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    Contrada

    4.5 (17 reviews)
    Closed 5:00 pm - 11:00 PM

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    CONTRADA ATMOSPHERE

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    Ada L.

    Contrada, located at the corner of College and Euclid, is a modern-casual Italian-Canadian restaurant which focuses on seasonal and locally sourced fare. They have a great cocktail list as well as glasses or bottles of wine available. The space is intimate, cozy, and unintimidating, creating a comfortable vibe whether you are dining solo or having dinner with a bigger group. The space is small, with bar seating and table seating. I believe there is a bigger space in the back for larger parties as well. In the summer, they have a patio. I stopped by Contrada mid-week when the restaurant opened. I made reservations prior which was a good idea considering how full the restaurant got after a while. I received notification from the staff a day before that there would be a magazine publication taking photos of their space during a specific time and they asked if this would be an issue or not. Upon arriving a the restaurant I was greeted and taken to my seat. Throughout my time there, service was top notch! It felt genuine, unpretentious, and that the staff wanted to make sure you were being cared for while dining there. It's rare these days to have service like this! In regards to the menu, there are a variety of appetizers and mains. Their cocktail list is also extensive and most people around me ordered cocktails as well. I ordered the following items: - Glass of the 2021 chianti (sangiovese) - Affinity Fish tuna carpaccio (lightly cured dry-aged B.C. albacore, tonnato, chicory) - Burrata toast (olives, hot honey, lardo, pine nuts, basil) - Agnolotti (chicken liver, mascarpone, aged balsamic, cippolini, squash, apple) The carpaccio was a light dish where the components of the dish worked in harmony together. The chicory was a nice touch to add texture, crunch, and a refreshing element to the tuna. The burrata toast was creamy, rich and delicious. The olives gave the toast a salty component to it while the lardo and hot honey provided more richness and sweetness to the burrata. The basil added that final touch to bring all the flavours together. The star of the show was definitely the agnolotti. Fluffy and pillowy agnolotti pasta stuffed to the brim with chicken liver. The ingredients worked so extremely well together - like a warm hug on a cold day. Pair the dish up with a great glass of red wine and your tastebuds will thank you. Overall, casual vibes, great service, and delicious food! Definitely would return to Contrada for more in the future!

    Star witness and Teenage riot
    Janice R.

    It was my first time at contrada and the vibes were great. The food was delicious but the service was a little slow. We got the spritz, teenage riot, and a surprise cocktail from the bartender for drinks. For food we shared the bread and butter and the lamb croquette for aprevito hour. As mains we got the pork chop and the gnocchi which were 4.5/5. Overall, I would definitely come back and a resto I would recommend!!

    Sue J.

    From start to finish, it was lovely. We had the lamb croquettes, cod, liver pasta, sweetbread and olive oil cake. Everything on the menu was exactly what I would order. I think I loved the sweetbread so much. Croquettes were also exceptional, maybe because of the sauce. We got a few nice cocktails and some good recommendations for wine. It was really a nice surprise! Excellent service and reasonably priced.

    Steak
    Lily Z.

    One of my new faves - this place is dimly light and feels very intimate. I went with a few friends and it was the perfect space to chat and eat great food! I loved all of the pastas and everything was well portioned

    Bathroom
    Jenna D.

    Warm hospitality + excellent food = award winning in 2024! Friendly, attentive service, gorgeous casual-luxe atmosphere, and memorably delicious, creative food really impress. Our favourites: unctuous sweetbreads marsala ($21). Flavourful lamb croquettes ($13 for 2), perfectly textured, complemented by a vibrant caper caponata. Standout dish: chicken liver agnolotti (a steal at $24) with apple, onion and sage. And those tiny Hokkaido scallops in the cod ($36) hog all the attention. The kitchen demonstrates a keen attention to detail. And the service team show patience and kindness even when faced with a nearby table of 4 older, rude, entitled customers (ugh! why can't the old rich people invest in reading glasses instead of shining their bright cell phone flashlight in everyone's eyes?!) Least favourite: pasta cartl bread ($5 for 4 pieces) doesn't survive the journey from its excellent, addictive indulgence in person at simpl things. But the balsamic butter is a standout! Olive oil cake ($12) is, well, an oily, crunchy mess that was definitely polarizing. You will either love or hate it. Be sure to ask for a banquette seat near the fireplace. Typical basement washrooms -- tight squeeze for knees. Hand soap is too highly scented of sandalwood which interferes with food and beverage enjoyment immediately after. Better to provide neutral scent. Dinner costs ~ $100 pp including tax and tip. Beautiful experience! Thank you, Contrada! We'll be back very soon.

