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Details & Description

Restaurant type

  • Italian,
  • Pizza,
  • Comfort Food,

Cuisine type

  • Italian,

Dishes

  • Pizza,
  • Pasta,
  • Salad,

Features

  • Patio,

Atmosphere

  • Casual,

Products and Services

  • Big Screen TV,
  • Satellite,
  • Breakfast,
  • Casual Dining,
  • Family Dining,
  • Gluten Free Options,
    • Group Functions,
    • Sports Hangout,
    • Take Out,
    • Delivery,
    • Patio,
    • WiFi,
    • Little Italy Pizza,
  • more...
  • less...

Languages Spoken

  • English,

Getting There

  • College Street,
  • Little Italy,
Location
594 College St, Toronto, ON M6G 1B3
Useful Information

Opening Hours *Holiday hours

Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
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Rates:

  • Affordable (Under $10),

Methods of Payment:

  • Travellers Cheques

Meet the owner

Making Italian food at home is fun with all the creativity you can put into it. You can mix practically anything into a pasta sauce so long as it tastes good to you. Even better than doing this at home is giving your executive orders to kitchen staff while eating out. You can sit back and sip your wine while you wait for your customised pizza or dish of pasta to arrive piping hot in front of you. “We call it the three P's menu,” says Café Diplomatico owner Rocco Mastrangelo Jr. “You get to pick your own noodle and sauce, your own pizza toppings and your own panini filling down to the last onion.”

Rocco’s dad and Uncle Paul started this three-generation family business when they opened in the spring of 1968. Rocco stepped in after university when he figured that it was a good fit. “I love working with people, I’ve always been a foodie and College Street was just starting to become trendy then.”

The brothers named the spot Café Diplomatico to welcome homesick Italians who were looking for a political debate over coffee as well as to show non-Italians that they were welcome.

Ratings & Reviews - Cafe Diplomatico

How would you rate this business?
3.9/5
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  • Food:
  • Service:
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Space Vintage
By

Always a great experience coming to the Diplomatico. you'd think that Nonna was in the kitchen the food is so delicious and authentic but close enough the chef their Malic serves up his own signature style on a plate each and every time we come in.

Atmosphere: 5/5
Food: 5/5
Service: 5/5
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ariachole
By

One of my favorit...

One of my favorite breakfast places! Staff is always nice and on point.

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Restaurantica12
By

Not welcome

We went here after hearing so much about it as its promoted everywhere when it comes to television and newspapers during sports seasons when everyone comes to here to celebrate and watch eagerly. However I did not find anything special about this place. In fact we had a very uncomfortable stay here for our coffee's that we wanted to get out as soon as possible. Although nothing in terms of service or food was neglectful the atmosphere was not very accommodating.

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Restaurantica12
By

I love this place

It just gives me great pleasure to be in little Italy. I love their deep fried calzone. I know it is deep fried, but I am doing my best to gain some weight because I am very thin. The service is great here.

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Restaurantica12
By

Decent place

We've gone to Little Italy quite a few times, this time, we decided to try Cafe Diplomatico. We chose to go here because the atmosphere looked very relaxed and it was busy on Friday night. The portion sizes that we saw seemed to be pretty reasonable too. We were seated by the kitchen and in clear view of the Leafs/Sabres hockey game! Terrific. However, the light above us was out making it a little more difficult for us to see. Our server was pretty attentive throughout the rush which was pretty great. FYI - Pop is reasonably priced but there are no refills. We ordered Bruschetta bread for two of us, and garlic bread with cheese, the bruschetta bread had a lot of mozzarella melted over the lot of it - something I don't mind, but it did over power the taste of tomatoes. The garlic bread was nicely done, with a nice presence of garlic. Two of us ordered veal parmigiana one with spaghetti and bolognese (50cent charge for the upgrade to bolognese from the house tomato sauce) the other with fettuccine alfredo (75cent charge). The other ordered penne alfredo. We're not sure why, but it seemed that every other table was served bread with their pasta or main dishes however we did not receive any. The veal was well seasoned and for the price ($13), it was well worth the try. The bolognese sauce was great, lots of meat and well seasoned sauce. It didn't over power the noodles, but there was a good serving in it. There were no complaints with the fettuccine alfredo either. However the penne alfredo left much to be desired. It tasted okay, however there was a lot of runny sauce in the bowl. It seemed to be more sauce than pasta water, but we just weren't too sure. It would have been great if we were able to get some bread, but again - we are not sure if we were supposed to get bread or not and we didn't ask either. All in all, we would definitely try the place again with different meals (although, I could go for some more of that bolognese sauce!). The prices very reasonable, especially for Little Italy! FYI - They don't take debit but they do have an atm downstairs. Luckily our server told us that our bank was close by so we avoided those fees! :-D

