Da Emma
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Restaurant Da Emma, located in what was formerly Montreal's first prison for women, won prizes for its design in 1999. Da Emma serves traditional Italian cuisine with Roman specialities. As for the food: seafood antipasto (squid, mussels, shrimp, and octopus drizzled with olive oil), fettuccine with porcini mushrooms, and suckling pig roasted with garlic and rosemary are among the highlights.
Terrace available accommodating up to 70 people.
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italian(39)
pasta(24)
authentic(21)
recommend(18)
dessert(15)
dishes(14)
wine(12)
sauce(11)
tiramisu(11)
beautiful(9)
bruschetta(9)
vibe(9)
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Reviews for Da Emma
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italian(39) pasta(24) authentic(21) recommend(18) dessert(15) dishes(14) wine(12) sauce(11) tiramisu(11) beautiful(9) bruschetta(9) vibe(9)
Page 5 of 9 - 170 Reviews
3.0
Looked forward to having dinner at this iconic Montreal restaurant for weeks. Was very disappointed. Service depended on which waiter you got. We saw other diners who came in much later than we did get their dinners while we waited an hour for appetizers & another hour for our main. We didn't bother staying for dessert. When we finally got our main courses some in our group had to send their pasta back because it was undercooked. Not what I expected spending $100 per person. Very disappointing.
Sep 24, 2024
on Google
5.0
Date night was a success thanks to this beautiful establishment, our waiter Jean-luc was very friendly & proffessional, gave excellent advice on the dishes & wine pairings we even let him pick the desserts for us ! The montreal staple came through on every level. Thank you !
Sep 21, 2024
on Google
2.0
This use to be a go to spot whenever in Montreal. The quality of the food & level of service has gone down since I first started coming. Waited almost an hour for our food. When it finally came my husband had to send his pasta back because it was severely undercooked. The waiter seemed annoyed that we were not happy with the meal. The bread looked as if it was store bought, did not taste fresh. Overall disappointing experience! So many great restaurants in the city. This is no longer one of them.
Sep 21, 2024
on Google
5.0
Toujours y faire un tour quand vous êtes Montreal. Ça vaut le détour !
Sep 7, 2024
on Google
5.0
A must in Montreal, the food is incredible. Homemade, authentic italian made by chef emma. The restaurant is in an old women's prison & has a very cool & niche ambiance. Service is always great when we go, the staff is friendly & the chef, emma is the sweetest.
Sep 6, 2024
on Google
4.0
Food was amazing although the portions are quite small. Lovely atmosphere but the music was too loud for such a small, crowded dinning room. They have a charming bar & helpful.staff. All in all Da Emma is a unique dining experience.
Sep 5, 2024
on Google
4.0
First time at DaEmma for us we had heard so much about this Montreal restaurant in the old port Nice area with valet parking & paid street parking available. The restaurant is downstairs in a basement I wasn't a fan, it was very dark & gray all cement, but still had some charm The food was very good but not anything that I'd rant & rave about We were not impressed with our waiter he was hard to understand & at times rude. He ignored us most of the night we had to chase him down. Otherwise it was fine we'd go again hopefully we get a different waiter :)
Aug 31, 2024
on Google
2.0
Overpriced tourist food. If you're in Montreal & looking for good Italian food, do yourself a favor & head to little Italy where you'll find much fresher & more delicious versions of this menu. The waiter was nice enough but spent more time chatting about his interests than helping us. In fact he told us twice that he's behind on tables so we couldn't place an order. We waited at least 20 minutes waiting for him to catch up so we could order food. The complimentary bread is basically grocery store bread with packaged butter & it's basically indicative of the food you'll receive the rest of the meal. During peak tomato season, being served watery flavorless tomatoes for $20+ is unacceptable. If you want to look at the large celebrity photo wall then go ahead but otherwise I'd probably skip this place.
Aug 29, 2024
on Google
5.0
A beautiful atmosphere created by large stone adorned with timber beams this Italian restaurant serves great food by a very professional staff. My partner & I had the veal soup, rich in broth with tiny pillows of pasta. We had the Fettuccine ai fungi & Tonno alla griglia (grilled tuna). I'm not usually a fan of grilled tuna but this was cooked to perfection! We rounded out our meal with a lemon tartufo which was light & refreshing. I would recommend this to anyone looking for authentic Italian in a beautiful setting.
Aug 11, 2024
on Google
5.0
My daughter is named Emma & we had the privilege of meeting Emma here. She was so gracious & gave us a tour of her immaculate kitchen. More importantly, the food was delicious! We loved the bursts appetizer & all of the pasta & meatball dishes were so tasty. We felt like we were back in Rome.
Aug 6, 2024
on Google
5.0
Great Italian with special character & atmosphere. Own parking lot, you will find a spot. Reservations are recommended.
Aug 6, 2024
on Google
2.0
This restaurant has a lot of popularity all around the world I used to love this place. But on my way home I felt a bit sick & heavy.
Jul 20, 2024
on Google
3.0
Un décor digne du vieux Montréal. Une cuisine trop sobre & simple pour le prix
Jul 16, 2024
on Google
5.0
The best restaurant in all of the city. Amazing service from Alex, & even more so from the owner! The food is amazing & probably the most authentic Italian food you can get it Montreal, & the service is simply exceptional. I now come weekly & highly recommend this restaurant!
Jul 12, 2024
on Google
3.0
Très bruyant, service plus ou moins rapide , mais serveur sympathique. Cuisine correct mais sans plus. Les pâtes au bleu avaient le goût d'une crème mal assaisonnée, pâtes aux champignons très grasses & aillées sans goût de champignons... Pas vraiment l'impression de voyager en Italie. Dommage. Petit plus : ils ont un parking !
Jul 3, 2024
on Google
5.0
Yes met all expectations. 3'out of 4 of us had the roasted pig. Superb. For appetizer we had the Burrata with prosciutto. Delicious. Recommended. Check out the wall of celebrity photos who had visited this historical location. Restaurant is an old prison in the below ground cellar.
Jun 28, 2024
on Google
4.0
Très dispendieux pour la grosseur des assiettes & goût très ordinaire
Jun 17, 2024
on Google
4.0
Did a 20 person party there. Food was fantastic, not big portions. Service was very slow, it was a Saturday night, we were a big group I guess. Its not cheap, maybe better for much smaller group.
Jun 12, 2024
on Google