You're craving for some great pasta? Where else than Little Italy could you go to satisfy your Italian appetite? [Photo: Restaurante Lucca]
Faita and Forgione are the powerful duo behind Impasto. The pasta is all made in-house and fresh. Their gnocchi are light and served in a fresh tomato sauce; simplicity at its best. The paccheri with seafood overflows with calamari rings, mussels, shrimp and clams and is topped with seasoned breadcrumbs for texture. Their dishes change often but rest assured, they are all made with love, like their Mafalda with a rabbit ragu – delicious!
Bottega isn’t all about the pizza; make sure to check out the special menu, they have great pasta dishes such as pappardelle with porcini mushrooms and roasted squash. The mushrooms are plentiful, and the squash is seasoned well and melts in your mouth. We’ve also fallen in love with their squash andouille tortellini, homemade, with the right amount of spice. If you prefer one of the classics on their regular menu, be sure to order their gnocchi pomodoro; their homemade ricotta gnocchi is perfect in a light tomato sauce.
Lucca serves pasta dishes to satisfy any craving. Whether you’re in the mood for a seafood risotto filled with scallops, spaghetti with rabbit and mushrooms, rigatoni with gorgonzola, or their classic seafood linguini with a spicy white wine sauce with clams, mussels, scallops and shrimp – they have it all! The white tablecloth restaurant is perfect for lunch or dinner and customers always leave satisfied with plans to return for more.
Hostaria is a must for delicious pasta dishes. Their pappardelle with tender and flavourful boar ragu rivals the same dish we ate in Italy. They also have a gnocchi dish, again, made with ricotta to keep things light. Served with white beans, it’s a twist on a classic. Their butternut squash risotto is sinfully creamy, but not heavy, and the butternut squash has a nice touch of sweetness. They too have a chalkboard menu that changes frequently.
Primo e Secondo offers all their pasta dishes as a main meal or as first course dishes, in the traditional Italian fashion. And there is plenty to tempt your taste buds. Try orecchiette with a classic combination of sausage and rapini, or tortellini with porcini and truffles! Decadence describes this tortellini dish with a creamy sauce and black truffles. Or treat yourself to gnudi, made with zucchini flowers and spinach, for something light and fresh that melts in your mouth. This restaurant is near the Jean Talon Market, and their menu changes according to the season.
Il Piatto Pieno offers something unique: you can switch up the type of pasta with either taglioglini, fettucine, pappardelle, tortellini, gnocchi, etc., regardless of how the dish is described on their menu. They make a good carbonara that isn’t heavy with plenty of pancetta and parmesan cheese. Or try something different like their Boscaiola, an olive oil based pasta with garlic, onions, shallots, pancetta, mushrooms, Italian sausage and an amazing porcini sauce. An added bonus is that this restaurant lets you bring your own wine.