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    Da Emma

    3.8 (150 reviews)
    PriceyItalian
    Closed 6:00 pm - 10:30 PM

    Da Emma Photos

    DA EMMA ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Classy
    Outdoor seating
    Dressy

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    Recommended Reviews - Da Emma

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    Subterranean Dining Room
    Dennis T.

    Off the beaten path, and unmarked by a street address, this restaurant was very difficult for us to find. In fact, our Uber driver stopped to ask a local man where it might be situated before successfully taking Diane and me there. But after descending the outdoor stairs and entering the stony, dungeon-like space inside, one finds the dining room's ambiance to be rather unique and charming in a medieval fashion. A bowl of hot Pasta Fagioli was sleek and satisfying. A half-order of very lemony Salmon Carpaccio with arugula and olive oil was a nice substitute for a traditional salad. And Agnolotti al Ragu, veal stuffed raviolis with Pomodoro Sauce, was a rich and very filling pasta dish. Long lengths of slightly soft Roasted Potatoes added a welcome starch. Meanwhile, Diane somewhat enjoyed an entree of Mozzancolle Gigante al Vino, jumbo shrimps bathed in white wine. The restaurant's menu of culinary choices was quite limited. Wait service was good.

    Porcini mushroom pasta
    Chantal S.

    Such a cool vibe...step down into this restaurant that feels like a cave...apparently the building was the first women's prison in Canada! Service was super engaging and hilarious (dry sense of humor) with great recommendations---kitchen was slow though. Recommend the Arugula salad with Parmesan, porcini mushroom pasta and salmon with broccoli. Best thing...you can order half portions! Enjoy!

    Caprese
    Meghan C.

    Da Emma was a great spot for Italian in Montreal. It was underground with a good ambiance. My boyfriend and I chose to share dishes, and they split them up for us before serving us which was nice. You can also walk to the old port area from the restaurant. Would recommend!

    Tamar R.

    Best authentic Italian restaurant I have been. Everything is made freshly on the day by Emma. It's a family owned restaurant. They are open everyday except for Saturday's Everything they serve you is imported from Italy directly. This is considered a 5 star restaurant so $$$+ As soon as you are seated and ordered they bring you a slice of bruschetta and also fresh bread with oil and vinegar If you go here you must have the gorgonzola ravioli, the burrata, the peppercorn steak, the lamb, the pistochio turtufo etc .. The best burrata ive had, and I've been to many places, it's crazy how fresh the cheese is. Everything on the menu is very good from the entrees to the desserts. The hardest part about going here is to make a decision on to what to get and not to over order. The soup of the day changes everytime and always so yummy. Always served well no complain about that It's always full when you go, to get reservations you need to call them In the summer they also have a big patio outside. They also have free of charge valet parking. This place is located underground This place is perfect for couples and also for but groups. If you loved authentic Nona made food this is the place to go. Definitely a must try, I would off given it 5*+ if I could

    Meatballs
    Mary H.

    Absolutely delicious veal, meatballs, mozzarella, AND they make some amazing cocktails that aren't on the menu. I have never had a more delicious Amaretto sour. Also loved their espresso martini. Be sure to get the prosciutto mozzarella.

    Natalie R.

    Great service, the pasta was very good. Nice ambiance and music. Portions were a bit small.

    Mushroom fettuccini
    Camille R.

    Good food but I was not blown away. Some dishes lacked salt. The service was just ok. The place is a staple in Montreal because of the cool dungeon which was a women's prison before but I wouldn't go back. Steep prices for simple food. Best dish was the Gorgonzola ravioli and the burrata. The rest was ok. I think the chef might have changed.

    The bar
    Karen C.

    A must to go and go back again. Went for the first time and was blown away with the interior, service and food Emma is like your gonna cooking for you I started off with a cocktail. My drink was very good and the bar accommodate my substitution request without a hiccup The waiter filled our glasses with water and placed a good size bruschetta in front of us. Was tasty! The waiter reads you the black board menu and explains the selection in great detail that you would think he was a sous chef. I started with minestrone soup and it was so delicious! I wanted more! I then had a meatball is tomato sauce! Amazing ! My main was a leg of lamb. The side was a chilled potato salad and steamed broccoli. The lamb was out of this world delicious. So flavorful and I enjoyed every morsel. I took tiramisu for dessert and was not disappointed. Also had a very good espresso to finish off. As for the atmosphere well it was great. Tables and seating is well spaced. We spent 3.5 hours there and were not rushed out. The place was busy too. My only complaint is the bathrooms. There was no toilet paper the 2 times I went Nd my guests complained the same. Glad I had Kleenex. Perhaps leaving some extra rolls around would be a good take away

    Overcooked lamb with splintered bones everywhere, $35, inedible

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    3 years ago

    Second time here, still rocking it! The ambiance is amazing , brick , warm and inviting. Service was excellent and the food was amazing!

