La Quercia I love you. Your food is inspired and amazing. I have tasted things here I have only dreamed of. Me and my fiancé have been coming here for 5 years. We had our first date here and got engaged here. I am so disappointed you no longer offer the 11 course family style tasting menu. Absolutely heartbroken! It made the restaurant experience here so Special for us. We may have to take some space and time to get over it. I hope we will be back someday. read more

Atmosphere: Cute and Cozy with some seating inside. Price: Fair Market Value Customer Service: Beyond friendly and accommodating. Thank you for being patient and accommodating with my specifications. Food: The portions are small but they are of quality. I had the pasta with the base sauce which was amazing. All the flavors just danced in my mouth. read more

Little Italian place on West 4th I went to for a friend's b-day dinner. Love it !!! Surprisingly small and narrow place mostly for two people sittings. They only take bookings, one at 5:30 pm and one at 8:30 pm, but at least you don't feel rushed to finish dinner because people are waiting for your table. The atmosphere was loud with friendly chatter and the waiters were super nice. A little on the upscale side. Nice selection of wines, cocktails, and sparkly drinks. Some great yummy things on the menu such as: -appetizer's: watercress soup, prok belly, and cured trout are just a few of the selection -you can choose pasta or a main dish: linguini alle vongole, potato gnocchi sausage ragu, petrale sole 'fruitti di mare', lamb, rabbit, and cornish hen -desserts: lemon cream, tiramisu, sacher torte I definitely don't do justice writing about the food, you must see and taste it !!! Every dish was presented so beautifully. What's great is that you can order the main dish as a half order. read more

Our party of 4 thoroughly enjoyed Chef Adam Pegg's seven-course dinner served family style. Chef chooses the items--the "chef's menu"--based on our selection of red Italian wine, and then the food followed. Appropriate size portions. Inventive dining experience and chance to sample many exceptional dishes. Most memorable items were the Burrata Salad, Stinging Nettle Agnolotti (a stand-out dish similar to Handmade Ricotta Ravioli), Pappardelle with Lamb, and Pork Chop with Sausage and Peas. Service was attentive...not too fast or slow on this Sunday evening. Seating is tight (cozy?) with about dozen tables close together like a New York City restaurant. Would not suggest for a group larger than about six. Dinner with taxes and wine was about $100 per person (not including tip) Located in Kitsilano section on 4th at Alma. Dinner only. Closed Monday. Will open for lunch for private functions. Tip: Book on an off-nite other than Friday or Saturday for best service experience. See pics. read more

If you're lucky enough to get a seat, try the 10 course mean for $70. It's a bloody steal! Each time you have it, you're likely to get something different. It is creative, tasty, and well-done. Every dish is fresh and amazing. I can't get into too many specifics, but as you can see, this place has extremely high ratings. The risotto is very special. They cook-to-order, which is almost unheard of in other Italian restaurants. It has a very different taste to it when it is so fresh. read more

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Yummminess authentic Italian food. Coming back here for sure!! Open kitchen so you can see the action of fresh pasta making. Many recommended tasting menu, but we made our own tasting...lol. ‍ #hellohelloeats #eattheworld #foodporn #musteat #livetoeat #eatswithlovedones #withmybb#icjourneys #eatwithcin read more

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Not disappointing at all. I had the pasta with Chicken Livers and it was really flavourful and different. We shared the squid and the Parmesan soufflé - both really tasty. Service was very pleasant and efficient, great cocktails, overall very lovely. Next time going to do the tasting menu - there can't be anything that wouldn't taste amazing I'm figuring ! read more

Most amazing Italian food I've had, including trips to Italy. The tasting menu is very generous, served family style, and tastes excellent. The staff even caters to you if you've had the tasting menu before, switching it up a little bit to make sure you don't have the same thing twice. I almost don't want to write this review in case this place gets to popular as getting a reservation is difficult enough. read more

La Quercia - Italian Near Me - Vancouver, British Columbia

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We were in town from Victoria for the fireworks festival and really looking forward to a lovely meal, with some nice wine. We made a reservation for 8:15 and arrived 15 minutes early. We were greeted at the door and promptly seated, not really a polite greeting and I guess that should have been our first clue.. The Server came to the table with menus, left came back quickly..asked about a water choice, left came back poured the water..took our cocktail order, meal order and we ordered 2 glasses of wine to be served with our meal..5minutes (yes 5 minutes) later our cocktails arrived and also our meals..another server showed up after our meals with the wine. We watched other patrons in the restaurant be told there were other food choices than what was on the menu, we watched other patrons be served their cocktails and be allowed to enjoy them, we watched other patrons be served a basket of bread...I could go on...but I think you are getting the point. We expressed our disappointment with our experience and a Woman came to the table (did not identify herself), but am assuming she was the manager and offered us a free dessert to compensate, we declined and were taken aback by the fact that she was insulted by our refusal...honestly at this point we just wanted to pay the bill and leave, why would we want to stay longer?? The food was fine...but not the best Italian we have had, so if there is another place you think you might enjoy, please go there instead. Our whole "dining" experience to 30 minutes and that includes the conversation with manager, trip to the washroom and paying the bill... read more

