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In 1979 our family was mislocated from the "Mother Country of TEXAS" to Ohio. My Mariano's Margarita Bucket was emptied and moved. Nine years later it was transported to Florida. As of July 3,2003 it has been returned to its ROOTS! I can proudly say it has never been emptied without a refill for the next needed frozen Margarita by myself or my many converts along the way. Over a year ago
my YA YA SISTERS in Florida inducted me as PRINCESS MERRY MARGARITA. I have been coming to Mariano's in Old Town since it first opened. We (my family and I) have celebrated many special occasions including: my birthday, my wife's birthday, my son's birthday, my best friend's birthday, our wedding anniversary, New Year's Eve, visits from out-of-town guests and more! I
remember one of my first dates with my current wife was at Mariano's.
We had been Christmas shopping and, although it was sleeting rain and
bitterly cold, we stopped by for margaritas and chips. We sat
in the big, brown barrel chairs and watched the sleet come down.
We had such a great experience, that we stayed for dinner and it became
a regular "haunt" of ours for the next 22 years.
On
a sad note, it was also the favorite restaurant of my best friend.
My wife and I shared numerous Friday night dinners (Spicy Chicken Verde!)
with him and his wife until he passed away on December 1, 2001.
We still come in regularly and share a toast in his memory.
My
wife's and my favorite meal is not on the menu. At our request,
we get the "everything fajitas". This includes chicken, beef,
shrimp, sausage and vegetables - everything and anything in the kitchen!
It is the best! And, of course, there are a few margaritas to
go with it.
We
have been to all the other Texas locations - Arlington, Frisco, Carrolton
- but Old Town is our favorite. We will miss the trip but look
forward to seeing everyone at the new location on Preston Road....
- Mr. Charlie For the last 28 years Mariano's has been my family's favorite restaurant. My brothers & I have grown up eating our favorite dishes (CHICKEN ENCHILADAS, ENCHILADAS SUIZAS, TRI-COLORED ENCHILADAS, FAJITAS & SPICY CHICKEN VERDE) When we were younger we played video games while our parents sipped on margaritas, now we bring our wives, children & dates to Mariano's. My nieces & nephews are all beginning to have their own favorite dishes and they all have their picture taken on the “first trip to Mariano’s”. When we were in college or living away from Dallas our first stop from the airport was always Mariano's. Whenever someone from the family takes a vacation we always meet at Mariano's for lunch & to hear about the trip. On more than one occasion, I will show up at Mariano’s with friends & discover another member of my family is there. Our faces are familiar to the many loyal employees who have worked for you over the past years and we are sad to say goodbye to them & you on Saturday. By the way, we will be in the big booth in the back at 11:30. - Charlotte
I ordered from the menu and I think I got the “Pancho Villa”; it was a combination plate that allowed me to taste several delicious dishes. About halfway through the meal the waiter delivered “Sizzling Fajitas” to the table next to us. I couldn’t believe the aroma. Even though I had a wonderful meal in front of me I was intrigued by this and resolved to come back sometime soon and try that meal. I didn’t have to wait. Our meeting lasted several hours and by the time I signed the contract it was time for diner. The VP of the agency asked me if I wanted to go somewhere else to eat dinner and celebrate and I said no—I wanted to try that sizzling entrée I had seen (and smelled) earlier that afternoon, so Fajitas were ordered and since business was over, a round of frozen margaritas were called for too. Since that day I have been hooked. Mariano’s Oldtown location has been (and will probably always be) my favorite restaurant in the world (and believe me, I eat at a lot of restaurants). This isn’t one of those places where “everybody knows your name” this is better, everyone knows you by your nickname. Being a magician, I have always been called “Mago”, or “Senior Mago”. I always call the people at Mariano’s amigo. I have taken not only every member of my family there, but also all of my business clients and everyone who has ever been a part of my show. We have held wedding receptions in the cantina, I have hung out for hours on the patio on sunny afternoons and signed contracts for thousands of dollars in the restaurant. That is one of the great things about this restaurant. They are more concerned that their patrons enjoy the visit than they are about turning tables over. They never rush you to leave. There have been times when some VIP was dining there and the manager (or on occasion even Mariano himself) would ask me to perform a little table magic which I would do happily. Believe it or not, I even picked up a small role on the television series Dallas by doing that. My first date with the woman who would become my wife was at Mariano’s and my sons have grown up there (they are 11 and 14 now). In fact, when the oldest, Kel developed an eating disorder as a baby the bartender there at the time mixed up honey and milk and brought it to us. He promised us that Kel would like it—and he was right. For about 3 months the only thing he would eat was this honey milk. The doctors never figured out why my son had developed this disorder but they all agreed, without the honey milk, he would have never lived to be three. I look back on the past 22 + years and wonder how different things would have been with no Mariano’s. There are many people there who will always bring a smile to my face and a warm feeling in my heart. From Daniel to Miguel (who started out as a waiter and is now the manager) to Reza, Ever, Carlos, Martin, Franco and yes, Wanda and Mariano himself, and others whose names I don’t remember but I will always call amigo. No make that familia—family. - Dal I have been coming
to Marianos for several years now, usually eating there at least once
a week. I work at SMU, so me and some co-workers come in for lunch.
