Blink and you miss it because it is definitely a hidden gem. Behind a gas station on Islington this resto is a gem of culinary excellence. First off the appetizers are well thought out and very well portioned so as to not spoil the mains. The wine selection was extraordinary and had some classic Italian favorites that made the meal. We enjoyed the Cabernet Infused rigatoni with Bolognese, The lamb and my kids simply had pasta but everything was prepared so well that it was delight. All flavours and seasoning was perfect, the prep and plating was fantastic and service was premium. Had a fantastic dinner and will be coming back soon. read more

When my Yelp Friend texted me telling me that Oca Nera is behind a gas station, I don't really know what to expect. But even gas station in this hood is cuter and have Country Cottage vibe. Oca Nera is a hidden gem serving classical Italian dish with a modern twist. Daily specials is designed around fresh and seasonal ingredients. We ended up sharing: Signature: Crispy Spaghetti-Wrapped Shrimp, Strega Cream Emulsion ($14) Risotto: Seafood, Chantrelle BC Mushroom ($22) Pasta: House Made Casa Reca, Rendered Sausage, Roasted Egg Plant, Topped with Garlic Rapini ($23) Everything we ordered were excellent from freshness of ingredients, complexity of taste, techniques in cooking and plating. The restaurant is quite busy during lunch hour and service can be a little slow with just 1 waiter and an assistant. The decoration is modern but cozy. Great for all occasions especially if you have a birthday to celebrate! I definitely will be back. I still have to try out their dessert! read more

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Come visit this wonderful restaurant. I'll be coming back to try the other dishes. Thanks we had an amazing night! The live music from Giordano Cattonar is incredible! Thanks Oca Nera for a great night! read more

Oca Nera - Italian Near Me - Woodbridge, Ontario

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I had heard many good things about this place so we decided to give it a try Being Valentines day there was a set menu so my review really is not on the full day to day menu the atmosphere lets say for an above average Italian restaurant wasn't as expected not sure why but from what i had heard was expecting a little more in the decor etc We had sampled the gnocchi, spaghetti a meat and a fish and shared all the items all the items were good, nothing special or out of the ordinary flavor wise but the plating was nice That said I will update my review after my next visit with the full menu in place. I would have no problem referring this restaurant to anyone read more

[Inbox (528) Messages][Sent (492) Messages][Write New Message] Lunch Time in Vaughan Prev | Next Between Jennifer K. and WaYnE c. Page Bottom ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jennifer K. Where do you want to go for lunch? One week ago ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ WaYnE c. Daffy Duck www.ocanera.com One week ago ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jennifer K. ?? One week ago ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ WaYnE c. How did you like Oca Nera? 2 days ago You normally don't eat rice but you finished all the risotto there. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jennifer K. 4 stars... You didn't read my review? 2 days ago http://www.yelp.ca/biz/oca-nera-vaughan#hrid:mZeck06RHq_0zJx08nGfXg I'm going to make risotto at home now. I feel inspired... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ WaYnE c. If I had a nickel for every review I read... 1 day ago and I doubt you have the patience to stand next to the stove to make risotto. It's not congee, can't leave it alone. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jennifer K. What about you? Did you like it? A moment ago ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Reply: _______________________________________ I Signature was crispy, creamy, flavourful I^I I Risotto was done with finesse and care I I I Al dente house made Casarecce I I I I I I I'm going to flag you now... I I I To keep this place a hidden gem. ;D I I I______________________________________IvI Cancel [ Reply ] * The above may include some fictitous dramatization. read more

If we didn't know it was there, we'd never know... Located behind a gas station on Islington we find one of the more inventive Italian chefs, Corrado Giliberto, whose virtuosity enables classic Italian cuisine with a twist. Forget about filling up on gas; we prefer wild boar gnocchi, espresso lamb chops and brick-pressed free-range chicken. A signature dish and must-try, is crisp spaghetti-wrapped shrimp with a strega cream emulsion-a delightful confluence of cultures, textures and flavours. While the menu changes, one staple is the house rotating selection of Rodney's oysters. Branzino, served crisp, is crowned by crunchy lotus root and yuca chips, and sits atop a chowder of seafood and pork belly. Every nuance of this dish sings. For dessert, a light mascarpone-filled chocolate ravioli. Amore! read more

