Located in a beautiful Victorian dwelling in the heart of Montreal, Ristorante Da Vinci offers its guests elegant and warm surroundings.
From its magnificent mahogany staircase to its high ceilings and natural fireplaces and its private salon to its appetizing antipasto and dessert display, Da Vinci will rejoice both your eyes and your palate.
To compliment your meal, an extensive list of wines from 20 regions of Italy is offered. Before turning to dessert, walnuts are offered to accompany the wine. Then it's time for some classic Italian sweets or a few novelties such as the duo of iced mousse, dark chocolate and amaretto !
Da Vinci is described as an elegant, welcoming Italian spot where the atmosphere and attentive service can elevate celebrations, with private rooms and thoughtful touches noted as a plus, but several reviews flag value and consistency as concerns. Valentine’s Day menus were fixed per person and portions were small, featuring a shared burrata salad and bite sized desserts while lobster ravioli appeared as a regular portion. Service ranges from subpar in some visits, with no drink menu and rushed service, to exemplary when staff are on point and attentive throughout the evening. The kitchen turns out flavorful dishes such as pasta Bolognese, mushroom risotto, lamb, tomahawk steak, black cod, and salmon tartare, and desserts and drinks are occasionally praised. However, the price level is criticized by some as too high for what is delivered, while others feel the overall experience justifies it. Overall, Da Vinci emerges as a refined option with strong service and solid Italian cooking, best enjoyed when expectations match the pricing.
Menu was fixed for valentine's day, 95$ per person & the portions were very small, sharing one portion of a green salad with 2 small pieces of burrata each & 3 mostly bite size desserts. 5 regular sized lobster ravioli. Service was subpar, we were not given a drink menu nor were we asked if we wanted drinks, it was very unpleasant & rushed although there were few tables. Would not come back.
We were a group of four ladies who went to Montreal from Sherbrooke for a concert. Since the concert was an Italian opera singer & it was one of my friends birthdays we decided to have Italian! This restaurant was perfect!! The staff were all SO nice! Our waiter was able to answer all of our questions & made recommendations that were delicious!! They were very accommodating for our group & the food was DELICIOUS!!!! I only give it 5 stars because I can't give it 10!
Summer 2025
I am editing this to update as we went back to this restaurant last night. It was an incredible dinner again & the service was still outstanding. (We even had the same waiter!). We were a group of 5 this time & it was even more enjoyable. We used the valet parking this time which was very helpful to not have to worry about that. & it was really convenient!! Make a reservation beforehand though. I had the same dessert, they had changed the menu a little bit & the thing that I ordered last time wasn't on it anymore. I asked the waiter & he said oh let me recommend this, & he did & it was delicious. Even my picky husband was super satisfied & left not one bite of food on his plate!! You won't find a better place for service, quality of food, or atmosphere. If you are in Montreal you should definitely make this a place that you eat!!
Jul 12, 2025
on Google
🍽️
Know where to eat in Montreal before everyone else.
Get the first look at the hottest openings, secret menus, and RestoMontreal.ca's weekly top picks. Join 50,000+ foodies.
Ate there on Nov 2, 2024 for my girlfriend's birthday. The ambiance was so boring. Had to tell the waiter put some Italian music on, as I couldn't hear it. Which he did. The decor for a high-end resto, was also boring. I looked at boring whitish wall papered walls all evening. Ordered the burrata which was good as entree. We both ordered the pasta, mine (lamb pasta at $39) was salty & lacked flavours, no wow factor what so ever. Hers was better, veal rague pasta at $39 too. Service was good, but waiter forgot to bring us bread. Cheapest wine was 75$ a bottle, which was decent tasting. I told them it was my girlfriend's birthday (when making reservations & when I got there), I heard crickets while others had happy birthday sung to them. Not even a complimentary desserts for her, after dropping $240. Overpriced & really not worth it. Never again.
