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    Mario's Italian Cafe

    3.2 (276 reviews)
    ModerateItalian, Pizza, Seafood
    Open 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

    Order Mario's Italian Cafe Takeout or Delivery

    Mario's Italian Cafe Photos

    Business Info

    MARIO'S ITALIAN CAFE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Happy hour specials
    Good for kids

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    Recommended Reviews - Mario's Italian Cafe

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    The ceiling is beautiful
    Gregory Michael C.

    We just got back to Palm Springs after being stuck in Florida for 14 months (thanks, Hurricane Debby!) and the first place we went? Mario's Italian Cafe. Why? Because for over a year we've been listening to Mario's loud, hilarious ads on KGAY -- bragging about the best pizza, biggest glasses of wine, and his $8 pizza nights. We had to see if the man was telling the truth. Spoiler alert: he absolutely was. The Food We normally don't care about giant portions -- we care about quality and flavor first -- but Mario gave us both, and we're still laughing about it. We ordered two $8 pizzas, assuming they'd be tiny. Nope. Two 16-inch pizzas showed up, screaming hot, loaded with cheese and pepperoni, smelling like heaven. Next table's salad looked like it needed its own seat, and the wine goblets? Overflowing. Mario, you weren't lying -- and you've officially earned our trust. The Service Warm greeting, friendly staff, quick drinks, happy vibes. The only warning we wish we got was that we were about to be buried under two giant pizzas. The Atmosphere Classic Italian décor, beautiful painted ceilings, cozy space. Bathrooms could use a little extra attention, but honestly, I was too busy inhaling pizza to dwell on it. About Those Yelp Ratings... Right now, Mario's shows 3.1 stars on Yelp, and honestly? That's a crime. So many of the 1-star and 2-star reviews should be completely ignored. People complaining about "low quality ingredients" clearly weren't eating what we just ate. And some reviews are just silly -- like the guy who left 1 star because he was shorted $1.32 in change, or the one who's never been to Italy but critiques the restaurant size. (Really?) If I could, I'd give this place 4.5 stars -- but since Yelp doesn't do halves, I'm rounding up to 5 to balance out the ridiculousness. Final Thoughts Mario's is not just hype -- it's the real deal. Fantastic pizza, generous portions, friendly staff, and prices that feel too good to be true. I hope reviews like this help people see past the noise and give Mario's a try. We'll be back soon -- and next time, Mario, I'm trying the pasta (but if it's parboiled, we're gonna have words ).

    Front of restaurant.
    Melanie G.

    This restaurant is dependable for great take out and is conveniently located where I grocery shop, get gas and pick up pet food and gifts at Home Goods. The portions are very generous and the food is delicious! The take out is always superb and we love to order from Mario's for big family gatherings. We recently had a casual office lunch at Mario's to celebrate the holidays, which was my first time to eat there. My husband and I and his Office Manager ordered a shared pizza and the other staff ordered different items off the menu. Their food arrived but we were told that our gluten free crust pizza was accidentally made with regular crust, so a new pizza had to be made. Our office staff had long finished their meals before we got to even start ours, which put a kink in the meal because everyone was able to go home early directly from lunch. No discount to our bill, but then we didn't ask. It was a bummer so I knocked off one star for that, but otherwise the food is excellent.

    Allolio-eAglio
    Demetrius G.

    Took my daughter here for Mother's Day.Ordered the spaghetti with meat sauce she had Allolio-eAglio and we ordered the Marios special pizza. The food was delicious and took leftovers home.

    Tom Z.

    It's a nice small family restaurant. We visited the location in Bermuda Dunes, but apparently, there are a few more around the area. Inside, it feels like a typical family-owned Italian restaurant. There's a cool mural on the wall. The staff was really friendly and the food came out super quickly. The drinks were served in really large glasses, so no waiting for refills. I had lasagna, and my friend had the lemon chicken. Both were really tasty. The lasagna comes in two sizes, which was nice since I wasn't super hungry at the time. Overall, this was a quick, tasty, and relatively inexpensive Italian restaurant that I'd definitely eat at again.

    Fettuccine
    andrew l.

    Awesome, authentic Italian great price point!! if you're looking for casual Italian with great food this is your spot. The prime rib special was outstanding totally unexpected.

    Ivan C.

    Restaurant set up as if you were in a small place in Italy (I assume since I have not visit Italy just yet) it's nice. Sevise was well and attentive. The food tastes good.

    Calamari
    Steve L.

