F’Amelia

Waitstaff was great!
Food was fantastic
Homemade pasta
The hostess was a little short with us.
Seems like she has a chip on her shoulder.

F’Amelia is a regular spot for my girlfriend and I and continues to be a favourite. From the pizzas to the fresh pasta, there is nothing on the menu that isn’t worthy. The Rabbit pasta is a favourite and the spicy diavola pizza is a wood fired hit. The atmosphere in this restaurant is great for couples on a date or a family gathering. In either case, make sure to order a charcuterie/​cheese board to share.

I has the opportunity to visit F’Amelia for the first time with some family and it was such a great experience! From the amazing food to the staff it was such a great experience! I went with Fungi pizza and all the elements were fresh and tasty! I live fairly close and cannot wait to go back!

The food is so bad! I’ve been here twice and both times, I found it surprising the food could be so poorly prepared. I really wanted to like this cute place!
My friend paid $ 33 for the snapper, which wasn’t hot when it arrived and had a distinct «fishy» smell. The pizza sauce tastes like it’s from a can and again, not hot when it arrived. The lasagna had super mushy noodles. The wine pours are not generous by any stretch.
Beautiful patio but the food is just awful. And not cheap. Sorry but… skip this place. If you enjoy good food, this isn’t the place.
(Also, I asked for half my pizza to be wrapped up so I could take it home. The tinfoil job was so messy sauce was coming out when it came to the table. The server re-​wrapped it, but it looks like it was slopped together. Very messy.)

After finding a place to host a wedding rehearsal dinner, I thought F’Amelia was the perfect place to host an intimate, causal dinner for 12 people. Choosing a la carte to be served family style, I thought we were all set when we got there (ordered a bunch of pizzas, calamari appys and salads). Apparently, should have read the reviews before booking. Never again.
I’ve never had to ask where my server was so many times, my neck hurt from turning to look for anyone all night. I poured my own water and water for all my guests as they arrived. We were standing «cocktail style» and since no one was around, I did it. All the glasses were moved — so we never got water again! Normally, I wouldn’t care, but seeing the bill that we were charged $ 30 for our water (without my knowledge) I was pretty pissed that I served my guests the water and then we didn’t get refills.
Once the food started coming out, and the tiny portions shocking (calamari for $ 16 should AT LEAST be enough to share lightly, one person could barely eat it), I spoke with the event host quickly to order more her response was ‘I thought this was a bachelorette party for women, otherwise I would have told you the portions were smaller’ … I was appalled that this was the response.
The bill came, and even though I’d carefully spent time explaining before many guests got there, to give me the bill, the bill was handed to someone who should not have had it, and was not explained there was already a $ 500 deposit (we paid to secure the reservation) and caused a lot of unnecessary commotion that severely upset me — as I’d left specific instructions.
The cake came — which we brought, therefore had to pay a plating fee, fine. I don’t mind paying a plating fee, but I do mind paying it if there’s no server around to cut and plate the cake.
It was an awful evening, with abysmal service, lacklustre and ridiculously overpriced food. The worst came when trying to speak with the manager a few days later. His excuses (one after another) left me incredulously shocked. Constantly repeating that they have parties all the time, and had another party that night that couldn’t stop raving about the place. I guess that party was the one who got all the service. Not one authentic apology from this place, which was really placed this restaurant on the never again scale.
I wouldn’t even go here again with a 2 person party because clearly the servers can’t handle it and it is a waste of money for the experience. There a ton of beautiful quaint places in Toronto, find somewhere else to spend your hard earned $ 150 pp you’ll end up spending and at least you’ll be treated with respect (hopefully) somewhere else.
It is not shocking that out of the bad reviews here, they all have to do with some sort of service problem.