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    4 years ago

    Best Italian ever! I recommend to all. It's an experience, the restaurant is beautifully designed and decorated. Food and wine is wonderful.

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    Restaurant Siciliana - Snails

    Restaurant Siciliana

    3.5(96 reviews)
    1.6 kmVille-Marie
    $$

    Typical old Italian restaurant of Montreal. The salad looks good and great. The service is rapid…read moreand nicely done.

    Restaurants in Montreal with the name of an Italian region - 2 of 2…read more I had seen Restaurant Siciliana before. It is on Rue Stanley, not too far away from the Peel Metro Station. Rue Stanley always makes for a chuckle. I have known very few people with that name. However, it's the eponymous name of a (not even) B movie about someone's dangerous pet snake. I looked at the menu board at around lunch time. It seemed like a generic Italian restaurant, with a broad-based Italian menu and not one that was particularly Sicilian. But this was at lunch time, and I was walking down the street with something to do. I returned for dinner another day. Everything at Restaurant Siciliana was sort of perfunctory and ordinary. The interior is old school and has the red and white check tablecloths. The wood fired pizza oven is visible from the restaurant. They seat you quickly and I wanted to sit closer to the back and next to a wall, to which they obliged. Since I could not find a wall outlet, they were willing to charge my phone for me. I did not want a pizza. For that, I might go to dei Compari, which I very much like. I was looking for pasta. Since I couldn't see what it might look like or what others had ordered, I settled on the trio - three types of pasta. I've seen this done before at other Italian eateries and, within reason, they allow substitutions. Here, the wiggle room is not that much (that means no filled pasta or lasagna/e) and there is an upcharge for the allowed changes. I wanted to swap out a pasta with Alfredo sauce and they did so for another pasta that is also on their menu at the same price, but with a $3 upcharge (for U.S., divide by ~1.36). Is that that much of an inconvenience? Everything was ok - one in a Bolognese sauce, one in a rose' sauce, and one in a pesto sauce - except that the pesto sauce was a little oily and didn't sit with me. To drink, I had a ginger ale. I'm beginning to like that stuff. The service was good. It was also expedient, albeit a little reserved. This was a 3-star event and, going forward, I will continue to look for other Italian (and Sicilian) restaurants in the area. I would love to know of an authentic Sicilian restaurant in the agglomeration that is Montreal. The very first Italian restaurant at which I ate in Montreal was just up the street, at Stanely and Maisonneuve. Either a Chapters or a newer building went in. That restaurant was more of a diner, which explains why it wouldn't be there - close to the financial district - anymore. Change can be hard to accept. I remember that that was also the first time I had heard the term rose' sauce. This is what Eastern Canada refers to a pink tomato-cream sauce. The middle-aged dark-haired woman who helped me had to have been from the western part of Montreal or its island, spoke perfect English with mannerisms suitable for an Italian neighborhood the Northeastern U.S., and looked like Kaye Ballard. I would have preferred a restaurant like that to this one for the price-quality rapport of the food and a Rue Stanley/Financial District location. If you are a tourist and your time is metered, I might skip this one. If you are a local, you can try Restaurant Siciliana for pizzas and/or pasta and see if it suits you.

    Photos
    Restaurant Siciliana - Since, like French, Italian is gendered, Trattoria Siciliana would be correct but I'm not so sure about Restaurant Siciliana.

    Since, like French, Italian is gendered, Trattoria Siciliana would be correct but I'm not so sure about Restaurant Siciliana.

    Restaurant Siciliana - House salad.

    House salad.

    Restaurant Siciliana - House wine.

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    House wine.

    Marcella

    Marcella

    4.3(39 reviews)
    0.8 kmVille-Marie

    We went to Marcella for lunch on a Saturday and the place was hopping. Even without reservations,…read morewe were warmly greeted by Michael and were seated quickly. The menu has lots of choices for carnivores and vegetarians. I ordered the cavatelli alla pesto which was steaming hot (as pasta should be) and delicious. The pesto was fresh and aromatic. The dish was topped off with aged Parmesan and toasted pine nuts. My wife had the spaghetti pomodoro which was also well presented, delicious and served steaming hot. Service by Michael was superb, friendly, and good humored. Despite being overwhelmingly busy, he found time to gone by and chat with us. This is definitely a keeper for future visits.

    Came to Montreal for the weekend and was looking for a dinner spot near my apartment. Stumbled upon…read moreMarcella and absolutely loved it. They take reservations. Unfortunately, everything online was booked, but I gave them a call and they squeezed us in last minute. The ambient and decor inside are absolutely stunning. They have a nice bar area too. We stared off with Chianti wine and Calamari. Both fantastic. I ordered the bolognese pasta without the burrata (dairy free) and my fiancé ordered the cavatelli pasta. Extremely rich in flavor and delicious. They even placed the burrata on the side for my fiancé to have since I was unable to eat it. The service was great. They checked in often and were very polite. Had a wonderful experience and highly recommend them!!

