ottawa foodies

I've eaten here a handful of times and I am generally satisfied with the freshness and flavour of the food. The only problem I have is that portions can be somewhat small for the price. That being said, I really enjoy their soups (especially the daal lentil soup and mulligatawny soup) that comes with a slice of organic bread and butter, and the samosas are a nice snack that come with a fantastic sweet-spicy dipping sauce.

The painted potatoes are a hit and miss depending on the chosen toppings. I have had underwhelming painted potatoes, and I've also had fantastic painted potatoes. I found the mushroom painted potato topping underwhelming as well as the three bean chili. I enjoyed these toppings: steamed vegetables with tahini-mayo, broccoli and cheese, Avocatofu, and dhal. I've also had the pesto before which is nice but I think it would be better over the steamed vegetables.

You can expect to pay about $10 for a meal and $5 for a soup+bread.

I have eaten here quite a few times. It's a nice counter balance to the utter crap that is served at OttawaU. Well, in defense of the caf, it has drastically improved over the last few years.

Perfection-Satisfaction-Promise is run by a religious group that venerates a deceased 'guru' named Sri Chinmoy. I have written a number of essays on this guy as part of my Religious Studies degree, and it could be argued that this is a cult of personality (not in the political way however).

Never-the-less, I have never once been proselytized to at this place. The people who work there are really friendly and the food is quite good at a reasonable price.

I agree with Cait below, that some of the dishes are hit and miss, but there are a few that are phenomenal. I for one am not a huge fan of the painted potatoes they serve, so I will not comment on them. My girlfriend and all her friends seem to love them.

In general, I find they are excellent at executing curries and general Indian items. They have excellent samosas, Indian soups (mulligatawny or daal) and curries. For breakfast they offer the most amazing muesli and yogurt. This is the closest thing to Finnish muesli I have had in Canada. The yoghurt is super fresh too. It’s not sweetened, so you can add honey and it becomes super yummi. I highly recommend this place for an uber nutritious breakfast.

Attached is a picture of an 'Indian special' that I had back in December. I don’t think this is always on the menu. The special consisted of an eggplant curry (which was delish), basmati, daal, mulligatawny soup and a papadam. For 10 bucks or so, this was a fantastic meal. I almost wanted to lick the plate.

I have also eaten salads here, and they are quite good as well. I find that they are a little skimpy for the large salad, but that is just me.

Overall, this place serves wonderful food and most of all, it is very healthy. When I am near campus for long periods of time, this restaurant is a staple for me.

I eat lunch here at least once a week, often more. The prices are great, the food comes quickly and the staff is very friendly. The dishes I find can be a little hit-or-miss, sometimes erring on the side of bland. However, I've tried just about every item on the menu and there are some real gems. I really like the sour cream and pesto over mashed potatoes, the assorted paninis they have, samosas and the mushroom gravy poutine. I really <3 the mango lime juice as well. This is probably my favourite place in Ottawa for a quick, satisfying lunch.
I really don't understand the whole 'creeped out by the guru' thing. These people have decided to devote their entire lives to their religion, and I understand why they would want to decorate their establishment accordingly. I have been here over 50 times in the past 5 years and not once has anyone ever said anything to me about Sri Chinmoy or even given me a pamphlet.
The food is good, get over it :P

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE THIS PLACE! They always have daily specials, there's a great bunch of vegan options and the soups are always delicious. The vegan cheesecake is very very good and they carry veggie samosas and quiches for a veggie meal on the go. I like the atmosphere personally because the servers are sweet and friendly, the place is tiny but refreshing. I don't mind the spiritual aspect of it at all and I have never felt like their beliefs have been forced on me. If you're in the area and hungry, I would definitely recommend this place (as long as you're not with a large crowd).

I ate dinner here recently with a friend, neither of us being vegetarian but both appreciating the excellent food.

I started with their gypsy soup which was the soup of the day. It was a nicely spiced bowl of soup with lots of chickpeas and squash - very hearty and it came with a slice of delicious bread.

The person who took our order ended up forgetting to place it so in compensation she brought us a tray of papadums which were delicious - sadly they didn't have any mango chutney.

For dinner, my friend ordered the half-poutine and half-broccoli and cheese over rice which was...strange but he loved it. I tried it and it was tasty although not your usual Ottawa poutine by any means.

I had half chickpea curry and half tofu tamari on top of a sweet potato. It was delicious although after a while, I found the sweet potato part to be a bit overwhelming.

Before we left, our server brought us two complimentary sesame-ball type things for dessert. I wish I could give a better description - they sort of tasted like sesame and nut butter made into a ball? Anyway, I thought that was very sweet of them especially considering that we didn't have to wait THAT long.

All in all, the food was very good and I'd go back. The music is REALLY irritating at times but I think that's just me!

I found it a little creepy. Though it was not "pushed" on me or anything, it was prominently displayed everywhere. Afterwards I did some research on the web and didn't like what I learned. But, hey, if it's their choice, it's their choice.

I would probably eat there more if it wasn't for the guru thing.

I suppose you are right - that place in Westboro with all the Elvis stuff certainly creeped the hell out of me and I'll never go back after my first time. Same can be said for many "sports bars" and other "themed" restos.

We have eaten at the Ottawa location. It is not "pushed on you", per se, but it is definitely a prominent feature (walls, menu, dress, etc.). Didn't bother me any, and I'd go back for the food, but it creeped my husband out (his words, not mine). Different strokes for different folks. I'm sure a restaurant full of other emblems symbolic of another faith or belief system, say, Jesus icons and Biblical passages, would bother some folks too. If you're going to outwardly display these things, its a business risk you take -- not everyone is going to like it.

I'm curious about your comment "the guru thing is not for me". I have not eaten here, but I've eaten a lot at their restaurant in Halifax and at least at that one the "guru thing" is in no way, shape or form pushed on you. Sure there are pictures of Sri Chimnoy everywhere, with books and pamphlets and so on. But it certainly isn't in your face. We've only ever gone for the excellent food.

The food is very good. The guru thing is not for me.