Unfortunately my experience here was not really memorable and the food would most aptly be described as meah. In the spirit of fairness the beef tartar special was good and the wine certainly tasty, although at $ 14 dollars a glass it should be, the rest of the meal was underwhelming at best. The calamari starter was ridiculous in its stingyness. For $ 16 the ammount given was tiny. No one is expecting a trough but seriously the portion is tiny. Similarly the pasta entrees of which we ordered two were equally mean. Yes they make the pasta in house and yes it tastes ok, even if chronically under seasoned but if your expecting a rustic hearty plate of Italian noodles you will be sorely disappointed. Again at $ 23ish a plate its just not worth the scratch. Service is where things really nose dive, at best aloof and at worst just rude, there is no sense of warmth or of even them caring that your there. Certainly I can only speak to our server but again there was no sense of real hospitality when one thinks of Italian dining. Although not terrible its just another sad reminder of a Toronto restaurant missing the point of the food they represent. Italian food is simlicity, love and fulfillment and unfortunatley this place is none of that.
had
tartar special — $unsure
calamari $ 16?!
papadelle $ 23ish
sausage pasta $ 23
wine, 2 glasses $ 26
total after tax and tip $ 130

Cute and cozy restaurant off the beaten path (Parliament Street just south of Wellesley). Friendly and welcoming staff each time I have gone. Servers are attentive, knowledgeable and sometimes chatty, but not overbearing. I sometimes do feel like family when coming here since it’s so comforting being there with home cooked traditional Italian comfort food and I’m not even Italian.
On a recent visit, we sat on the patio which was called the Extended F’Amelia and what a lovely area. It felt like we were in someone’s cozy and relaxed backyard. It truly felt very zen. Plus great spot for people watching in the neighbourhood, almost felt like we were the neighbourhood watchkeepers.
Decent wine selection with varied prices and we managed to order a bottle that suited our budget. The menu selection was varied and there’s something for everyone with reasonable prices. Everything was fresh and flavourful, plus plenty of free bread that kept on coming. We had the flatbread and the rosemary bread which were so good that we just ate them as is.
The pasta was not quite as delicious as previous visits since it was a bit on the dry side, but I still managed to finish the dish since it was still tasty.
If you want a restaurant that isn’t in the busy neighbourhood and on the quiet side, then F’Amelia is for you. It was definitely worth a trip to Cabbagetown for this hidden neighbourhood gem.

It’s rare that we go out of our way for date night– but we deserve it! So, we chose italian. And then we chose this restaurant.
Too bad.
It was terrible.
Overpriced food and terrible service. Our server, Teressa had an attitude problem. She seemed angry/​annoyed that we were there. She kept saying they were ‘slammed’, although we spotted at least 5 tables on the patio that were empty and half of the inside was empty too. Maybe they had been slammed– and it was calming down– but dinner still took over 2 hours to arrive. It took an hour for our starter which was very very disappointing to begin with. After finishing my first drink she didn’t come back to offer another for 55 minutes. She mentioned that we should have water but forgot to bring us any. Start to finish– it was over 3 hours. This isn’t because we are slow eaters and like to hang out and enjoy the atmosphere– it’s because everything took so long. They had no bread– which totally makes sense for an italian restaurant– when we asked if we could have some she snarled ‘i already told you we ran out but I’ll check again I guess’, 10 minutes later she threw a tin of weird chewy flat bread strips on our table and ran away before we could say thank you. *She actually had not mentioned this*.
Also– the pizza sucked. If you want a good pizza try café di portici at yonge and davenport, a million times better, and amazing staff. The lasagne was ok– but would have been better with bread considering the price.
It actually pisses me off that we actually spent money here– get a grip people. Don’t be so f’ing rude to genuinely nice people.
I’m giving it a two because the nice guy who originally seated us (but was unfortunately serving inside) was so welcoming that I can’t say everything was terrible.

Awesome restaurant. Awesome service and food! Have had dinner here as well as a private party. Tanya and her team were superb and a pleasure to deal with. This is a great hidden Jen suitable for families, couples or singles. Everyone is welcome. Not pretentious. Just friendly and delicious. My new go to place!!! Thx Famelia!

