ottawa foodies

We finally made it back to the Cat for a family meal. The beer selection is excellent, the food has some great looking dishes, but some have dropped in quality. I had fish and chips again, and while the fish was excellent, the chips - not so much. I'm pretty sure they are using frozen fries, and they just didn't taste very good. My wife had an amazing looking burger which was served on a gluten free bun. The kids had either fish or chicken fingers - and they were ok, (fish was good, chicken looked avg.). The highlight for food were the onion rings. Look out Dicks - these were huge, crunchy beauties! They were served with curry mayo, which was ok, but I prefer mine with a bit of vinegar. I don't remember the price - but I think it was pretty high, however I'd order them again.

So in conclusion - still a great pub, some of the food stuffs are down a notch, others still rock. Awesome beer and close to home.

First, sorry for the long winded review.
I have been twice to the reopened Cat. The first visit was a disaster but the 2nd a week later was better. Went the first time with hubby. We shared bites. He had the cottage pie with vegetables. It appeared to be premade and kept hot in an oven--the potato topping was way too hot and the meat & vegetable layer on the bottom was actually cold. The vegetables looked good but were undercooked (and we don't like overcooked veggies!)This dish could be tasty if executed properly. Not that hungry I decided on fries and chicken fingers. They were overcooked, dry and the fries are not housecut. I only had a couple of bites--a first for me ever btw. It was incredibly busy so I gave them credit for having a new kitchen and staff-they were too busy to come back and check if everything was okay. They did not charge me for mine when the server noticed I had left most of it which was nice.
Plus--lots of craft beer on tap.
I had decided I would wait a couple of months before I tried The Cat again but a couple of friends suggested we meet for lunch a week after my disastrous first visit. Firstly-it was busy but not as busy as last time. I ordered the house soup, a cheddar and ale chowder with "ugly" bread. At $8.95 I thought it was pricey but I ended up not finishing it because it was huge and rich. It definitely has a beer bite so if you don't like beer don't order it. It was good and on a col January day definitely a "stick to the ribs" choice. The bread was good but looked lonely on the plate and could have stood butter and a garnish , for presentation, at that price. My dining companions chose salad for their lunches. The Caesar salad (small) was quite small but good. She wished it had the traditional bacon but it did say on the menu it was porkbelly. Greens looked fresh, she said it was good but it was definitely small. The other salad was the signature "Meow" which was definitely the best choice of the day. It is a signature dish (also available in a wrap)and the roast beef was said to be great (looked like good quality prime rib) and the salad was nicely presented--the only nice presentation I saw during my 2 visits. Service at this visit was much better than the 1st visit.
I am going to wait a few weeks before I try it again-will post when I go again.

No comment on quality at this time, but I've tried for 3 Friday's in a row and haven't gotten in the door yet. I arrive around 11:30am or shortly thereafter and there's a huge lineup, with a full parking lot. Insane. I'll have to try another day or wait until the excitement dies down. Good on them, but sucks for us.

The Cat is up and running again. A few changes nothing that noticeable. The place was packed lots of children running around and families out for a bite on a Friday night. My buddy and I went for the fish and chips and we both were disappointed. Fish was soggy and smaller than previous meals in the past. Fries are frozen bagged and the coleslaw was tasteless. My wife had the pulled lamb and blue cheese pie. The pastry was burnt and overdone and there was not much in the blue cheese department or shedded carrot. I really hope this was an off night we will return and try it once more.

Early morning fire Jan/28/'13. Closed until further notice.

We went there for dinner for the first time earlier this week, and discovered a hidden gem. The interior is cozy, the decor is endearingly British, the service is quick and friendly, and the English pub food is solidly delicious.

Two of us had the fish and chips: generous portions of flaky haddock in just the right amount of batter, with really excellent fries. It is so unbelievably difficult to find a pub in Ottawa that doesn't oversalt the fries, but these were perfectly seasoned.

The other people in our group had the cottage pie and the elk and mushroom pie; both dishes were enjoyed immensely. I tasted a bit of the elk pie and it was fantastic: tender chunks of meat with a smooth, rich gravy with just a hint of herb flavour. Stick-to-yer-ribs comfort food at its finest. In fact, we liked this one so much that we picked up a couple of "elk pies on the fly" to take home with us! They have a wide selection of frozen pies, curries and other goodies all ready to go and quite reasonably priced.

