Top 5 Under the Radar Italian Restaurants in Mississauga

When swimming through the sea of restaurants in Mississauga, you might have to dive deep to find that hidden gem of an Italian restaurant. When it comes to Italian cuisine, the city is by no means hard up — it has some truly fine (and deservedly well-known) places that are perfect for a romantic evening or fancy business lunch.

That said, sometimes you have to check out hidden industrial parks and old school plazas in the uncharted corners of the city to find some off-the-beaten path restos that don’t get as much love as they deserve.

Here are the top 5 under the radar Italian restaurants in Mississauga:

5 – Thyme

Located in Port Credit, this is an interesting place. Obviously this place is Italian because it wouldn’t be on this list if it wasn’t, but the menu actually offers a selection of Thai dishes as well. The story goes that the owners had a Thai resto in Toronto awhile back. They operated that resto and Thyme, but when the couple had a child and became busier, they decided to sell their TO operation. When their regulars from the Thai place got word that Thyme was still open, they traveled to Mississauga and expected Thai food — so they kept it on the menu. Our server said, “it’s the two cuisines you want the most anyways!” We tried some off both the menus and both cuisines were very delicious. We would definitely go back!

4 – Enzo’s Two Guys From Italy

Don’t you just love discovering a 32-year-old gem for the first time? Even better, isn’t it great when your better-late-than-never discovery makes you realize you’ll be back? Well Enzo’s Two Guys From Italy is that place. Not the fanciest restaurant (it still has an 80s-style enclosed smoking glass cage), the food at the long-standing Streetsville resto is on point. We had stuffed sole, ravioli, and to top it off, deep dish pizza. It’s only the second place we know that has it. The pizza was fresh, baked perfectly and the meat topping made it amazing! The dough was also super fresh.

3 – Tosca Ristorante

Located in the business park near Mississauga Road and the 401 is a decently sized Italian restaurant called Tosca. I say decently sized because it looks a lot smaller from the outside and once you walk in, you realize it has another section in the back. We were seated by the window and the service was on par with what you’d expect at a fine dining restaurant. We order the anti-pesto dish which was huge and very flavourful. We also had the gnocchi, which was made in-house. Needless to say, the gnocchi dishes were delicious and melt in your mouth good. Try the three-cheese variety. The gorgonzola is absolutely delicious.

2 – La Scala

Located in the business park on the eastern border of Mississauga on Matheson is a hidden Italian gem that the local businesses all know about. It’s a very nice and comfortable place with incredible service. All the pasta is made in-house and the owner actually waits tables. We had the vitello con funghi, which was a veal scallopini with mixed wild mushrooms, white wine and veal jus. We also had the grilled calamari and the spaghetti di mare, which was fresh pasta with calamari, mussels, tiger shrimps and sea scallops in a tomato marinara sauce. The pictures definitely don’t do the food justice.

1 – Villa Sorrento

Located in an area of Mississauga people rarely travel to by Lakeshore and Dixie is a gem of an Italian restaurant that has been around for more than 20 years called Villa Sorrento. This place is really old school Italian fine dining and you can’t help appreciate the detailing of the place and the old school charm. There is a huge mural that takes up the entire side of the restaurant that adds character. The owner — an incredibly sweet man — also waits tables. There is a grand piano for the weekend crowd. We had the fettuccini Sorrento, which was comprised of fresh fettuccini, king crab, shrimp, mussels, and scallops and the Misto Grigliato Sorrento (grilled veal and shrimp). Both were delicious.