    Steak was verrryyy flavorful but a little bit tough. The pasta was my favorite! Very beautiful restaurant and the service was superb

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    2 years ago

    The food was top notch. The staff were personable and knowledgeable. Beautiful space too.

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    Gusto 101 - Lasagna with fresh basil

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    Donatello Restaurant

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    Of all the Italian spots in downtown Toronto, Donatello felt like one of the most homey and…read moreold-school. I came here with my best friend for a birthday dinner, and I could immediately see why this place has lasted for decades. It's tucked inside an old house on Elm Street, and the whole restaurant has that warm, family-run charm that makes you feel like people have been coming here for years and bringing more people back with them. The tables are definitely close together, so it's a little tight when the restaurant gets busy, but honestly that also adds to the lively energy because there was a steady flow of people coming in all night. Food-wise, there were a few dishes that really stood out. The carpaccio is such a good order, very thinly sliced raw beef, simple and classic, and honestly one of the most reasonably priced versions I've seen. My personal favorite was the prosciutto & melon. It's such a simple dish, but when it's done well, it really hits, and this one did. The real star for me though was the Cozze Marinara. The mussels were plump, tender, and clean, with no sandy bits, and the garlicky tomato sauce was so good that I ended up scooping it up with bread until the plate was basically spotless. We also tried the Vitello Marsala with mushrooms and Penne Arrabbiata, which felt very classic and comforting. If you like traditional Italian flavors, this is the kind of dish that will make you happy. That said, I personally wouldn't recommend mixing the meat and pasta together too much, I think they shine better on their own. Later we also ordered the garlic grilled seafood fettuccine because we were enjoying ourselves so much, and that one was much lighter in flavor. Nice enough, but probably not the best choice if you like richer or bolder pasta dishes. By the end we were completely full and had to leave a few strands of fettuccine behind, which almost never happens for me. Overall, Donatello feels like the kind of neighborhood Italian restaurant people return to for comfort, generous portions, and that warm family run atmosphere. It may not be the most spacious or modern place, but it has heart, and some dishes were genuinely memorable.

    Donatello is considered a fine dining Italian restaurant. And it didn't disappoint. The foid and…read moreservice were excellent. The vibe was a slightly darkened room (for the evening). There is an upstairs balcony seating but I've never sat there. During warm weather, there is plenty of roadside outdoor seating too. This is my fourth time here but I never wrote a review fir the restaurant before. We ordered the following: 1. Shrimp Perno (daily special $6/shrimp). Jumbo Shrimp sautéed in garlic, white wine, tomatoes, scallions, and finished off with a shot of perno liquor. 2. Rack of Lamb (daily special $59.95). Four pieces of lamb in a rack, with a rich portion wine reduced sauce, that has a touch of mint to it, and Penne Pasta in a tomato rose sauce. The table bread was really good. The crust was crispy but the inside was fluffy. The soft butter that came it was so tasty. The bread was perfect for dipping in the sauce that came with the shrimp. We asked for a second basket of bread and they put two loafs in the second basket. It was too much so they were willing to let us take it home. The shrimps were definitely jumbo. It was so filling. Two pieces (per person) were good enough as an appetizer. The shrimps were perfectly cooked. We requested the lamb be cooked medium rare. It was definitely medium rare. It was juicy and did not have a gamey taste. It tastes great. The pasta was perfectly al dente. The tomato rose sauce was really good. They offered to grind parmesan cheese and pepper so we got both. There is free WiFi. The restaurant is wheelchair accessible. There is paid neighbourhood street parking and paid parking lots. Review 2025-187

