - worry googling before you plan a visit. Also - you can earn scene movie points here! read more

See all

Just went to East Side Mario's with some friends. I honestly didn't know East Side Mario's still existed. I told a guy at work I was going to this one and he said "That's where I had the worst meal of my life." So I had low expectations. Our server was nice. Good on her. This review only has a 3 stars because our server was nice. It's usually never their fault. The food was the definition of mediocre. I got the chicken parm. The chicken part was good. Hard to mess that up. The sauce tasted like it came out of a can. I ate it... Not the whole thing... Most of it. When I was paying the debit machine asked if I would recommend to a friend. I said no. Not unless almost every other restaurant burned down and you had to choose between this and Boston Pizza. You know what? 2.5 stars is my rating. That isn't an option but it should be. read more

East Side Mario's - A stock photo of the chicken parm - Italian Near Me - St Albert, Alberta

My family has been coming here since they opened and we have never been disappointed. I especially love the Italian wedding soup but the pastas are always great too. We've celebrated so many birthdays here I've lost count. read more

We come to this East Side Mario's maybe once or twice a year, and every time we have a mediocre visit. Usually we try to come at the end of a dinner rush, but we still end up waiting for a table. I can't believe that this restaurant is still as busy as it is considering their quality has gone down so much since they started closing locations across Canada. Upon being seated, we usually have to wait 10 minutes until we even see a waitress. At least by then we know what we want to eat and drink! The food is still decently good, and you get quite a bit, but I wouldn't say you get your money's worth. The prices keep increasing but the portion sizes stay the same. I get inflation and all, but when I'm paying $20 an entree, I want to be full at the end! We will likely still come here on occasion, but I might try coming at different times to see if the service is better. By the time we get there, everyone is exhausted and definitely don't have their best customer service face on. read more

I had a much better experience here compared to my last visit. The service was fast and friendly. We were sitting at a table right away and was well looked after.Although I wish they had more vegetarian options on the menu, The spaghetti Primavera and the mushroom pizza were pretty good. There is plenty of parking space in the parking lot and high chairs are available read more

Talk about meh. I remembered not being a big fan of this place, but I hadn't been to an ESM in almost 10 years... so I thought maybe it had improved. First off... service was fantastic. We sat right by the kitchen and it ran like a well oiled machine. No complaints there. But the food was bland. I added a lot of salt and pepper just to get some sort of flavour. read more

Terrific waiters, the bread is always fresh and hot, perfectly cooked noodles every time, this place is as good as it gets. Not to mention the management is so nice read more

Food and the service is always top notch. I bring my son here every weekend and have always had a great time. Highly recommended, you will not be disappointed. read more

My husband & I went to East Side Mario's in St. Albert, Alberta last night and we were totally happy with the food, the drink, the service and the atmosphere. The young lady who waited on us was most professional as well as friendly. She brought us a most delicious fresh, crisp Caesar Salad & bread and took notice when we would be ready for our entree's. We have often gone to this same restaurant with the same courteous service. We will definitely be going back read more

I've seen tons of ads on TV for East Side Marios for years, but never had a reason to stop in until last week. The aroma of garlic overwhelms you as you approach the restaurant, probably due to the abundance of free garlic rolls served with your meal. These garlic rolls look about as manufactured as the Olive Garden's breadsticks, but taste better (probably due to all of the Garlic). East Side Mario's is essentially like an Olive Garden, but with far more attractive decor, and you can get unlimited caesar salad instead of that Iceberg Lettuce excuse for a salad that the Olive Garden serves. I ordered a Pizzarolli, because I'm a sucker for anything that is stuffed and pizza-like. It was too salty. But East Side Mario's is inexpensive, good for kids, and we didn't have to wait on a Saturday evening around 6 PM. Not a bad option if you're in the area and have kids. read more

We had a reservation for 7 pm. We were seated just as the dinner rush was clearing. It took 20 min after being seated for our waitress to attend to us. When she did she passed the blame rather than just apologizing. The food was alright. Then when it came to our bill our waitress told us she was doing us a favor and not adding the mandatory gratuity because we had to wait so long for service. However, there were signs clearly posted at the entrance that there was mandatory gratuity for parties of 8 or more... there were 4 of us. No intention of going back, I didn't enjoy leaving frustrated at the end of my dining experience read more

