Ottawa Foodies

I was there this morning. It was about my 3rd or 4th time going there. I prefer Illy coffee but occasionally I'll try fair trade coffee because I think I should drink it. I always have the lightest roast, and it isn't bad, but Illy is better. HOWEVER....

I have to strongly advise against the baked goods, especially the muffins. I had kind of a heavy duty weekend, so I thought something slightly sweet and breakfasty would be just the thing. I took one bite and could not believe the extreme nastiness of it. Dry, heavy, tasteless and apparently completely without sugar. I took a second bite thinking perhaps things might get better. No such luck. I hesitantly asked the server "Um...are these sugar-free?" and was told that they were sweetened with a bit of maple syrup. She didn't mention this at the time when I asked for the muffin. Then she said, "If you like really sweet foods you probably wouldn't like them.", all the while looking at me as though I get up every morning and eat 10 pounds of sugar first thing.

Zealots of the world, listen up! If you are on a sugar-free, fat-free and flavour-free diet, don't inflict your choices on other people WITHOUT TELLING THEM WHAT THEY ARE EATING! She asked if there was a problem and I told her I wasn't enjoying it and would have chosen something else if I'd been told it was completely unsweetened. She offered to give me a scone instead, but at this point I was not willing to chance it. I would like to nominate the tasteless doorstop as the worst thing I've had in my mouth for ALL of 2006. I like the coffee ok, I like the shop but I have to recommend that you pass on the pastries.

Ottawa XPress Review: www.ottawaxpress.ca

I passed by this place today and grabbed a cup of coffee. I was told that they roast and grind fair-trade coffee on-site. The coffee smelt good! (Since I add milk and sugar to coffee, I won't be able to tell if a coffee is good. You can tell I am not a coffee addict.)