Ottawa Foodies

6

I will add to the chorus of positive reviews: we had the soup and deer carpaccio to start and then had the curry lamb shank sharing plate for dinner. Just a note on the service before I delve into anything - really friendly, and they care to hear if you are enjoying the food, unobtrusive but present, a good balance. The food was plated beautifully, prepared well, seasoned well... overall, a great meal. The sharing plate was adequate for the two of us, and we were totally stuffed, to the point that we had no space for dessert. One note, the establishment is quite small, so book a table in advance to avoid disappointment.

5

For second course, I had the wonderful Slow roasted lamb shank brown butter sauteed grainy mustard spaetzle, rapini, mushroom and grainy mustard broth, fried leeks ($34). This was a fantastically tender, meaty shank with a generous pile of spaetzle. Perfect greens and mushrooms. Hearty and delicious!

Unfortunately, my wife isn't a fan of lamb or duck and the menu choices were duck, trout, duck, and lamb, so she ordered the Stuffed trout with fennel and lemon, pine nuts, warm fingerling potatoes and arugula, fresh herbs. This was an impressive dish to look at, but the trout flesh was dryish and seemingly overcooked. (We mentioned this to our server after the meal.) Personally, I'm not sure how feasible it is to cook a stuffed trout without overcooking it. The flavours were nice though -- it's just too bad there was no saltwater fish, pork, chicken, or beef on the menu that day. (BTW, the menus are posted online so we can only blame ourselves in this case.)

For dessert, my wife enjoyed the Pear and maple tart while I enthusiastically spooned up my Tiramisu. Like at Edgar, the desserts are made with admirable skill and quality ingredients.

This place is busy on a weekend night, as it should be. If prices were any lower such a small place could barely justify opening. There is a lot to be said for gourmet French-style cooking served in rustic portions, with panache and without pretense!

7

My wife and I visited for the second seating on a Saturday night. Service was efficient and friendly. This is a cozy and busy place but it feels comfortable even for a quiet dinner for two (we had a wall on one side, which helped).

My wife started with the Scallop cauliflower and roasted garlic puree, spicy chorizo, bison vodka currants ($13). This was a single, large, perfectly cooked scallop perched on a thick puddle of deliciousness. This is certainly a high price for a single scallop, probably because cooking even one scallop properly requires careful attention...

I opted for the Crispy braised pork belly, Romaine house made Caesar dressing, parmesan, strata ($9). Absolutely gorgeous. Featuring a large chunk of pork belly, this was possibly the best Caesar-style salad I've ever encountered.

2

I tried that place for the first time last week. The food was really good from start to finish:

- White beans and fennel soup was great even thought I wasn’t sure about the mix at first
- Sauvagine cheese pierogies were great and not too greasy.
- Lamb shank was perfectly cooked with great sides of leek, spaetzel and swiss chard.
- My wife’s duck was well cooked with again some great sides.

The only thing that would keep me from going back regularly is the prices which I find slightly on the high side thought I understand this is the costs to pay for that kind of meal.

2

My friend had this salad with lardons. Excellent too!

4

Probably the best squash soup I have ever had!

2

Visited twice in a week. It was that good. First visit was for lunch. Had a Banh Mi-inspired sandwich with pork, marinated onions and carrots, fresh coriander and a tasty mayo. A bit heavy on the mayo though. The bread for the sandwich was FAN-TAS-TIC!

Also had a "Barbichette", which I can't remember the description of, but was a tasty drink nonetheless. For dessert, a "pot-de-crème", with thyme and lime I believe, crowned with berries.

Left more than full. I find that the portions were just right.

Second visit was for brunch.

Had a "Pamplemoussi" which is a grapefruit juice with ginger syrup I think. Tasty, but "Barbichette" is tastier.

Had a "Champion Caneton". Duck confit, poached eggs, mushrooms, fingerling potatoes, and those little toasts topped with a garlicky oil.

WOW.

Everything was superb. Presentation, taste, portion. I wanted to lick the plate.

For dessert, because they were calling me, banana beignets, with homemade butterscotch sauce and whipped cream.

This place is PERFECTION. PERFECTION. I cannot wait to visit again.

2

I went to Odile this weekend with family and friends for breakfast and was glad to have tried it, but, truth be told, left a bit disappointed. On the strength of my feelings for Edgar and in light of the fact it's just opened and needs to find its groove, I'm sure I'll be back to give it another chance at some point. These guys are so pleasant and obviously in love with what they're doing.

However, the portion sizes are really small. Or perhaps I just eat a lot. (Ok, I eat a lot.) But my dish - the Forestier - had two poached eggs, two fiddleheads, 6 or 7 mushrooms (all but one were enokis, so tiny, and one slice from a larger variety), a couple of fingerling potatoes and a sprinkling of lardons. On the side were three very thin slices of baguette with particularly delicious wild garlic and herbs and arugula blended in oil. I don't know, maybe it's just me. But my local reference point for dishes like these would be Benny's and I never leave hungry at Benny's. Everything was very good - the poached eggs were perfect and the herbed oil and wild garlic especially so - but I just would have liked a bit more of it. My husband also left hungry and had the impression that the Dutch Baby currently on offer, with lemon curd and berries, was smaller than the apple and cheddar one he's had at Edgar before, but this might be because those fillings are decidedly more hearty. On a related note, we were brought complementary beignets at the end of our meal, which were incredibly good, but they only brought us 4. However, we were 5. Granted, one of us was a child, but the child ordered and ate a full meal too. This is just a quibble, really, as the items were a courtesy anyhow and so the restaurant's prerogative, but I thought it was a bit odd.

Their coffee was great, as were the London Fogs.

For those with mobility issues, the restaurant is very small. This makes it super charming but also very difficult to walk through when full (and loud). It seemed to me that there was one table too many in the space. Not sure if it was this way because of the rain.

1

Had a fantastic brunch here last Saturday. When we arrived around 10:30 we were surprised that we were able to pick from one of the approx. 10 tables for two (four of these were occupied) or one of the five seats at the counter against one of the walls. Although I’ve been wanting to eat here since it opened, we have been dreading the large line up that I figured would greet us so we were very happy to be seated right away.

The light coloured walls and floor accented with black and minimal décor in such a small space works well.

We loved the two dishes we tried (If I remember correctly there were a total of four options to pick from):
- Homemade bread, toasted and topped with herbed ricotta, scrambled eggs, a melange of mushrooms and lardons, a small bibb lettuce salad was the accompaniment on the side – absolutely incredible mixture of flavours
- A dutch baby which was covered in maple syrup and topped with pork belly, apple compote and large hunks of aged cheddar – wonderful combination of sweet and salty

The portion size was perfect, just the right amount – I didn’t start to get hungry again until late afternoon.

I look forward to a return visit.

2

My wife opted for the Far Ouest:
Poached eggs, bbq pulled pork, grilled corn, potato hash with chorizo sausage, avocado.

This was very nicely done but the sweetness of the bbq sauce combined with the grilled corn kernels was a little too much for her taste. Anytime you see pulled pork on a menu, some sweetness is not a big surprise. It really comes down to personal preference. I tasted it and liked it but still preferred my dish.

My son loved his Dutch Baby -- a decadent cross between a pancake and a soufflé, smothered with apple compôte, doused with maple syrup, and topped with pork belly and aged cheddar!

2

This is the wonderful, gorgeous, delicious Albert:
Poached eggs, duck confit, fingerlings, cheese curds, greens, Ste-Odile sauce.

Everything was as perfect as it sounds. ♥