Ottawa Foodies

We went out for an early dinner last night at Sweetgrass. I didn't see any beer I really liked on their list so I stuck with water. Started with the elk dumplings with mushrooms and cream fresh and they were very good. My wife had the evenings special lamb shank with pureed butternut squash. She loved it especially the squash preparation. I had the 10oz buffalo rib eye. I was a little less pleased. I asked for it medium rare but it came half well and half medium and was a little tough. Not sure if it had been frozen for too long or was a bad cut or the cook just didn't do it right. It didn't compare with other items I have had off their menu in the past. I know now to stay away from the Tatonka!

I had the partridge open faced sandwich with fresh peas the other day. WOW! It was possibly the most flavourful sandwich I have ever had. Absolutely amazing! Sorry I didn't take pics - I was too busy eating!

I took two friends from Toronto here for lunch last weekend. We all ended up ordering Sweetgrass' take on a taco (served on their fabulous frybread). Unbelievably good, and so affordable, too. We were all pleased, the portion size was perfect for lunch, and they said it was the best meal they'd had in quite some time.

I'll definitely come back for lunch. While I've always enjoyed their dinner menus immensely, as a grad student, it's out of my price range as a regular experience. Their lunch menu is so reasonably priced, though, and if the taco is any indication of what to expect from other dishes, I'm terribly excited to return.

I'm just thrilled to have found this place with the help of you Ottawa Foodies: it's easily my favourite restaurant in the city.

Grilled Pheasant Supreme $26
Barbecue glazed with “Risotto Style” Potatoes and Wild Greens

I was confuse on the "Risotto Style" Potatoes until I see this dish. It is wonderful the potato is diced into little bits and serve with a creamy sauce.
The Wild Greens that are on top of the Potatoes are just cooked Roman Lettuce. Cooked Roman Lettuce is a bit bitter, but it is alright when it is combine with the potatoes.
The Grilled Pheasant is good. It has more tasteful then a chicken. The texture is good, not at all dry, but I believe it can be better.
The brown sauce at the bottom of the dish is a sweet sauce. It could be less sweet to better match with the light chicken meat.

-www.bunny4bite.blogspot.com-

Pickle Patch Farm Organic Lamb Plate $28 (Grilled)

This is my first time having organic meat. It is definitely a lot more flavorful and much tenderer then regular lamb meat. It is cooked perfectly. The sauce is similar to the pheasant dish, but it goes a lot better with the lamb.
Unfortunately, this is only one out of three lamb dishes on the table that turn out good. The others has the tendons in the meat, making it very chewy and difficult to eat.

The Rosemary Crème Brulee $8 With Raspberry Compote
From what I have heard it is way too sweet.

-www.bunny4bite.blogspot.com-

Alaskan Crab Cakes $12
Cucumber Dill Sauce, lemon lime Vinaigrette, butterfly sky farms micro greens

This is a marvelous crab cake. Like Lobster Bisque, I personally would not prefer a good crab being cook this way, quite a waste. However, it is better then any other crab cake I imagine. The vinaigrette and cucumber help tone down the heaviness of the dish. Plus it helps give a crunchy vegetable texture when you give a bite.

-www.bunny4bite.blogspot.com-

Elk Dumpling (In between dishes) $14
Slow cooked elk stuffed dumplings, sautéed mushrooms and spring onions, mustard crème fraiche.
It is a very good starter. The mushroom is the most tasty of all. The creme fraiche is a made just right to compliment the rich tasty mushroom and the dumpling. The greens help neutralize the rich mushroom prepare a clean scent for a bite into the Elk Dumpling.
Elk is a very light flavor meat one might think the taste would be lost among other strong ingredients, but surprisingly they complimented each other perfectly. The meat is tender and the dumpling is crispy and everything else score a perfect mark from me.

just got back from lunch at sweet grass, had the bison burger and what can i say...the tastiest burger ever! grilled to perfection and seasoned without being overpowering. top with house smoked mozzarella on a sesame seed bun. my husband had the bass, he was more then happy, it came with fries and salad. if you haven't tried sweet grass, do yourself a favor and go...reasonably priced, great service and delicious food!

a GREAT selection of teas. many artisanal.

a honkin' mountain of christophe's shrooms @ the SA-weeeEEETgrass. shame on you for not knowing this.

The Creme Brulee at Sweetgrass has Rosemary in it which provides a unique twist to the usual delightful flavour. Astounding.

I'll end it with a dessert since I'm not sure if I'm spamming. :)

Cloudberry Pudding