Mario’s French Dips

I just got done eating their onion rings… SO DELICIOUS… and they make their own ranch dressing. I highly recommend to order this… Also, the Oinker Burger is my favorite burger yet.

Well this will be one of my hardest reviews to write. It’s hard to write because I love the French Dip. They have a signature sandwich called Mario’s Garlic French Dip. Here’s the hard part. Mario had to raise the price from around $ 12.00 to almost $ 18.00 per sandwich. The sandwich does come with fries or a salad.
My wife and I had lunch there today and it was $ 45.00 with tip «FOR LUNCH»
Doesn’t look like we will be meeting at Mario’s for a quick and inexpensive lunch

Does this place live up to the hype? Now as far as the french dip goes I dont want to sound too picky… but lets face it this place is all about french dips. There are other things on the menu but of course I ignored the temptations, The dip is good. Meat is thick but on point in flavor. Only «beef» is with the bun… gets soggy quickly and disintergrates. Num dump some vinegar on those fries and dip them in a side of gravy!

I love a good French dip sandwich, and walking by this place a dozen times I wanted to try it. Read the reviews and most everyone like it. The service was good, clean nice restaurant.
However I am so disappointed with the prime rib sandwich. Zero flavor. Added the cheese at $ 1 extra. The sandwich is $ 15 and I would have expected good prime rib that has been roasted in an oven with good seasoning. What I got was prime rib with zero seasoning, a bun that was just pulled out of a bag, and au jus with out flavor. Fries were good. A sandwich fries and a beer $ 24.50… Maybe the other sandwiches are better, but I won’t spend the money to try.

We really love this place. I’ve only tried the French dips, fries and onion rings. Hubby has tried the corned beef sandwich and liked it. Prices are decent.
It’s in prime downtown location. Parking is not that convenient on a busy night. That’s really the only draw back.

I have no complaints! Found this place on Unilocal,have been wanting to try it for awhile now. Walked in, ordered a tri-​tip dip w/​a side of potatoe salad. Took literally 6 minutes for my Togo order. I’m so impressed by everything about this place. Food was so good, fast, and good portions. Definetly going to be one of my go to spots for my lunch breaks!
Cons: parking is terrible, but what do you expect coming to downtown Livermore. Other than that I recommend this place to anyone looking for a good French dip fix!

Quick, kind service, fantastic food. The bread must’ve been made there that morning.
They have a great atmosphere with several TV to watch various sports. Lots of beer to choose from too.
I ate the Caesar salad and traditional dip. Probably the best of either that I’ve ever had.

Very disappointed. Prime Rib and au jus were flavorless the corned beef looked and tasted funny. I thought the garlic fries were good, but my man thought they had a weird flavor.
Also, menu reads «All dips served with au jus and all burgers served with fries», so we didn’t think we were getting fries with our sandwhiches and ordered a basket… ended up leaving a bunch of uneaten food on the table.
$ 28 for a mediocre lunch for 2 :(

Average… average is the term that best describes Marios French dips. The same term that describes subway or any other basic sandwich place.
The prime rib meat was cooked correctly but everything lacks seasoning. The au jus tasted like water, all it did was make the sandwich easier to swallow. Also, don’t order any special French fry dishes as a starter because your meal comes with French fires and you can’t substitute for something that isn’t a carb.
The services was good and the environment was nice but I would had rather made the sandwich at home and used a pre made mix of au jus from Safeway.

Interesting little place in downtown Livermore. The atmosphere is very relaxed with paper napkins, baskets and paper cups. One server and two line cooks is all it takes to run this place on a Tuesday at Lunch. I was a little disappointed in the fact that I was one of two people in during the early lunch hour and they didn’t get my order right, they fixed it but it’s about the details for me.

The French Dip I had today was the best I’ve ever had bar none!
The sandwiches here are superb: Good quality meats, generous portions, and good service too! I was stunned that no one was in here when I went (I must have beat the lunch crowd because it was around 11:30 a.m.).
The Potato salad was divine! This was not some garbage made in a large container but handcrafted wonderfulness!
The people who ate lunch with me probably thought I’d have a food coma because of the size of my sandwich… let them gloat, let sneer while they eat their wimpy salads! I had Mario’s for lunch folks… and it was glorious!

Now we can get delicious sausage sandwiches at Mario’s new «Mario’s Links N Hops» which is newly opened next door to his fabulous French Dip restaurant!
First time trying this place and we WILL be back!
I had the garlic sausage which was delicious and my husband had the Italian sausage– also delicious!
Thanks Mario!!!

Unassuming spot in Downtown Livermore. Casual eats, popular with locals, simple and delicious. NOT a hipster location… it’s good, basic food, not «fancified» in any way. Our server was very nice and helpful. DH got the prime rib dip, which is what made them famous. I ordered half a prime rib dip and a salad. It was a lot of food!
The French Dip sandwich ($ 11.95) came with a small bowl of au jus, which was perfectly seasoned. The meat is what really sets this restaurant apart from other sandwich shops. The prime rib was well marbled and tender. This is real food, not that thin processed stuff you find in chain restaurants. Meat lovers will have a good time here. :)
The bread is good, but not homemade. The salad was very fresh, but basic, like the pre-​packaged stuff you can get at the grocery store. Their honey mustard dressing was tasty. Portion size on the salad was large. Also the side of fries on the whole dip sandwich… a lot of food. Their fries were fresh, but lacking in the oomph that makes them spectacular.
If you upgrade the half sandwich ($ 8.95) to the prime rib, it will cost you $ 2 extra. Overall, I’d give them 4 stars for the food, but they get an extra star for service… you will really feel welcomed here!