    Very fresh not to bad at all .food was great We got a large pizza taste great. Service was Good the only thing that piss me off is the waitress. Gave my bill and i paid $40.00 My change was $1.32 cents She gave me $1.00 I think she thought it was funny but I didn't think it was funny at all. Next time Iam not leaving a tip .its point trying to short me 32 cents.

    Fettuccine Chicken Alfredo

    The service was excellent, my oldest liked the cheese ravioli's, my youngest liked the Mac N Cheese, and the wife liked her Anipasta Salad. I had the Chicken Alfredo, the sauce was really grainy, almost like it was broken. The restaurant was clean, and so were the restrooms. What a shame, hopefully I remember next time not to order what I did today

    Here is the sign that they don't want to honor but thy said because we complained.
    Sheryl L.

    A bad experience from start to finish! It was our first time in any Mario's . We saw a sign in the window and on the web that they have happy hour. Our waited explained that the beer and wine was 4 dollars but nothing else is on happy hour despite the sign In the window saying pizza wedge is also 4 dollars. Everything we ask he said no to right away and later he said we could change for an up charge after further questioning . For instance, we ordered eggplant parm and wanted a different sauce , upcharge 2.95. If we didn't want pasta upcharge for steamed veggies . The salad was only a house salad, no Caesar salad! He was like the soup natzi , not very nice and seemed annoyed with all questions even though it was only 4:15 and he wasn't busy. The food came and it was on a plate so small that everything was hanging off the side . The upcharge vodka sauce wasn't worth the three dollar upcharge and the eggplant was so mushy! No good. Very mediocre at best. The chainiti wine was large but not good at all! The only good thing was the garlic bread. They said it was too hard to take the happy hour sight off the window and they would honor the 4 dollar wine and beer but we had to argue and fight every step of the way. No way will we be back to any of these Mario's.

    Filled to the top: chianti (sangiovese), burgundy (Pinot noir), or Chablis. BIG pour.

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    2 years ago

    Great food, great service eat there once a week. Restaurant is always crowded. Always first choice for a restaurant.

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    4 years ago

    I like Mario's in general. I've been to this location many times. It's nice to see the familiar faces. It's nice and quiet in this location.

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    Ask the Community - Mario's Italian Cafe

    Are they charging $2 per water glass and are they letting customers know ahead of time, as they weren't doing this before?

    They charged us for water on that day. Haven't been back since so I'm not sure if it's a continued practice.

    Had a nice lunch here today and saw a sign about St Louis ribs on Sunday. Would like feedback on the ribs specifically. Would like to try them depending?! Thanks!?

    Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

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    We had a wonderful dinner last night here! We walked in and only had to wait around 10 minutes for…read morea party of 4. Our waitress Orissa was FANTASTIC! She made our experience great, was super kind, and was just fun. We had a hard time deciding on what to order since there were so many great options. Both my kids crushed their meals and really liked their choices- cheese pizza and chicken tenders and fries. They were stoked that the meal also came with a dessert option at the end. I ordered the burrata bolognese and it was 10/10. One of my favorite dishes of the trip. My husband got the spaghetti with meatball which was great, but he wished it would have maybe ventured out. We liked our Chianti bottle we ordered and it paired well with our meal. Overall we had great service, wonderful food, including the bread service- you have to ask for which including a chili infused oil olive which was so tasty. Highly recommended checking this place out!

    I am writing to share a deeply disappointing experience at your establishment. My father, who is 86…read moreyears old and has a physical disability, was looking forward to visiting after hearing about your happy hour from friends. Upon arrival, we were informed that happy hour is only available in the bar area, which we understood completely. However, the bar area exclusively features high-top tables, which my father is unable to use due to his disability. When I explained this and requested a low-top table as an accommodation, we were told that no alternative could be provided. I want to respectfully but firmly note that failing to provide accessible seating options for guests with disabilities is not only a gap in hospitality -- it may also raise concerns under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which requires places of public accommodation to make reasonable modifications for individuals with disabilities. I hope you will take this feedback seriously and make the necessary changes. We drove down the street to another establishment who gladly made the accommodations.

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    Our first time there. We sat on the patio. Our young server Eric was amazing. He was welcoming,…read morepatient and friendly. The food was really really good. It took a while (about 25 minutes) but was worth it. They were pretty busy. I provided one of the managers on duty, Art, with a positive feedback right on the spot. Art was very nice and friendly. We will definitely go back when we visit the area. It was a great first experience!

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    Mario's Italian Cafe - italian - Updated May 2026

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