I came here for my parents anniversary. I love the rustic décor, and would love to come back for patio season. The atmosphere was very homey.
The service was fantastic, and the prices were pretty decent for a nicer restaurant.
As far as the food went, I had the mushroom risotto special. It was a bit salty and too creamy (not enough rice). However, saltiness aside, it was really tasty and had a handful of mushrooms on top. It was very rich and filling, so I ended up having leftovers for later.
There was a flat pita bread for the table. It was delicious with hints of rosemary. We loved it so much the server filled up the basket 4 times.
The soup was delicious and hearty.
My parents both had the lasagne. I tried some and it was delicious and hearty as well. It was quite a big portion, and I loved how it came in a cute single serve dish.
I didn’t try the pizza, but did notice it was cooked in a brick oven, which is hard to mess up. I will try that next time.
The dessert was only mediocre. I think I’d rather get an appetizer than a dessert next time.
I will come back for sure.

F’Amelia was the perfect Friday evening date night spot for dinner.
It was super cozy, outfitted in what looked like an old house, with dimmed lights, small intimate tables, and light chatter throughout the restaurant.
It was great.
The complimentary bread was actually this housemade herbed flatbread. It was crispy and came in this cute vintage metal tin, and was amazing.
I ordered the margherita pizza as my main and really liked it. No soggy bits, just thin enough, perfect amount of basil (I don’t want too much at all) and cheese, and the crust was crispy and chewy. So good!
My partner ordered the octopus linguine special of the day. It was a tomato-​based sauce and had lots of chunks of octopus mixed in. He really enjoyed it, especially because it had a bit of spice to it, but I tried a bite and did not like it at all. I wasn’t a fan of the fishy taste of the octopus (our waitress warned us the octopus would taste fishy — my partner still seemed to like it!) and I much prefer cream-​based sauces for my pasta. Also, the linguine was a touch overcooked. Not quite al dente. But pasta is better to be slightly overcooked than slightly undercooked anyway!
The service was good and attentive, and things were ridiculously prompt.
Sitting all around us were older couples sitting in groups drinking wine and relaxing. It was such a nice atmosphere. I could imagine coming here regularly if I lived right around the corner in Cabbagetown (someday!!).

Our dinner was acceptable, not exceptional. It may simply have been our menu selection.
But what has been consistent is the attitude in the service.
On both occasions we have come to this restaurant we have been treated with indifference. Despite intentional efforts to be friendly with the waitress (I believe this is my default attitude, but definitely the best attitude to find out what’s great on the menu, and to be well cared for) there’s really seems to be no interest on the staffs behalf to engage the patrons. Unfortunately that colors the whole experience in an unfortunate manner. Since we never felt welcome, much less appreciated, we wont be back.

Came here in a group of 6 to celebrate a birthday. This is a very home-​y and friendly neighbourhood joint with great Italian food. We were really happy with the dinner and the service was excellent. I called ahead and asked them to write «Happy Birthday» on the dessert plate. While they did not have anything to write with, they did light a little candle on the b-​day girl’s plate which was nice!
The space feels like someone’s home and it always smells amazing with the big pizza oven open to the dining area. They also have a wine bar next door and I’m sure the patio would be lovely in the summer (in –30 degree weather, not so much;)!). The décor consists of vintage Italian posters and jars of pickled veggies. They played a nice mix of music from Bob Dylan to Simon and Garfunkel. It’s quiet enough to hear people from across the table and not have to shout!
I recommend the salumi and cheese board for sharing. They have lots of interesting meats cured in-​house and Italian cheeses. Highlights were the duck proscuitto and buffala mozzarella. Their bread is really tasty too!
The mains are only pasta or pizzas, so this is not the place to come if anyone is gluten-​free or on some unfortunate low-​carb diet. It’s also not the place if you prefer meat or seafood based mains. However, their pastas feature really interesting ingredients. I had the saffron gargati with lamb sausage which was creamy but not too heavy, and very flavourful. The pasta was perfectly al dente. I tried the gnocci too — really light and fluffy, not too dough-​y like at some places. I also tried the pear, gorgonzola, proscuitto pizza. The pizza dough is not too thick and nice and soft, and the ingredients were all really fresh and tasty. One member of the group had the vegetarian pizza, which she complained was kind of bland, so I would avoid that one. Finally, the tiramisu is really rich and delicious. I always get tiramisu when I go to an Italian restaurant for the first time and F’Amelia’s was up there with the best!
Portions were pretty filling and I think the prices are quite reasonable for what you are getting. The wine list has a lot of reds with prices ranging from ~$ 40 – 200 per bottle.
This place is definitely worth a try if you are in Cabbagetown, and I can’t wait to come back in the summer to sit on their patio:)