I just wrote a review detailing our entire 11 course eating (read: gorging) adventure, but I knew it was going to result in TLDR. KISS: The food was pretty fantastic, the atmosphere was pretty fantastic, but most importantly, the service was pretty fantastic. well, except for that part where he dropped "Jason Priestly loves this pasta" on us. That was kinda lame. Other than that, a great meal. If I were to go again, I think I'd just opt for the 45 dollar 7 course meal. 10 was pretty fantastic, but felt I felt a little gluttonous by the end (well, gluttonous and tipsy. mostly tipsy)! read more

SIX STARS! What can I possibly say that hasn't been said in the other reviews? Great Service! Great Food! We arrived promptly @ 5:30 and were seated immediately. We ordered the 11 course Tasting menu (which the chef creates based on your wine choices or his personal feelings at the time). Our server told us the 11 course is only available @ the 7:45 seating and they could only provide us the 8 course, NOT! I explained that the "childs" menu wasn't going to cut it and we needed 11 courses to properly experience this dining extravaganza. After a few minutes of thought we worked out a compromise which allowed them to move us @ 7:45 to the bar so we could finish the final courses. Extra Star for solving the problem. OUR MENU: Burrata, Prosciutto wrapped Figs Eggplant Flan Vitello Tonnato Squid Quinoa w/ pork belly Filet of Sole Bottarga Gorgonzola Risotto Wild Boar Tortellini Polenta Ricotta Gnocchi w/ Lamb Ragu Roasted Lamb Shoulder w/Cipolline Onions w/ Cauliflower puree Fontina Cheese w/ Pine honey, Parma Balsamic Apple Butter Poppyseed Strudel w/ Pine Honey scent. $70- pp (a bargain) We can't wait to return. read more

I had high hopes for this Italian restaurant as many of my friends have recommended it as one of the go to restaurants for authentic Italian cuisine. They seem to have a bit of an odd reservation system as there were only tables available either around 5 pm or 8 pm no matter how far the future you looked. I'm not sure if this was a bug or intentional for their seating times. There is also a wine bar next door which serves food out of the same kitchen if you want to just drop by as well. The setup of the restaurant reminds me of many New York restaurants with fairly tight tables with some quite close to the door. However, they do have the entrance draped off so it was not too cold or drafty. The service was warm and prompt and they have a good selection of wines and cocktails. The menu was structured in classic Italian fashion with quite a large selection of pastas from different regions of Italy. We tried the octopus appetizer, tajarin with lamb ragu, and ossobuco with saffron rissotto. The food was delicious but the portion sizing for the pasta was quite small for the price. I think this restaurant is definitely one of the better Italian places in town but there are others which are as good if not better and have better value for the money. Worth checking out but won't be a place I go to regularly. read more

Wow, just wow... 10/10... probably the best Italian in the city. Duck ragu and the cacia de pepe were out of this world.

Well. This used to be one of my favourite restaurants. I have been maybe a dozen times. But the last time was a disaster. One of the worst service dining experiences that I have ever had. Ever. I ordered the fixed price menu. My fiancée ordered a la carte. The food was very good. But, after the first 2 courses, the menu ended. The waitress thought I had ordered a la carte and told me, for the first time, that the fixed price menu was only available for groups of 2 or more. So, I didn't get what I ordered, and was charged roughly twice what I expected. Even worse, when I asked for the rest of my meal, the waitress became argumentative and refused to admit her mistake. She just kept insisting that I had ordered a la carte, when I clearly hadn't. She expected me to pay the full a la carte price, and wouldn't bring the rest of the meal that I ordered. I called the manager, but he was useless. So, an incomplete meal, at double the expected cost. Overall, a pretty sour experience. Won't be going back. read more

My family enjoyed a family style tasting menu in which the chef decided what we would be eating during the meal. It was a nice surprise every time what each course would be. I could taste the quality of the ingredients used. However, you have to be okay with what ended up on the table. Some of my family did not enjoy the chicken liver pasta as much as I did. read more