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Restaurantica12
By

Service is alright but the food is horrible. Probably the one of the worst "italian" restaurants i have been to. decent place for drinks and cheap appretizers on a nice summer day to eat outside on their patio.

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March 16, 2024

We’re regulars and drill he keep coming back. Love the food, atmosphere, service. Tina is amazing.

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

February 18, 2024

LOVE Cafe Diplomatico. The food is ALWAYS so delicious and not fussy. The ingredients are fresh and so tasty. The wait staff are ALWAYS pleasant, kind and so helpful when ordering. Our server this evening was so lovely. Can't wait to return!

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

February 15, 2024

As always, we were treated, and ate, wonderfully.

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

February 4, 2024

We ordered the "winter blues" special. Everything was great except the hard and overcooked chicken parmigian. We normally love the food at Cafe Diplomatico. Our last visit was very disappointing.

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 1/5

Service: 5/5

January 8, 2024

We had 4 appetizers and every one was flavourful and amazing. Our server was fast and friendly. Loved it.

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

January 2, 2024

Had a great meal with great service

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

December 31, 2023

Chicken club one of the worst I’ve had…like trying to bite into a sandwich with a piece of cardboard in it…made my jaw sore from trying to chew. Chicken parm equally awful. Will not return I’m afraid. Should have heeded the “line cook/ kitchen staff wanted” sign.

Ambiance: 3/5

Cuisine: 1/5

Service: 3/5

December 30, 2023

Even though our friends were an hour late, rude, my husband and I had a great experience. The wait staff were attentive, patient, and interactive. The food was good, the drinks were good. We will definitely be back, even though we don't live driving downtown!

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

December 18, 2023

Service was very good! Friendly staff!

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

December 3, 2023

We have been coming to the Dip for over 20 years!!! Great vibe, family friendly and staff and owners are super awesome! Highly recommend Cafe Diplomatico !!!đź‘Ťđź‘Ťđź‘Ť

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

October 25, 2023

This is my first trip to Cafe Diplomatico. I was pleasantly surprised. It is not a fancy but rather a homely type of restaurant. The staff are very helpful and friendly. They make you feel relaxed. The food was fairly good, I enjoyed the Bruschettas and the Lasagna. In all fairness the prices are very reasonable and you surely get your money’s worth. I certainly recommend this restaurant and I will be back. Thanks for a nice experience.

Ambiance: 4/5

Cuisine: 4/5

Service: 5/5

October 17, 2023

We were a party of four. The food tasted terrible and not edible! The tomato sauce that they use probably comes straight out of a can, heated and added to pasta, veal , chicken, calzones, pizza, etc. Disgusting! Presentation of the plated food was not appealing. The waitresses’ manager was very rude and unprofessional towards her staff and customers. Cutlery was filthy. A very unorganized venue with very low standards. I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone!

Ambiance: 1/5

Cuisine: 1/5

Service: 1/5

October 5, 2023

Our waitress wss real and is much appreciated! My grandchildren loved it - 2(5 and 22, and I dud too! I had not been back since 1990s - loved it then , now and will return!!!!

