J Marinara’s

the best service this place did for the neighborhood… was to close up.

Went here with my family the other day. We’re an Italian family and we’re really picky when it comes to Italian food, but we all loved this place. I personally like to order things I can’t cook at home, which this place had plenty of. I had the sausage/​penne in vodka sauce, which was one of the better pasta dishes I’ve had. My dad had the muscles, which were excellent. I was surprised that a seafood dish was that good in Arizona. The sauce definitely made the dish. My grandpa always orders the linguine and clams. The calamari was a little overcooked, but the sauce it came with was good on the bread.
Oh, and the Cannoli are to die for. The best I’ve had since buying one off the street in Italy. My Grandparents, who lived in NYC most of their life, said it reminded them of home. They get the shells from a distributor, but make the filling there, and definitely fill them fresh when you order to keep the shell crunchy.

Tried this place for the first time as we had groupon. It was $ 10 for $ 20 worth of Italian dinner fare and drinks for two. Entres on the menu started at 18 $. So groupon was useless. We were FORCED to buy 2 entrees and 2 drinks. We didn’t want any drinks but waitress said YOU HAVE TO get 2 drinks and then handed us big fat cheque. Food was only okay, not worth the prices. Service was really slow. Will not go there again.

I like Italian food so I was really excited when this restaurant opened up. I have been there on three separate occasions and it is never very busy yet the service is really awful. Also, I once got sick from eating there and another person in the party I was with got sick also. If you like really poor service and consider yourself a risk taker than by all means try this place. If you do not like poor service and spending the next 12 hours in the bathroom than avoid it by all means.
Update: I think this pathetic excuse for a restaurant is no longer in business. The phone number nor the website work and the place looks closed. Good riddance.

Eating here last night was nice. The atmosphere is definitely Italian, down to the music being played. Was quiet when we arrived, but filled up quickly. It is a small place… cozy. The wait staff was good, but we waited far too long for our check. Not a big deal, but worth mentioning. The food was good, but the sauce had a background taste of too much dried basil, which ruined the wonderfully garlic filled tomato marinara. I know it was dried basil because I use it in my sauces, as well, however I don’t over do it so the taste doesn’t overwhelm as this did. This restaurant claims that everything is made on premises by the 2010 Tucson Iron Chef winner, so that led me to believe it would be all fresh, including the spices. The salad was good, the veggie soup was also delicious. The garlic bread was good. All in all, a pretty good meal, but my hubby and I both decided we prefer Carrabba’s (I know, it’s a chain, but it IS good), where they use fresh basil in their sauces and we get dipping oil for our freshly baked bread.

This place is surprisingly expensive for the casual setting, but the great service and amazing food are well worth the price. The portions are BIG, so come hungry or be prepared to take home leftovers.

Fantastic! Cooked to perfection — Italian doesn’t get better than this

Service was wonderful and the food is excellent. I even asked for less salt and they were able to accommodate me. A real gem tucked away in Northwest Tucson.

I visited this place this evening, I am always up to trying new places. This place was horrible. The food was horrible, the service was even worse! The hostess was very rude asked us to leave because there were other people waiting to be seated. We were in the middle of dinner! Our food was whisked away for take out… totally rude and inappropriate. Never again! Please avoid. don’t waste your time or your money there

My wife and I continue to search for a great Italian restaurant after a disappointing dinner at J. Marinara’s. We decided to venture out because the place was close by our apartment but next time we’re going to make sure to travel a little further for our Italian fix. Although the restaurant offers some great appetizers and deserts, the entrees are just not worth the value.
What’s most disappointing is the sauce, which is unfortunately what the restaurant is known for. J. Marinara’s prides itself on being authentic East Coast Italian and although I’m from the East Coast, I have no idea what that means. If it means watery marinara sauce, then I’d like to opt out of the East Coast Italian experience. In terms of value, J. Marinara’s is priced too high for its entrees. My wife’s pasta, consisting of two shrimp, some chicken, and half a sausage was $ 18. These are all very cheap ingredients and are used so sparingly it’s no wonder the place charges for extra helpings of chicken, shrimp, or sausage.
On the plus side, the garlic bread and homemade Tiramisu is absolutely worth the price. If you find yourself curious enough about J. Marinara’s to go there, at least do yourself a favor and get these two dishes. They might help ease the pain of the disappointing entrees.

My girlfriend and I went on a Sunday night. Apparently there is a happy hour during the week, but you must sit outside? Not sure. Anyway, the hostess was dressed for the club and looked out of place in the restaurant. I wouldn’t have trusted any of her recommendations so I didn’t ask for any.
They start by trying to sell you the wine on the table and if you don’t order any wine, they whisk away the drink and dessert menu. I thought that was odd because people might change their minds, but maybe it was a one-​off.
I ordered the chicken marsala and my gf had the chicken parm. The chicken parm was a large portion of chicken and a huge pile of pasta. She enjoyed it, but couldn’t finish it. The chicken marsala was the best I’d ever had; one of the best meals I’ve had anywhere in a long time. The vegtables and mushroom risotto it came with were also very good.
They show you a platter of desserts to choose from at the end, which I think really helps sell it. I was full, so I took tiramisu to go. The waitress assured me they were heavy on the amaretto. It was a very large portion of dessert for $ 5 and very, very good.
One of the owners came by to shake hands and say hi, which reminds me of restaurants in small towns or in Europe, which I love.
Overall the ambience is kind of strange, the hostess out of place, but the food was amazing. I would definitely come back to this side of town for more tiramisu!

