Came in on a weekday night at 9 30 pm. Never been but live in the neighborhood. Not very crowded, it seems like just a lot of nice people and a real relaxed kind of vibe. Ordered the meatball salad and the pizza of the night which was arugula, provolone, and prosciutto. Taste was average, the presentation was poor and I thought the prices were high based on all the other variables of the place. The salad was piled on top of a small plate and a good portion fell off onto the table. I will try again but for a first time experience, I was def not impressed. Not your typical Italian ambience, the music was 80/90s contemporary rock. Very nice staff and management though. For sure only an A-Ok review! read more

Yes! Yes! Yes! You cannot beat this amazing and authentic Italian! The atmosphere is warm and welcoming. The food is outstanding ! I could go on and on about my love for this place but I will let you experience it for yourself! read more

Twofer Tuesday's is a real success. You buy one glass of wine and you get the second one for free. Their white wines are excellent and not too sweet. The calamari dish has a terrific grilled and fried combination. I savored the white pizza as well as the linguini with white sauce. However, the linguini was too oily. All in all, it was a strong finish with a freshly made cannoli. Thumbs up! read more

Mario's Table - Twofer Tuesday's - Italian Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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True hidden gem authentic Italian! The staff was outstanding from beginning to the end. The owner walked around and said hello to everyone. Veal parmigiana was outstanding and so was the spaghetti with meatballs. read more

We were staying at ambassador hotel and found this restaurant in the neighborhood. Food and Service was 5 stars. Owner stopped by to say hi and was very friendly. Waitress was very good with recommendations. read more

VERY disappointed - we placed an order for delivery, the total came out to $39 including tax and tip for a mediocre plate of spaghetti and meatballs and pathetic serving of garlic bread. The $9 garlic bread was a 5 tiny pieces of BURNT toast. They must not take pride in their food. In all the value of the order probably cost less than $2 and although it's expected to pay much more when ordering out, it's also expected that you're going to get quality. I will call and ask for a refund read more

Mario's Table - Italian Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

It's two blocks away from where we live, so we visit there quite often, and every time is a satisfied experience. Hands down, never disappoints. Mario just lives upstairs, shows in the restaurant almost every night, talking with customers, taking pictures for them. Very nice guy. read more

Mario's Table was fantastic. Right when we walked through the door, owner greets us! We were seated right on time. Waitress was super busy, so it did take some time to get a drink. But, she was able to give fantastic recommendations. Only bad part was, gratuity was added, and the service, again, didn't warrant that kind of tip, and they added gratuity to the final amount after tax. Again, didn't ruin the night, just wasn't something we had ever heard of for a group of 5. read more

This is our 'go to' restaurant for every day dining, hungry for pasta, great energy and great food! The fried calimari is always fresh, lightly breaded, tender, hot and tasty! The pizzas are thin, crisp and the pizza specials are always unique and delicious! I usually get the chicken limone with yummy sliced squash, zucchini and capers. I always swap out the potatoes for spaghetti with more of the limone sauce: Winner! When I do want something different I get the spaghetti with oil and garlic and add chopped tomotoes and parsely, top it with the fresh parmigiano and and another winner! And we love that Mario is always walking around, talking to dining guests and making you feel welcome! Always a treat at Mario's Table!! read more

Maybe if this gives a glimpse for entry-level travelers. but the food was sub standard. Service was "meh", definitely not up to Chicago standards (or neighborhood standards!). Seems to be a place that rests on its laurels along with a group of regulars. If you're not a regular, do not expect good service, a friendly atmosphere, or anything other than a cliched menu. No baked ziti, thank zod, but enough of other foods that would make you think you're backstage at a cliche convention If you're a fan of Euro-style or "Italian-style" pizzas, this is definitely NOT the place for you. Somehow they messed that up. I'm Danish and can get "more authentic" cooking on our equivalent of Wicker Park. If you're a fan of soft shelled crabs, their special is definitely NOT for you, either. They fail frying 101!! In short - if you're an entry level traveler, or have some sort of strange Hollywoodized Italy fettish, you might not totally hate it. If you're not in that category, please, walk a few more steps down to Division or over to Goethe/Wells and on North and get stuff that's much, much better. Value = low. Service = fair, not Chicago standards, however Food = joke Atmosphere = Sesame Street of Italy. read more