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Wow. Just wow. I loved the small intimate atmosphere. The food here is so so so good. Northern Italian food with a tasting menu as well as a la carte items that are always changing. We came with 4 adults and a child and ordered so many items: some I don't remember the actual Italian name but are the bolognese, bone marrow, mini lasagna type pasta, cod, tongue and cheek, pork loin, burratta cheese/meat plate, 2 bottles of wine, and lemon tart dessert. Everything was so tasty and well presented and we shared everything. The portions are smaller but perfect for sharing. Service was impeccable. We had to add an extra guest and even though they were fully booked they accommodated the best they could by moving the table with a gracious smile. Our waitress was so informative and efficient and nice. She knew the menu inside out and had great recommendations although you can't really go wrong with anything. My friend was expecting a business call and his phone died and they helped out by finding a phone charger for him. Left satisfied and very full. Will be back ! read more

La Quercia is amazing! Everytime I go here I end up going "oh, I'm just going to have a small meal", to "wow, that was good, maybe I'll have a little more", to "do you have an extra bottle of wine somewhere that will go with these 10 dishes we ordered for three people?" It's a vortex of super-good flavors and my money! So this time, I wanted to stave it off. I was meeting a friend before he went back to Hong Kong and wanted some Italian (he's from Vancouver originally so he's also been here too). We agreed on having the Chef's choice 7-course meal (3 antipasti, 2 pasta, 1 main, 1 dessert), for $45/person + tax/tip. Altogether, it's quite a good deal, and my friend had the same problem as me. "I just had dim sum three hours ago!" he warned me beforehand, but still agreed to have the same meal. We're gluttons. But hey, food is to be eaten! The first antipasto was a platter of cured meats and other little olives and dips. It was expansive with some nice homemade touches, including pickled mushrooms and canned vegetables. Overall, a solid starter. Then came the fun. There was a parmesan souffle with mushrooms which was excellent - it was like floating on clouds. Only water sucks compared to parmesan cheese, milk and eggs! So I had uber-clouds. Finally, the appetizers concluded with a platter sliced pork with tuna (a clone of what's at La Ghianda), which was very well done. The saltiness in the tuna accented nicely with the pork, which was a boiled variety and thus very light whilst a bit heavy with the marbling in the meat. Then came their primi. Their pastas were a porcetta tortellini, which was great - tortellini firm and chewy, which accented the salty and slightly crispy porcetta nicely. there was a bit of cheese in the filling too, which helped to mild out the potential for a bit too much of a pork infusion. There wasn't much of a sauce other than some olive oil and maybe a slight herb, which really brought out the prime ingredient of porcetta and made it center stage. There was also a tagliatelle with mushroom ragu and more pork, which was a lovely light sauce on top of a hearty feeling pasta. It accented the tortellini very well, though at this point I was wondering if we were going to have a pork chop for secondi. The main was hangar steak with a salad to top it, which was absolutely phenomenal. I was already starting to feel stuffed and the main slid down perfectly - the meat was perfectly cooked and well-flavored, and the salad was dressed the right amount so as to give it a good tangy flavor but nothing overpowering. I loved the addition of raw hazelnuts to the salad, which allowed there to be a refreshing crispness with the unique flavor raw hazelnuts have - that pronounced sweetness that's more evident than with other raw nuts, which accented the salad and the hearty saltiness of the steak very well. Dessert was a trio of items. There was a flourless chocolate cake with a prune, which was decadent, slightly rich and the sweetness balanced the bitter cocoa nicely. Then there was a chocolate ice cream which was more relaxing, with a succulent sweetness accented by the presence of candied coffee on top to give it a crunch and a kick. Finally, there were peaches in cream, which you can't screw up. If you do, you're really doing something wrong. In a word: exquisite. The service was also excellent. We had very attentive servers that were quite good at chatting as well as making sure you were appreciating your meal. The decor is lovely - classic and unobtrusive. What else needs to be said but perfetto? read more