The Cheshire Cat deserves some recognition as well for serving so many local products. Beer, meat, veg, cheese, bread, you name it; it seems like most of the menu is produced in Ottawa or the surrounding area. The people who ordered the meat pies commented on how fresh their vegetable sides were; what an improvement over typical pub veg! I just wish they were located a bit closer to home so I could go there more often!

hmmmmm wellll We were there on Sat past I had the curried lamb - my friend had the shaved beef on a bun. We went for the fish and chips and should have had it. We were both mildly disappointed. However the lime cheese cake - WOW very good - so tart. We'll go back for the fish n'chips. The decor is very 'cute' but even cute could use a cleaning now and then....
Sorry Cheshire Cat - the day we were there you were more like a kitten.

Excellent craft beer selection. My fish and chips were very good. My wife had the green curry which was ok, but lacked the punch of a really good green curry we'd make at home or pick up at one of our favorite Thai places. A nice plus is that they listed gluten free menu items right on the menu.

Even as full as we were our servers enthusiasm about their in house had to be sampled we shared a maple bread pudding that was very good. Hard to compare since this was my first time trying this dessert. It reminded me of chaumiere that my mom used to make just a little less sweet. Certainly will be trying this again when out!

This place never leaves us wanting. Last night was perfect our servers were super friendly and gave great recommendations. Last time there I only got to try a small piece of his fish and chips so I ordered the large portion. Well I can say this portion was extra huge I thnk a bigger plate was in order. Not often I can't finish what is on my plate I had to give in last night. I didn't eat too many fries since I had to concentrate on the giant portion of fish burying them. Fish was moist,batter crisp. The one negative was the slaw a tad on the bitter side. Busy place the parking lot was full when we arrived at 5:15 so go early if you do not want to wait.

I had the two piece here the other day and its was very very good. The batter is excellent and the fish itself was plentiful and delicious. I thought the fries were decent, however the coleslaw was not up to par. Two of my kids had the kids size and there was a bit left over. Still tasted good heated up the next day, which says a lot.

The fish is a beautiful large fillet, just like you would get in England. The batter (not breading) is tasty but understated -- less crispy than usual but more so than what you get at The Glen Scottish Restaurant. My impressive appetite was satisfied with the 1-piece meal but I'd happily put away a second piece of fish ($5 extra) in the name of gluttony. ;-)

The chips were fine but nothing special (great with malt vinegar and ketchup). Tartar sauce was middle of the road. Coleslaw looked a little brown on the edges and dried out so I didn't even try it.

I'd love to see this dish offered with thick, dark, British chips and a side of mushy peas! Anyway, it's all about the fish and I will be back.

11.95 for one piece of haddock, chips, coleslaw and veg’s—mushy peas anyone? You get the fantastic pub atmosphere, good fresh fish (haddock only), slightly seasoned fries, slaw and choice of veg. Unless you have a bottomless pit do not order the 2 Piece (2 footballs! for $15.95). All kinds of beer on tap (including Lug’s) and, so they claim, more single malt scotch options than anyone around. It’s good but huge and the fries aren’t quite “pure”, fresh and crisp. Love the atmosphere, people (staff & clientele), entertainment Sat. aft. Bit pricey for f&c but really good. Friday evenings in particular you may have to wait for a table—just checking out what’s on tap is entertaining!

I love their fish and chips and have them pretty much every time we go here. The fish is a nice-sized chunk of haddock, lightly breaded and fried until golden brown and the fish inside is good and flaky. The fries appear to be fresh-cut and are served with malt vinegar, something I can't always find for my fries at many of the pubs in Ottawa!

Two words: Hobgoblin draught!

A very nice selection of beers. They even carry Beau's for all you Lagerboys. :P

I told you before. I'm not buying you a smart phone.

The new wood fired pizza oven is now up and running. It is outdoors, and I'm not sure if they are doing it 7 days a week (check their facebook page).

The pizza is great! Margherita pizza (son's order) was tasty, with lots of basil! (no skimping on that here). I had a a pizza with cheese, prosciutto, olives, arugula, and Parmesan shavings. Also very good. I noticed a bit a difference in the crusts - mine was what I would consider perfect. My son's order was only slightly thicker.

Prices were in line with other places I think - 13 for the Marghertita, 16 for mine. Top of the line price was 18. Pizza was the size of a large dinner plate, cut into 4s.

I would say the pizza on its own may leave you a bit hungry if it is your only food order, however the great beer easily managed to fill the void.

Someday when I have a smart phone, you may see pictures.