    Terroni - spinach ravioli-the BEST

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    Terroni on Adelaide is a beautiful Italian restaurant with a lot of character and history, set…read moreinside a former courthouse building from 1852 that still shows off its dramatic ceilings, fireplaces, and sunlit atrium. It's a dining experience you don't see every day in Toronto. Even the washrooms are memorable, tucked away in the basement in what used to be old jail cells, which adds to the charm and gives the whole place a bit of personality. We went for an early Sunday dinner before a concert at Massey Hall. The restaurant got pretty busy as the evening went on, but it never felt chaotic. The atmosphere is lovely and lively, a great choice for a special night out or a pre-show meal. We started with Calamari alla Griglia with mixed greens, capers, onions, and fresh tomatoes. It was a fresh, bright appetizer with good balance. For mains, my date had the Spaghetti in Canna a Mare with clams, mussels, calamari, scallop, and tiger shrimp in a tomato sauce. The menu described it as mildly spicy, but it definitely had a noticeable kick. Still, the flavours were really good. I ordered the Ravioli al Brasato with braised beef, butter, sage, and parmigiano. It was tasty and comforting, though portion-wise I could have used a few more ravioli. I was still a bit hungry after and honestly double the size would have been perfect for me. For dessert we shared the Tiramisu with espresso-soaked savoiardi, mascarpone, and cocoa. I had an amaro while my date finished with zambuca. A sweet and satisfying way to wrap up the meal. The service was friendly, though drinks came out a bit slower than expected. Terroni's food is tasty, the setting is gorgeous, and it's easy to see why locals keep coming back. It's not cheap, but the quality and ambience make it worth trying, especially for dinner before a show or a relaxed date night in one of Toronto's most unique spaces.

    I wish I could say I enjoyed Terroni more. The venue itself was not held in the main restaurant…read more The company I work at booked out some of the upper floors for an event. There were four flights of stairs to get up to the first floor with the bar and main dining area. There was another two flights of stairs to get to the upper bar (which I was too tired to walk up to). The drinks at the bar were good and the staff were all great. We started with passed apps. Some of the flavour combinations were just off (the skewer with fruit, cheese and something else) - like they paired the wrong cheese with the fruit. The meal itself was a seat down meal (family style) which did take over two hours to complete for the amount of guests that were present (over 200 ppl). My favorite dish was the tomato and mozza salad. My most disappointed dish was the ragu pasta. Though containing a good amount of meat it was not saucy at all. The pizza was the brocolini was good as well. The reason I gave this restaurant three stars is strictly for the lack of elevator and the food quality vs the price. For what you are paying, there is so much higher quality food in the city and I honestly think you can get better bang for buck elsewhere.

    Piccolo Caffe E Vino - Frittata

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    Entertainment District, Downtown Core

    Went here for dinner on a Saturday night / great location and cute spot! I love the branding and…read morethe inside + feels very trendy. This is a wine bar - the house lager was bad (maybe my own bad decision) and the red I got was fine ... nothing to write home about. However place fell apart with the food - the shrimp came with 5 medium sized shrimp with the tails, legs and shells on and were under seasoned. The artichokes were mediocre (loved the sauce they came with). Worst of all was the "Ontario peaches" with the burrata were totally canned peaches - could've even been dole brand! This place has amazing potential with the location and vibe - but the food just was not it. Small portions and the price didn't match what was served. The service was friendly but nothing too crazy. Go here for the drinks, but maybe not for the dinner!

    Went with a friend on a Saturday night and it was pretty easy to get a seat, but they do take…read morereservations. Our server was great at helping us pick our wine, he mentioned that their wines are all on the dry side which is perfect for me, I'm not one for sweet wines. We also had two of their small plates the mussels and the burrata. The mussels tasted great with the sauce, a little garlicky which I prefer. The combination of the peach and mint went really well with the burrata. Light and easy to eat. The patio at night is one of the highlights. The only small complaint was it did take a while to get our wine after we ordered it and a little while to get our check. Otherwise cute spot.

    Contrada - italian - Updated May 2026

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