We went to La Quercia with expectations of a good dining experience. Unfortunately for our group of 4, we received SNOOTY EGOTISTICAL unprofessional service. We opted for the family style 3 apps, 2 pastas, a main and dessert, and ordered a bottle of red to share. The bone marrow was delicious. Smoked salmon salad was okay. 30 minutes or so later, we got the risotto dish which was too al denté and very boring to look at and eat. Next dish was quite disappointing - bitter stuffed bites of dumpling like pasta. Another 30 minutes goes by - with empty plates at our table, and us obvious politely waiting for the next course - 2 hours into the start of dinner, the decision was made to say something. Never once did we get asked "how was everything?" Or "sorry for the wait, our kitchen is quite busy tonight".. Nothing of the sort, just a lot of ignoring and avoidance from our server. When it takes half an hour between courses, it's normal to get impatient. After deciding to say something, and getting some attention from our only connection to the kitchen that we wondering how about the main seafood course? We were unblessed with a very uptight French girl as our server who condescendingly responded, "IT'S COMING" O_O. We mentioned to her it had been about half an hour since the last course and her response: "yes. well, it's coming". Then, the other server nearby decided to chime in and tell us that the style of the restaurant's course serving is such that they would assume that we would be enjoying each other's company and want to spend time together thus the timing of the courses being delivered slowly out of the kitchen. What happened to professional & pleasant service? Many other top Vancouver restaurants prove that it exists. This reaction was unbelievable. The delivery of the overall good food that was prepared was so bad and quite rude, it's almost hilarious! What a joke. I've had better service at hole-in-the-wall diners. I do not recommend this restaurant for these reasons. I don't recommend this kind of dining experience for the price tag to anyone. Very disappointing. Regretful of this choice - for what should have been a good dinner with good friends. read more

Was given a gift certificate from my boss. After she specified all of my food allergies and limitations she was assured that if I called ahead and they knew I was coming they would make me a stellar dish. Called at least 5 days in advance. When I arrived the server simply asked me what I wanted, I replied with anything but a boring plate of vegetables. Guess what I got... A boring plate of vegetables. The rapini tasted like fuel, sounds strange I know, imagine my surprise. I actually had to spit it out, awful. I was nearly in tears when I asked her to take my plate away so we could leave (and I didn't eat it) my bill arrives with a $22 charge for the veg. My husbands, on the other hand, was alright. Also, I'm pretty sure that very annoying server from Parkside works there now. Unimpressed. Won't be back. read more

Came here for my boyfriend's 30th birthday with high expectations, and we left blown away. The amount of love poured into each dish comes across in every bite. We ordered the small family-style option and a beautiful bottle of wine, and left so blissfully full. We enjoyed: - shaved aged rib eye, pecorino cheese and arugula - 5-day brined sous vide pork, seared for a nice crispy texture, served on a marinated bean salad - fennel & endive salad with garlic infused olive oil - 2 different pastas: one was a porchetta stuffed tortellini (made in-house), and the other was an elbow pasta what had a mince sauce on it that my boyfriend happily exclaimed, "this tastes like nonna's sauce" -Main course: sous vide pemberton meadows beef, grilled to medium rare, served over beet pure with baby carrots, beets and arugual -Dessert was a pot of creme with two chocolate, fudgy brownie like cookies and slices of grapefruit (holy smokes this one blew my mind!) Our server was amazing. He described every dish to us, and even went into some details around how they prepared the meats, and grew the arugula and herbs in the restaurant's back garden. I think our keen interest in his descriptions of our meal, led him to offer us a tour of the back garden, and a story about how they had just harvested 5 gallons of honey from their rooftop bee hives! We even got to sample the honey comb! This was truly a special dining experience, and the perfect way to celebrate a birthday or any other occasion. read more

Hooray for good quality Italian joints popping up around the city! La Quercia specializes in Northern Italian cuisine - the menu is traditional, refined, and uncomplicated. I adore how the pastas are available in half portions, there's only so many carbs a girl can handle in one night especially when you're trying to save room for dessert! Their blackboard specials and a few of their menu items are written in Italian - it requires a bit more interaction than usual with the waiter before decisions can be made, but it does bring back fond memories of vacationing in Italy. And this time around, you don't have to worry about the waiter not speaking any English! As for the food, the "Crespelle ai funghi" a wild mushroom "crepe" appetizer was delicious - rich and heady, served with a creamy mushroom sauce. Another stand-out was the Flat Iron steak special, served on a bed of arugula, with roasted pine nuts and parmesan shavings. The meat was perfectly medium rare, seared yet juicy. The spaghetti vongole, simple white wine garlic sauce with clams was good but perhaps a bit too subtle and al dente for my tastes. And luckily, I had room for dessert! I was a little apprehensive when we ordered the lemon creme brulee tart - it sounded like an after-thought on the menu, but it turned out to be fantastic. Exactly what it was - a creamy lemon curd with the burnt sugar brulee crust .. but the kicker was the mascarpone (I think) lemon cream that was served with it. Chilled subtly lemon cream together with the warm lemon tart was phenomenal. Ranks up there with the top of my favourite lemon desserts of all time (lemon gelato in venice.. the deconstructed lemon cheesecake from the defunk Rare..) The one complaint I have is the size of the room. I am not into intimate dining.. with the rest of the restaurant. You are literally a half a foot away from the next table - get ready to share your opinions and conversations. To remedy that, I will never again go on a weekend or a busy time. See you there (or hopefully not) on the Tuesday night 5:30 pm seating! read more