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    Marcella
    Marcella
    Marcella

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    Cafe Presto

    Cafe Presto

    3.4(27 reviews)
    1.6 kmVille-Marie
    $

    Cafe Presto was a unique little storefront restaurant. We were standing around outside wondering…read morewhere to go have dinner when the owner of this little place stuck his head out and said "come on in." With such a quirky start, we did just that. Inside this little place there are maybe a dozen tables ... mostly for two. The place was casual, unpretentious, and relatively inexpensive. Service was friendly and spot on. Now the owner who drew us in - whatever his name - does it all here. He seated us, we saw him clean off some tables, and he goes back and forth in the kitchen personally making each dish. He had only two helpers ... one doing dishes and the other helping wait the tables especially when he was fixing a plate. The meals are essentially light pasta with light sauces ... nothing much heavy here. It is meant to be a quick lunch spot, and only stays open a while after hours. The menu - posted in the front window - is written on a sheet of paper and usually is about 8 different pastas and sauces; after you sit at a table you will find that the current list is generally smaller as they have run out of stuff during the day. Be that as it may, it was pretty good food. We had the Canelloni Rossini (4 stars with a light red sauce), Penne Arrabbiata (4 stars with another very light sauce), and a Calypso Salad (4 stars with very nice greens). The big takeaway was that he can make any kind of quick pasta and put any one of his light sauces on it for a quick meal. The sauces were nice - very light but nice. The pastas could have been a bit fresher. Interestingly, they only take cash - and that is not mentioned on the front window. He does have an ATM machine inside to help you cover the cash, but he should really announce this out front, especially for all the tourists that are in Montreal. Our bill came to $70 and he wrote down $80 ... maybe he included the tip for us - don't know, but pay attention to your bill on the way out. In fairness, the prices are reasonable here - $4.95 for a glass of the house Chianti, and every one of the pasta meals were simply $9.95. Canoli were $6.00 each.

    Hmmm, I've never gone to a restaurant where they don't offer menus, until this one. I personally…read moredid not like this, but whatever floats your boat and makes you happy. Of course after we ordered we discovered a have written, 8" x 11" menu on one of the walls. Would have been nice to have been directed to that earlier... anyway moving on. Food was okay, we ordered spaghetti... the sausage was really good, bread, meatball and red sauce were a little bland. ‍ overall we most likely wouldn't be back.

    Photos
    Cafe Presto - Home style beef stew

    Home style beef stew

    Cafe Presto - Inside

    Inside

    Cafe Presto

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    L'Usine de Spaghetti - Escargot

    L'Usine de Spaghetti

    4.0(223 reviews)
    1.4 kmVille-Marie
    $$

    We went to Bonsecours Market and was looking for somewhere to eat and most of the restaurants are…read moreclosed since it was in between lunch and dinner and this place was open so we decided to go in. Our waitress let us to our table. She was very hospitable and she spoke very good English and told us that they have a salad bar part of our meal. I ordered a classic spaghetti with meat sauce and hubby ordered spaghetti with steak. My meal was amazing. They put a lot of meat sauce and the spaghetti was just cooked right not to soft not too hard. My hubby's steak was cooked perfectly. I also tried the tiramisu not too bad. I wish they put a lot of rum. lol. Chocolate cake was delicious. The place looks elegant and expensive, although the prices are not too bad. I recommend this place.

    Cute spot in Old Port, Old Montreal…read more The placemat also served as the menu. I loved that there were fun facts scattered here and there. It also worked as conversation starters. Another interesting thing here is they have an unlimited self-serve salad bar for lunch (unsure about dinner). They had kale! There were a couple of salad dressings and a variety of toppings. What was memorable was the sweet, sweet corn. Bread and butter were served at our table. I didn't expect this for lunch. #14 Spaghetti with meatballs CAD$32 - The meatballs were good, but the spaghetti was lacking. I couldn't put my finger on it, but it was just ok. (I had another Italian spot for dinner that night, and L'usine just didn't meet the bar.) The menu said this is the classic from L'usine. #19 Le Grand Prix CAD$38 - The lamb chops were pretty good! However again the pesto pasta was lacking again. Credit card/Apple Pay accepted. Bathroom is down the stairs. It reminded me of being under a pirate ship for some reason. Only indoor seating

    Photos
    L'Usine de Spaghetti - The ambiance

    The ambiance

    L'Usine de Spaghetti
    L'Usine de Spaghetti - Speakeasy vibe. 2nd floor for large parties

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    Speakeasy vibe. 2nd floor for large parties

    Da Emma - italian - Updated May 2026

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