I wanted to like this restaurant SO much but it just isn't a good place if you are looking for quality. All the menu items look and sound delicious but everything *i've tried* has been underwhelming and not appetizing in the least. The garden salad was swimming in italian dressing (terrible) calamari was so over cooked it was like dust inside of batter. The chicken parm was way way overcooked and the side of pasta with tomato sauce tasted like they used no name tomato soup. Ugh, not a good experience at all. I want to give 3 stars but I'd have to say that McDonalds food is better. :/ read more

If East Side Mario's put as much attention to detail into their food and service as they do the decor and overall vibe of the place, they would be onto something. It didn't look promising when we walked in. It was pretty busy inside. There were already two families standing inside the entrance waiting for somebody to acknowledge their existence and possibly show them to a table. Several staff members walked by us, around us, and through us without so much as a "hello." They never said that somebody would be by to seat us either. Always a good move to make your customers feel invisible. When we were finally seated, I ordered the Mario's Chicken Parmigiana. That was my first disappointment. It tasted like a Weight Watchers frozen dinner. The chicken was dry and scaly. It was like sandpaper. As some of you may know, I am a milkshake enthusiast so I ordered the Oreo Cookie shake. It was completely tasteless and bland. It was more like a Tim Horton's Ice Cap. Or more accurately it was like the sludge that you scrape off your ice tray when you're defrosting your freezer. It's not even worthy of being called a milkshake. It was five bucks, just like John Travolta and Uma Thurman's shake on "Pulp Fiction." But unlike John and Uma's this one wasn't worth 'five dollahs." Avoid this one. Our waitress made a really good first impression. She was enthusiastic, talkative, and psychotically friendly. It's too bad about her short-term memory loss though. Poor kid. We had soup and bread brought to us for appetizers before the sandpaper and freezer sludge were served. We finished the bread and then asked for some more. No problem, she says. About 10 or 15 minutes later she came to the table and said that the bread was still in the oven. Eventually our main courses were served and consumed. The bread was never mentioned again, it went the way of Marty McFly's older brother on the photograph. I guess the waitress forgot all about it. Just like I'm going to forget all about this East Side Mario's. I'm glad that we had a gift card. read more

I used to play baseball when I was younger and much more fit. I am now a foodie and my belly definitely shows it. In baseball, 4 balls gets you on base and unfortunately 3 strikes and you are out! Well, what does this have to do with East Side Mario's? Just sit right back and you will hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip... It is Mom's 77th birthday and guess what she has a coupon $10 off at East Side Mario's. So to make Mom happy we make a reservation for 7 people at East Side Mario's in St. Albert. We are advised on making the reservation that "all reservations will have a 15% gratuity automatically added". I immediately think this is great as I usually tip 20% and round up, but if they are going to force me to an amount, the server doesn't get a penny more. (ok so I am already a bit ticked off) We arrived for our 5:30 pm reservation and the table was ready and we were seated right away (looks like it is going to be a good night). As I sit down, I touch the chair next to the one I chose and I thought it was going to fall over (one leg was about an inch shorter than the others), the wobble that was there has to have been noticed by someone (the downhill slide begins). Our server gets the chair replaced but not before finding three more with just as bad of a wobble and of course just leaves them for some other unsuspecting customer. Our food order is taken in a respectable amount of time, Mom orders a shrimp and pasta dinner (a good choice for a 77 year old) and a stuffed mushroom appetizer. My niece just orders soup for her entrée and her Dad orders the linguini carbonara (it comes with three skewers of bacon wrapped scallops) with a soup appetizer. There is lots of conversation going on an none of us really knows what the other has ordered. One of the other servers shortly brings the stuffed mushroom caps and a bowl of soup to the table asking who ordered the soup and my niece puts up her hand and the soup is in front of her and mushroom caps in front of the birthday girl and he is gone. It takes Katie about 20 minutes to work her way through the bowl of soup when our server finally comes to the table and asks why Katie as her soup already (noticing the Brian did not have his). She immediately makes an excuse saying I told him to give the soup to the guy. She asks Brian if he still wants his soup, which he says yes and asks Katie if she wants another as her appy so she doesn't have to sit with nothing while we eat. Katie says no thank you. Within seconds of her leaving the table our entrées are being brought to the table. Brian has a nice order of linguini carbonara with three skewers of bacon wrapped scallops, three skewers with one tiny scallop on each one, the three could have fit on half of one skewer. He starts eating his linguini and is about half way through and his soup now arrives at the table. Now, my parents are with me so I am bitting my tongue and not making a scene for Mom's birthday. The rest of the meal is fairly uneventful, other than when I asked for fresh ground pepper on my steak I got to enjoy her elbow in my face as the pepper was ground. We asked for our bill, as she brought it to us she cheerily said "just in case you didn't know, 15% was automatically added because of the reservation but you can give me more". She was handed a credit card and the ten dollar coupon to go process the bill. The credit card receipt came back, it was signed and we got up to leave. As we were walking out we noticed that the ten dollar discount wasn't applied (but that automatic %15 tip sure was... go figure). I stopped at the door and asked for the manager. The manager came over and I told her about the 10 dollar coupon error and started describing some of the other problems of the night. She snapped at me to just wait, she walked away about two minutes later she came back and demanded the credit card so she could cancel the whole original bill and redo it with the 10 dollar discount. She came back with the adjust bill and snootily said "the server says you never gave her a coupon but I took it off anyway", I replied "well you better check the floor because it was handed to her with the credit card". The credit card receipt was signed and out the door we went. On the way out we noticed that they forgot to re-apply the automatic 15% gratuity. I might have given a 5% tip, but now the server had nothing. Somehow I don't feel bad, and as this was now the third time in four visits the I have had problems at this location. 1 ball 3 strikes YOUR OUT! Their only saving grace was the Funnel Cake I had for dessert. YUMMY! This got them an extra star (2 instead of 1). read more

