ottawa foodies

A pet peeve of mine is the lack of availability at most Ottawa restaurants of brewed unsweetened iced tea. It's a year-round staple everywhere in the USA, even in fast food joints. In Ontario, seems to be that you need to get south of London before it's on offer. Carmello's on Sparks has a house brewed version year round that is very slightly sweetened that is pretty good, but I don't know of anywhere else in town that does it. Sweet tea is great sometimes, but usually I prefer it without sugar and definitely without artificial sweetener.

Yesterday at Zack's I asked if they had unsweetened iced tea and the server said "no, but I can make you some if you like". She filled a beer mug with ice and a couple of lemon slices, brewed a pot of orange pekoe and combined the two. It was a light bulb moment for me, and I will be eternally grateful to her. Last night when we were at Royal Thai, with no unsweetened iced tea available, I asked the waitress to bring me a pot of jasmine tea, and a large glass full of ice and lemon. Voila. Unsweetened iced tea! I've decided to start my own personal unsweetened ice tea revolution, and will request it this way everywhere. Maybe someday it will catch on.

Who's with me?

Uh, YEAH! I'm surprised you hadn't thought of that before. That's the easiest way to get it around here. Well, okay ... the ONLY way.

At home we usually brew up 5 bags of King Cole in a quart of water and put that in the fridge. I like to make a minted simple syrup for the summer as well as a non-minted to add if I want to. Add a bunch of water and ice and it's done.

For the minted simple syrup I make a regular syrup, but also boil in a couple of sprigs of the voluminous quantities of mint from my yard, and a couple of sliced lemons.

We also keep some pre-brewed espresso in there when we think about it during the summer. That, we just pour over some milk and ice.

I'm with you. That's a great idea. I've only applied it to coffee.
I went to Tim Hortons once and asked for an iced coffee with nothing in it. The servers looked bewildered and asked me how they should go about making such a concoction. I told them, "Get a cup, put ice in it and pour some coffee in it." Makes you wonder what their iced coffees are made of.
I've since learned my lesson: Don't order Tim-Hortons coffee without cream and sugar. It isn't meant to be black.

I think there is a diet version of the 99 cent Arizona Green Tea in tall cans. It's not the ice tea you get in the US, but it is cold tea without sugar.

i agree, Tim's coffee black is pretty bad . . . :-)

I used to do that at Starbucks all the time.

get "coffee of the day", could I get a cup of ice on the side, please?
Thanks!
make my own iced coffee, much cheaper, they have milk and cream and cinnamon on the side too :)

usually I bring my own iced tea from home. I have stash tea instant green tea packets (it is ground up sensha tea, lemon ginger flavor w no sugar).
I just ask for a cup of ice and use my own drink while out.

in the summer a lot I ask take out places for a cup of ice, no water and usually just use that to cool of or put my drink it.
haven't had anyone refuse that.

Well, maybe once- second cup at Bayshore refused me a glass of water, even when I was spending $7 there!
ended up leaving my food (was getting cupcakes and food) to go to the foodcourt to get stuff there instead...
normally I do not do that, unless an employee is that rude...

Shanti tea off Bank st, they make unsweetened ice tea you can buy a cup for around $2.

since there are so many iced tea/coffee lovers on here, I'll share this link for fresh blackberry bourbon iced tea that I made earlier this summer:
www.foodnetwork.com
I liked it even better when I substituted fresh strawberries for the blackberries and Pinnacle whipped cream vodka for the bourbon. Both versions made great cocktails for a summer afternoon.

Thank you, all of you. :)

After a friend's recommendation (thanks DK) I bought one of these while I was in the states. It was only $19 and the tea is drinkable right away. I've played around with different types of teas and the strength is easy to adjust.

It was a great investment and I really love that I don't have to wait for it to cool down to enjoy. Water goes in the back and ice cubes go into the pot where the brewed tea drips. Great design and I love it!

I too miss my brewed tea at restaurants (esp the 32oz cups you could get at US Subway locations on the way into work).

I have the bodum iced tea pitcher at home. You "brew" in the fridge, and it takes about 48 hours, but it is a very large (3L) but surprisingly easy to store design. The removable strainer compartment is nice so you can fish out bags or herbs easily.

Summer time is great for sun tea. Just get the biggest clear glass jug/bottle you can find, and add tea bags and some lemon slices. Put out in the sun and wait a day. Pour over ice. (doesn't work so well if you are sitting at a restaurant, they'll want you out of there before your tea is done.)

Jojo, the new ones are dishwasher safe and are now only $17 at walmart in the US. We use ours all year round.

Going to the states and ordering unsweetened ice tea and sweetening it myself is a good reminder of how much sugar is in that stuff.

We usually have a jug of home-made iced tea in our fridge - it really is just about the cheapest and easiest drink going in the summer, other than plain water. I used to buy the powdered stuff that I drank growing up but I can't imagine buying it now. To be fair, you can get decent powered iced teas - my aunt brought one back from a trip to the US and I think that might have been the first time I had unsweetened iced tea. I still drink my (hot) tea with sugar, but prefer iced tea unsweetened.

I just have a square glass 1 litre pitcher I got a superstore and usually have that stored in the fridge door.
Just got sick of making the same black iced tea,but will start making some again!
I have/had a 500 gram back of lychee black iced tea!
It is really good and cheap (paid $15 for the bag from a chinese vendor),usually I am drinking green tea thesedays.

