Ottawa Foodies

3

Went to Allium for dinner last night with two friends. Every time I go there I wonder why I don't go more often!

New since my last visit: A mystery menu item. One app and one main that you can select "blind". You cannot find out what it is until you get it! The menu is clear - no substitutions/exceptions. My friend, a vegeterrian, was told not to order it.

I chose the mystery app and was delighted. It was tempura soft shell crab. Served on a light bracing veg slaw. I had never had soft shell crab - always been intimidated - but now I am sold! The batter was not greasy and the slaw was the perfect cmpliment. My friends were both delighted with their house salads.

For mains I had the flatiron steak (rare) on a bed of roasted brussel sprouts and bacon. Came with good frites. The beef, bacon and brussel sprouts was a great flavour combination! My friends enjoyed their mains too - a risotto and a trout that was perfectly cooked.

The only downside was that we were too full for the banoffee pie!! Cost was reasonable untill we got right into the wine! A great evening!

Love Allium!

3 of us had a delicious lunch on Tuesday. Service was friendly and attentive without being pretentious. Everything was delicious with outstanding going to the tuna appetizer. Mains of steak-frites and the burger were delicious. Accompanying frites and greens were spot on. The "mushrooms-on-toast" (I forget what the menu called it) was so, so very good. Soup of the day was a corn-potato chowder, again fabulous-smooth and subtle flavourings. We had wine, beer, coffee and shared a 1/2 order of banoffee pie with 3 forks (very graciously offered, a dessert for 1 served to 3!),1 appetizer,1 small soup and 3 mains-under $100 with tip for 3. I just saw a mediocre review for Bowich-2 sandwiches and 1 drink for $34. Just saying...This lunch was fabulous and less the wine and beer would have been a bordering on cheap lunch.

4

Allium has been on our go-to list for ages, and we finally made it this week. While pondering where to eat for our wedding anniversary, we noticed that it was on a Monday, and that was tapas night at Allium, so the stars were aligned.

We settled into a nice table for two (a comfortable distance from other tables) and studied the menu. We decided to start with a couple of seafood dishes, the albacore tuna (w/cucumber salad, pickled red onion, coriander mayo, etc.) and the seared scallops (w/spanish rice, spiced sour cream, corn salsa), accompanied by a glass of white wine. Both delish!

Then we switched to red wine, and a couple of plates to match: mushrooms on toast, and roasted duck breast (w/potato puree, "ported" cranberries, and sherry jus). Two more big hits. Then we had the grilled beet salad, a nice melange of pureed and grilled beets, grilled zucchini, curried goat cheese, roasted pepper dressing, and spiced pecans. Very tasty indeed.

All of the dishes were beautifully presented (alas, we forgot to take a camera), and they were all a treat for the tastebuds, but if I had to pick just one standout, it would be the mushrooms on toast - so good! We took the advice of previous reviewers and finished up with the banoffee pie, and we were not disappointed. Half portions were plenty for us, accompanied by some good coffee.

The food was great, and I was also impressed with the wine service. The wine list is quite interesting, and when you order by the glass, they bring the bottle to your table, show you the label, and pour you a small taste before carrying on with the pour. It's touches like this that separate the best restaurants from the run of the mill places. Service was friendly and efficient, and our water glasses were kept topped up.

Including tax (but not tip), our tab came to about $130, and we thought it was a reasonable price for a very satisfying meal. Based on this experience, at least, we would put Allium on a par with some of our current faves, such as Play, and we're looking forward to going back.

3

Delizioso - next time you go, have the banoffee pie for dessert - you can thank me later :)

4

We went to Allium on Friday to celebrate my birthday. I've been wanting to go for forever and I finally got treated to the most amazing dinner out. If there was a competition for Ottawa's best restaurant, this would have to be a contender.

We started with the mushrooms on toast and tempura shrimp and pork belly. The mushrooms on toast (which was a waffle) was probably the best dish of the night/my entire life....who knew mushrooms would be so delicious. The tempura shrimp were juicy and flavourful and the pork belly was crispy and tender all at the same time.

We were served bread while we waited for our mains, the bread was just bread...nothing special. But the honey, lemon, chive butter served with it was out of this world. I wanted to ask for extra of it and take it home with me, what I would do for more of that butter.

For mains, I had the duck breast with foie gras risotto. I tend to be skeptical about ordering duck breast because a lot of restaurants serve it rather tough. This was not the case at all at Allium. I can't describe in words how tasty this was, the risotto served with it was more of 'risotto style' and not a true risotto but the flavor made me hardly notice. My boyfriend had the bison, which the chef will only serve rare, and it was also superb. I didn't try much of it becuase it had a blue cheese sauce with it, but he raved about it.

We had to order dessert because it was a birthday celebration afterall....so glad we did. We had the chocolate cake with pistachio ice cream. Yum yum yum, favorite part was the toffee crunchies on top and the ice cream but the actual cake was probably the best I've ever had too.

Portions were adequate, I left full but not so full that I was about to explode. Cost was what I would expect to pay for the quality of the meal. $250 after tax and tip for 4 cocktails, 1 bottle of wine, 2 apps, 2 mains, and 1 dessert. We are celebrating another birthday in 3 weeks and it has been decided after this experience that we will be going here again for hopefully another amazing evening.

