ricotta cheesecake

Second generation operated ethnic restaurants include marino ristorante in East Hollywood.   Los Angeles Magazine’s “best” pick restaurant host, Mario Marino, shares responsibilities.  Brother Sal (former owner-chef of Il Grano, La Bottega Marino), oversees the kitchen.

(Marino ristorante) is one of the 31 restaurants in Los Angeles to be awarded the The “Ospitalita’ Italiana – Seal of Authenticity”. Restaurants have to pass an extensive series of rigorous tests for authenticity, from a percentage of denomination Italian wines on their list to the menu being written in perfect Italian, and Italian-speaking staff.

Dad Ciro (who passed away in 2009) created Marino Ristorante as an old school formal dining room in 1979.  The menu is respected for being  as fresh as the fish and seafood the brothers continue to carefully pick out each morning at the downtown markets.  Sal is a familiar face at local farmers markets, and has so many tomatoes in his own garden he holds “tomato dinners” at the restaurant each summer.

“Marino” means “the sea,” and here fish and seafood star among the Neapolitan comfort dishes.  Marino was the first restaurant to feature whole Branzino (Chilean Sea Bass), filleted table side.  The kitchen still offers it three ways: grilled, Blackened and baked in a coating of sea salt,  filleted table side.

Marino was once known affectionately as the “unofficial Paramount Studios commissary” for power hitters and celebrities.  Those were the days when Frank Sinatra held sway in the back room.  There were good feelings after he tried and failed to recruit Ciro as his private chef.

White tablecloth tables and booths still hold political officials, musicians, entertainers and producers with household name recognition though their privacy is respected. The Henry Mancini family and the Bill Conti family still hold family dinner in the back private room

Awards for food are many.   Vegan bread is baked in ancient Roman style, with a similar recipe also used in the award-winning pizza crust. Marino’s Chestnut Pasta was also honored with a feature in Los Angeles Magazine. Marino’s organic produce was featured on National Public Radio.

Marino cuisine classic options are also healthy ones.   Gluten-free pasta choices, such as the wild mushroom fettuccine shown here, are also a vegetarian and vegan favorite.  For carnivores, there is the pappardelle Bolognese (with a beef, veal sauce cooked for three hours)  plus steak and lamb dishes.  The signature Neapolitan, Chicken Vesuvio, heads the list of poultry dishes.  

Ciro was always a cutting-edge trend-setter since his days as head captain at the legendary Villa Capri.  He later managed  Martoni’s, one of the city’s first celebrity-driven eateries.  Sonny Bono wrote, “I’ve got You Babe,” after host Ciro requested he go home and change to follow the restaurant dress code.

Ciro loves to tell the story of his first night working there, “the youngest server and the smartest” who was overseeing the likes of Jean Leon, Matty Jordan and Dan Tana.  “If you listen to me, you’ll all own your own places,” he laughs.  And they did: La Scala, Maddeo, Matteo, Carmine’s and La Dolce Vita.

When Martoni’s opened with most of the same staff, Ciro was manager.  He had already changed his name to Mario to make it “easier for Americans to pronounce and remember.”  So Martoni’s was named after him and after his cousin.

Innovator Ciro originated the first outdoor patio dining spot on Sunset Boulevard, which soon became such a popular after-hours hangouts for restaurant insiders, the proprietor did not arrive home till dawn.  And he operated the first restaurant “take-away” section, still popular  with its kitchen window visible from the street.

When cousin Tony changed his mind about partnering to own Martoni’s, Ciro left the country to raise his young family in Naples.  He returned  in 1982 to open Marino.  The restaurant soon became well known for their award-winning wine list – so extensive it required an additional house to store it, businessman’s lunches and degustation menus.

The  anti pasti (shown here), that became so popular it earned a showcase of its own at the door.

marino anti pasti that earned its own case by the door

The signature ricotta cheesecake  currently  boasts three pages on google, including a video.  It has become featured item at many invitational charity events in the city.

Mario and hostess Rita serve the signature cheesecake

www.marinorestaurant.net.  marino ristorante, 6001 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90038,(323) 466-881. Order online for pick up and delivery.  Lunch Mon-Fri; Dinner Mon-Sat. Reservations suggested; children welcome; valet parking, casual elegant, private room.