This restaurant was everything a restaurant should be. The staff & owner (Lav) friendly, welcoming (with everyone who walked in) the restaurant has been around for a long time & Lav is ready to share stories upon your asking (which I did). The food was well presented & tasted every bit as good as it looked. We appreciated the look & the taste so much - totally forgot pics. What put this restaurant over the top was when I couldn't decide between 2 desserts so they gave me both & one being compliments of the house. The vibe in the place says family & anyone who walks in is a part of it. I can't recommend enough & is now on my must visit when in Montreal.
La déception était palpable dès l'entrée, avec une portion de crevettes "à la da Vinci", dans une sauce cocktail ordinaire... Les pâtes au homard & safran manquaient de saveur & de générosité, tandis que les pâtes aux fruits de mer, le homard semblaient avoir subi un traitement au micro-ondes le rendant trop cuit. Pour un établissement de renom, l'expérience culinaire était bien en deçà des attentes. Même à un prix réduit, il aurait été difficile d'être impressionné par cette prestation. Le service impeccable est un point positif, mais quand il s'agit de séduire nos papilles, l'expérience culinaire laisse vraiment à désirer. Il est regrettable que même un service exceptionnel ne puisse compenser les lacunes dans la qualité des plats. Bien que les plats principaux aient déçu, il est rassurant de savoir que les desserts ont été un point fort de l'expérience culinaire.
Was able to snag a booking for New Year's Eve at this restaurant. Located in a beautiful part of Montreal. Service was perfect & so was the meal. I had the rack of lamb & my friend had the salmon. Both plates were pretty much licked clean. Also recommend the tiramisu for dessert.
Had the most incredible meal & service on our recent visit here! An absolutely beautiful meal, accompanied by 5* service. They really took care of us & made us feel at home. Eating out with a 6yr old is not always that easy, but will definitely come back again soon. Started off the meal with a cocktail & starter platter of various Appetizers. All were fantastic but the lambchops & shrimp were outstanding. Followed by some pastas, gnocchi & branzino cooked to perfection. Don't skip the tiramisu for dessert, some of the best I've ever had. My son opted for the lemon granita & loved it. Can't wait to visit again!
Nov 20, 2023
on Google
🍽️
Know where to eat in Montreal before everyone else.
Get the first look at the hottest openings, secret menus, and RestoMontreal.ca's weekly top picks. Join 50,000+ foodies.
Made reservations for dinner about 6-7hrs ahead of time that day. Husband & I found this resto on Google maps. Wednesday night on September 13 at 815PM was our reservation time. Came in & immediately greeted & seated. After a day filled with eating & meeting amazing servers at various restaurants we decided to forgo appetizers & drinks & just split an entree & dessert since we were so stuffed. My main complaint is that the servers were not friendly at all with us. There were two servers coming to our table & moving around us, one of them would worldlessly set food (some sort of small complimentary appetizer with tomato & olives & bread with vinegar & olive oil) in front of us, barely looking at us while he did it. We didn’t order it, so you would think he’d explain what was in front of us, but he didn’t explain what it was at all. Not sure if he could speak English or not but like I said he barely looked at us & didn’t even smile even though I smiled & tried to make eye contact & even tried speaking a bit of French like we’ve been doing to the delight of other servers during our vacation here. Didn’t ask us if we had questions about the menu at all. & then the other server came maybe 2-3 times during our 1.5hrs there, barely spoke & yet I saw him checking on the other tables next to us repeatedly without their prompting/calling for him. I assume he was supposed to be our main server but again not sure bc the two servers barely gave us a second thought. Our food came, the Osso Bucco & no one ever came to ask if we liked the meal or to check on us (it was delicious thankfully).Part of the money spent at places like this is supposed to include great service as part of the experience, & I could see if they were understaffed but like I said, the tables around us got excellent service, the kind of service I’m used to experiencing no matter where I go. One of our servers was a darker slim gentleman & the other was a white balding older gentleman, didn’t even get their names because they didn’t bother to introduce themselves.
Didn’t even get dessert like I wanted bc the service was so offputting…& I did want dessert bc I asked at the beginning of the night & got told that I had to wait, & even though we sat with a clean plate no one came for 10 min meanwhile the table next to us got offered dessert with no prompting.
