Our family had a wonderful meal, service and atmosphere! The food and attention was excellent. We will definitely return for another meal. Thank you to the staff of La Contessa! read more

First of all, the service was excellent. The waitstaff was attentive and lovely with both wine recommendations and menu suggestions which worked out well. The ambiance was peaceful. Our group started with appetizers of calamari, Arancini which I had to limit myself as it was so good! The shrimp bomba was excellent as well. For dinner I decided on the veal with pasta bolognese. Everything from the salad to the entree were delicious. The salad was so fresh too! For a lovely taste of Italy, you won't be disappointed! read more

Nestled in the heart of the old Little Italy section of Windsor, La Contessa is a real treat for those looking for an intimate relaxed dining experience. Started off on a Saturday night with a seat outside on the patio, as we had arrived an hour early for our table. There was a wedding in progress in one of the rooms, and a 40th birthday party celebration in the other. This left only the central dining area and its booths available. Thank goodness we had the good sense to make reservations. The cocktails during our patio time were excellent. The Cabernet wine was very nice, very little bite to it and quite smooth. My wife had the standard cosmopolitan; our co-diners had their signature cocktails. We were seated in the dining area precisely at our arranged time. We asked for the calamari as an appetizer, and asked our server to surprise us with a second signature appetizer which turned out to be the rice balls. Both were superb, and adding the warm bread and butter we were worried that our dinner would be too much for us. The wait staff was excellent; attentive but not to the point of being annoying. We didn't need to ask to have our water refilled, and the courses were not rushed as they are in so many restaurants. We had plenty of time to finish our appetizers before our salads arrived, and then a respectable waiting period before the main course arrived. I opted for something on the simple side, the Chicken Valdostano. Accompanied by fresh vegetables and roasted mini potatoes, it was excellent fare. The ladies both had Fettucine Aragosta (fettucine with shrimp and a lobster tail in a pink cream sauce). The remaining main course was the Rack of Lamb, done to perfection with fresh vegetables and the mini potatoes again. The atmosphere was delightful and quiet (even with the wedding and the birthday party in adjoining rooms). This would make an excellent restaurant to take that special someone for a special date. I know that when I return to Windsor, La Contessa will be on my list of places to visit once again. The prices were extremely reasonable, and it's always so nice to see the bill converted to American dollars which has the effect of bringing down that number by 25%. Well worth every penny we paid. I highly recommend La Contessa. read more

See all

We stopped for dinner late, on our way back to Windsor from Niagara Falls. It was around 9:30 on a Friday night. We drove down Erie street, and this place was still open and had outdoor dining, so we stopped in. We were seated right away, and enjoyed our little table outside watching the people and cars on Erie Street. Outdoor chairs were comfy, we had a little candle: it was nice! The restaurant itself is beautiful on the inside! Very elegant, and trendy. Fancy lighting and very modern/trendy. We were being waited on by two beautiful, young girls - I asked if they were related and they were sisters. I also asked if this was a family business, and she said yes. These girls were SO sweet. Very friendly and familiar. As soon as we asked for anything they were more than happy to go get it. They were just fantastic. The food was very good! We had two orders of Spaghetti Carbonera, and a spaghetti bolognese. Never had spicy carbonera before; glad I asked for mild because the spice was a little too much. Other than that - it was delicious. My son enjoyed his bolognese. The portions were an excellent size, and enough to take home for lunch the next day! Which is good considering the prices are a bit steep: but that's to be expected at a nice place like this. Great location, great service, great food! I highly recommend eating here. read more

See all

When I go to Windsor, I don't typically explore past the casino and the restaurants inside. I'm so glad we decided to push the boundaries! If you're in Canada looking for homemade Italian food, little Italy is a must. La Contessa is phenomenal. Every course is delicious and fresh. The bruschetta is delightfully crunchy, juicy, and fresh. The seafood risotto is tomatoy and light. There's a pesto chicken pasta with sun dried tomatoes that is simply to die for. The chicken with mushroom sauce is full of flavor. They have a lovely little patio off to the side, perfect for sipping wine and enjoying a late lunch. read more

Celebrated our son's wedding here and the food was absolutely amazing and the service top notch. Would highly recommend and will definitely be dining here again on our next visit to the city. Sharon B read more

This is a great Italian restaurant in Windsor. Romantic atmosphere, perfect for a date night . It's a very elegant, classy and contemporary atmosphere. Food and service was great. I wasn't that impressed with their cocktails but the appetizers and the main meal was good . read more

See all

Don't waste your time and money. It's under new management and the food quality had dropped drastically. Menu is very limited. Used to be my favorite restaurant but not anymore. read more

Cute place with friendly service. Both times I went there was a bang on Sinatra impersonator doing his thing. Wasn't the sort of live music that was disruptive. Food is OK. Salads and soups are pretty standard. Cafeteria style. The truffle sachetti is creamy and savoury. It's actually quite tasty but a servings worth is heavier than a Stanley Kubrick film. Overall pleasant experience. Highlight was the fresh bread + oil they bring out fo free. read more

Typical miracle ! Stopped in with wife for dinner on a Thursday. Busy but quiet. Ordered the stuffed chicken special and it was amazing. I have no clue how she created it, but it was tasty. I should have ordered a second to take home. read more

La Contessa is another jewel in Little Italy. The atmosphere is lovely and the wait staff is friendly and attentive. Everything on the menu is delicious. I can't leave this place without indulging in their panna cotta for dessert. read more

