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Restaurant Da Emma
Category: Restaurants Italian Italian [Edit]
777 Rue De La Commune OMontreal, QC H3C 1Y1
(514) 392-1568
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Attire:
- Dressy
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Loud
- Has TV:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
14 reviews for Restaurant Da Emma
14 reviews in English
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Review from Matthew S.
2/19/2012
Da Emma is amazing.
I wish I could have Emma as my personal chef.
The pasta dishes are to die for.
The cheeses and bruschetta are delicious.
The steak is HUGE and could be shared between 2 people.
The decor is elegant.
Amazing experience and I would definitely go back there in a heartbeat. -
Review from Ann M.
12/31/2011
Restaurant Da Emma was the highlight of a quick visit to Montreal, and the recommendation of our hotel concierge.
It was a cold and rainy night, so being unfamiliar with the city, we took a cab. We found that the cab rules are more relaxed in Montreal than you find in spots like NYC, and were able to easily and without extra charge load 5 people into a sedan for the 10 block ride.
The entrance to the restaurant is a dark, descending staircase. We held the cab thinking that the restaurant must be closed. Happily, the door opened and so began a delicious and memorable meal.
The interior design of the restaurant is very pleasing and full of character, adding to the specialness of the visit. The menu is delivered in French and table side on a chalkboard. A flavorful bruschetta is served up pronto to tide over hungry patrons - you'll appreciate the offering since you'll need time and reflection to consider all the options.
My children wanted to modify their orders with "hold this" & "can I substitute that..". Our waiter's voice of reason came to my rescue, explaining to the children with directness that they would be wise to enjoy these special dishes in the way the chef intended.
A mother wanting to expose her boys to worldly cuisines will appreciate the intervention; it gets tiresome when you're constantly talking your kids into new culinary experiences.
Happily, my children took our waiter's advice and enjoyed their meals just as designed by the chef. One son thoroughly enjoyed the Lamb, another enjoyed Gnocchi for the first time, "they're like little pillows of deliciousness Mom", and my 3rd son enjoyed the Swordfish which was prepared with an unexpected, savory sauce. It was more food than we could eat, the portions are most generous.
If you follow me on Yelp, you know I favor Italian restaurants; I loved this place and will return on my next visit to Montreal. -
Review from C M.
Montréal, QC
12/5/2011
I came to Da Emma on a Friday night around 6pm, right when they open for dinner service. I adore the architecture/layout/atmosphere with the heavy metal doors and the rustic feel of the ex-womens' prison.
If you look to your right upon entering the restaurant, you'll see boards filled with pictures of eminent celebrities, athletes, randoms posing with I guess, Da Emma. Knowing that Angelina Jolie, Diane Kruger, Joshua Jackson, George Clooney (to name a few) had also dined at Da Emma made the experience more memorable.
We were seated right away and brought a plate of bruschetta and the menu. The bruschetta was more like a salty olive oil-ed sponge, not impressed. Our server literally plopped the all-Italian menu in front of us and peaced out with no explanation, no translation (even thought my boyfriend is Italia, he struggled with some of the items).
We ended up ordering the leg of lamb ($35) and veal ($30?). You have a choice of sides: veggies (pickled potatoes, 2 slices of eggplant, 2 slices of zucchini) or rotini with tomato sauce. The main dishes were enormous. If you are on the fence when it comes to lamb, I suggest you steer away from it at Da Emma. It's way too big- I couldn't manage half of it. The veal was amazing though!
All in all, the food was alright. Nothing too exciting. Our server was slow, cold, and intimidating, which is exactly what Da Emma is like. -
Review from Julie E.
9/23/2011
We had a wonderful dinner at Da Emma!
Granted, it wasn't a traditional dinner -- there were about 30+ people for my cousin and his fiancee's pre-rehearsal dinner for out-of-towners.
First of all, the setting is spectacular. Walking downstairs into a converted women's prison, the stone walls and somewhat dark atmosphere are more romantic than ominous.