Came here with a party of five (2 kidlets) on a very busy Friday night. They must have a lot of seating, as the parking lot was completely full, and inside was quite noisy. We were offered a choice of indoors or out, and as it was perfect weather, we chose outside. EXCELLENT choice - the patio is really lovely, with a wide variety of potted flowers, vines, and plants, all well tended and scattered about so that every table was surrounded. The food was fairly average, no particular dishes to rave about. Kids meals, while not as inexpensive as some places, were better quality, and the pizza was made on site rather than frozen. The best part, from their perspective, was the tiny trio of ice cream cones included for dessert. I do mean tiny - perhaps two tablespoons of ice cream, not pushed down into the cones at all. However, it's enough for wee ones and they liked having three instead of one. The adults split two appetizers, skimpy lamb skewers and deep fried bites of some sort of cheese, overcooked on the breading but the cheese inside wasn't melted - we all agreed we wouldn't order either of those again. One Piada was quite flavourful (the 3 P's) but the other was mediocre at best (steak and gorgonzola). The menu was fairly extensive, with a good variety of price points, and you could even completely customize pasta dishes to your liking. Although the place was really, really busy, our server was cheerful and attentive. Food was a bit slow in arriving, but I cannot imagine that poor kitchen staff's work pace with so many people. I probably saw at least two dozen wait staff just from my vantage point on the patio, and who knows how many more were inside. It's obviously popular, but for the quality of food vs. price, we'll stick to an occasional lunchtime rather than a weekend "evening out." read more

We were looking for plentiful food and nothing fancy, so this was a good choice. The restaurant was busy but we were seated immediately at 7pm on a Friday. Service was great - we had a very friendly server and our table was constantly cleared of empty dishes and glasses by bussers circling the room without being too intrusive. We ordered a cocktail that was brought to us and were enjoying it when our server came with a second (free) drink because the bartender realized she forgot an ingredient and was very apologetic (we didn't even notice, it was still good). All the staff were very pleasant to deal with. The food was ok but could have used some tweaks. I made my own pasta ($14) and found the rose sauce very watery and lacked seasoning. The lasagna ($19) was impressive in height and very cheesy, but again, the sauce needed work. We also had the cheese fritters ($9) which were good and crispy. The unlimited bread was hot and garlicky, the Italian wedding soup needed salt and the Caesar salad was cold and crispy. We ended with the cheesecake with strawberry sauce ($8) and it was good, but the sauce was runny and not very strawberry-y. It was a quick dinner and service was great, but don't expect super authentic Italian fare. read more

