Quebec language police target Italian eatery over 'pasta'

A chic Italian restaurant in Montreal is in trouble with Quebec's language police over the use of Italian words such as "pasta" on its menu.

Massimo Lecas, owner of Buonanotte said he was contacted by the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF) on Valentine's Day.

He said he was told the menu contains too much Italian.

Lecas said he wants his menu to retain a certain Italian flavour, but he says authorities told him words such as botiglia, pasta and antipasto should all have a French translation written next to them.

He said he was also instructed to translate the Italian words for meatball and calamari into French, even though the descriptions for each of those menu items are already in French.

Martin Bergeron, a spokesman for the OQLF, said the language watchdog is not splitting hairs.

While he said he cannot discuss the specifics of the case, Bergeron said the law is clear.

"Other languages can be on the menu," he said. "The thing is they must not be predominant over French."

When asked whether he thought it was overkill to require the translation of the word 'pasta,' Parti Québécois minister responsible for Montreal, Jean-François Lisée replied with a smile, saying he thought it was "overdone."

The minister responsible for the OQLF, Diane De Courcy, called the situation "surprising" and said she would look into it.