Il Focolaio
Info & Location
About us
Since 1984 clients have been coming to Il Focolaio to get that authentic Italian taste that is reminiscent of their grandmother’s cooking. Il Focolaio, in fact means fireplace in Italian. The name depicts the maple wood burning oven where each and every one of our pizzas and roasted ingredients are cooked. Our fireplace, as in the old country, not only brings forth the food but also becomes the gathering place for our clients who always feel welcomed and right at home. Our recipe for success is simple, serving up pizza using ingredients that only a true pizzaiolo would use, such as extra virgin olive oil, top quality tomatoes and only the freshest ingredients, all prepared with passion and a love for cooking to bring you the end result that you will never forget. We invite you to come and enjoy the taste of Italy with a nice glass of wine from our wine list. Enjoy it all on our terrace in the middle of downtown during the summer months.
Our Specialties
Wood oven pizza.
Amenities, services & more
Capacity: 128 We accept: Master Card, Visa, AMEX, InteracPhotos (19) More
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Events Nearby
Pride 2025 at Place Ville Marie
Aug 10, 2025
Fantasia International Film Festival Montreal 2025
Jul 17, 2025 to Aug 3, 2025
Reviews often mention
Display Allpizza(555) salad(35) recommend(34) crust(29) options(26) italian(23) rapide(22) pizzeria(22) topping(20)Page 1 of 1 - 19 Reviews
A.
The pizza place to go when in MTL. Very casual atmosphere, delicious pizzas with generous toppings.View more
Bradley
Amazing pizza every time! Consistent, always fresh, & not shy with toppings. Plus they have delicious gluten free crust available & lactose free cheese for people with dietary restrictions! The servers are also very knowledgeable & friendly. Highly recommend!View more
JC
Saw the reviews & wanted to try. Lived up to the hype. Great pizza. Crispy crust. Good quality toppings. Decent prices depending on what you order. Like the larger style cuts for slices. Free WiFi. Great comfortable atmosphere. Clean facility. Clean washroom. Friendly staff who can speak English well.View more
Sina
Absolutely loved this pizza shop! The pizza was genuinely tasty - fresh ingredients, perfectly cooked crust, & just the right amount of cheese & toppings. The price was very fair for the quality & portion size, which is always a plus. What really stood out, though, was the staff - they were incredibly nice, welcoming, & made the whole experience even better. You can tell they care about their customers & take pride in their service. Whether you're grabbing a quick bite or dining in, this place is worth a visit. I'll definitely be coming back. Highly recommend it!View more
Kishen
The pizza was crunchy & baked to perfection. The base sauce & toppings were alright. Service was fast & the waiters were friendly. A bit pricier than I expected.
But the seating was cramped. I could practically hear the person next to me breathing. I understand they're busy, but this was a bit suffocating. Really ruined the experience for us. We were more worried about our personal space than enjoying the pizza.View more
Bianca
We were honestly surprised at how much we loved Pizza Il Focolaio. My husband & I have been diehard pizza enthusiasts for years & most places are very middle of the road. But this place had great service, a really efficient team, & pizza combinations that are interesting & delicious. One of the best things about this place was the chili oil they will bring out to the table at request. We split the Capo Franco pizza & were very full! Although the pizzas are on the smaller side, any one of them can easily feed two people comfortably because they really load on the ingredients. That being said, despite lots of toppings, the pizza's crust was still crisp, slightly chewy, & maintained a nice char without being soggy. If we ever go back to Montreal, we'll be sure to visit again!View more
Alasdair
So many options, it's actually insane! The dough & toppings are phenomenal. Prices are pretty reasonable.View more
Sean
This spot seriously delivered some of the best thin-crust pizza I've ever had! The crust was perfectly crisp with just the right amount of char, & the toppings were fresh & flavorful. We tried a variety-one with pineapple & blue cheese that was unexpectedly amazing, & another loaded with sausage, pepperoni, & green peppers that was packed with flavor. The Caesar salads were also generous & creamy-definitely a solid starter.