I used the iced tea machine pictured on Jojo's post last night and had 3 litres of perfectly brewed chilled iced tea ready to drink in 15 minutes. We use a brand of tea called "Luzianne" for iced tea and they have something called "family size" tea bags that make a litre from each bag.

Stash has a powdered green tea and mint green tea now - completely unsweetened. They have it at Bulk Barn - really handy to keep at work.

Is that the one I am talking about, that comes in the box of 12 packets?

I always buy those in the US, much cheaper if you can receive deliveries from amazon.com

it is usually under $10 for 6 boxes.
I have tried every flavor almost, not the "plain" green tea.

lemon ginger- very refreshing, have rebought tons of times.
mint unsweetened, very faint mint taste, is ok
blueberry- tastes like a berry...now which one? could be blueberry,black currant,blackberry....supposed to be blueberry. this one is just ok.

sweetened raspberry...way too sweet, can't tell that it is supposed to be raspberry. doubt i will get that one.

I actually like to mix the lemon ginger one with club soda...very refreshing!

how much is bulk barn asking for a box??

If your going to the Bulk Barn... there is a $3 off a min. $10 purchase coupon that you can print out. So that can make your purchase of the tea packets cheaper.

One of the places that served free iced chinese tea during the summer; hot tea in the winter, was Pho Thu Do when it was located in that small building 2 stores down from the community center and beside the asian grocery store. It has since moved a block away and I think still serves the iced tea. I just prefer the old restaurant back in the days when it was just all guys running the show. They would serve the iced tea in the tall wine glass pitcher. I would sometimes take the lime slices and squeeze the juices into the tea to add some zest to the tea.

Bulk Barn is such a rip-off. Everything there is 30% - 60% overpriced.

Francis, that's because you get the opposite of a volume discount. It's actually a bit of a misnomer (sure, *they* buy everything in bulk) but the fact is you can buy just 20 grams of dry pasta if you like and they still have to make a profit. So you're paying a low-volume premium regardless of how much you buy.

Bulk Barn is best for products you can't find anywhere else, or if you want to buy only a tiny amount of something...

I've just come from two weeks of travelling in the land of unsweetened ice tea, which I drank every day, beginning in Ogdensburg. Here is a pic of how it is served on the porch of the Otesaga in Cooperstown. Perfect. And topped up regularly by waiters in waistcoats. This was at breakfast BTW.

Carmello's on Sparks Street makes their own unsweetened ice tea. Had lunch there recently with a group. Enjoyed the patio and my salad wasn't bad either!

I am a Canadian ignorant of those high-falutin' 'merican ways. I had always made my Ice Tea from scratch but with added sugar. When I went to the States and had unsweetened tea I was rather confused. I added sugar and all was well. But the event had me curious ever since.

I drink my hot tea and coffee clear/black and my Iced Coffee with milk and sugar. Due most people add fixin's to their iced tea or do they drink it straight up? Enquiring minds want to know!

In the states most places offer iced tea both ways sweetened/unsweetened and provide free refills. Some people get unsweetened and add sugar twin, but if you are sweetening unsweetened tea the "correct" way, it is usually done with sugar syrup. Art-is-in has been doing some brewed ice teas over the summer that have been interesting.

We always have cold tea for iced tea. I think I read in my 1975 edition of Joy of Cooking to make tea, let it cool down to room temperature and then chill it. This apparently keeps it from being "murky". I do believe this works but we have found hot tea cooled off with ice tastes just fine--but it isn't clear. As a side--I make herbal teas and cool them for a nice summer drink.

bridgehead iced tea is brewed and unsweetened.

I have found it an uphill battle to convince most Canadians that unsweetened iced tea is better than the regular sugary or syrupy stuff. Most people are so used to it.

You can get some of our natural artisan iced teas at Grounded Kitchen and Coffeehouse at 100 Gloucester Street, and also at Planet Coffee in the market. Shanti Tea makes special blends for these two fantastic businesses, and Grounded actually takes it upon themselves to blend something new out of what they get.

You can also get a nice assortment of iced teas that you can make at home from Shanti Tea's website.

Had a wonderful iced tea from David's Tea's during a very hot day last summer. Sat under the trees in front of the All Saints Church nearby, to sip away a lazy hazy afternoon.

This was my first upscale iced tea experience. Had the overly sweetened Canadian iced tea and the American unsweetened Arizonza/Arnold Palmer tea and the stuff they serve in US diners, but this tea from David's was different.

It had a somewhat complex flavour with a lingering finish. Will have have it again this summer.

Yeah I preferred the unsweetened ice teas they have often in the US. They have one of those large coffee urn type containers and they just brew a huge batch. This way you can either have it unsweetened or sweeten it how you like with sugar or substitute. Some upscale places would even have Stevia packets.

When I make it myself I use whatever tea bag (green, black, fruit tea, etc) that I fancy at the moment and add some lemon and/or berry type fruit juice if I want a flavour kick.

Captain Caper - I've been tempted to try David's teas for a while now. Is it really a step up overall? Is it the epitome of Ottawa teas, or would I need to be a complete tea snob to even consider it?

In my humble opinion, David's Tea is ok. Better than what you will get at the grocey store, but Shanti Tea is outstanding! If you actually look at the teas and compare, seems to me that Shanti has more leaves and less twigs than David's, and I have made some very special iced teas from their product.