My parents (Jim and Bobbie Record, on your e-mail list) love to eat
there, so we come in about every other weekend. I have brought several
dates there (good way to make a good 1st impression!), not to mention
family and friends from around town and from out of town. I even have
3 of the 30th Anniversary t-shirts. But probably the best story is
when I come in after work, to eat and have a few Margaritas, and watch
a game. It didn't matter what was on, when I came in, the bartender,
Juan, would find a game (usually the Stars) for me to watch. Even
if the Stars game wasn't on TV, Juan would still try to find it. I
came in and had Juan change channels to the game so many times that
when he saw me outside before I came in, he would start looking for
the game before I even sat down! Now THAT'S service! Heres hoping
that you are at the new location for 32 years plus! How do you say "Mariano's fajitas, margaritas, and salsa" in German? Your most loyal customer (our son-in-law) doesn't worry about that since he is bilingual and has about 11 1/2 hours on his flights from his home in Dresden, Germany to salivate (either in German or in English) over his favorites awaiting him in Dallas at Mariano's Old Town Restaurant. We can't seem to get him there fast enough after dropping off his luggage at our home (Who needs sleep??? Bring on the margaritas!) We are still trying to figure out a way to get his Mariano's favorites back to Dresden! Thanks for these wonderful treats, and please continue to make them the SAME WAY at the new location - a little farther to drive, but compared to his 11 1/2 hours on a plane to get here, what's a few more minutes? Dorothy and Rick, In-Laws of your most loyal customer Toralf of Dresden, Germany We have not lived in Dallas very long, and discovered Mariano's only a year ago. But since then I and several of my American Heart Association employees have been coming to Mariano's at least once every week. We were very saddened to hear of the closing. I've had lunch or dinner there four times this week, including dinner tonight. So sorry to see you close. We will miss you! - Greg & Grace In 1973, on Sunday nights, a group of my friends and I began coming to Mariano's on our way to The Travis Street Electric Company (if you remember that place). I was in college then and after college, I lived in The Village, so I frequented the restaurant more times than I can possibly remember. If I had a dollar for efery margarita I've downed in Mariano's over the last 30 years, I could probably retire. I have continued to frequent Mariano's ever since those young, fun days back in the 70's. Good Luck, Godspeed and Thanks for the Memories. - Greg The small plaque on the front to Mariano's Restaurant states that "ON THIS SITE IN 1897 NOTHING HAPPENED." However, in 1972 things began to happen with the opening of Mariano's Restaurant in Old Town Dallas. We were there shortly after the opening and have continued to be there through the years. We were there and saw the first margarita machine in action. We were there when there was a band and a small dance floor in the area that is now the main dining room. We were there when the first fajitas were served. We were there to celebrate graduations, birthdays, anniversaries, and Cinco de Mayo. Our square dance club was there to enjoy dinner before our club dances on many occasions. Our best friends always knew where we would be and would meet us at Mariano's. We were there for quiet dinners for two. We were there as frequent diners and have enjoyed many free dinners. We were there through several remodelings, updates, and renovations. Thanks for the memories, Mariano! We were there
this last week many times enjoying our favorite dinners. .And
now "ON THIS SITE OCTOBER 4, 2003 -- SOMETHING HAPPENED - MARIANO'S
CLOSED!" But, we will be there when the new La Hacianda Ranch opens
on Preston Road to begin a whole new era of happenings. - Harold
and Janice
We have been eating about every Friday night for 26 years at mariano's on Greenville Ave. My wife and I moved to Dallas in July of 1977. We had always eaten at a Mexican Restaurant in Houston and were looking for a good Mexican restaurant when we moved to Dallas. After trying a couple of places along Greenville Avenue we found Mariano's. And, we have been coming back for the past 26 years. We have driven in Ice storms, floods on Central Expressway, tornado warnings and gas shortages to make it to Mariano's. In fact we have introduced many of our neighbors to Mariano's. Even today some of our friends will call on Friday and ask if we are going to Mariano's, and we say "sure come along". We have celebrated birthdays, wedding anniversary's, brought the kids when in town and introduced the grandkids to your restaurant. Six years ago
we moved to near highway 121 and the toll road, but we still drive
down to Mariano's. In our 26 years we have seen many waiters come
and go but you still have one waiter that has been there longer
than we have. And, we are sometimes ask why don't you go to our
