Ottawa Foodies

Ok... I have been to the Center-town colonnade a number of times with my colleagues from work. It seems to be a public service hotspot as it is packed to the brim every single lunch. One would think this is because they serve good pizza; i guess that is what it's patrons "think". Every time i have been here i have been disappointed.

I had a collonaide special once and a mushroom pizza another time. Let me break it down for you, thick tasteless, bleeched white crust. (not unlike pizza pizza crust)Way to much cheese - and they always include cheddar along with mozzarella which is a NO! on pizza since the whey and fat separate very easily leaving big piles grease all over the place. The toppings are fine, nothing to complain about. And the sauce is fine. What I'm saying is that I would never personally choose to go here, and I just end up here because of business lunches and such.

The pizza is horribly mediocre. It's not bad, it won't make you sick, and some people like thick greasy pizza. All of my colleagues rave about it, and I just keep my mouth shut to avoid being a negative Nancy. Since I had two mediocre pizzas there, my subsequent visits to collonaide prompted me to choose other things off the menu. IMPORTANT TIP* don't CHOOSE ANYTHING ELSE OFF THE MENU*

One time I had a Chicken Sandwich platter. It was a huge breast of chicken the thickness of a pop can, with no seasoning and cooked as is. It was the type of chicken you buy frozen from giant tiger: fatty, tasteless and the chicken probably never saw the light of day. It was served on a decent Italian type bun with lettuce, tomato and pickle (if i remember correctly) with a side of incredibly mediocre french fries (most definitely from a frozen package.)Since the chicken was so thick, I couldn't eat it like a sandwich, I had to eat it with a fork and knife. Oh I almost forgot, there was no Mayo on it either (yes I said no mayo on a chicken sandwich) and I had to ask for it. Since the restaurant was so busy, the server made it seem like a favor to fetch me some mayo. To make matters worse, this sandwich clocks in at about 10+ dollars and with a drink and tip (which I had a very hard time leaving due to the mediocre quality and service) pushes your bill to over 15 bucks.

I had the "pleasure" of attending collonaide once again this past week, also as a work outing. Again, avoiding the pizza and trying to keep my bill low, I ordered a Greek Side Salad and a fries with gravy. I will say, the Greek Salad was completely acceptable, and enjoyable. (thus I must revise my aforementioned warning not to order other things off the menu) It was a hearty portion with lots of feta a nice tart dressing, olives and two generous slices of sour pickle. It was swimming in dressing which is ok by me. The fries and gravy (which i regret ordering due to my previous mediocre fry experience) was just that, Mediocre. Crappy fries served on a side salad plate and awful packaged gravy - but what was I expecting - duh.

Again, a "side salad" with side fries and gravy pushed 12 dollars and with a pepsi, i ended up paying 13 bucks. Completely not worth it. That particular occasion, my colleagues all ordered pizza, half of theirs came, while the other half waited. 3 or four people in my party had finished eating by the time the other pizza's came. Again, this is unacceptable for a sit down restaurant and a joint which has such a "great reputation". All in all I don't know or understand what the fuss is about, I have been here at least 5 times, and it has yet to impress any of my senses. + the centre town location has terribly dated decor resembling a motel circa 1992.

Some people seem to like this place, and like I said if you like thick - copiously cheese topped pizza than, this place might be for you. But for real pizza lovers, Italians who know good Pizza and people who want other options - skip this restaurant.

Sorry about the negativity, I'm just being objective.

Cheers, Rob

Ordered take-out "Colonnade Special" from the Merivale location to see what the buzz was about. Was at first surprised at the decor, very over-the-top for a pizza place.

It smelled delicious, but the taste? Nothing special, or even that good about it. Not near enough sauce or toppings, you could barely taste either. Incredibly bland, as it was nearly all bread and cheese. Definitely not worth the price.

LOVE Colonnade Pizza - best pizza in the city if your craving really thick delicious crust...it is really greasy, I must say! but it's well worth it. I love the Mediterranean! My favorite location is on Merivale for sure...i found the other locations to be really out of date and the staff to be a little snotty. This is the best location! :)

For me, I can do without the pizza from the Colonnade (downtown). While I usually prefer thin crust pies, I do have an appreciation for doughy - or regular - or thick crusts. I have been to the Colonnade on average of 2 times/year for the past three years. After the first few times - when I went to test out the food, the other visits were because of pre-arranged dining location with groups of people where I didn't have much say. So: I don't consider the pizza bad, just not my kind of thing - and I also don't think it is the great doughy crust pizza of the city. The other menu items are poor - for me, the only reason someone would go to the Colonnade is because of the pizza. Oh, I also wouldn't chose the place because of the service. The waitresses in at least 3 or 4 of my visits have made the experience not so comfy - I consider them to have been rude[ish] and I have noted that they treat clients differently - depending on how the servers think they look.

I LOVE the pizza here! I am not given to superlatives, but to me, it is the best pizza I have ever eaten. And I know whereof I speak - I've been coming here for 25 years (yes, almost my entire life). This pizza never disappoints. My family's favourite pizza is the large mushroom - no other toppings necessary, thank you very much. I don't know quite what it is about the flavours here - the sauce is thick with just the right seasonings, the cheese is thick and chewy, and the mushrooms cooked just right.

It was only recently that I actually ate one of these pizzas in the restaurant - growing up we would just take it to go (to save on tips!) It was tasty when fresh, but I have to say it tastes even better cold, the next morning, for breakfast.

The service is mediocre and the decor tired, so it is not my favourite place to eat in. But ah, the pizza is sublime!

Finally made it to Colonnade on Merivale to satisfy my pizza craving.