This is a great neighborhood gem. I've been to Mario's at least a dozen times. The burrata is great, so is the pasta with vodka sauce (I usually sub ravioli for tortellini). The eggplant caprese is great if you want something lighter, and they have gluten free options for pizza and pasta if you have dietary restrictions. They definitely stress that this is a "casual" Italian restaurant, so don't expect the typical downtown Chicago Italian restaurant. This reminds me more of the Chicago suburbs because it is casual/un embellished and affordable Two-fer Tuesdays and coupons in the mail aren't bad either :) read more

meh. that pretty much described our experience at marios. checked out the website and thought this place may be just the italian joint we've been looking for. thought wrong. homemade pasta? nope. food was bland, cold, and didn't have that "wow factor" for 17.95 also not really a homey feel if your not a "regular" regulars were welcomed with open arms and new customers were shunned. note : we're not paying any less or tipping any less just because we've never been there before mr. mario the thing that gets me the most is the price, not acceptable to feel this way and the food to taste that way when your paying almost 20 dollars for a pasta dish. don't mean to sound harsh but...no thanks. read more

Nice and convenient Italian restaurant in the epicenter of the Gold Coast neighborhood. Ordered an Old Fashioned along with the Spaghetti and Meatballs. read more

So, I kind of expected Tony Soprano to walk in at any moment. Darkly lit, dim place with some peeps that really look like they're in character for a mob show. Sinatra-esque music and the bar that's churning out martinis and scotches and heavy on the rocks knock your socks off drinks. The food was great. The garlic bread really hit the spot, especially for this carb-starved vegetarian. The veggie pasta dish, in a large size, no less, was actually really good and chockful of good veggies. The olio sauce wasn't overpowering and neatly complemented the veggies and perfectly cooked pasta. My other half had some artery clogging past mess that was smothered in cheese and sauce and leid with a wreath of sausage. Our friend had the healthiest of the bunch--an antipasto salad--and he said it was "surprisingly good." All around a quiet and somewhat upperscale place (pricetag wise) but it wasn't pretentious and no one batted an eye at the shorts and tshirt gang accompanying me. We'll be back for sure! read more

The atmosphere at Mario's is wonderful. A perfect, neighborhood joint. Go any night of the week, and you'll see Mario working the room, making sure his guests are satisfied. I like the staff as well. They are loyal to Mario and their customers, so you always feel welcome. The food is good, but the pizza's are delicious. I lived in Rome and fell in love with the paper-thin style pizza. For years I searched for a place in Chicago that had such a pizza, and I finally found it at Mario's. Recommended. read more

Goldcoast hidden gem! I feel like grandma is cooking in the back kitchen for you. Everything taste great and the staff is outstanding and friendly. This is our little go to around the Goldcoast. read more

I have really enjoyed this restaurant on the few occassions I've been to Chicago. Authentic Italian food, good atmosphere, great location!

I like this place and would def recommend it to anyone who is looking for a solidly good, but not spectacular Italian meal. I have tried their ravioli and chicken marsala, which were both very tasty and seasoned well. The bread is warm and crispy and they'll bring more if you are not listening to those diet tips and want to stuff yourself w carbs. Waitstaff and busboys are attentive, friendly and helpful. Sometimes you get a coupon (termed a gift certificate) in the mail if you live in the 'hood. read more

First of all, I want to put a disclaimer on my comments for dinner because I was recognized immediately by the owner, Mario. No doubt my group received special treatment - "wink, wink." But it was special treatment indeed. Mario is a gracious and gregarious host. We had a very nice meal, from cocktails, to wine, appetizers, salad, entrees, and dessert. This is not artisanal foodie food, it's standard Italian-American food that is prepared well and served in a very convivial atmosphere. If you lived in the neighborhood, you would eat and drink here all the time. Think "Cheers" with great food! read more