We have had many spectacular meals here, and it's the rare restaurant that seems to keep on getting better instead of resting on its laurels. (Though I'm sure that if they *were* going to rest on their laurels, they would slow-cook the laurels in olive oil and garlic and then turn them into a delicious risotto.) Their house-cured charcuterie is always fabulous, as are their meat, fish and pasta dishes. Some recent wows: A nettle risotto. A stunning branzino, cooked to perfection with a crispy skin. Crazy delicious salmon served two ways. On occasion, we've ordered their chef's meal, where they just bring you dish after dish until you are so full you are going to die. But in general we've done better by selecting dishes ourselves, in part because we aren't people who eat every kind of meat imaginable, and in part because when I am adventurous enough to eat something like rabbit polenta, my husband responds to the arrival of the rabbit polenta by saying quietly, "It was a blue jacket with brass buttons, quite new." But we can't really blame the kitchen for that one. The only downside: it's a tiny room. But that's only a downside if you fail to reserve sufficiently in advance. Once you make it through the doors, it's a lovely intimate space with excellent service and phenomenal food. read more

They've got all the right ingredients; the burrata was fresh & the real deal, high quality EVO, the ambiance was nice, our waiter was excellent, very attentive & simpatico. Everything just fell flat when we were served the pasta. The amatriciana pasta was too heavy on the onion, there wasn't enough peperoncino and the pancetta wasn't cooked long enough in the sauce to have its flavour permeate the sauce. My wife had the simple tomato sauce with burrata. The sauce was almost none existent and so was its flavour. read more

As much as I love this place, was extremely disappointed at their unwillingness to accomodate on their no-show fee. It's $30/person, and they do not give reminder phone calls as most places in Vancouver do. They also gave the table away in half hour, which means they did not actually lose revenue that night, but they claim that is why they cannot transfer this charge to a future booking, which I was fully ready to do. I did not ask for a refund, but simply a transfer of this minimum charge towards the next booking. Having said that, their food is fabulous and I love their parmesan souffle. read more

La Quercia is a fine Italian restaurant located by UBC in the Point Grey area. This is a place where it is hard to find an opening and reservations is required. You are given 2 hours to your dining experience and your waiter will even clear your dessert away even when you have not finished! Guess that's what it means to be named Best Casual Italian" as well as "Restaurant of the Year". The environment is intimate and tight. Fresh sheets are available daily and your dishes are always crafted with passion. Alla famiglia set menus for 7 and 10 courses are available for $50/$70. Rustic baguette with chew and a rich extra olive oil arrived at our tables. Potato Gnocchi and Lucanica Sausage Ragu: Their gnocchi is soft, pillowy and creamy and the ragu sauce is complex. This is a heavy dish and perhaps would be best shared or reduce ordering another main. Fresh Sheet of the day. A beautifully seared flaky fish with kidney white kidney beans, spring greens. A nice lighter side to complete our meal. Spaghetti al'amatriciana: A classic and rustic Italian dish done right. Al Dente. Smoked pork cheek punctuated with chili and san marzano tomatoes. Chocolate mouse cake: A rich creamy selection. Semifreddo: Nougat & Orange Semifreddo. A beautiful and refreshing ice cold classic Italian dessert with orange zest, honey roasted hazelnuts nougat. There is really I can fault this lovely place except that one should NEVER TAKE AWAY SOMEONE'S HALF EATEN DESSERT! Our waiter is so kind isn't he to look out for our diet? -2 stars read more

Impressive food, though 5:30pm dinner not too great of a time slot. We did the $50 pp tasting which included 3 appy, 2 pasta, 1 entree/meat & 1 dessert (7 course) Bottle of house wine $50. Price very reasonable for the quality of food. Pasta stood out from everything else (perfectly seasoned/dressed & al dente) Great bread with good fruity olive oil, try not to fill up on the bread. Atmosphere very intimate/cozy (next table is uncomfortably close) Free parking outside read more

We've been here 3 times and it truly has become our favourite place to eat in Vancouver. The 11 course tasting menu is definitely worth the money, as you will be presented with such amazing flavours and food all night long. The setting is romantic, and the service is exceptional. A must for all foodies! read more