new restaurant off Preston We have seen the restaurant change from the bar on the north side and the restaurant on the south side to just the opposite. But we still miss the Mariachi band you used to have. But with all the changes over time we still would not miss coming for our "Friday mexican food night". - Marion My wife and I have been eating at Mariano's almost weekly for about 15 years. I'm sure that Mariano has many customers who fall into this category. A couple of years ago my wife gave me a surprise 40th birthday party hosted at Mariano’s on Greenville Ave. We had friends and relatives attend from all over Texas and as far away as Minnesota. She requested our usual waiter (Evers) to serve us. Fajitas and Margaritas were served to all and all had a great time eating, drinking and roasting me the honoree. The food and service was fantastic. When it was time to leave, Miguel and Evers presented me the bill. Without looking at it, I asked if the customary 15% tip had already been added. Evers replied, “we only add the tip for people we don’t know”. I felt that was an extreme compliment especially for a tab as large as we had generated. But over the years, Miguel and Evers had become accustomed to me tipping greater than 15% and felt I would this time even on a bill this large. I tipped my customary 20% to Evers. These types of customer relationships are built over time and I don’t believe that Miguel or Evers would have extended this type of confidence to just any customer. My family and I have enjoyed the food, drink and atmosphere that Mariano’s offers. We will miss them all. Loyal Customer, - Michael Monte and I have been coming to Mariano's since 1997, we were loyal Blue Goose fans and found out about Mariano's in the pass book, and well, Blue Goose was history after that. Let's just say that most of the people at Mariano's know us very well. We used to live off of Greenville and would come every weekend, then we moved to East Plano and realized that we knew we would be making the road trip across town to enjoy Mariano's because nowhere in the metroplex can top the food, margarita's and service. Mariano's holds a very special place in our hearts, we had our rehearsal dinner for our wedding here, Mariano's is both of our daughters first restaurant outings, Monte and I have date nights here without the kids, October 4th is going to be a sad day for us. We love La Hacienda as well, but the atmosphere of Mariano's will be greatly missed. I would say Monte and I are the most loyal patrons of Mariano's because we do not and will not go anywhere else for mexican food! (what to do now? La Hacienda it will be, I just hope that the staff will follow, Juan, Angel, Arturo, Julie...) See you all on Saturday!! - Michelle & Monte In the mid '70s, the accounting firm in which I worked did the accounting for Marianos. Our firm also did the feasibility study prior to the opening of Marianos' downtown restaurant. For the grand opening, Marianos sent out hand-lettered corn tortilla invitations inviting the recipient and two guests to join in the festivities. Upon receiving his invitation, our senior accountant for the Marianos account invited me (his lucky female co-worker) to join him and his wife in attending the grand opening. After he introduced his wife and me to Mariano, Mariano pulled him to the side. Mariano had to let him know that he could not believe he would bring his wife and his GIRLFRIEND to the same party! We had many great laughs over that. We had already frequented the Old Town location and now haunted the downtown location at lunch and after work. We had great times and great memories. Salud, Mariano! - Elana In 1970 my mother and father moved into a new home on Glennox Street which is about a mile from Old Town. They started going to Mariano,s shortly after it opened and ate there at least once every other week. Anytime they had guests at their home, we all went to Mariono's. When dad died several years later, mother kept on going to Mariano's. She said she felt at home there even if she went alone because everyone at Mariano's made her feel welcome. The former manager would always walk her to her car after she was finshed with her meal. She has been a most loyal customer since the opening of Mariano's. She has eaten there at least once every two weeks and many times more often than that. My mother will soon be 86 years old. We live approximately 100 miles from dallas. Any time we are headed toward Dallas we call her and go to Mariano's. It is the only restraunt that my wife knows what she wants before we get there and doesn't change anything on the menu. She always orders the cilantro snapper and a margarita. The funniest story is once when my wife and I were up there, mother took us to Mariano's as always. The manager gave mother a thumbs up thinking I was her date. We all, especially my wife, still laugh about that. He was surprised to learn that I was her son. We will all miss Mariano's in Old Town. My wife and I and when possible my mother will still go Mariano's in Arlington which is approximately 2 miles from our Son-in-law, daugter and grandson's home. We will also
go to the Hacienda Ranch. Our family feels like a part of your family and will continue to be loyal cutomers. - Ronald & Elizabeth He was in town on business and dining at Mariano's with two assistants as he had done before. I recognized his distinctive profile immediately, as did most other diners, and the patio was soon a buzz. I pointed him out to my dining companion and she too registered recognition. she immediately went to his table and asked for his autograph. He very graciously signed her Mariano's napkin and the manager even took a picture of the two of them. She was noticeably in awe as she returned to our table, autograph and polaroid in hand and informed me that she "was having this picture made into her Christmas card this year!" I said that
she would be the only one in our circle of friends that had her
picture taken with President Richard M. Nixon. "Richard M.