Service was excellent-super friendly & attentive. The only downside? It was surprisingly crowded for a Tuesday lunch. That said, it's clearly popular for a reason. Would absolutely come back!View more
Greysuitcase
Ended up at this place because of my friend's recommendation. She's been to this pizzeria before & thought their pizza is amazing so she took me here during our Montréal trip. The place was busy when we went for a visit during peak lunch hour rush on a Thursday. There was even quite a long line forming outside the restaurant of people waiting for a table. We ended up waiting for about 15 minutes or so before getting a table. The waiting time wasn't too bad to be honest. & if you don't want to wait, you can always order to go & eat it at the park across the street. What we ordered: Caesar Salad 8.5/10 The salad was fresh & nicely seasoned. Not too salty or peppery or cheesy. Very balanced. The portion was quite generous too. No.23 Campagnola 9.5/10 Sauce, mushrooms, onions, spicy pancetta (Italian bacon), mozzarella, black olives. I have to say this was probably one of the best pizza I've ever had in recent times. The pizza was cooked really well with that wood burning aroma whiffing off of the crust that's slightly charred on different spots. The texture was nice, chewy & there's a slight bounce to the bite. All the toppings were also evenly cooked & sitting nicely on top of the gooey mozzarella & the portion is quite big & generous. No.68 A La Griglia 9/10 Fresh tomatoes, mozzarella, grilled vegetables (zucchini, eggplant, onions, artichokes, mushrooms, green & red peppers), fresh garlic, Italian herbs, olive oil, Parmigiano-Reggiano. My friend actually ordered this one & I have the same comment about the overall pizza like the Campagnola. I think their pizza is really solid & you can just order whichever pizza that have the toppings that you like & I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy it. Definitely will go back again the next time I'm in MontréalView more
Christine
Our friends in Montreal said this was a great pizza place, & they were 100% correct! We visited Montreal & unfortunately we could only manage to do delivery, but it was fabulous! There were so many pizza options on the website that we had some trouble deciding what to get. I had the absolute best anchovy pizza I've ever had! Everyone else really enjoyed their pizzas, too (the kids are Hawaiian fiends, & everyone else got assorted meaty toppings). The delivery guy was also very lovely & insisted on bringing the pizzas up the stairs to us, even though we went down to meet him. The delivery boxes are also really appealing, haha. Will definitely return for more the next time we are in town!View more
Vishal
I recently dined at Pizza Focolaio in downtown Montreal & was thoroughly impressed! I ordered the vegetarian pizza ratatouille & the Giardino salad, & both dishes were fantastic. The pizza was stone-baked to perfection, with a crisp crust on the outside & a soft, chewy interior. The ratatouille toppings were generous & beautifully seasoned, creating a delightful medley of flavors. The Giardino salad was fresh & well-composed, providing a refreshing contrast to the pizza. Pizza Focolaio offers a wide variety of pizzas, both vegetarian & non-vegetarian, catering to diverse tastes. Each pizza is stone-baked, enhancing the flavors & giving it an authentic, rustic touch. The ambiance is cozy & welcoming, & the attentive service made the experience even better. I'd highly recommend this spot for anyone craving delicious, high-quality pizza in Montreal!View more
Abhinav
Food 5/5 Service 5/5 Ambience 3/5 This is definitely my favourite pizza restaurant in Montreal. For years, I stop by this place whenever I had the chance & it never disappoints. The quality is as good as it can be, crust & toppings, simply can't get enough of those pizzas.View more
Daniel
Visit: June 2024 I got the Suprema Pizza, which was very good, with an insane amount of toppings & a thin, crisp crust. One pizza is still pretty filling for one person. Also comes with olive oil to add to the pizza or use for the crust. Also loved the decor in the restaurant, it gave a very rustic feeling to the placeView more
Clarck
Based on all the positive comments I'd like to think that my experience here was just an anomaly. The pizza was bland. The sauce was pretty much non existent & everything just tasted like bread & cheese. The toppings were decent but the dough overpowered every other flavour. One of the pizzas we ordered was undercooked & doughy. I'll be giving it another try to see if the hype is warranted, otherwise I much rather order some dominos.View more
Sam
Best brick italian pizza in downtown, the crunchiest texture & most delicious toppings can be found here. I have been there multiple times & the quality never degrades. Their staff is wonderful & helpful & they speak fluent english which is big plus❤️View more
Derin
Very large selection of toppings, easy to cover dietary needs & desires for large groups. Fast & friendly service, will split pizzas & salads for you.View more
Karim
Pizza Il Focolaio is renowned for its authentic wood-fired pizzas, offering a vast selection of toppings & unique flavor combinations. The cozy, casual atmosphere & the quality of their pizzas make it a favorite among locals & visitors alike. A must-visit for pizza enthusiasts.View more
Foodie
7 Reviews
Focalaio on Phillips Square, just in front of the Bay store, is probably the best little Pizza place for thin crusted, any topping you can imagine pizza , with great tasting cheeses .
They also have the best Caesar salad downtown . No pasta just pizza
but delicious , go after 8pm its quieter , or go early betw 130 & 530pm .