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This is hands down one of my favorite restaurants in the city. The food is EFFING-fabulous, the service is impeccable without being overbearing and stuffy and it's just a fantastically great place to enjoy excellent food with the people you love. Besides from their regular Menu, they have two Set Menu options. If it's your first time coming here, I recommend that you go balls out and go for the 11 Course Tasting Menu - go big or go home here people. This meal option is for the serious foodie lover. Whatever their fresh sheet is, I know everything will be super tasty on a whole other level. The 7 Course Tasting Menu will do just fine for your second and continuing visits onwards. As much as I would love to go balls to walls each and every time I come here, the 11 Course is just too gluttonous to have often, but that's just me. If I had 4 stomachs like a cow, I'd sure be a happy lady! Their cured meat platter (that they make in-house) is some of the best you are going to get in the city. Course after course is just so good. Everything is fresh and made with so much care and love. You don't have to be a food snob to appreciate what they are doing here, but even if you are, you'll really have little to complain about. This place is just all about the love for good food, plain and simple. read more

3 hours and 11 courses later, I could barely move let alone walk out the door to go home. I'm a bit torn about how to rate my experience though... My friends made reservations based on glowing recommendations about the tasting menus. Upon arrival, we were ignored at the door for 5 minutes before being seated. The server seemed disinterested and explained the menu options - a la carte (on the blackboard), or the option of 7/11 courses "alla famiglia" - basically chef's selections. A bit silly of us, but we decided to go for the 11 course option. Might as well go big and have the whole experience. Started off with a charcuterie board - olives, proscuitto, salami, some strange pickled artichoke. Tasty, but nothing mind-blowing. Very nice selection of olives though. Next came the "parmesan custard" with two emaciated slices of chargrilled bread. We were a group of 3 - would have been nice to have another piece of bread. I love my cheese, but this was SO rich and dense and overpowering that I couldn't have anymore of it after a couple of bites. The butter lettuce salad with gorgonzola and walnuts was nice - again, nothing mind-blowing about it other than three chunks of frisee and dressing. The pastas were also hit and miss - the walnut and gorgonzola ravioli of sorts was interesting. I'm not a huge fan of gorgonzola, and it really overpowered the whole dish. However, the squid ink risotto was AMAZING. Wow, I could've eaten a whole plate of that on its own...in fact I think definitely had more than my share! The meat/fish dishes were very good. We were served halibut, and flank steak. I have to say that was probably one of the best steaks I've EVER eaten (and trust me I'm a huge steak girl). Perfectly cooked, medium rare, served with rapini. Made the meal absolutely worth it. Cheese plate was a nightmare for me because there was more gorgonzola! Dessert was lemon mousse and also a Sacher torte (Chocolate cake with apricot jam). I found the options a bit out of place for an Italian restaurant, but they were quite good. When the bill arrived, we also got mini meringues which were lovely! Perhaps it was a bad bad bad decision on our part to go for 11 courses because I actually struggled by course number 6. The kitchen is clearly capable of fantastic cooking (squid ink risotto, steak, halibut) but there were too many dishes that left me wanting more. I get that it's rustic cooking, but simple food shouldn't equate to underwhelming. I would give 3 1/2 stars - 1 off for the inconsistency of dishes, and 1/2 for ignoring us at the beginning. read more

Food value: 3 out of 3 Best Italian restaurant in Vancouver! Small yet constantly changing menu which sources the freshest and most seasonal ingredients. Every single dish I have ever had here has been great. The wine list is diverse, well priced, and broad, allowing for a complete experience. Service value: 1 out of 1 Friendly, attentive, and knowledgable wait staff. Ambiance value: 1 out of 1 Upscale feel, romantic, clean and organized. Tables are a little smaller than I'd like. Go again? Yes read more

After dining at La Quercia multiple times, I can safely say that (at least for now...) this is my favorite restaurant in Vancouver. Everything about this place tickles my fancy just so. It's elegant but not too elegant, small but not too small, cozy but not overcrowded, pricey but not too pricey, and delicious, well... too delicious! I've indulged in fine Italian food around the world, and while nothing can compete with cuisine had in the actual homeland, La Quercia puts up a darn good show. The menu changes all the time so don't expect to have what I had last night, but here it is anyway: Vitello Tonnato, Agnolotti di Guido, braised Beef Cheeks, and to top it all off a gentlemanly dessert of vanilla ice cream with fresh espresso poured over top, appropriately served in a short glass (yes, after a few minutes the ice cream has melted, and you simply *must* drink the rest). For those less versed in the language, my appetizer was thinly sliced veal covered in a tuna sauce - served cold and scrumptious, and my pasta dish was agnolotti (sort of like small stuffed purses) filled with braised veal, ricotta, parmigiano, and swiss chard, drizzled with the jus from the braise. Whoah that was good! Without rambling on, I'll end with a mention of the wine list - small and fabulous - once again just right, filling only two sides of a half sheet of paper. Entirely, or nearly so, consisting of Italian wines, they have a range from the under $30 category all the way up to the Ornellaia, which is over $300. With many finds in between, my date and I settled on a 1999 Brunello di Montalcino followed by a half bottle of Amarone, both reasonably priced and exceedingly delicious. Service, quality, value, delight - La Quercia has it all! read more