Nixon!" she said, "I thought that was Bob Hope!" Most Loyal Customer
Story - I love this prize My husband and I moved back to the Dallas area from Austin in 1985, several months before we were married. Kevin moved in to a tiny apartment in the Village and I lived with my parents in Grapevine Texas. We were fortunate that we both found jobs in Dallas not too far from where Kevin lived, because we planned on living in the same apartment after we were married. We didn’t make much money in our new jobs, only just enough to pay for the essentials. One thing that we considered an essential was a trip to Mariano’s in Old Town, so we would save our money and splurge at our favorite restaurant. We were married later that year and over the last 18 years, we have shared so many moments, both joyous and sad over dinner at Mariano’s. It has always been “our place”, and we have shared the experience with family and friends. We have moved around town over the years, but when we drive down Greenville Avenue, we always look for the old yellow wagon and the red awning. I wish I could tell you how many times we have held hands at one of your tables, and had Chicken A La Parilla and frozen margaritas over the years. The quality, flavor and service have been excellent each and every time and Kevin and I are really going to miss Mariano’s. It seems like a chapter in our lives is closing with the closing of the restaurant. Kevin and I will be there on Friday October 3, to have our last order of Chicken A La Parilla and frozen margaritas and to say so long to “our place” and to all the familiar faces. We sincerely hope that Mariano’s opens in a new location so that we can have a new beginning to our old family tradition. - Elaine In 1987 I went to Dallas to visit a girl I knew in college (we had graduated the year before). We were sort of dating, but our relationship was really just beginning. Nonetheless I (and my friends) knew she had me hooked. She was living in the Village and decided that since this was my first visit to Dallas, she thought we should eat at a restaurant that served food I would never find outside of Dallas. That was our first dinner at Mariano's. I moved to Dallas (from Michigan) shortly thereafter - also to the Village - and Mariano's became our Friday evening dinner tradition with friends. We celebrated many successes, romantic moments and, of course, happy hours dining and drinking margaritas there. We took our family and friends from out-of-town there whenever they came to visit. It was "our" place. A few years later I was transferred to Chicago and the girl who introduced me to Dallas and Mariano's moved up shortly thereafter. We have now been married for 12 years. Although we don't get back to Dallas nearly as often as we'd like, we always go to Mariano's in Old Town when we do. Every time we're there we talk about the relatively short period in our lives when we were still getting to know each other and the memories of so many fun times at Mariano's. I'm writing this because a close friend of ours who still lives in Dallas (and drank a lot of margaritas with us!) heard about Mariano's closing and thought we would have some good memories to share. The memories are not as much specific incidents as they are the great feelings that come back when I think about the place. It's a sad thing that we won't be able to visit one more time. Best wishes! - Mike Mariano's has been an integral part of my life over the last 19 years in various ways. It began as an occasional lunch destination when I started working in the Old Town area and slowly evolved into a romantic meeting place for my wife and me before we were married 14 years ago and it continues to be on our list of restaurants that we go to on occasion for lunch. During our courtship and early years of marriage it evolved into a frequent meeting place with some high school and life long friends, one of which was tragically taken from this world in 1993 and the other who has now married and moved to Las Vegas. In its most recent role, Mariano’s regularly serves as a family favorite when my sister visits from Denver (best fajitas in town). As confirmed by other friends who have moved away, she says that when it comes to Mexican food or Tex-Mex that "even the chains can't get it right" when you leave Texas. So it is now a regular event, that whenever she visits, we always go to eat Mexican food, with Mariano's being one of the regulars on the list of favorite destinations. It was truly a sad day when I learned that the Old Town location was being closed. While it will no longer be a lunch favorite for my wife and me, we look forward to occasional “dates” to the new location and will continue to bring my sister and her family when they visit “Big D”. Best wishes
and success to the Mariano’s crew, |