My order was Zuchinni sticks and a small mushroom pizza.

The zuchinni sticks were meh- A Sysco product no doubt- They also didn't include any dipping sauce which made them even less interesting.

The pizza on the other hand was great.Definately worth while and not unreasonably priced.

I always order tHe Mediterranean special - LOADED with cheese, which I love. Don't go here unless you have a healthy appetite and a high tolerance for greasy-deliciousness.

We ate here the other day and made the mistake of ordering pasta over pizza. It just goes to show that just because a place gets one thing right and does it really well, doesn't mean they are competent with other foods.

This was the first time we've eaten in, usually we just pick up, and the place was packed. I should have taken it as a sign that about 75% of the patrons were eating pizza. Oh well. Live and learn.

Check out the pasta review below for why it was so bad.

After years of hearing about how great this pizza is supposed to be, I finally had my chance to try it for myself.

I am happy to say that the pizza lives up to the hype.

I tried a small "Mediterranean Special" which I thought might be too much to eat, at first. The crust, in particular, is quite amazing. The pizza, while rich and full of taste, was not heavy or greasy. Before I realized it, my plate was empty.

I dare say this was one of the best pizzas I have ever eaten. Service was also friendly and prompt, considering the restaurant was very busy when we arrived.

We've order twice from the new one in Nepean. The first time it was just Pepperoni and Cheese, it was very good, and some areas had many many layers of pepperoni stacked under the cheese. The crust is perfect for someone who doesn't like thick crust, it is not too thin, not too thick.

The second time we added bacon, and it seemed to be real pieces of bacon (not the stuff that looks like someone chewed it up and spit it out on your pizza)... and it was consistantly good as the last time.

They seem to avoid the huge crust area at the edges which seems to over fill you anyways if you try to eat it, and usually has no toppings...this one has the edges of pizza go thinner and thinner which makes for a nice thin (thinner than rest of pizza), crunchy crust, and topping to the edge.

We will try for more adventurous toppings next time.

Top 3 Pizza Joints in Ottawa, if you like your pizza "upside down" as they say (cheese on top) which I do, and in no particular order:
- Colonnade
- Lorenzo's (in the Byward Market, NOT Vanier - it just changed names recently but when you call, they still say "Lorenzo's"
- Carlos

Colonnade's crust is smaller. Lorenzo's is big. Carlos only does west end delivery and refers east-enders to Lorenzo's. Flavour for all three is very similar: yummy, yummy, yummy.

And people...just WAIT a bit and let the cheese cool down before digging in; your pizza will "maintain its integrity".

Split a takeout vegetarian with the misses this evening from the newest location on Merivale. It was consistent with the quality of the other locations in the city. If you've never tried this pizza they're very generous with the cheese (brick/mozz) and the crust is not too thick (but not quite thin). My only gripe is it could be just a little crispier, but that's just my personal preference.

Definitely one of the best places for 'za in the city.

1/2 of a small vegetarian pizza from Colonnade.

It does, I think, a better job of maintaining its structural integrity than most fat pies like this do. I'm not sure why they're so big on burying most of the toppings, but I don't have many complaints about it.

SandyG: I really like the pizza at Maxwell's. It's similar to Johnny Farina's but maybe different enough for your wife to enjoy as well.

Also, if you odn't see toppings you like on their menu, they will add whatever you want (as long as it's in their kitchen).

I cannot for the life of me understand why people love this Pizza so much. For my part, toppings,(especially meat), belong on top of the cheese. I also prefer pizza that maintains its structural integrity. If anyone can recomend another place, I'd be grateful. So far, Johny Farinas, is my go to. Of course, my wife is not a big fan. I guess that's pizza.

I really do enjoy this stuff. There's very little to complain about -- 'more generous toppings' comes to mind, but then, it's one of the only places around that doesn't mess up stuff like 'double mushrooms.' We're usually double-cheese people here, but that turned out to be a mistake at the Colonnade; they put quite enough on in the first place.

It's one of my favourite places to take people -- it's universally appreciated pizza.

Most of the other dishes can be given a pass, though.

Colonnade is indeed great pizza -- lots of cheese, but not greasy, a good thickness, and very tasty.

Ultimately, so far I've preferred pizza from Carlo's Pizzeria, but it's close.

It is definitely one of the better all around pizze in Ottawa. It was very good and I'd get it from there again. If I remember correctly, Colonnade is generous on cheese, not too thick or thin, crispy and chewy crust and tasty on toppings. There are better crusts and better cheese out there, but they aren't found on the same pie!

I've had many lifer Ottawans tell me this is THE place for 'zza in the city. Anyone care to confirm/deny?

Wifey had heard that Colonnade is known for its coconut cream pie. Since that is one of my favourites we went to the new Merivale location to try it out (next to One Fish Two Fish). Their dessert menu has quite a selection of pies but we confirmed with the server that the only ones they make in-house are the coconut cream and the banana cream. I ordered the former and wifey ordered the latter.

It turned out they are exactly the same pie with different toppings. This means that it's a vanilla cream pie with toasted coconut or banana slices on top. That's just fine but I prefer to have a bit of coconut inside the pie for extra flavour. All in all a surprisingly good cream pie for a pizza joint!

I had a tea and wifey had a hot chocolate. Mine was just tea bag tea and hers was a tall glass topped with whipped cream. The funny thing is that mine cost more! ($1.75 vs. $1.50) That's a highish price for tea and a bargain for garnished hot chocolate!

The noodles were overcooked, the sauce was thin and the chicken parmigiana tasted oddly like funnel cake (maybe it was the oil?). This place needs to stick with the pizza.