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The latest location of the small chain of three Mario's Early Toast, is located in the Granite Rose Center, in Rocklin, CA. Mario's has transformed what was formerly a run-of-the-mill Denny's into a stunning, comfortable and contemporary restaurant, that offers amazing breakfast and lunch, along with over 50 varieties of mimosas. As with all restaurant reviews I publish, I have no affiliation with the restaurant reviewed, and there is no monetary gain on my part, as I am simply a person who likes to eat, and I love to write-up, and publish my dining experiences.
Photo: It's a little past the 06:00 in the morning opening time, on a rainy Saturday morning, January 14, 2023, and I'm looking forward to an amazing Mexican breakfast at Mario's Early Toast, located in Rocklin, CA. The way the building is lighted up makes it very visible from nearby, busy Interstate 80. Does the architecture of the building look familiar? The building was a former Denny's, which closed their doors last year.
Photo: As you enter the restaurant, you'll notice the entry way - a leftover from "Denny's days" - along with a small souvenir stand. Speaking of decor, you'd hardly recognize this restaurant from it's "Denny's days" as Mario's has completely changed the decor from "blah blah" to simply stunning. There is a "meet and greet" stand, but at this early hour, the restaurant wasn't busy, so I simply picked a place where I wanted to sit.
Photo: The dining room is divided by several small partitions and the furniture is mostly booths, with a few tables and assorted combinations of booth/tables. There are many large television monitors tuned to sports - football - as this is the weekend for NFL "Wildcard" playoffs, which I plan to enjoy this afternoon. Besides the large breakfast counter, there is a mimosa bar, as Mario's specializes in mimosa, and the bar offers over 50 variations of mimosas! Surely they will be able to make a mimosa to suit your taste! Sadly, I was driving, so a mimosa wasn't an option for me.
Photo: The breakfast counter I comfortable, attractive and offers a great view of the staff in action. I love the large television monitor, which was tuned to sports commentary, namely NFL football. I normally sit at the counter, but today, I felt like sitting at a booth. Perhaps I'm getting older?
Photo: Each table is set with cups of creamer, several types of jam and jelly, packages of sugar, ketchup, salt, pepper, and most importantly... two types of hot sauce including Cholula, which has taken the greater Sacramento area by storm.
Photo: Mario's Early Toast is very serious about breakfast, as breakfast is listed on FIVE pages of their menu, and along with lunch, is available any time the restaurant is open. The breakfast menu begins with "Combinations, Omelets and Skillets." Honestly, I wanted to go with the "Biscuit and Gravy Combo," but when I turned to the Mexican section of the menu, I was hooked.
Photo: Mario's is serious about Mexican breakfast, as one page of the breakfast menu features Mexican "comfort food." Alright, I gave in and went with "Chile Verde."
Photo: The main dining room is attractive, and features a great mixture of tables and booths, with one large table in the center, which can seat ten diners. My host, Oscar, is busy setting out condiments and if you look behind him, you can see the huge television monitor and get a peek into the kitchen.
Photo: The chef rang the bell, and my server is picking up my breakfast from the window to the kitchen. Mario's doesn't have an "open kitchen" but if you sit at the counter, it's easy to get a peek of the talented kitchen staff as they prepare delicious meals.
Photo: Meet Oscar, my friendly host, who brought my fine breakfast to me with a smile. Oscar provided friendly and efficient service, and I look forward to his company during a future visit to Mario's. My breakfast arrived about 15 minutes after placing my order, which was truly on the fast side. I have nothing but great things to say about Oscar and Mario's Early Toast.
Photo: I'm a happy guy, as I'm ready to enjoy an amazing Mexican breakfast on this early Saturday morning. There aren't many restaurants in the greater Sacramento area that offer a Mexican breakfast this early on a Saturday morning. Alonzo's Coffee Shop, which was located on the south side of Sacramento used to serve a fine Mexican breakfast early every morning, but, unfortunately, this fine restaurant has closed their doors.
Photo: My breakfast of "Chile Verde" arrived as ordered, with two fried eggs, refried beans, rice, corn tortillas and garnished with a slice of orange and a sprig of parsley. Delicious in every way!
Photo: From the "A La Mexicana Breakfast" PAGE - not section - of the breakfast menu, I went with "Chile Verde." It was a tough call to make, as the "Biscuit and Gravy Combo" was tugging at my taste buds, but when a Mexican breakfast is offered, especially at a tad after 06:00 on a Saturday morning, the "Chile Verde" won out. The menu simply describes this amazing Mexican breakfast as, "Pork and green salsa, served with rice and beans, two eggs any style, and served with flour or corn tortillas." I went with my eggs cooked sunnyside up along with corn tortillas. When I placed my order, my friendly host's eyes lit up and he exclaimed, "That's a good choice, as it's my favorite of the breakfast menu!" He was correct... The star of the dish was the chile verde, with was tender, seasoned pork cut into bite size pieces, seared and then cooked in rich, green chile sauce. The pork was amazingly tender, juicy and cooked perfectly and the texture of the chile sauce was just right, and held the whole dish together. Seasoning was "spot on," as there was a slight "kick," but nothing that your 88 year-old grandmother from Kansas couldn't fall in love with. Topping the "Chile Verde" were my two fried eggs, which were fried perfectly sunnyside up, just like I'd ordered. The chef truly paid attention to detail, as the eggs were perfect in every way. The Mexican rice made for a good, solid side dish, as it was very good, but nothing particularly noteworthy. The refried beans were creamy, with the perfect texture, and topped with melted Mexican cheese for added flavor. I truly missed the taste of lard, but since Mario's Early Toast is located in Rocklin, there aren't many "Rocklinites" that are a fan of lard. The four corn tortillas were Mexican "street size" but these weren't your "supermarket" variety of corn tortillas, as these were delicious! They were toasted on the griddle, seamed and arrived with my breakfast hot and juicy, and wrapped in aluminum foil. They were toasted, yet warm and tender, and had a slight, amazing taste of... butter or olive oil? The tortillas made for an amazing side, and were perfect for scooping up the last bits of breakfast from my plate. The "Chile Verde" breakfast was topped with a slice of orange, and a sprig of parsley for added presentation. My thoughts on this breakfast? If you love a great Mexican breakfast, and if you're an early riser as I am, you will simply fall in love with Mario's Early Toast, and their amazing breakfast of "Chile Verde." In Spanish, I simply can describe this breakfast as "Muy sabroso!" There aren't many restaurants in Placer County that open at 06:00 every morning and offer a full page of your Mexican breakfast favorites, including the delicious breakfast of "Chile Verde and Eggs" that I enjoyed this morning at Mario's. The food is delicious, the dining is comfortable, and the staff is super friendly. For all of your Mexican breakfast favorites, along with classic American "diner comfort food," pay a visit to Mario's Early Toast, located in Rocklin, CA. Mario's Early Toast Copyright(c) 2023 eRench Productions. All rights reserved. We've been on the web since December 22, 2002.
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