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

September 3, 2023

My go-to on College…. Always a hit.

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

August 12, 2023

This is a delightful and fun place to come everytime I arrive in Toronto. make it your touchstone family eating spot

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

August 5, 2023

and old favourite still cool relaxing and welcoming place enjoying every time I visit

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

May 14, 2023

Cafe Dip has always been my go to. From the OG on College, to the location on St.Clair. Taking my family to the spot I grew up in was a blast

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

May 2, 2023

Was so good !

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

April 9, 2023

Very disappointing

Ambiance: 4/5

Cuisine: 1/5

Service: 2/5

April 2, 2023

Epic!

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

April 1, 2023

My Partner and I went to celebrate our Birthdays (two days apart). Food and service were amazing as always. We keep going back time and time again.

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

March 26, 2023

This is our second time to Café Diplomático. Our first experience was great, food, service and atmosphere was all amazing so we invited our in-laws out for a birthday dinner! Last night our second experience was very disappointing. All the food was cold, the service was quite slow considering the restaurant was not as busy as it was in the fall, the lobster ravioli was not edible, the lentil soup came from a can, not homemade. Definitely not worth the $400 with the couple bottles of wine we had!

Ambiance: 3/5

Cuisine: 1/5

Service: 2/5

March 27, 2023

Felt very rushed the pasta ordered tasted like chef boy r d the veal was awful However noticed a line up and everyone else was eating pizza so I guess that's what's good at this Italian restaurant very disappointing

Ambiance: 3/5

Cuisine: 1/5

Service: 3/5

March 24, 2023

Amazing service wonderful food As anyone can see the line up was out the door And people waited this speaks for itself Can not until summer when the lively patio Will be open bon apetito

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

March 14, 2023

Fantastic food and service.

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

March 5, 2023

Excellent as always. đź’•

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

February 24, 2023

Excellent food, great service.

Ambiance: 4/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

December 11, 2022

Our servers were Gina and David were 10 out 10 in service and hospitality - they made the evening perfect. Food was great thank you Rocco.

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

November 24, 2022

Came to Cafe Dip to watch Canada vs. Belgium in the World Cup. Atmosphere was incredible, service was excellent and the pizza was delicious as always. Thanks for making this a memorable experience!

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

May 29, 2022

Best place in the city

Ambiance: 5/5

Cuisine: 5/5

Service: 5/5

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Appears in 3 Smart Lists

Editor’s Pick
Best Restaurants to Watch the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Toronto

Best Restaurants to Watch the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Toronto

Café Diplomatico is celebrating the World Cup big time. Kicking off the games on June 12th, Sportsnet 590 The Fan will be live on location with Norm Rumack from 11 am-3 pm. Then from June 13-17, they’re extending their patio by 250 seats! In between, they’ve got two Sony 4K 80” TVs with a chance to win a Sony 4K 40” TV, celebrations for Puma Day, Amsterdam Day & Sony Day, and a Final Game Street Party on Sunday July 13 from noon to midnight.

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Best Restaurants for Patios in Toronto

Best Restaurants for Patios in Toronto

Once patio season hits, you don’t always want to be squirrelled away from the action. And truly there is no better people-watching spot and feeling like you’re a part of an event, than Café Diplimatico. It’s busy and kind of crowded, but in a fun, festive way. You might go with one or two friends, but by the end of your stay, you’ll have talked to all the tables around you. It’s just that kind of place.

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Where to catch the game in Toronto

Where to catch the game in Toronto

Die-hard soccer fans flock to this Little Italy café and bar for the big weekend game, the spot being steeped in its reputation as one of the primo places to catch the action in the city. The patio is always buzzing and it’s heated! The menu has some of your sports bar favourites and all kinds of pizza (it is, after all, a pizzeria). An unpretentious atmosphere and family-oriented ownership have made this place a go-to café since 1968.

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