The service is mediocre, the food is okay, but there's no "wow" factor here. The restaurant itself is pretty intimate and you feel comfortable, but it definitely needs to be revamped. It looks like a cheap diner from the early 90's. Overall, the food leaves much to be desired for - I've tried the linguini clams, chicken vesuvio, and margarita pizza. If you get the full sized portion, the meals are extremely overpriced. If you get the half sized portions, you may still be hungry. I'd suggest if you're in the Gold Coast area and looking for Italian, stick to Carmine's - you won't miss anything here. read more

Came here for the first time & will not go back. My husband's chicken Marsala sauce was good but the chicken was overlooked and mashed potatoes tasted like instant. I had the lasagna and after a couple of bites with NO flavor at all it became clear that the lasagna was ice coke in the middle. How does this happen? The solution was to make a new one and buy us dessert...lasagna was $17.95 and the dessert was $6.95...guess we lost. I ate only 1/3 of the new plate as I was starving after waiting again. Do NOT get the lasagna with meat sauce it is really bad. Too many other amazing Italian restaurants in Chicago to come here. read more

I went to Mario's for dinner - it was really just ok. It was right by my hotel, which was very convenient, but there wasn't anything that really stuck out for me. The bread was ok, the bowtie pasta was good, but not outstanding, and the service was fine. We were sitting next to a tv fire - yes you read that right, there was a tv that was showing a fireplace - it was a little odd, but I appreciate the attempt to feel homey. Overall, not a bad dining experience, but there are so many great restaurants in the city, I don't know that I would deliberately choose to go back to Mario's. read more

Great place. I've been several times now and the food is always great. There's a lot of great pasta dishes and the specials are usually good as well. The owner makes an appearance regularly and I believe he's stopped at our table everytime we've been in just to ask about the food and service. I don't have any complaints about this place and plan to go back regularly. Definitely recommended. read more

My fave neighborhood place ever. Staff very friendly and see Mario all the time. is very good with the pizza and tortellini jambalaya ordered more often than not! I am very comfortable going in by myself just to see who's around! read more

Mario is my new favorite Italian in the neighborhood. I walk pass it every day but never stopped by. Untill I received a special deal in the mail and visited with family from out of town. Nothing out of the ordinary on the menu but everything is very good. The service is super friendly, from the smily welcoming hostess to the different servers and runners. The price is competitive for the area. The place itself is nice. If you avoid week ends it's nice and quiet. Will definitely be back! read more

I've run past this place a million times (well, maybe not literally) on my way to the lake front path and never eaten at Mario's until last night. Our food was quite good but I must say that the ambiance was not fitting of an Italian place. I am willing to chalk it up to the large party that sat next to our corner table half-way through our meal, but the restaurant was really loud. I know I sound like an old fart for saying this, but seriously, I couldn't hear much of anything my admittedly soft-spoken wife was saying. I will probably go back to Mario's, but I will almost certainly request a table that is not in the corner. read more

Carried out a quick late lunch back to our hotel room and we were quite impressed. We just shared a little margherita pizza and the toasted ravioli and both items were quite tasty. The marinara sauce for the ravioli was delicious. I knew nothing of this place when I lived in Chicago, glad to have found it as a visitor. read more

We came here with some friends to check out a neighborhood favorite. It has a Cheers-type feel. The owner Mario was there and came to greet us. The restaurant is a little dark, but that gives it a intimate, homey feel. Overall, the service was pretty good. The drinks were excellent - strong but balanced. The food was solid, but nothing to write home about. It may be simple, but I loved the bread and olive oil. It was fresh and I kept soaking it up. For the entrees, I ordered the shrimp and lobster ravioli with a vodka sauce. They were out of the lobster but could do the shrimp. Normally italian portions are huge so I ordered a half order. However, when my half order of pasta came, I thought two things: (1) Other places must skew my portion size because I thought a half order was very small with four medium sized ravioli (my husband thought the same); and (2) where was the shrimp?! While they were out of lobster, it didn't seem like they added more shrimp. Instead of shrimp ravioli, it was ravioli with some small shrimp. That said, the shrimp were good. The pasta itself was okay. It's really 2.5 and maybe approaching 3. If suggested, it is a good neighborhood joint and I would go back. read more