Incredible atmosphere! The foo. was amazing & lived up to the reputation. I came here with my girlfriend & we were really impressed. It’s unfortunate that our service experience was so underwhelming. The waiting staff was extremely friendly, professional & welcoming, however after the initial introduction we were basically forgotten about. After our staters we waited an hour for our main course to arrive & never checked in with by staff. The tables around us received their food long before us despite the fact that they ordered after us. I ordered a gin & tonic which was probably the best I’ve ever had. I was never asked if I wanted another one after I finished. Once we got our main course we were never asked how the food was which is disappointing. We were offered a dessert menu & the waiter didn’t return for about 15 minutes. We didn’t end up getting a dessert just because we were tired of waiting. Honestly, it wasn’t that busy that it should have taken that long. For the price point of the meal, that shouldn’t have happened.
Overall everything was great minus our service experience which for me is a make or break deal. It felt disrespectful that others around us seemed to get preferential treatment.
C'était ma 4e fois dans ce restaurant & une première pour ma blonde. C'était un cadeau de st-valentin, six jours plus tôt & ce soir c'est devenu le tout nouveau #1 des restaurants que moi & ma blonde avons fait depuis l'été 2012. Pour ma part, rien n'a changer & toujours aussi de très bonne qualité. Le service est toujours très rapide & toujours courtois. On parle d'un grand restaurant italien & qui fait toujours honneur. Reste que les prix sont toujours élevés, mais la qualité est toujours au rendez-vous. Avec nos entrées, nos plat principaux & nos desserts sans oublier le verre de vin rouge de ma blonde…incluant les taxes & pourboires ça coûté 200$CAD pile. Pas pour un budget restreint ou standard, mais pour une exception, ça vaut la peine.
Une très belle expérience à un prix qui reflète la qualité de la nourriture & du service.
En entré : Pétoncle géant, carpaccio de boeuf, carpaccio de saumon & burrata. En un mot, très bon.
Pour les plats principaux j'ai commandé un rizzoto au fruit de mer ( pas sur la carte mais y'a qu'à demander :) ) nous avions aussi l'ossobuco, les crevettes géantes farci au crabe & les linguini aux fruit de mer. Tout les plats étaient aussi beau que bon mais la vedette, de l'avis de tous, était le rizzoto. Autant le mien que celui qui accompagnait l'ossobuco sont, sans aucun doute, parmis les meilleurs à Montréal. Pour le reste, très bon.La cuisson & le goût du homard étaient absolument parfait.
Comme dessert : Tiramisu & crème brulée, très bon.
Nous n'avons pas fait de découverte, autant pour les présentations que pour les goûts, mais je vous assure que les traditions italiennes sont respectées.
Est-ce que je vais y retourner ? Sûrement pour le rizzoto aux fruit de mer car il est parfait, sinon je ne crois pas.
Je recommande quand même sans hésitation.
Jan 12, 2014
🍽️
Know where to eat in Montreal before everyone else.
Get the first look at the hottest openings, secret menus, and RestoMontreal.ca's weekly top picks. Join 50,000+ foodies.
Un des meilleurs restaurants italiens que j'ai essayé mais aussi de loin le plus chère. Nous avons commencé avec l'entrée de Carpaccio de Boeuf, couper très fin & la qualité de la viande était parfaite. Nous avons aussi essayé les pétoncles à la salsa de mangue, cuisson parfaite & bel équilibre dans le mélange des saveurs. Comme repas, nous avons pris le risotto langoustine & crevette, exquis, par contre, le plat de crevettes géantes farcies au crabe étaient un peu trop cuit, il était difficile de déceler le gout du crabe & les crevettes avait un petit gout de coquille Saint-Jacques. Ils ont une très belle carte des vins, le décor assez classique & le service est à mon avis un peu trop coincer, mais adéquat pour leur type de clientèle. Finalement, pour ce type de prix, on aurait pu s'attendre à un peu plus dans l'assiette (après une mise en bouche, une entrée, un repas & un dessert, j’aurais pu manger un petit quelque chose encore).