T here's a wall of photos of celebrities with Emma (Bill Clinton, George Clooney), so we knew we were in a great place.
The food is fantastic, and so is the service.
They created a special menu of the restaurant's most popular dishes.
We tried:
-- Bufalo mozzarella with tomatoes and prosciutto. Absolutely fresh and the cheese was divine.
-- Fettuccine with fresh porcini mushrooms, olive oil and white wine. Perfectly fresh and awesome.
-- Agnolotti stuffed with veal and meat sauce. YUM.
-- Tiramisu, served in a bowl. Certainly homemade.
The bread is fresh and soft. The servings are quite generous.
I would absolutely return next time I'm in Montreal. -
Review from Jan T.
5/18/2011
We chose Da Emma due to the Yelp reviews and this was the first time we were disappointed by Yelp (we use it a lot, even at home).
Yes, the atmosphere is unique and interesting, the restaurant is clean and orderly, the salads were very tasty (including the cheese), the waiter was very attentive and humerous, but the food just wasn't up to par. Yelp had also steered us away from Little Italy, and we were hoping we would hit on something better.
The Osso Bucco is a different, Roman-type preparation, which the waiter explained up front. I found it slightly tough and on the bland side. The broccoli was over-cooked and way too salty. The pasta is non-descript. Given this, the restaurant is overpriced in my opinion.
My husband had a fish dish that tasted pretty good. He seemed to like it but didn't rave. He couldn't remember which one it was.
Our friend ordered a pasta dish and said it was good, but it didn't look extraordinary at all. We wouldn't try it again or recommend it to others. -
Review from C T.
Montréal, QC
6/20/2010
Fantastic meal in a wonderful atmosphere. Nice covered outdoor patio for those hot breezy summer days.
The food is outstanding (I particularly recommend the petto) and as fresh as it can get. Even the pasta in tomato sauce, served as a side dish, can sound ordinary, but it blew my mind.
The drinks are potent and the staff is engaging.
A bit pricier than other restaurants, but in this case you can say that you get your money's worth. -
Review from Christopher H.
12/7/2010
When a fellow foodie friend of mine (say that three times fast) informed me this was either his favorite or second favorite restaurant in town I knew I had to try it. When I was able to get reservations for that night (granted it was a Thursday) I figured it was fate and I had to stop by. I'm so very glad I did.
We arrived right on time for our reservation and were seated promptly. The waiter stopped by, took cocktail orders, dropped off some bruschetta, and left us with the oil board menu which is entirely in Italian. After staring at it for a good few minutes and taking pride in being able to identify a small handful of the items, the waiter came back to explain what it was we were reading.
We started with the caprese, which was done up very simply and exactly how I wanted it - fresh and not overly elaborate. For my main I tried the pork osso bucco. If you know anything about me it's probably that I love osso bucco; if I see it on the menu I'm ordering it. This was probably the most unique osso bucco I'd ever had. It had a sauce that was white wine based as opposed to red, and had a flavor that I wasn't expecting. Don't get me wrong - it was awesome, but just off center. My wife went for the veal meatballs, which were melt-in-your-mouth amazing but not in the least bit brittle. The one thing I didn't care too much for was the fact that the pasta that was served with everything seemed like more of an afterthought than anything. Granted with my dish it didn't matter too much, but it would have been nice to have had some great pasta to go with the meatballs.
After we were finished dining our service took a severe turn for the worse. We weren't able to flag down our waiter for a good 10 minutes after finishing our meals. Not to be deterred, we still went with dessert (wasn't going to let that affect our meal), and we tried the tiramisu. Simply outstanding.
I'd love to go back, and I'm sure this is a 5 star place. But the server disappearing for a solid 10 minutes and the pasta really do knock this place down one notch. But even still, my recommendation is still this - go! Enjoy! -
Review from Rodene R.