I moved to the neighborhood recently and this restaurant is so authentic I love it! I ordered the eggplant parmigiana and caprese salad for carry out. It was all perfect! I also received a "welcome to the neighborhood" coupon that I was able to use. Regardless I definitely think the prices are fair. I'm looking forward to ordering from here again! read more

Considering the number of solid Italian places in this city, Mario's is a bit of a let down. The food is not exciting or well executed and the price is not lower than most casual places in the area. The decor is very boring. The service was effective but not great. Very 2-star, "meh"... read more

Nice atmosphere and Mario seems like a nice guy. The food isn't too expensive, but it's still not worth it. I'm fairly certain it isn't homemade pasta, it's just too bland. The salads look really big, but are mostly just filler. The choice of dishes with good veggies was pretty solid. read more

Mario's Food is really incredible! Love the Lasagna and all the appetizers. They also offer Gluten Free options! For example they probably have the Best Gluten Free Pizza in Chicago! read more

The food is way overpriced for what you get. Televisions in every corner make it hard to converse. Still, since we live less than a block away, we used to stop in now and then, until we discovered that... MARIO'S IS NOT QUEER-FRIENDLY. My youngest daughter, who is MTF trans, was dining there having a quiet conversation with her elderly godmother when Mario approached their table and demanded of my daughter, "Put a coat on, or leave." My daughter was stunned -- she was wearing an unremarkable fem top, nothing outlandish. Mario claimed that "someone" had complained about the way my daughter looked. In order to not cause a scene, she quietly complied. The two of them finished their meal and left. Rest assured, NO one in our family will EVER darken Mario's door again. read more

I was so excited to visit this restaurant that I decided to celebrate my close friend's farewell here. I was greeted by a waitress and I asked for lemons for my water. The lemons didn't come and I was calm about it until she brought the calamari. So I asked for lemons and she asked whether the lemons in my calamari were sufficient for my water. Did she really say that? While we were ready to pass her the check, she might have seen us two talking about cash and decided to ask if we want to split the check because one of us was holding cash. The real etiquette is that the customer will tell the server if the check needs to be splitter. The rudeness of this waitress is uncalled for and intolerable. You have placed a bad taste of service and dining experience in me. On the flipside, the foods were great and Mario greeted us with a smile. read more

Mario's was a pleasant suprise. We made a reservation through opentable and found it to be a great place. We had the calamari appetizer, grilled and fried. The grilled calamari was excellent. For our main course, we had the lamb chops and the mussels appetizer. Lamb chops were well seasoned and cooked to a perfect medium rare. The risotto with it was very good as well. The mussels were perfectly steamed in a red spicy sauce. Mario came over to our table a couple times through the night to see how things were going. Very polite and professional. Made us feel very welcome. Overall great experience. This place has the food and ambience to be a great place to grab dinner on a regular basis. read more

My girlfriend and I have been going to Mario's for several years now (Live in the neighborhood) and have always had a great time. Mario does a great job at making his guests feel welcome, coming by every table to see how the meal was. After going there a coupe of times, Mario always remembers us and makes us feel most welcome. The Spaghetti and Meatballs is a favorite of ours, as well as the Giambota (Sp?) and the Baked Cavatelli. They just added a canolli to their dessert menu and it was fantastic! Bravo Mario, keep it up! read more

Love this place the eggplant...to die for. We eat here at least once a week. It's also lovely to have it delivered too!!! I can't say enough what a gem this place is!!! read more

This restaurant was delicious. My boyfriend and I just moved into the area and were randomly searching for a reservation on open table on a Saturday night and decided on Marios because it was walking distance. It had a cute authentic Italian atmosphere. The food was delicious ( had the special which was spaghetti with scallops). The grilled calamari was outstanding and the prices were pretty reasonable. We will definitely return. Great date restaurant as well! read more

Ordered the cheese cake for take out! It was a horrible implementation with the cake floating in whipped cream. The taste was nothing great!

Great service, great food and great wine!! The hostess was so helpful in suggestions on what to do in Chicago. Our waitress was knowledgeable about both the food and the wine. Mario came by our table and chatted a bit, we learned about the history of the restaurant and the neighborhood. Mario's Salad and Chicken Marsala was so yummy and perfect portions. read more