My family loves this place! One of the few chains that haven't attempted the "faux fancy" look affecting restaurants like the plague. This is a place where you leave pretense at the door. We love the super relaxed feel - almost like you're in grandmas kitchen; or a family owned joint where everyone knows your name. When we go, our group orders 5 of the same thing: "Hells Kitchen Chicken". 2 deliciously spicy chicken breasts, wedge potatoes, seasonal veggies and sauteed mushrooms. Yum! Paired with unlimited bread and caeser or garden salad, you are guaranteed to be stuffed and end up with a delicious left over lunch the following day! Menu prices have risen noticably in the past few years, but they have some crazy daily specials or drink offerings like $8 for 8oz glasses of wine! Their house variety is actually quite delicious! It was always a mystery why the other ESM's shut down in Edmonton, but I am glad there is one left in the area! The hike up to St. Albert can be a bit of a trek, but well worth it. Love you East Side's! read more

Visited this location on Sunday for lunch. The place was busy but not packed. We were seated right away and given menus. Shortly after we were greeted by our server. He was friendly and took our drink order and brought our drinks and bread right away. Disappointed that they have no garlic butter! I ordered Spaghetti with meat balls. The meat balls looked not cooked and were pink in the middle. The pasta and sauce were fair enough but nothing great. My friends had the Chicken Linguini Tetrizini which was tasty as always. They loved it. We gobbled up three loafs of bread which was great but I wished they offered a whole wheat option. The service was attentive but they didn't seem overly concerned when I addressed the pink on the inside meat balls. Would someone please clean the obvious dust clusters hanging from chandeliers above the tables. This is a big turn off! read more

Above average, but nothing phenomenal. But one shouldn't expect phenomenal for $10-$20 lol This was my first experience, I went with a friend who loves the place. She seemed to know more than the servers! Great, friendly, family atmosphere with very reasonable prices and great portions. Perfect for family's. The take home entree's are not cooked fresh, they are prepackaged and sent to them frozen. Positive experience, would recommend. Great alternative to BP's or Montana's. read more

I have been to a number of east side Mario's locations and I have probably eaten at east side Mario's no less than 15 times. I have always had a good experience especially with my 2 young kids. This St.Albert location is the worst. Immature, disrespectful staff and an equally disrespectful and childlike Owner named Larry. Due to the direct and first hand experience with Larry and his staff I will NEVER eat at another east side Mario's ever again. Within in a few short minutes Larry and his bumbling female staff member who's every second word was either "uh" or "duh"were able to reduce the east side Mario's brand and experience to the equivalent of a poorly run fast food joint. This is, at best, a bottom tier chain restaurant that is a few short years away from closing its doors much like Chilis and Tony Romas. If the economy doesn't kill this place the hiring of staff with an aptitude more suited to a bottle depot VS. The service industry coupled with the owner Larry's poor business acumen will. Undoubtedly and hopefully, we will see this place with a "for lease" sign soon. read more

Gross food and make sure you keep your receipt some guy accuses everyone of going to hospital and tickets your vehicle. Then you have to go back in wait in line and get it voided by the restaurant. read more

We absolutely Love this East Side Mario's !!! Fabulous food and Service Every time !!!!! read more

Great food and great value!! I appreciate their action to protect me by insisting on masks and I'll defiantly bring my family back! Ps. The Spaghetti Primavera is awesome!! read more

Nice environment and decent service. Food was bleh. I got a beef sandwich and they forgot to take the paper off the cheese! And then the spaghetti take home I got with meatballs was under cooked. I went to eat it for lunch today and the middle looks raw still. Not impressed... the server was very nice though. Food tastes like microwave meals. read more

It was delicious and not hard on the wallet. I had the lasagna and the woman had the cheese cattilelinni. Pardon my spelling read more