So, I have been buy here a couple times for lunch and found it to definitely rate high on my personal YUM scale. The first time I was there, I met with a friend cause I had some juicy gossip I just had to tell him. Yes, guys gossip too, but don’t tell anyone cause no one is supposed to know that yet, k? Anyway, he had been there before and suggested I get the meatball sub. We both ordered it and it was fantastic. Some other reviewers on here said that it was small cause the roll was only 5″ or so. How much do you need for lunch anyway? I don’t know about you but if I hammer through a huge lunch on a hot day in Arizona, the second half of my day is spent promising myself I will never eat a huge lunch again. Anyway, I found it plenty appropriate portionwise. Our waitress was friendly to chat with. I was there early so she and I gabbed a bit before my friend arrived. All told, we got out of there for barely 20 dollars or so with a generous tip. I think that’s more than fair for a good lunch.
My second time there was also for lunch. This time, my friend had some gossip of epic proportions to spill. Actually, I feel I owe him cause his gossip was so much better than mine, LOL. So this time, I got the italian sub. I loved it. It was everything an italian sub should have been. Great meats, some good provalone cheese, and a fantastic italian dressing. You know what I am talking about. Pungent, garlicky and Vinagar-​y but in a way that makes you not care cause it is so good. My friend again just had to go with the meatball sub. That should tell you something. Price point was just about the same. I paid this time though, ya know, cause the gossip was just sooooo good.
I quite frankly have a hard time believing some of the reviews that say they were told «to find peace in their lives» and such. One of the reviews that was filtered out said that the owner «came out and told them „I hope you Choke on it.“» Aside from the fact that the people have been nothing but nice to me here, I just can’t see that happening outside of a Martin Scorcese film or maybe in an episode of «The Sopranos.»
I will update soon once I hit dinner there. It will also give me a chance to dive into the wine list a bit. The place definitely rates on my YUM scale as of now.

Went to J. Marinara’s for the first time tonight because we had a Groupon. It was right at the start of the dinner service (4pm). We were greeted nicely at the door.
The décor is a little kitschy and overdoes it a bit on the Italian theme. But overall it seemed clean and nice.
The bread basket that came before the meal was good but I was disappointed that we were given little plastic wrapped containers of butter like you’d find at a cafeteria. I would’ve preferred some olive oil, or to have had the butter presented nicely. Especially at these prices.
They brought a tray of raw cuts of meat to show what they were serving. I thought this was an interesting touch.
I ordered the Ziti w/​Vodka sauce and meatballs. I thought it was very good (and I grew up eating East Coast italian food). The sauce was excellent, and the meatballs had great flavor. The pasta seemed a little watery but all-​in-​all I was very pleased with the dish. ($ 12.50)
My husband had the Ribeye, ($ 20.99) which he ordered medium. He said the flavor was good but it pretty much close to well-​done. The potatoes looked like they came out of some kind of carton as they were almost perfectly square. But he said the flavor was good on those as well. I thought the price was a little high for what he received. And the ribeye he received looked NOTHING like the nicely marbled, thick cut they had on the preview tray before we ordered.
All-​in-​all a good experience. We would go back again and just not order the Ribeye as it wasn’t worth the $.

I had driven past this place a handful of times and finally popped in for a takeout dinner. The hostess was adorable and was very helpful when i placed my order. I was told that all pasta dishes were the quickest to prepare so I went with it. The owner came out and gave me a few menus to bring back to my nearby office. He pointed out the bargain lunch specials (which I have yet to try). He also assured me that the he’s from New Jersey and all the food here is authentic «East Coast». I was also given a free cannoli! (thanks!) The magic here is the sauce– it’s amazingly fresh and flavorful.

Ate there on a Thursday night. Not a huge crowd, but found out that they have not kicked in any advertising. Ok, onto the food!
Bruschetta had a nice tangy tomato, but like someone else said toasted a bit too much. The cheese on top was shaved, which I never had like it before. Very good. Also had some of the garlic bread, wow, you better like garlic. I love it so to me it was great.
Our main course was a ribeye and garlic mashed potatoes. Daughter had spagetti with sausage. The steaks where done exactly how ordered, med rare and they melted in your mouth. A sauce on them to die for with spices all around. Don’t know what kind for sure, pepper and some others I can’t place. The mashed potatoes had some pea pods, carrots, and green beans on them with a nice presentation. Much better than I expected. Wife had the same thing I did and pretty much had the same experience.
Daughters spagetti was done al dente, I tried it to know for sure. She loved the sauce. They even sell their sauce, so I think that is what they are known for. All in all, it was really good and would say you should give it a try.
I did not have desert so cannot comment on it. Would definetly come back again.

Food is very good. Pricing is moderate to expensive. Entrees at $ 17.00, no salad provided. Although the side salad for $ 2.00 is very good. We have been there 3 times. Linguine with clams very good. My wife thinks might be the best she has had. Chicken Marsala I have have had twice, flavor very rich, but taste not consistent in the 2 times I had it.
Stay away from the Bruschetta, excellent tomato, garlic topping but they burnt the bread all three times I ordered. I sent back the second time and they burnt the thrid. Didn’t bother ordering on our third visit.
Cheese cake good, my wifey liked. Different texture. Worth giving them a chance. Concered with «too many cooks in the kitchen» and how this might effect consistency in recipies. Also, need to learn how to toast and not burn Bruchetta.