The two of us opted for the alla familia - 7 course meal - at $43 a head and a bottle of wine. The chef decides what he's going to serve you, based on their daily menu. good or not so good? well, you will need to tell them your likes/dislikes and any allergies you may have if you opt for this. This place seats about 30 - its a small intimate place. And since it is a small restaurant, intimacy means you'll be seated quite closely to the other tables around you, if this is how you prefer it. There's only enough spacing between the tables for your server to stand, or for you to slide through if you or your partner needs to use the restroom. Also, I don't want to be hearing another tables conversations, as was is the situation, that's too "intimate" for my tastes. It can also get quite noisy - that's expected in a smaller open seating concept. Overall, the alla familia we opted for was very good. Every table that opts for this will get something different. Portions are ok, however, they need to balance the portions on the main course meal. The table to the left of us, received what we thought was an large cut as compared to what the table to the right of us received - one was pork belly, the other was cornish hen. By comparison, they were not the same size portions. Overall, we did enjoy the service, our meal and bottle of wine. Would I come back? There are other true italian restaurants with the same great service that I would choose first over this place. read more

I was really looking forward to trying out this restaurant due to the great things I've heard. However I wonder if it has gone downhill over the last few years. There is a 6 course "family style" option available for $60 a person and an 11 course available as well. Our reservation was for 7:45 and overall we were there for 2 hours. My first issue was with the slowness of the courses. Perhaps people who come here like to sit and chat between courses but I would prefer not to be starving while waiting for food. It took 2 hours for all 6 courses to come out. This is roughly 20 minutes between courses!! I would NOT suggest to come here hungry as the portion sizes are very small. The charcuterie plate was nothing special. The meats were fairly bland and I could've done without the hard mini breadsticks. The second course was a cheese soufflé. The cheese in this was so pungent and strong it was difficult to enjoy. Maybe those who like strong cheeses would enjoy this course. It did, however, have a pleasant smooth texture. Next up were the scallops which were slightly rubbery. I have had much better scallops. They were also very small, and the flavour was not enough to compensate. After that came two pasta dishes. The first was spaghettini and was very dry, bland and reminded me of wonton egg noodles. The texture was rough, which I've never experienced with pasta before. It was pretty much tasteless. The second pasta dish was much better, stuffed with veal. This was good but nothing spectacular. The main course was a lamb loin with potato and vegetables. It smelled very aromatic and the potato was good. The vegetables were quite bitter and the lamb very gamey. I prefer as little gaminess as possible and I'm not a huge fan of lamb. Please don't be shy and let the waiter know your food preferences before eating! Dessert was standard - a slice of chocolate cake and an apple strudel. The cake was good but the apples in the strudel were mush, like baby food. We didn't finish. Overall I felt like the dishes here were too complex in flavour. Everything was either too pungent, too sour, too bitter or had too much going on. The service was standard for this price point so nothing to complain about there. I definitely think my money would be better spent elsewhere. read more

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Ahhh, La Quercia... what a lovely way to spend 3 hours on a chilly winter Sunday evening, sampling 9 courses of fresh, simple authentic Italian cuisine 'alla famiglia' (actually 10 because they threw in a cheese plate with amazing pine honey that tasted of strawberries). We started off with an artichoke and sablefish soup, creamy and rich with a subtle smokiness from the sablefish. Then it was on to veal loin with tuna sauce and house-cured beef, both delicious. Next was a smoked trout plate, followed by an endive salad with tasty crunchy bits of fried prosciutto. Very fresh, perfect texture. This was followed by linguine puttanesca, raviolo (yes, one giant ravioli) stuffed with veal and swiss chard, risotto to order, and then the masterpiece of the evening, a Sterling Silver beef porterhouse fiorentina, what a sublime piece of tender, juicy, perfectly seasoned meat. Wow. Gotham, eat your heart out. Our waiter then offered us a plate of asiago, blue and sheep's milk cheeses before dessert. The sheep's milk cheese dipped in honey = YUM! The only slight disappointment of the evening came at dessert time, which consisted of a chocolate hazelnut torte, apple strudel, and carrot cake, with some cinnamon ice cream and fresh whip on the side. All three were somewhat bland and probably could have used some warming up as they were a little cold and hard. But overall, an excellent dining experience, with attentive and unobtrusive service, and a lively atmosphere in an intimate room (which incidentally is almost identical to Andrey Durbach's Pied-à-Terre on Cambie, another excellent eatery). read more

