ottawa foodies

Tried the new location on Richmond. Nice to have another fast food option in the area other than metro, the super store and juice bars. Got the smoked meat poutine. Smoked meat was cold and not very good. Gravy was awful. Cheese had no squeak. Fries were actually pretty good. Wouldn’t get this again.

Went here for lunch today as my husband is a smoked meat fan. Me, not so much. He ordered the smoked meat sandwich and fries, not the platter so therefore no coleslaw and no pickle. Sandwich was good, although he said it was the first time he had ever been served a smoked meat sandwich that didn't come with a pickle. Fries were not worth getting. I had liver and onions. Don't bother ordering that here. The veg were plopped on to the plate straight out of their hot water holding tank. No seasoning, no nothing. The mashed spuds were waterlogged to the point of being runny. No seasoning. The liver was thick, about 3/4 ", and cooked to death, plus the stringy thing that runs through it had not been removed. No seasoning here, either. I asked for gravy on the side and it was completely devoid of flavor. Won't be back. Ever.

So, it was cold. It was rainy, I could use food, so I hit the new merivale location this evening. The waiter was very friendly and attentive, giving me the refill on my coke without me even having to ask for it. The food came fast. I of course got the smoked meat sandwhich, whih was still steaming, freshly cut and all that. Coulda use a smidgen more yellow mustard, but that's just splitting hairs. So moist, so flavourful, and with the right amount of speck to fire the mouth neurons.

The coleslaw was standard tangy, and cut the richness nicely. The fries were....meh. A little over salted, and they all were very tiny fries. Oh well.

All in all, great service, amazing sandwich, not so great fries. Will go back as a once in a while treat for myself.

Ive ate here three times in the past two weeks the smoked meat sandwich is so delicious. Fresh bread, moist meat and piled high and the poutine is really good. I dont really come to Dunn's for anything other then the smoked meat sandwich and poutine. Service is pretty fast and the portions are huge. Dalhousie location.

The Dunn's famous cheesecake: it really is delectable. A generous portion of rich, creamy cheesecake just the way it should be, with a graham cracker crust and topped with strawberries. No problem here!

However, disappointment hit when the so-called "VERY good chocolate cake" (as described by our waiter) arrived to the table. It looked great, but the way it crumbled under my fork just wasn't cool. One bite and I said, wow, this just tastes like Loblaws cake...in other words, 'nothing spectacular' and 'I could've bought half a cake for the price of this slice'. Would you imagine my (not) surprise when I went to Loblaws the next day only to discover the same cake in their bakery?

Save your money, people. Buy it at Loblaws, if you must.

Anytime I'm in Ottawa I have to stop and get my fill of Dunn's smoked meat. Nothing too fancy, but always what is needed to satisfy the craving. Easily rivals a lot, but not all, smoked meat sandwiches I have eaten in Montreal. You will not be disappointed by this restaurant. Bring you appetite.

I've been eating at Dunn's since 1990 at various locations around the city. The food hasn't gotten any better, but the portions remain very large for the price. It is an economical place to eat with mediocre to decent food.

But don't go for the service. While the one in the market understands that service is of some importance to keep customers, the one on Elgin is nothing but lousy service. And the larger the group, the worse the service.

I'll keep going to Dunn's - getting my oversized Reuben platter or breakfasts - but I don't ever recommend it to anyone.

OMG!!!

I ate here again (against my will) since the last (negative) review I posted on Dunn's and OMG!!! Unsatisfactory, as I've come to expect.

Only I didn't feel the need to update people on the fact that it's consistently crappy. But now I do :)

Sure you did.

The Reuben Sandwich ($14) was pretty disappointing. Good fries, but not enough sauerkraut, no dressing of any kind, dryish meat, and even dryer bread. You'd be better off buying the pre-portioned Dunn's smoke meat at Costco and whipping up a sandwich at home.

Service was very weird, by a guy who did not seem like a regular server. When we asked for a particular table, he replied, “You mean the one that hasn't been cleaned yet? No.” Then he sat us at a very sticky table and later knocked over a water glass with barely an apology. It was all quite strange.

I'd chalk this place up as yet another beneficiary of the ByWard Market's guaranteed supply of first-time customers (tourists). Won't be rushing back.

Stopped in for a late night take-out this week in the market and had the smoked meat sandwich alone with extra pickles on the side.

The sandwich was very, very good.. I have been craving one since. Decent size, stacked pretty high, meat was moist and the bread fresh.

Service was prompt and I was in and out in 5 minutes.

Went to Dunn's on Dalhousie with some friends while waiting out the snowstorm in the early hours of Sunday morning. It was TERRIBLE. Not one of the 5 diners enjoyed their meal. I ordered the classic club sandwich with a side of poutine and both were dissapointing. The chicken in the club was really thick and very dry and sandwich appeared to have been assembled by a one-armed person. Everyone's fries were undercooked and the cheese on the poutine was not melted. They even screwed up the milkshake! it was not blended properly. The only good thing about the meal was the coleslaw, it was delicious. Delicious coleslaw however will not bring me back to Dunn's...never again!

mediocre at best
rather dry