Ottawa Foodies

Something New

According to an ad that I saw recently Johnny Farina's has added a wine bar. Here is the info:

"Relax with friends in our casually elegant new bar. Our sommelier has put together an impressive wine list featuring more than 80 offerings, 30 of which are available by the glass. We also have an unparalleled selection of vodkas, whiskies and other fine spirits.

Has anyone checked them out lately... what did you think?

Pizzas are pretty good. Pastas are nothing spectacular. Meh. But the calamari is amazing. Their entire appetizers menu is pretty damn delicious. Great for hanging out with friends.

I wouldn't say JF is spectacular but it is one of my fave restos in Ottawa and has been for years. I probably like the location and the thin crust pizzas are delightful! I typically go for the seafood one but when I was last there, I ordered the scallop and bacon pizza and it was simly delicious. The pastas are also pretty good.

If anything, the temperature of my orders aren't always on the hot side. But apart from that, JF is tried and true.

My girlfriend and I have become big fans of this restaurant, although, I must admit that it centers entirely around one dish that has become one of our favourite meals. Because we are both vegetarian, we tried the Pasta Primavera. It is amazing! We just visited again last week for our third round of the Primavera and it was the best yet.
The choice and combination of ingredients was a perfect medley of tastes and the sauce was rich and incredibly tasty. Portion sizes are plentiful as well. We usually end up taking a bit of this home with us, which we thoroughly enjoy the next day (or, later that evening).
Service on this particular occassion was also well above par. It was very busy that night, but we never felt neglected and our server was very pleasant and genuine.
I realize this is a very limited view of this restaurant's offering but, if you like Pasta Primavera, you should love what this location has to offer.

I have been food poisioned at this place... on a seafood pizza...of all things...

Have been there twice and both times we were not impressed at all by the food. People keep talking about it being good but my personal experience hasnt been that great. We decided to go the second time in case it was just an off day they had but nope. Its not the best meal in Ottawa.

We went here last night and our mains were good but we decided to share an app. It was called Spinach and Artichoke Dip.

It came to our table surrounded with grilled pita points which were great but we were both let down by the dip. It was basically soft cream cheese with 5 leaves of baby spinach and a couple pieces of artichoke heart.

Barely any flavour at all.

Went for our office Christmas lunch and had a special menu.

I chose Minestrone and the beef/veal lasagna. Both were excellent.

Other coworkers really enjoyed the blackened salmon.

Some other chose the penne in rosé sauce but to me it looked very bland, however, I did not try it.

I generally really enjoy getting whatever the vegetarian lasagna of the day they have but last time I got it (about a month ago)I was really dissapointed. It was "Roasted Vegetable" but all the vegetables in it were hard, which was not so bad for things like peppers but the big chunks of raw celery were ghastly.

Regardless, I would return as this was one poor visit out of about 10, all the rest being excellent.

Usually the lasagna has a nice smooth consistency and the sauce has such a deep roasted garlic flavour that you really don't even care about the noodles and cheese. But then again, the cheese is fantastic, it's bubbly in the middle and crispy on the edges.

My department is going here for our Christmas lunch based on my raves so you know it's gotta be good most of the time!

I had an excellent Pizza here the other night. It had grilled portobello mushrooms and chicken and sun dried tomatoes. The cheese was goat and mozarella. All the flavours balanced nicely and the wood oven baked crust was just right. Some places mistakenly think that a dry cracking cracker crust is authentic, but there has to be some chewiness to the dough too. Overbaking the crust is far too common with wood ovens in North America.

I've only had this once at this establishment. I am curious to go back. Also a great selection of micro-beers and German imports.