After shopping at Vaughan mills, trying to decide what to eat, this is the place comes off with good rating, and it amazes me too. Hidden behind the gas station, well there was a fuel truck at the station blocking the view too. There's live jazz music playing, romantic dinner, the butter poach was the best, it melts in your mouth, I was in butter joy in the hours to come. Appetizer include oyster with quarter of exotic sauces, love that spicy vodka sauce. Server claim it has the best calamari in toronto, yea! She was right! Totally coming back for more read more

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We heard good things about Oca Nera. Getting a reservation proved difficult as the earliest we could get was over a week out...this proved to be tantalizing as it was an early indication of the popularity of Oca Nera. We were greeted warmly at the door and after giving my name was adressed by name thereafter. Table was excellent and we were immediately given fresh buns with olive oil and balsamic vinager on the side. The menu was explained, specials were vocalized and a lot of attention was given to us regarding any questions we had. Service was amazing... We had oysters and the Signature Strega as appetizers. Sooooooo good and so fresh. The side sauces for the oysters were amazingly paired. For our mains I ordered the Wagyu steak and my wife ordered the Nera Mare É Terre dish. Both were amazing and presented new tastes to our paletes. One of our friendly waiters, and part owner, then brought us a free sampling of the chocolate pasta (ravioli) stuffed with melt in your mouth cheese. I enquired about their Amaro list and was guided to a good choice. Amazingly I was also given a superb Amaro sample (full serving) on the house to compare. We finished with a cappuccino and expresso while listening to the live guitarist. I highly recommend this restaurant and we will be going back for sure. Roy read more

Oca Nera - Italian Near Me - Woodbridge, Ontario

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Nothing here but a good experience. Appetizers were excellent especially the mussels and shrimp wrapped with noodles. Calamari also great. The outside of the restaurant is a bit deceiving like others mentioned but don't let it fool you. Inside has great ambiance, there was live music when we went there which was on a Friday night but I don't know is that is a regular occurrence there or not. I had the steak which was cooked perfectly, there is also a live feed of what is going on in the kitchen. Never saw that before but I guess it keeps staff on point. read more

Must stop here everytime we are in the area. Food is incredible and you can get lost for an entire evening in this place.

What a great experience. Great pasta and lambs. Older, experienced staff. Small place filled with good vibes and musical entertainment. Well organized establishment. You will need reservations for dinner most nights. read more

Was very impressed with the food quality and service. Great wine selection. It has been a challenge to find good restaurants not in the city but this restaurant was top notch and will definitely be returning. read more

Best restaurant in Vaughan. Hands down. Don't let the location fool you. These guys are serious foodies. Just drop your cash at the door and do the tasting menu and post you menu. Right on Corey and Walter read more

What a bad experience. I dine out at expensive locations a lot , like I mean probably 5 or 6 times a week on an expense account,but this was one of the worst experiences ever. We did not even stay for the main course, just paid for what we had and left. We were being upsold and given the bum's rush out at the same time. Asked for tap water and he pretends not to hear and brings bottled. It was not a cost issue as we did order cocktails and a bottle of wine. We asked for one salad as a first course and for calamari which we specified was to brought after as a second course. They split the salad to upcharge, we asked had for not split, and brought that and the calamari out all at once very quickly after ordering. We expressed surprise but took it as it was tabled already and just said do not bring more food until we ask for it as we need time to digest and may change our minds about whether to have the spaghetti we had asked about. Well as soon as we had finished the apps the waiter came back and told us our pasta orders were up. We said no way, we not only had not ordered them but we had told him expressly that we were not ordering yet because we wanted a few minutes of time. He said " well it is already cooked and waiting". We told him we were angry at this treatment, deliberately ignoring the customer, slamming out food in order to turn the table. Told him to bring the bill for what we had as we would not stay for any more with our evening ruined. Another person claiming to be an owner came and asked us to stay. He said the waiter was wrong and the pasta had not been made and we could take our time and have what we wanted, but the evening was no longer going to be pleasant there. We were leaving. He offered to waive the bill, but I declined and insisted on paying for what we had. It isn't about cost, it is about abuse of the customer. So then he brings the bill and tells us with pride that he did not charge us for the pasta! The pasta we never had, the pasta we never ordered, the pasta that he said 5 minutes before had not in fact been made! There are too many good Italian restaurants in Toronto to put up with this stuff. The food: salad was not very good, way too heavy on the cheese. Calamari was very good but deep fried calamari is not much of a challenge. The pasta? Well I guess we will never know. read more