East Side Mario's - East side marios st. Albert - Italian Near Me - St Albert, Alberta

ive had 5 star experiences in red deer and edmonton with east side... and mostly good experiences in camrose. this was my first time trying st albert. its a 40 min drive for me, so i definitely wish this chain will return to south edmonton. took my wife and her son... his girl and a child... everyone had great meal. went on a sunday afternoon and place was packed... smiling faces everywhere. meal was around 65 after my tip so 15 dollar average which included soda drinks. i had an amazingly good pizza... thinnest crust i think ive ever seen on a pizza but just loaded with meat toppings. yum yum but maybe a little pricy at 15.99 for an individual size. the all you can eat salad, soup, bread was delicious as always for my wife and really a good value. marios probably wouldnt be 5 star compared to some of the most expensive restraunts around, but in its price range ive never been happier with any of its competition. other than my one real super crappy experience in camrose, ive now dined at marios at least 30 times and every time except that once is 5 stars read more

Hubby and I went for dinner tonight. Our server was excellent. She was very attentive to us and was on top of our unlimited soup and salad, even when we didn't need anymore. I can't believe the prices of our meals for what we got - I got the Canadian pizza and hubby got the bacon carbonara, both with unlimited soup and salad and each meal got a bonus pasta to take home to enjoy the next day! Unbelievable! I don't know why we don't come here more often! We will definitely be back! read more

Stop. Do not enter. Turn around and go eat at Original Joe's or Pho Hoa. This was the worst dining experience of my life. Upon entry to this obnoxious, classless den of mediocrity and sadness we were whisked to a tiny booth by the kitchen. They were half-empty. The menus were approximately six square feet, featuring brightly coloured pictures that looked like they were instagramed from a grade ten home ec class. Reheated bread in a paper bag arrived with generous heapings of margarine. What kind of place hangs a chandelier over your head and won't spring for butter??? We split an appetizer of stuffed mushroom caps. They arrived baked and covered in twelve pounds of cheap cheese. (a theme!) The whole mushrooms were paired with dry crusts of bread, and were served on some weird specialty mushroom dish. It tasted fine but made no sense. My coffee was the same brand of instant coffee my mother drinks, and the cup was badly stained. Meanwhile obnoxious pop music, the kitchen, and families of braindead customers contributed to an atmosphere like a mall food court. My wife ordered the lasagna, which looked like barf. Like, nine pounds of barf. It's the ugliest plate I've seen. I had a pizza which I actually can't complain about. I left miserable, stressed, and angry that this place exists. Please do not eat here if you are honest and have love in your heart. read more

Not long ago, there were East Side Mario locations all over the city of Edmonton and in Sherwood Park. It used to be one of my favorite restaurants, enough so that I would crave the pasta and bread, and look forward to eating at a location whenever possible. With the St. Albert location being the only remaining ESM open, I haven't been for a meal in at least five years. I headed here for dinner on a Friday night while waiting for my car to be done with a service appointment, and was disappointed that my food wasn't great, or even good. The décor is loud and bright, and it's very much a casual family restaurant. There were lots of kids and families, and I feel like this place would be a good choice if you don't want to worry about your kids being a little louder during a meal, as it all blends into the background racket. The menus are long, with at least five pages of dishes. They serve pizza, pasta, salad and some entrees like chicken and fish. I was tempted by the fish, but I'm glad I didn't order it. Pasta entrees come with unlimited soup, salad and bread, so if you are on a budget you can fill up on those and take most of your pasta home for another meal. I got what sounded like the best pasta on the menu, firecracker shrimp bowties. There were a few shrimps in there, not a lot, and somehow all the peppers had settled to the bottom of the bowl. I didn't get a single spicy bite until the end of meal, when I found and stabbed a pepper underneath a mound of pasta. Whoever made the pasta overdid it with both the oil and the garlic. It was just so darn oily. And so much garlic, it was overpowering. It felt like a cheap pasta dish prepared by someone that didn't know what they were doing. I picked out the shrimp and did my best with the pasta. My husband insisted on bringing home the leftovers, and when I mixed them with my own plain pasta to dilute the oil and garlic it was finally edible. Have my tastes changed over the years as I have eaten at some really exceptional Italian restaurants? Probably. Do I feel any need to return to try again? No. read more

Found a booger and Pubic hair in my spaghetti. I usually love east side marios but this one was not very good!! WOULD NOT GO HERE AGAIN!!!