Mari’s Cucina and Social House

A perfect casual dining experience. I took my wife and two children and everyone was very pleased with their dinner.

We absolutely love this place. The food is great and they some wonderful dishes unlike the typical Italian restaurant. The fried goat cheese app is amazing. Short Rib Manicotti or Short Rib Papperdelle are two of my favs. The Shrimp Scampi is amazing as well. We dine and and often get delivery which is very convenient.

TL: DR
— Shrimp scamp is delish.
— Owners are rad
— Bartender is super.
Ok so this place is WAY close, and we need to come here more often.
The drink selection is top notch, the food is superb, and the waiting staff are phenomenal.
Thanks so much for a great experience, and great food!

My family of 6 and I celebrated our graduating senior this evening. We had been searching for a gluten friendly organic restaurant, that also provides vegetarian and meat options as we have many different likes in our group. I myself must be very careful when I dine outside of my home, due to a severe gluten celiac allergy. We were greeted by several employees and manager upon arrival. Our drinks arrived quickly and our waiter was extremely attentive, friendly and knowledgable on celiac allergies which is extremely comforting.
We were on a time constraint and I am extremely thankful and appreciative for the quick service and incredible food we were presented. Every person at our table ordered a different item, from pizza, pasta, chicken entrée, sausage and hot grilled romaine salad, The presentation, the taste of the food and greatest of all, cross contamination is considered in the kitchen as I am highly sensitive and tonight i feel wonderful, no problems. We were greeted by one of the owners on our way out thanking us and the staff truly could not have been kinder. We felt welcome, we enjoyed the ambiance and atmosphere, we loved the fresh flavor of the food and we are thankful they arrived in Johns Creek!

This review is regarding a PARTY, not a regular dinner.
We had a graduation party here for 6 Johns Creek H.S. students and it was probably the best party we’ve been to all year.
The atmosphere was great, the restaurant shut down for us since we had a party of about 140 people and our menu was: Mista Salad, Caesar Salad, Pizza (cheese and pepperoni), Penne in Pink Sauce and mini cannoli.
Help before and after the party was exceptional, the food was delicious and the staff was as accommodating as they could be. I would highly recommend having your school or club social event here.
Pro-​tip — work with the GM to get the party setup and it’s always wise to get a contract in advance.

Mari’s Cucina is an amazing addition to the Jones Bridge corridor. The food is outstanding and the portions generous. The balsamic salmon is delicious but the veal sorrentino is my favorite. I’m also a huge fan of the griglio salad. Other favorites include short rib manicotti and the artichoke appetizer. Wait staff is attentive and servers kept the water glasses filled. This is our new favorite eating place in John’s Creek.

It was awesomeness. Done
All the food was good. Lemoncello cake is pheonamenal. Everything was cooked to perfection. Very satisfied:)

Great atmosphere. Great food. And great service. The veal is fabulous. We went last night in a party of 8 and everyone raved about what they had. A little hard to find, but definitely worth it.

I was very excited to try this restaurant for the first time this past Saturday evening with some friends. Unfortunately, we had a 7:45 reservation but were told it would be at least a 45 minute wait because they overbooked. It was jam packed with people, and nowhere to stand and wait. So, we ended up leaving and having dinner somewhere else, which was not good at all! I was more disappointed that I didn’t get to try this place, because I was looking forward to it. Being a NJ transplant here in GA, I am always seeking out a good Italian restaurant! Plus we drove out here from Cumming, when we could have found something closer to home had we known this would happen. The girls at the hostess stand were not too apologetic, either. Maybe if they had been offering some appetizer or drink specials for those of us waiting, it would have been better.

We initially found this restaurant through Scoutmob (50% off your meal up to $ 20). All the staff is extremely attentive and passionate about the authentic Italian food. The environment is lovely with beautiful decorations. The food on the other hand was just okay. First, came the complimentary bread and butter which was pretty tasty.
I ordered a Caesar salad and Chicken Marsala which came with pasta. My boyfriend ordered a shrimp entrée. Unfortunately there was a long hair in the actual entrée so he had to return it. I had almost completely finished my meal by the time his new meal came out. They gave us a complimentary slice of red velvet cake to make up for the hair in the entrée. That was very nice of the restaurant but we were slightly grossed out. I was slightly disappointed by my Marsala as there were barely any mushrooms and the sauce tasted a bit watered down. The presentation of the food was perfect!
I think we are willing to try this restaurant one more time as we definitely see it’s potential. I love Italian food so I’m willing to try a different dish on a second visit.

Who knew? This place is about a block away from where we live and I thought it was some kind of social hall.
Turns out that it may be one of the best New York style Italian restaurants in Atlanta.
This is NOT a pizza joint. Their menu is extensive, the prices fair, and the service is exemplary.
Try their phenomenal veal cutlet, shrimp scampi, and the dish that I had whose name I forgot that has crispy veal, eggplant, cheese, and who knows what all? I used their delicious bread to sop up every morsel.
This joint is worth the trip.

I returned because of my excellent experience the first time. I had an out of town guest and wanted her to try the fantastic food. I called in my order and spoke to Gina, who is extremely helpful and knowledgeable about the menu.
We ordered the Caprese Salad, Caesar Salad, Meatball Entrée, and Rigatoni Ala Vodka.
Once again, Chef Adam went over and above to ensure our food was prepared perfectly. The salads were both extremely fresh and tasty! The Meatballs were out of this world, as was the famous Rigatoni Ala Vodka!
I think this is one of my favorite Italian Restaurants in Atlanta!