Worst ever service and attitude... In short, based on the negative experience it's not worth a long explanation. It was a dinner meeting I organized for business associates from Europe and the U.S. The attitude of our waiter set the tone of the evening... Once the orders were taken the wine was brought to the table. During the uncorking process, the waiter broke the cork with half was still stuck in the bottle. After a couple of unsuccessful tries to remove the remaining cork and bits of cork falling on the table in front of my guests I suggested to change the bottle due to the cork particles. The waiter agreed with reluctance and brought it back to the bar which was in line of sight to our table. The waiter did not replace the bottle but again tried unsuccessfully to remove the balance of the cork. Instead of changing the bottle as suggested he proceeded to push the remaining cork into the bottle particles and all and strained the wine into a decanter before bringing it back to the table. In my extensive experience, this is not what is done with an expensive wine... Apart from the uneducated proper wine service, the simple salad appetizer s took 35 minutes to reach the table. After we questioned the delay it was stated that the kitchen was backed up... It's surprising since the 5 salads were all the same and there were only 5-6 other tables occupied. Lastly after another wait for the main course the risotto main out of the 6 mains was not cooked properly and totally uneatable ..... Seeing the plate was barely touched with the decorative melted cheese crisp still in the center of the plate, the waiter didn't have the courtesy of asking if there was a problem with the dish before taking it back into the kitchen. In order to avoid any issues or embarrassment with our business guests, we paid for the full bill inclusive of the delays, the cork issue and the untouched rice. We guarantee never to return and or ever recommend this restaurant behind a gas station to anyone!! read more

Hidden treasure. The menu and wine selection was amazing. The live musician was also a wonderful addition to the already cozy atmosphere. I lovedthe lobster and brie mezza luna. Yum! Great restaurant for a special dinner! read more

One of my favorite restaurants. Never had a bad meal here. They come up with creative menu specials regularly and also have lots of standard menu items that are outstanding. read more

This is real Italian food, best in Toronto. Everything is handmade and homemade including their pastas! Love being repeat customers

We've been here twice now & both times were incredible! Wally (owner/matre D) has a real knack for knowing what we like & want. He's always great at pairing drinks with our meal. We don't even ask, we just say bring us wine (white or red) and he always brings us what we like. He takes great pride in his restaurant & has the largest wine & spirits collection I've seen in a restaurant anywhere in Vaughan. Food is delicious! We have tried the fried calamari with fried zucchini strings, the shrimps wrapped in pasta & fried, the squid ink pasta with seafood (my favourite), seabass, and other fish specials. First of all, this is the only restaurant that I have tried in MANY years that knows how to cook mussels. They are plump, juicy & not overcooked. Most restaurants cook them so much that they become tasteless and tiny. The whole squid ink dish is delicious & the mussels are yummy. Loved the calamari/zucchini dish. The chef puts love into the dishes & presents them perfectly. Everything we have had has been yummy and we were happy with the dish. The dessert at the end of the meal is a nice added touch & much appreciated. As for the decor, it's not your typical trying too hard decor in vaughan. This place is down to earth, clean and doesn't need to wow you with the decor, it does that with the food, drinks & ambiance. Thank you Wally & we'll be back! read more

Surprise find in woodbridge. Fine cuisine, custom wine glasses, friendly staff. A bit pricey. Would like to see prices for the specials. Even though it's classified here as kid friendly, I'm not sure how. The food is great though. read more