My dad decided to visit me for the first time since I moved here from Southern California about 6 months ago. The weekend he came happened to be his birthday. Without knowing what to get him, I decided to splurge and take him out to a nice dinner...he has only taken me to places such as The French Laundry and Morimoto! I was a bit skeptical since I had only heard about La Quercia a few weeks ago from one of my girlfriend's coworker. Since this "coworker" is one of the head chef's for the West Coast Fishing Club I thought her opinion could be trusted. La Quercia does have a standard menu, but in my opinion, at $43 per person for their 5 course family style dinner, why would you ever order from it? The fresh cured meats were stunning, the pasta amazingly fresh and the dessert was out of this world. I think they also have a 9 course setup for only $59 and it includes a made-to-order risotto. As we were getting up from closing the place down, we noticed the head chef (thanks to the restaurant's large pass-through I knew what he looked like) sitting sniffing some wine with his buddies. As I shook his hand, introducing myself and complementing his work, I noticed a half drunk bottle of Vega Sicilia Unico sitting on the table. His taste in food was only surpassed by his taste in wine. My new favorite restaurant in Vancouver (period) Many many thanks to Tobey @ The Outpost (http://westcoastfishingclub.com/main/?reports&type=The%20Ou tpost&getYear=2010&newsidnew=398) for the recommendation. read more

The best pasta in Vancouver, bar none. Consistently and exceptional good, the pasta here is made fresh in house daily. The traditional roman pastas are really the highlight, from the cacio & pepe to the various iterations of guanciale. We dine here regularly, and it never disappoints. read more

Maybe it was the high expectation. BTW Masa was awesome. Sardine (apparently from Port Hardy) appy was OK - would prefer entire fish instead of fillet. They were really pushing the chanterelle and I the stuffed pork chop was OK - had a strip of pure fat (could have cut that off before frying). Prefer Berkshire... but pork nicely done, alas couldn't really appreciate the chant mushroom Desert strudel was disappointing - dry Restaurant crowded - tables very close together... Loud fat hairy man by window talking about vagnismus... Would give it a go again but will lower my expectation slightly next time read more

La Quercia means "The Oak Tree" in Italian - Strong, steady and rooted. This tiny Westside restaurant was a gem to find and equipped with top notch owners Lucas Syme and Adam Pegg, both former Parkside and La Buca employees. You may drive right by it because it's a small 35 seater. La Quercia offers a casual seating, cozy, great for small parties as well as first dates. I thought the service was professional and the food was exceptional! They focus on mouth watering traditional Italian food - Completely uncomplicated yet every bite you take feels like a bite of heaven. Most ingredients are sourced local and organic wherever possible and they have plenty of feature dishes along side their set menu. Here's the line up: Eggplant Sformato with Prawns as the first, Tagliolini alla Bolognese as the second and Veal Agnolotti as the main. 3689 west 4th Ave, Vancouver T: 604-676-1007 E: info@laquercia.ca read more

When you receive a phone call verifying your cancellation of your reservation that you never attempted to cancel, you get a little apprehensive. Luckily the apprehension was not needed. Our meal turned out well, both food and service. We had the famiglia meal where the chef prepares a multi-course meal at their discretion. I did this at Fuel multiple times to great results so we gave it a try here. While the outcome was very good, I have to say it did not match to what I had at Fuel. No single dish dragged down the overall experience, but nothing blew my mind to lead to that coveted fifth star. But I would still be quite happy to go back whenever I have a craving for northern Italian food. read more

4.5 stars. Had my b-day dinner here and it was a good choice. Soooo close to 5 stars for me and that's mostly service as opposed to food issues. I love that you can go family style or a la carte... I don't know how you can go hungry here. We went with the $45/pp family style option that includes 7 courses (3 starters, 2 pastas, 1 main and 1 dessert)... everyone needs to go in on it at the table. The twist to it is that you don't know what you're going to get! So if you're seriously eyeing something at the table across from you, you don't know if you'll get it - not for those who can't handle uncertainty! Loved the items - a tomato and basil salad, some veal, a cheese souffle to start, an AWESOME sausage pasta, an okay gnocchi with sweetbreads, chicken with watercress as the main, and a fabulous chocolate tart to finish. My only complaints are some issues with the dinner reservation (the resto got the time confused), drinks running out at times, and some gaps in the service/timing of food at the beginning of the meal. Overall quite minor issues and the food is excellent. Phenomenal value and I would DEFINITELY come back again! read more