8 incredible Montreal Italian restaurants where you can feast like you're in Rome

No plane ticket required.

Contributing Writer

When your daydreams wander to cobblestone walks and spaghetti-and-wine dinners near historic architecture, it might be time to head to one of these restaurants in Montreal that can whisk you away to Italy for the evening.

You can fill up on classic Italian pizza, pasta, and more, all without leaving the city. Whether you're craving lasagna, risotto or tiramisu, these eight Italian restaurants in Montreal offer an abundance of delectable flavours and will have you feeling like you're dining in Rome.

Stellina

Price: 💸💸💸💸

Cuisine: Italian

Address: 410, rue St Jacques, Montreal, Quebec

Why You Need To Go: From their squash almond cappaletti to their shrimp bisque spaghetti, Stellina has elevated Italian primi dishes that will whisk you away to another world.

The antipasti options include blood orange pistachio burrata and ricotta with truffle and honeycomb. There are some vegetarian options and outdoor seating, where you can soak up some summer sun in the Old Port.

They also offer a great list of cocktails and desserts, including a decadent tiramisu.

Stellina Menu

Jacopo

Price: 💸💸💸💸

Cuisine: Italian

Address: 436, Pl. Jacques-Cartier, Montreal, Quebec

Why You Need To Go: This refined Italian eatery offers classic antipasti and primi, as well as stone-oven-braised meats and seafood.

They even have a fettuccine dish that is prepared in a pecorino cheese wheel in front of you!

Serving brunch, lunch and dinner, you can enjoy your favourite Italian meals any time of the day. And with pasta delights like orechiette con rapini and their margherita al tartufo, you can dig into fine ingredients served with a creative flair.

Jacopo also stands out for its long antipasti list, which features a wide variety of interesting items like bruschetta with spinach and ricotta, carpaccio di Manzo (beef, parmesan, pine nuts, balsamic and mustard) and panzanella with croutons, basil and Kalamata olives.

Jacopo Menu

Restaurant l'Osso

Price: 💸💸💸💸

Cuisine: Italian

Address: 7130, Boul Saint Laurent, Montreal, Quebec

Why You Need To Go: From gourmet antipasti like pan-seared foie gras, a bite-sized tasting platter, and grilled octopus to their elaborate pastas that feature unexpected flavours in the details, l'Osso is an Italian restaurant experience that stands out for its refined Mediterranean cuisine in a warm, inviting dining room.

Their pasta options are decadent, like their braised veal shank ravioli served with parmigiano cream, braising jus, and gremolata, as well as their tagliolini pescatore, which includes lobster tails, shrimp, scallops, and clams in a Calabrian tomato sauce.

Restaurant l'Osso Menu

La Spada

Price: 💸💸💸💸

Cuisine: Italian

Address: 3580, Notre Dame West, Montreal, Quebec

Why You Need To Go: With fine Italian dishes like Pappardelle Ragù d’Anatra, Tonno alla Amatriciana, and Bistecca di Contrfiletto, this Montreal Italian restaurant blends the high-end with the contemporary. You'll sit in blue velvet couches in a dining room decorated with gold-trim features and contemporary art pieces.

The venue serves creative salads as well as several vegetarian and vegan options, which aren't always available in Italian restaurants.

La Spada Menu

Bottega

Price: 💸💸💸

Cuisine: Italian

Address: Multiple locations

Why You Need To Go: This Italian restaurant specializes in Neapolitan pizzas. It offers several traditional white- and red-style pizza pie options, such as Marinara, Caprese, Quattro Formaggi, Capriciosa, and Tartufo Nero.

There are even specialty pizzas like the Ventaglio with mortadella and pistachio, and the trochetto with prosciutto di Parma. Bottega specifically designs its experience to feel like a little trip to Italy, so you'll certainly feel whisked away!

Bottega Menu

Café Miracolo

Price: 💸💸💸

Cuisine: Italian

Address: 3891, Boul. Saint Laurent, Montreal, Quebec

Why You Need To Go: You can enjoy a whimsical Italian restaurant experience at this spot in Montreal. It has happy-hour oysters, as well as a wide variety of starters like burratina and caponata pesto, as well as salmon crudo and asparagus.

From there, you can enjoy pastas like lobster tagliatelle, veal lasagna, and cavatelli with pig sausage from Gaspar farms. They also have a long wine and cocktails list.

Café Miracolo Menu

Restaurant Lucca

Price:💸💸💸💸

Cuisine: Italian

Address: 12, rue Dante, Montreal, Quebec

Why You Need To Go: This charming Italian restaurant in Little Italy really sets the mood. With affordable meal options like chicken paillard, pricier dishes like seafood cioppino, and filet mignon with rapini, Lucca has tasty traditional Italian meals for a variety of diners and budgets, even if its menu isn't as large as some of the other options on this list.

The decor at this Montreal Italian restaurant is a bit more conservative than the others, which remains elevated in a quiet, sophisticated way.

Restaurant Lucca Menu

Mano Cornuto

Price: 💸💸💸

Cuisine: Italian

Address: 988, Ottawa Street, Montreal, Quebec

Why You Need To Go: This Italian restaurant has creative takes on classic Italian dishes, using quality ingredients that might be unexpected to new diners.

The pesto, for example, is made with basil, arugula, pistachios, and pecorino. The mezze meniche has raisins, saffron cream and anisetta along with sausage.

The venue has a good balance of casual and refined, with wine, coffee, desserts and even merch.

Mano Cornuto Menu

As you sit in the beautiful dining areas and on the terraces of these Montreal Italian restaurants, you will feel transported to a little weekend away in Italy, just for the evening.

  • Contributing Writer

    Courtney Edgar (she/her) is a contributing writer for Narcity Media. She is a journalist, copywriter and UGC creator from Montreal. Her work's been published in HuffPost, Quebec City Tourism, Atlas Obscura, Destination Ontario, PopSugar, Our Homes Mag, and Ottawa Business Journal.

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