ottawa foodies

I was there a couple nights ago; saw the new signage from the bus stop across the street and headed over to check it out. I had warby's cabbage dish but instead of tofu I opted for the pork belly. It was YUMMY! They will be adding more items to their menu once they get established.
I also ordered their rice balls - they too were yummy. They were a decent size. The stuffing this time was the tofu.

Definitely try the Rideau Crisps (˜$5 for eight pieces). These are sheets of seaweed coated with rice paste and then deep fried to an addictively crunchy texture. They are then drizzled with a sweet-spicy sauce and topped with sesame seeds and what might have been threads of fried onion. So delicious! I can't wait to go back and try their KFC.

This new delightful little place is a charming addition to the Ottawa food scene. With an utterly unpretentious but cozy interior, you might feel as though you're a guest in the home of a friendly family. There are just three or four tables for two and a small bar (4 seats) facing out to the Rideau Street sidewalk.

The menu has several Korean “bites” so it would be a great place to drop in for a snack. There are also full meal dishes. Pictured here is one of the more unique items involving rice wrapped in boiled cabbage and topped with marinated tofu. The selection of foods here is impressive for the size of the place and there are a number of items you won't find anywhere else in town.

The Bulgogi Beef Bibimbap ($11.95) was excellent. It didn't have the usual egg and the veggies were not warmed up but the overall experience was toothsome and delicious nevertheless! The rice was perfectly cooked with a nice chewiness and it had red pepper sauce mixed in for some zing. The beef was tasty and all the different veggie components made this an excellent and satisfying meal.

The KFC offerings here are either crispy wings or boneless Crispy Crunchy Chicken chunks ($8.85 plus extra for sauce, either sweet-spicy or honey-soy). This time, I went with the boneless chunks. As I don't love the sweetness of the sauces I went for the unsauced option, which works out to $10 even after tax.

This is effectively a premium popcorn chicken. The price is pretty high but the quality matches. Succulent, savoury, and impossibly crispy. I had just this for lunch and while it wasn't a lot of food it kept me going for the afternoon.

This is the Korean Style Katsu ($9.95), consisting of a pork cutlet wrapped around stringy mozzarella cheese all breaded and fried to a crisp. It is accompanied by a rice ball (you can choose spicy or not).

This was pretty awesome. Tender pork, gooey cheese, crunchy coating, addictive and toothsome rice ball. My only complaint is that it lacks a veggie component. Next time I'll ask for a side order of kimchi to make it a meal.

This time I did try the Kimmari ($6.65) with my Spicy Rice Cakes ($8.95) and it was a mistake. Piping hot and crunchy, it is as described on the menu: a pile of sweet potato glass noodles wrapped in a sheet of seaweed then lightly battered and deep fried.

Unfortunately, the kimmari was cooked in rancid oil, which had seeped in through the batter and soaked the noodles. I mentioned this to the owner so hopefully this was just a one-time mishap. Tip: if you smell rancid oil when you enter the restaurant you may want to stay away from deep fried menu items. I noticed the smell before ordering, but dismissed it as probably just old oil splashed on the stovetop or something...

The spicy rice cake tteokbokki was perfect as usual! They gave us a nice little sample of kimbap (sushi-type roll) and that's definitely what I'll get to accompany my spicy rice cakes next time!

The Spicy Rice Cakes ($8.95) are thick, chewy, and super addictive. They ask what spice level you want and I chose to go one below the highest. This was spicy enough to hit the zippy zinger buttons but I could handle more and will request full spice next time.

The portion size is like a hearty snack so I padded my order with a small kimchi ($3) to make it a meal. That was a lot of kimchi to eat in one sitting! I think maybe the ultimate accompaniment to the tteokbokki would be the Kimmari (deep fried seaweed rolls stuffed with sweet potato noodles).

The Gimbap ($5.50) is one of the really great options here. Like a large diameter, thinly sliced vegetarian sushi roll, it makes an excellent snack or a starch-and-veg accompaniment to another menu item. I had it with Tteokbokki but it would also be fantastic with Korean Fried Chicken!

This new menu item (actually off menu, as I had to ask about it) Icy Noodle is perfect on a hot day. A pile of chewy noodles sitting in a lake of salty cold broth with chunks of slushy ice. A dollop of gochujang adds a little spicy-sweetness to the experience, julienned cucumber and sliced radish give fresh crunch, and half a boiled egg supplies protein.

At ~$12.95+tax, I found it to be on the small side for something served in a disposable bowl but it turned out to be satisfying enough and I paid almost that much for a fast food combo (A&W Beyond burger with rings) this week so I should just shut up. :-)

They offered me a little condiment cup with a tiny bit of mustard oil in it, along with a verbal warning to take only a tiny amount. Man that stuff tastes weaponized! It's like wasabi concentrate, adding a fun sinusal assault to each sip.