When you want to eat like a MAN, you go to Mario’s. I am a woman (last time I checked) and mostly vegetarian, but you gotta give your body what it’s secretly craving sometimes, ya know?
I brought my sons here and we enjoyed watching several different sports on the large TVs while we waited. I ordered the Tri Tip Dip with Fries ($ 9.99) and they shared a kid’s meal of Chicken Strips with Fries ($ 5.99). The au jus. THE AU JUS! So damn good. I would like a pint of that next time instead of my beer, please. Well, okay, both. You know me so well!
Mario’s has this really hilarious and frightening sign on the bathroom door that says to knock several times and listen. Apparently if you fail to do that and keep jiggling the handle, it will open and you will see someone in a compromising position. Good for perverts but bad for the rest of us. You’ve been warned!

The French Dip is in my top 5 of favorite sammies. So you know I’m gonna be a bit judge-​y up in hur. Got the basic Prime Rib Dip ($ 12ish)
The meat: Very generous portion, nicely thinly sliced. The meat however had little flavor and actually nothing really stood out and told me it was «prime rib». Just basic roast beef to me. Maybe the «dip» to follow is to remedy all that?
The bread: Really good. Not your basic cheap bread. It will not disintegrate upon dipping, which is of paramount importance to me. The bread is better here than Adamson’s.
The Au Jus: Incredibly boring. Seemed like basic beef broth. Sure it will add moisture to your sandwich but it should also up the flavor profile. It should be beefier, a tad saltier and maybe hints of black pepper and celery. The jus at Adamson’s is better. Heck, the jus at Denny’s has more punch, so what does that say?
The accompanying fries are thin and crisp, real nice. And with their bold table horseradish, actually makes this a decent beef sandwich. Just could be more solid, more wow-​factor, since your name is on it… after all.
Burgers pretty good also, same bread company and nice thick patties. And with a decent selection of craft brews (about 10 – 12) makes this a worthy contender out here in hawt-​ass Livermore.

I’ve never been to Austin, but if it’s anything like Mario’s Austin Dip, then please book my flight. It was so delicious! I had just eaten so I didn’t think I could eat a whole one. I decided to share with my love and the kitchen cut it for us in half. 6 minutes later, gone. The cheese, jalepenos, dipping sauce, everything was so perfect. I quickly regretted our decision to share…
I can’t wait to go back. This is the perfect place to fill your stomach before 2 hours of wine tasting.
The place is located right in downtown Livermore. There is parking along the street and there is a lot across the street as well. It looks like a really fun town. Would love to see more!

The fact that there is an entire restaurant dedicated to French Dips is simply amazing. What’s even more amazing is the fact that they have a Pastrami French Dip.
The sandwiches here are a great size, both in the length of the sandwich and the amount of meat they pile on. A beautiful brick of thinly sliced pastrami was a beautiful sight to my eyes. No French dip would be complete without a small cup of tasty au jus to accompany it. You get a small range of options to choose for a side, and I settled on the regular fries, though the garlic fries were very tempting. The fries were served very hot and they were delicious.
The menu also has a good selection of burgers to choose from, as well as a few other sides to choose from, such as coleslaw and potato salad. The service was very friendly to the point where it felt like I was just hanging out with friends. The service was also very quick. Just minutes after ordering, my food was in my face and ready for consumption.
Downtown Livermore just doesn’t fail to keep providing people with amazing places to eat.

I wanted to love this place because I love the concept of an entire restaurant dedicated to French dips. And the service was GREAT! No wait times, and food came out quick.
Sadly, this place wasn’t any thing special. I don’t know if it’s because I was spoiled with French dips my whole life? Maybe my expectations were too high?
I added caramelized onions and while cheddar sauce to my tri tip dip and this was a mistake. The white cheddar sauce was cold and tasted like a mass amount of mayo, and the meat and Au jus just had 0 flavor.
I would give this place another shot. Maybe I ordered wrong?

I’ve heard about this spot for awhile now, but haven’t eaten here until recently. It was a Saturday night, but rainy… so there was less than the usual amount of people downtown. I had to park in the lot across the street and behind those buildings still.
When we walked in, I was a tad confused. There was a guy behind the register who greeted us and told us to sit anywhere we wanted. I now know that he is Mario, the owner of the establishment. A waitress came over and took our drink orders right away.
My daughter ordered the kids prime rib sandwich with regular fries and I ordered the prime rib sandwich with garlic fries. The portions are good. If you’re looking for a solid prime rib sandwich with au jus, this is the place. The garlic fries are also really good, especially with ranch. The fries are a little crunchier, which is how I like mine. Just goes better with the garlic, as they soften some when it’s topped with it.
I still think the setup is a little odd. You seat yourself, but then waitresses serve you. It is a place that could be a walk up and order and then be seated and they bring it to you. Other than that, everything else was good.

Came in today around 11:30 for lunch, which is apparently when the open. I was pretty pleased with the ample seating outside, so my friend and I sat outside on their patio (great for people-​watching lol). It’s nice and shady as well!
We ordered one appetizer to start, and it was amazing! «Disco Fries», delicious cheesy goodness, covered with sour cream and (green onions?), topped on some golden, crispy fries. Heaven in the mouth.
Next we both ordered burgers; I kept it simple with the «Fromage Burger», which is basically just a simple burger, but with cheese. Delicious, though. My friend ordered the «Chipotle Burger», which he said was fantastic. The burgers are HUGE, and although they were good, they didn’t «wow» me like some other places have.
But alas, I am picky with burgers. Solid spot for lunch or dinner, especially because it’s not too expensive and is located near some ice cream and froyo for desert.