The atmosphere is lovely and I am sure in the summer that the patio would be wonderful to enjoy a meal.
Or maybe just drinks because the food is only meh.
Have been looking forward to trying it out for some time — I love any place that boasts fresh made pasta. Firstly, we ordered the grilled calamari ($ 18) which when it came, I literally had to search for the pieces of calamari in the arugula salad. There were about 6 small, salty pieces. I would not call this appetizer grilled calamari, but an arugula salad and maybe some calamari. For $ 18, I felt this was highly overpriced. I don’t usually balk at prices, but this was ridiculous.
I had the pasta special and my husband the pizza. Both were mediocre. The pasta didn’t taste as fresh as other restaurants that serve fresh-​made pasta. The sauce nothing to write home about.
Service was okay.

I had recently had reviewed Famelia negatively based on a policy of not offering wine tastings. I appreciated finding out more about this law prohibiting tastings and the restaurant not having a choice but to abide by the rules as unfortunate as those rules are. If this was to become a trend in Toronto restaurants I am sure people would speak up to the LCBO.
The restaurant advised that they will offer tastings but for a nominal charge. I think that makes sense and the new policy shows that the owners do value their customers and customer feedback. So my review is revised and I compliment the owners on their following up.

Such a cute place, very friendly staff and great food. Reasonable prices and a nice selection of wines. Will definitely be back!
Update: have been back once or twice since posting and still consistently great. I don’t understand why this place is not more highly reviewed. It’s a cute little oasis of Italian deliciousness in the city.

Had a date who was a big fan of Italian good. Decided to try something close to home. Made a reservation online and they called me to confirm. Very pleasant and asked if we had any requests or allergies.
Arrived at the restaurant and the hostess was kind enough to take our coats. Started by ordering two Apple Cider Ryders, which were quite tasty. We decided on pizza ordering the Pera Arrosto and Agnello Speziato. Both were pretty good.
Will probably go back again in the future.

We missed this place. Service is great. Food is equally as great. Great staff. Great atmosphere. Love it.

Tucked away in a residential neighborhood in Cabbagetown,
F’Amelia is a popular place for Northern Italian cuisine!
The garden patio is gorgeous and the space is charming.
They take reservations too and they can accommodate small groups.
I started by ordering a spicy bourbon and mango cocktail.
It had a small kick and it was absolutely delicious and refreshing!
I dished out the mango bits with a fork and pretended like no one could see me.
The menu had lots of delicious pizzas but I decided to go with house-​made pasta.
The braised rabbit pappardelle with black kale ($ 23) was fantastic.
The rabbit was moist and tender and the pasta was chewy and perfectly cooked.
The olive oil based sauce with mushrooms was not heavy at all.
The green risotto was very… green from being spinach-​based.
It was a bit light on the protein (speck, smoked prosciutto) but very flavorful, saucy, and rich!
For dessert, the chocolate budino was chocolately goodness.
I did wish that the hazelnut brittle was a bit bigger for such a large serving of mousse.
However, it was a larger serving than expected!
I had a lovely meal here and I will be back for more time on the patio and maybe some pizza. :)

Had a casual dinner last night with a friend and decided to stay on the east end. The service was excellent — very thoughtful and attentive, though the food sort of fell flat. I had the gnocchi with mushrooms dish — hold the pancetta. The gnocchi was pillowy and soft — the sauce was one dimensional. I started with a simple arugula salad which was dressed with too much balsamic vinegar. So much so, that it induced lots of coughing and watery eyes. (weird, and sort of me choking).
My friend had the beet risotto which she enjoyed thoroughly.
I had the house red and it was pretty great.
To sum up, not my first choice for italian — but it might be the best option in the neighbourhood.