Had a special night out to celebrate the MIL's cancer free status. First time going and it was very good food. I had the carrot soup (awesome), some calamari (awesome), Bruscetta (awesome), and the salmon special (Salmon was awesome, a touch too heavy on the sauce). My wife had the scallops with risotto; I tasted it and it was even better than my dish. Top notch food, and our waitress Dana (?) was really friendly and gave great recommendations. The overall vibe was nice and quiet...until a large party sat behind us and I could barely hear myself. Not the restaurants fault, but why don't people realize screaming across a table from one end to the other is really bad form--manners people! I would go back for sure, just make sure not to sit near a big party. read more

This was an accidental find. Normally, in Windsor's Little Italy (or "Micro Italy", as I like to think of it), we head to Spago. However, some nights, that's not an option (unless you're okay waiting an hour for a table, and I was far too hungry for that). Stumbling on La Contessa was a bonus! The decor is interesting - modern, classy, a bit funky. Our server was friendly, and knowledgeable about the menu. Complimentary bread was excellent - I had to use some willpower not to fill up on it! The caprese salad was unusual - a bit more peppery than I'm used to, but I liked the inclusion of cucumbers. The arancini were ... I can't resist - they were AMAZEBALLS! (Amazing rice balls!) They were a good size, the rice was moist and cheesy on the inside, along with peas, the outside was hot and crusty, and they were served in a wonderful meat sauce. I have had the monster arancini at Vito's Pizza, which aren't bad, but my husband and I both felt that La Contessa's version was much better in terms of texture, and the surface area to volume ratio (so you get some of the crunchy outside in more bites of the rice ball). I could live on the arancini from this restaurant. I want this place to succeed, just because of those arancini! We also had pasta - cannaloni and gnocchi. It took a little while for the pasta to be served, but it was worth the wait (and the wait was not unreasonable). The cannaloni comes in a rose sauce, and my husband also ordered that sauce with his gnocchi. Both were very good - the gnocchi had a bit of a lighter texture than I'm used to, and the cannaloni was one of the better versions of this dish I've had. Servings were pretty generous - we packed up about half of each. (They were both good the next day.) The rose sauce was good, but I'd be interested in trying some pasta in a different sauce next time to see what they are like. Unfortunately, the service started to decline part-way through our meal. This is pretty much the only reason this isn't a 5-star review, as we liked the restaurant atmosphere, the food was really good, and service had been good initially. It took a while for our server to get to us after we'd finished eating our entrees, and then she'd given us some time to decide whether or not we wanted dessert ... which turned into a VERY long time, and the next time we saw her, she just gave us the bill. (We'd been planning on sharing a dessert, but decided at that point not to bother.) I suspect that the restaurant was a bit understaffed the evening we were there, and our server was stretched thin. It was a little disappointing to end on a note where we felt a bit neglected/ignored, but overall I have to say that we had an very good meal, and I'll certainly go back and try it again. (Those arancini are calling my name!) read more

A friend took me to this wonderful place for my birthday. The food is delicious, service with a great smile was impeccable, musac just perfect , since it was my birthday for dessert I had a Tiramisu with a candle on a large plate on which was written Happy Birthday in chocolate scrumptuous. Highly recommended. read more

The service was phenomenal, but the food was just okay. The only good meal out of the 6 we ordered was the chicken marsala. I've been to worse restaurants but the food here isn't anything I'd ever crave or want to eat again. read more

Sorry - the wait was not worth the wait. Dining on a Friday nite should have been much better in 2015! The staff was either overloaded or the kitchen was horribly understaffed; in any case service was VERY slow. Drinks got mixed up (Chianti for a Cosmo? How was that mixed up?) Dinner was ordered with the drinks, since we had a show to attend. Server understood that. Butter pads with homemade Italian bread? (Where was the seasoned olive oil?) We waited over 30 minutes for our salads! Only when we called over the waitress (too busy) and then the server/bus boy were we noticed. Please! We have a show to attend!! Another 15 minutes later, scallops were served on a bland risotto and some god-awful tomato based sauce smothered a veal/crab dish. Very disappointing. Check please!!! - another wait. We finally went up to the hostess stand to pay our bill. No manager or owner in site. Sorry - we can't recommend this place. read more

Great place to enjoy a authentic Italian meal! The ambiance is amazing and brings me back to Italy. The food is delicious and very tasteful. I have gone many times and have never had one bad experience. The staff is excellent, nice and very accommodating to your needs. This restaurant has been in business for a while and that says a lot in itself. I would highly recommend going here for a romantic dinner or night out with friends! read more

Valentine's Day weekend and we were able to make reservations for 8 people. Flora was out server and she did a fantastic job. Her recommendations were spot on and everybody had an enjoyable dining experience. Nice people and great food....Exactly what you expect :) read more

Such a fun, cozy experience. Sat at bar for dinner. Delicious wine and martinis. Waitstaff rotated in as bartenders. All were very helpful and friendly. Would recommend to anyone looking for a relaxed, but classy restaurant experience. No bells and whistles. Just solid food and tremendous service. read more

Not faulting food as we did not get 2 even order but..2wk. prior to 40th anniversary ,booked a special diner for our celebration. arrived on time sat in vacant restaurant,had a good waitress, took $38.00 bottle of wine order and sat another party by us who spoke at length on cell phone of all health problems about draining his tubes what came out and line kinked and fluid was discoloured etc...do we need to hear this as we are about to order $60.00 plate each of sea bass???I don't think so!! where is the policy in these close quarter restaurants of having a little smarts of allowing annoying cell phone conversations..the waitress was shocked, my wife was so upset (as she spends days at cancer clinic for dying son) to go out and hear all this garbage from another diner???gimme a break..Total disgrace need I say more, we left without eating as other patron turned off our appetites totally..and staff did not intervene...still cost of $50.00 for wine, tax, etc...and trust me this restaurant frequented by family will not be too enthralled this place with in the future. read more