Italy · Not Qualified
Italy Missed 3 World Cups. The Italians of Montreal Eat Like It Doesn't Matter.
Three lost playoffs. A thousand espressos. From a Saint-Denis trattoria to a wood-fired Square-Phillips counter, where Montreal's Italian diaspora carries on without their team.
Published
On the last day of March 2026, Italy lost a penalty shootout to Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Azzurri became the first former World Cup champion to miss three tournaments in a row. The phones in Little Italy did not stop ringing. They were taking dinner reservations.
Italy's relationship with the World Cup is now a kind of practiced shrug. The 2018 Sweden playoff. The 2022 North Macedonia loss. The 2026 Bosnia heartbreak. Three eliminations, three losses on penalties or in the final round. The Italian-Canadian community in Montreal, the largest outside Toronto, has had a decade to perfect the grief. The grief looks like a plate of pasta and a Negroni.
These three restaurants will be doing brisk business through June and July. They will not be showing Italy matches because Italy will not be playing. They will be showing France-Argentina, Brazil-Portugal, Türkiye-Morocco, every group game with stakes. Somebody at the counter will be making the case for Buffon, Pirlo, or Verratti as the last great generation. Somebody else will be ordering another carafe.
Three lost qualifications. Three Italian restaurants. One for each tournament Italy isn't in.
The three picks
Restaurant Moccione
Villeray · 7495 R. Saint-Denis, Montréal, QC H2R 2E5, Canada
Seasonal Italian on Saint-Denis at the Villeray edge, where the menu shifts with Jean-Talon market and the cocktail list takes its job seriously. The pasta is hand-rolled. The wine list reads like an argument for natural Italian bottles. Booking matters on weekends. Order whatever the chef put a star next to today, then a Negroni to finish. Small room, big sound, every table comfortable. The kind of place that doesn't need Italy to qualify.
La Panzeria
Plateau · 4084 R. Saint-Denis, Montréal, QC H2W 2M5, Canada
Salumi and burrata done with reverence on a small Plateau block of Saint-Denis. The hot focaccia comes out fast and stays out. The salumi board is built around Quebec charcuteries that earned the right to sit next to imported prosciutto. Wine is by-the-glass generous. Lunch is for solo runs, dinner is for two. The room is loud in the right way.
Pizza Il Focolaio
Ville-Marie · 1223 R. du Square-Phillips, Montréal, QC H3B 3E9, Canada
Seventy-plus wood-fired pizzas, a downtown patio that opens before everywhere else, and a kitchen that has been doing this since 1984. The thin crust is the right kind of bitter at the edge. The menu is long enough that you'll find something nobody else has. Sit on the terrace if the weather lets you, watch the corner of Square-Phillips empty after work. Stable as gravity.
Frequently asked questions
Has Italy really missed three World Cups in a row?
Yes. Italy did not qualify for 2018 (lost the playoff to Sweden), did not qualify for 2022 (lost to North Macedonia in the semi-final), and lost the 2026 playoff to Bosnia and Herzegovina on penalties on March 31, 2026. They are the first former World Cup champion to miss three consecutive tournaments.
Will Italian restaurants in Montreal show World Cup matches even though Italy isn't playing?
Most will. France, Argentina, Brazil, Portugal, and Türkiye games draw the strongest interest. Little Italy bars will be open and tuned in for the high-stakes matches, especially anything involving teams whose Montreal diasporas are large.
Where is Little Italy in Montreal?
Saint-Laurent Boulevard between Jean-Talon and Saint-Zotique, in Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie. Jean-Talon Market anchors the south end. Cafés, ristorantes, salumerias, and pasticcerias line the street and the side blocks.
Best dish to order on a first visit?
Whatever the chef calls out as the day's special, especially if it leans seasonal. If pressed for a single answer, hand-rolled pasta with a sauce that uses only three or four ingredients done well, and a glass of natural Italian wine.