One slight issue, the steak had 2-3 fairly charred almost burnt pieces..

The only really perfectly cooked flat iron steak from 3 (2 tapas and 1 lunch entree) ordered that week was the first one.

the flat iron steak and fries come with the chipotle aloai and a side salad on the same plate.

I was in a bit of a rush so dug in and ate most of my steak before remembering to take a picture. The steak was medium rare as I requested.

1

Went back 2 weeks ago after having great flat iron steak for tapas earlier that week since I had a dentist appointment down the street on that Friday afternoon.

Order the flat iron steak and fries for $15 available for lunch and ordered a cup of daily soup with it for an additional $3. The soup was decent but not spectacular.

1

Was tied up and wanted some food around 8:30 or 9pm. Went to Allium for Tapas.

I had been on a seafood kick for the last 2-3 months but seem to have turned carnavore last night. I ordered the flat iron steak tapas with spicy quinoa salad and smoked Chipotle aloai with the duck breast which comes with almond bean mash, tomato Eggplant ragout, almond pesto and Port au jus with a pint of Kichesippi. While the beer was good, once the food arrived, a glass of cab would have been a better fit.

The flat iron steak came medium rare and perfectly cooked. I did not specify how well it is to be cooked but it hit what I liked perfectlyl. The quinoa salad was interesting with chopped peppers, cilantro and a nice dressing but it had more cilantro than I liked. The aloai was great with the steak.

The duck breast was very good but was a little too busy with sides. The tomato eggplant regout and bean/almond puree was tasty but the almond pesto making it too busy and the port au jus was pretty salty, maybe due to my tastebuds have changed from decreasing salt intake or the sauce on the stove for the whole evening. I would have been perfectly happy without the two sauces.

I was intending to order the scallop or tuna tateka but the flat iron steak was so good that I ordered it again when another server came to take my dish away and ask if I wanted something else. I asked if they can substitute the crispy Polenta for the quinoa salad. Again they did not ask how I wanted it be cooked and this time it came out between medium well done to well done. Still tasty but a bit dry and overcooked for my taste. The crispy Polenta was excellent, crisp cubes of Polenta with creamy center.

Service was very good to great. When I mentioned it to the waiter when he asked how it was, he offered to bring up a new one but it was already enough food, especially this late at night. Made a mental note to myself to make sure I specify how it is to be cooked when I go back for the flat iron steak and fries..

Have a dentist appointment at Holland Cross this Friday... uhmmm maybe I will stop for lunch since $15 is a great price for 6 oz flat iron steak, fries and aloai, and side salad :D

BTW, there is a lot of construction on Holland...

1

Went for lunch for the first time today(have been previously for dinner). Great value for lunch, had the steak frites and 2 scoops of pascales as well as a Limonata.

The steak was quite thin(though I expected that for lunch so not a bad thing), but still very good, the simple salad it came with was the perfect plain side on what was a rich lunch. The spicy aioli goes great with both the steak and the fries.

Was hoping to be able to try a bit of variety on the Pascales but ordered the 2 I have already bought. Dark Chocolate w. sea salt(my all time favourite, and we buy it regularly) and salted caramel(ok but a bit too sweet and not salty enough for me!)

The presentation on the ice cream was lovely, came very hard, in what seemed to be a previously frozen dish, with a small but delicious cookie which crumbled perfectly. Husband prefers his ice cream soft, but I want it as frozen as possible so this was perfect.

However... it was probably the most expensive lunch I've ever had... As I was leaving, I tripped on the construction housing nearby and smashed my ipad. $280.00 later.... I'm glad I at least got a good lunch out of the deal!

Our 5 year anniversary is coming up in a few weeks and I can't wait to go back!

1

For a place that otherwise seemed happy to emphasize local and seasonal items, it was surprising to see only a few Canadian wines (2 red, 4 white, all from Niagara). Otherwise, the wine list seemed concise (like the menu) and well-balanced -- something for everyone.

I had the vegetarian lasagne currently on the menu (without the cheese). I was layers of grilled veggies, wild rice pancake, tomato sauce and something crispy (pasta perhaps?). That night, the butternut squash and apple soup was vegan, so I had that to start. I certainly didn't have the problem that I sometimes have when there aren't many veggie options on the menu where I come away hungry! I was offered a fruit plate for dessert (since none of the desserts were vegan). It was definitely plentiful and interesting in presentation with lots of variety of fruit. The raspberries were incredibly fresh and flavourful for this time of year.

In the two different menus I've seen, Allium has had at least one creative vegetarian main; I tried one (with tofu served like a risotto layered with various vegetables). Appetizers, however, showed less creativity -- last time I went, only the soup and salad were vegetarian.

7

Enjoyed the lunch burger yesterday. Thick, juicy, tasty seasoned patty, generous ingredients. Their little brown fries are pretty addictive too. A most hearty lunch for $14!

1

Had an amazing salad here the other night for a light supper. There are many places that serve an upscale salad, several of which fall short. This one is stellar.

Referred to as “Lettuces” on the new spring menu, the large bowl was brimming with bibb lettuce with cucumbers, carrots and tomatoes but the flavours came from the mixture of cranberries, candied quinoa and carrot‐lemon puree and then lightly covered with a mint‐lemon dressing. To top it off it was beautifully presented with a smear of cranberry puree which looked like it had been painted onto the bowl.