8/3/2010
Been here a couple times...
Fish: not so good, drowned in sauce
Meatballs: looked good in size
Mozzarella & Basil : fresh, tasty
Pasta & Mushroom Course: average, nothing special
Atmosphere: it was supposedly an old women's prison, so it was disturbing thinking a lot of women & criminals suffered where I am now trying to eat a meal.
The chef ( the woman I guess who owns it too) took us back to the kitchen and was completely sweet!Listed in: Restaurants
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Review from David H.
7/28/2010
Their Roman style cuisine is good, but I have had better Italian dinners in my home neighborhood of North Beach, San Francisco.
I will give them an extra star for being in an interesting location (former women's prison). -
Review from David G.
3/2/2011
I love this place. Your led downstaris into an old jali house where you dine inside of a cell. This place is a gem. Food is not the best but def price appropriate but the ambiance is one of a kind.
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Review from Matthew C.
7/29/2010
Great Restaurant. Fantastic Food and Wonderful atmosphere. Highly recommended.
Listed in: Montreal Weekend.
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Review from Tyler M.
7/21/2010
Da Emma is da-licious! This restaurant was recommended to us by a staff member at our hotel, saying it was "A-1" and the best restaurant for Italian that you could find. So, with that in mind, we walked the 10-15 blocks to the Restaurant Da Emma, hoping for a meal we would not forget...trust me, we won't! It is in the basement of a large building, a few blocks away from the action of shops, people, etc. You walk down the flight of stairs, through a couple of what look like warehouse doors, and into the elegant entry area. Walking towards the front counter, we noticed multiple large class frames house many pictures of very famous people (Robert Downey Jr., Dustin Hoffman, the guy from
Slumdog Millionaire, etc.). Walking to the front counter, the woman asked if we had reservations, unfortunately the answer to that was no. She hesitated and was explaining that it was very hard to get in here and you need reservations, but she did end up letting us have a table as long as we were done by 8:30. Fine with us! We were then waited on by a very friendly, funny, yet proper waiter. The menu was incredibly extensive (yes, expensive, but incredible & worth it). we ordered, and a little while later our food was delivered...YUM! It was heavenly! Everyone loved their meal and ate every last bite! Now it's dessert (oh yeah!). We ordered both lemon & orange sorbets to share (best decision of our entire lives)! they are served in whatever fruit flavor you order (example: the orange sorbet was served in the "shell" of an orange). This was a superb presentation and the sorbet was so incredible, I think I might just order that every day of my life (even of they would have to ship it to California)!
Overall, one of the best dining experiences I have EVER had, and definitely the place to go when in or near Montreal!! -
Review from Grace Y.
8/9/2011 1 Check-in Here
Beautiful setting and authentic food! Buratta with tomatoes, Fettuccine with mushrooms and the meatballs with pasta. All amazing! Tomatoes tasted so fresh and they were a big size. Meatballs very tender!
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Review from J H.
8/11/2010
I don't write about every restaurant I eat at, just the ones that show something special. This is truly a five star old school Italian restaurant. Anyone who gives it less is just screwing with the ratings (and I've been to most of the north beach restaurants). Got recommended by the concierge at the Marriott. I applaud anyone who could find it without a taxi. It is less than nondescript from the outside. Once you go down the stairs and through the industrial door you come upon a busy place. People will find good food. The menu is in Italian. It is extensive and the staff is happy to translate. The wine lists also extensive and all Italian. The sugar packs are from Italy. Getting the pattern here. They are not afraid to scream old Italy because they can do it first class. Soup of the day was stingray soup. I was thinking Asian, but noodles in seafood broth with shredded stingray fin was right off the coast of Italy. There were so many great things on the menu. I chose the Osso bucco, great. My wife had the fettuccine with mushrooms, fantastic. Would I go again. You bet. I will say I asked them to call me a cab to get back to the hotel, after all it is near old town but a little of the beaten track.