All I can say is wow! Mari’s is a fantastic, under-​appreciated establishment. Settled in the back of a small parking lot behind Waffle House sits a great little Italian venue…
On a Monday night around 6 pm, I walked in with my mom and a friend surprised to find an empty restaurant that stayed vacant of diners, besides a single bar patron and maybe two pick up orders, until we left… and I have no idea why. The ambiance of Mari’s is nostalgic with exposed ceilings and a makeshift theater replication with long red curtains surrounding a giant projector that happened to play old fashioned film clips as well as the Grinch. The warm service from the moment we were greeted upon walking through the door til we walked out with happy stomachs only added to our delight.
As for the food, we were told it was Monday Football Night and were given a lunch menu wjth $ 8 entrees. Despite the small selection, we were extremely pleased with the chicken parmigiana as well as the rigatoni alla vodka, especially at the price. Mari’s is definitely a spot worth visiting and revisiting.

We were looking for a restaurant at 10 PM and we found this on Unilocal.We tried eggplant parmigiana and pulpette dinner. I wanted less cheese on eggplant and the chef was kind enough to modify my dish which tasted really good.
The staff here is really sweet and friendly. This place is a true hidden gem with amazing food, décor and service.

Horrible horrible food. Ordered takeout. Ordered two items which where completely missing ingredients and nothing like as promised on the menu. Ordered a pepperoni pizza only because it seemed to offer mozzarella and sautéed mushrooms. Instead received a super greasy pizza with only pepperoni slices on it. Also ordered a Griglia salad specifically for the artichokes and goat cheese– guess what? I only got romaine, tomatoes and red onions. No goat cheese or artichoke to be seen. Terrible food.

This was a great choice for Italian on our way to the Gwinnett Center for a show. I had the grilgia salad and it was fantastic! The roasted tomatoes gave it a great flavor. I also had the padovana pasta and it was also very good with great sausage. My husband had the short rib cannelloni and it was so good I kept sneaking bites of it!

/TL;DR
Picked up a tip from a good friend to try this place. It’s basically a big Italian restaurant with a mama’s kitchen taste. At the time of writing this, I can’t think of another Italian restaurant in north Atlanta that I favor more. Wish it was closer. :-(
/​ATMOSPHERE
The restaurant is nestled behind what is actually a very busy intersection near the corner of Jones Bridge and State Bridge. However, because it’s set back, you don’t hear the road noise. You really don’t see much of the traffic either so it actually feels secluded and private.
The interior dining offers a lot of seating area with a nice size bar. We took the al fresco option since it looked really inviting. It was the right choice.
/​FOOD
The food is truly excellent. We started with meatball sliders, which comes as a pair of giant meatballs on dense bread with tomato sauce drizzled over. I would recommend this!
For the main entrees, we split a couple of pasta dishes but couldn’t finish either. They were pretty big. We had the rigatoni ala vodka and the short rib pappadelli. The ala vodka was fantastic. The sauce was cheesy and flavorful without being too salty or rich. The chunks of sausage paired well.
The pappadelli was also amazing. The short rib just fell apart. The pasta was clearly homemade. The tomato ragu gave it a nice punch. The entrees were served with a side of bread — very dense, buttery bread — which was perfect to soak up the sauce. The whipped garlic butter also needs mentioning.
/​SERVICE
Service was attentive and friendly. I don’t think there was a moment where I wondered where our server was. This is a place I’ll go back to the next time I have a craving for Italian.
HOW TO READ MY REVIEWS:
1 Star — Does not approach edible. Enter at your own risk.
2 Stars — If I’m in the area, I’d pick something else.
3 Stars — I would stop by if I happen to be in the area.
4 Stars — I would pick this place out of other places nearby.
5 Stars — I would go out of my way to dine here.

This place is super tucked away. We had no problem getting a parking spot and seating on a weekend evening. There’s kind of a barn feel instead with lots of natural light, which is great until it gets in your eyes. Server was friendly but service was kind of slow.
I really loved the bread and the meatballs. My main dish was the bolognese, and it was good but nothing to write home about. They had some cute cocktail names, but none of them sounded like anything I was dying to try. I’d like to come back and try another dish.

We dined here on a Sunday evening. We wanted to try a different Italian place than usual.
The starter cheese platter could have used one more cheese and one less meat, but was tasty. I think our entrees were fish, pasta, and a flatbread. Everyone enjoyed these.
Service was good.
The dining area is high-​ceiling-​ed and airy. There is a separate bar-​area with a TV for sports-​watching.
The only thing which might cut down on frequent future visits is that it’s a bit of a drive for us. But we would go back.

I came here with a group of six on a Saturday night around 6 PM and it wasn’t super busy. However, it picked up around 7PM which was nice to see.
The hot food came out hot and the food that didn’t need to came out at an appropriate temperature. We all shared the calamari and bruschetta, and everyone either got a caesar or a mista salad. I thought the calamari was a bit small, the brushetta came with 5 crunchy pieces loaded with fresh tomatoes, onions, and sweet balsamic dressing, and the caesar was good, but a bit heavy on the dressing for my liking (nobody else complained though, so it’s probably just me being weird).
I ordered the a la vodka and loved it. As they say on their menu it is «Brooklyn made sausage, pancetta, shallots, in a rich tomato cream sauce served over rigatoni.» The sauce was very creamy and flavorful, and most importantly it came out hot. I wasn’t sure what to expect with the sausage, but it was ground sausage that was very mild.
For dessert I split a lemoncello cake slice as well as getting a free slice of their delicious chocolate cake because the waitress overheard that it was my birthday (very sweet of her!). The lemoncello as well as the chocolate were very soft and moist.
Regarding the service, the waitress was friendly and attentive, but it slowed down a bit as the meal went on. However, I credit it to the kitchen getting a large rush of orders as the restaurant got busier, so it made sense.
Overall a good experience.