With any restaurant that has been around for more than 30 years there are a lot of stories. Some can be read on the diamond-shaped ceiling detail but the tale I like the most is told by the fabulous Marilyn Thompson of her equally fabulous sister Justine Drake. "When she was a little girl we’d go to Mario's for dinner every week and Justine would go into the kitchen and watch Mario cook. Soon she had her own pan and would cook something while Mario prepared our meal." Aside from producing one of our most delightful foodies, Mario’s has succeeded in producing consistent traditional Italian food over three decades.

Following Mario’s death 12 years ago, Pina Marzagalli and her children, Marilene and Marco, took charge in the kitchen and front-of-house. Regulars such as Basil Rubin get a king’s welcome and while I’m a more recent Mario’s convert it was the first place I ate calf’s brains (crumbed, fried in butter and served on toast with capers), which has become a favorite. Mario’s was also the first restaurant I went to for dinner alone and Gavin (who served our table for this visit) also served me then. I certainly had brains at that time and possibly kidneys and sweetbreads too.

I’d planned our dinner as a reunion of sorts – Basil Rubin, Pnina Fenster, Pieter-Dirk Uys and I. I met Basil through Pieter-Dirk when I handled his publicity years ago and we become short-lived business partners but firm friends. Although I’d met Pnina through a mutual friend, our connection through Basil was the strongest.

The plan was that we would have our starters and wait until Pieter-Dirk finished his show at the Baxter before he joined us for mains. I ordered brains (R36), Pnina an artichoke (R35) and Basil had marrow bones (R26).

I also ordered a salad for the table, which didn’t arrive. Pieter was to follow suit.

In a scene from Faulty Towers, the main-order items that we’d reserved had been cooked before Pieter’s arrival. Faced with an etiquette conundrum we decided our main courses should be held back in the kitchen until Peter arrived to order his. With the choice of ruining our dinner or eating before everyone had arrived, I decided to phone Pieter and take his order. I’m rather pleased I did or we would still be waiting. He had been delayed by a troupe of well wishers and was no longer able to come.

The fact that our stuffed baby chicken (R74) and quails (R72) were edible at all after a long wait says heaps about the skilled folk in the kitchen. The baby chicken is legend at Mario’s and Basil and Pnina had a mock fight over who would get the remaining portion. It is sufficient for two smaller appetites to share and while delicious, roast chickens are a little too liked homecooked fare for me to get excited about at a restaurant. I would have preferred the quails de-boned as it is impossible for me to eat them with a knife and fork and someone of my size looks like a caricatured Henry 8th ripping the wings off a butterfly.

The baby chicken is served with mustard glace fruit, which is a delicious accompaniment, while the Quails, covered in crispy bacon, had a crisp sweet skin. Mains were accompanied by ratatouille and butternut. We ordered spinach (R16) on the side.

Pnina and I shared the Zabaglione for two (R47), 95% of which was wonderful but the egg and sugar mix around the edges of the bowl began to scramble rather than the luscious silky ribbon texture required.

There’s lots of heart at Mario’s and as one of the few restaurants that has kept its menu largely unchanged for decades there are no nasty surprises.

We paid R15 corkage on the champers and enjoyed a bottle of La Motte Sauvignon Blanc at R69.

Mario’s Italian Food, 89 Main Road, Green Point. 021-439-6644.

This review was unannounced and the bill paid for in full. www.BrianBerkman.com