Ottawa – Plenty of Good Eats

Tomorrow I leave Ottawa for New York City. I’ve been to Ottawa a couple times before, but never ate so consistently well as I did this go around.

My first dinner was at Domus Cafe, which proudly features regional cuisine, and does it a delightful service.

Breakfast the next morning was at Benny’s Bistro, where I had an excellent croissant (they’re a French baker).

Lunch that day came from the Black Tomato, where I sat at the bar, chatted with the restaurant’s manager (and maybe owner) while quaffing a St. Ambrose Pale and eating a good tandoori chicken platter.

Dinner was served at Whalebone Oyster House, probably the most yupscale of all the places I ate. The raw oysters and other seafood were delectable.

The only disappointment was my dinner the following night, at Khao Thai. It was talked up on Chowhound, but maybe I ordered wrong — the choo chee fish was nowhere near as good as what I get delivered to my house in Berkeley.

Today began with a fresh-from-the-oven bran muffin at Jodalina, and then off to Cumberland for an all-you-can-eat “sugarbush” buffet at Proulx Farm, which offered up excellent (thick and eggy) pancakes, beans cooked in maple syrup, and crispy pork. Oh, and maple TAFFY ON SNOW, which I’d never heard of before, and which is made by pouring maple syrup over snow or ice, letting it start to harden, and then affixing to a stick from which you consume it. SUGAR SHOCK.

Today ended with a delightful meal at the Wellington Gastropub, a cozy yet modern eatery, where I had an excellent parmesan risotto, and Ontario pickerel, something I’ve never seen in my part of the country. The beer selection was high quality as well. (As were the delightful people I ate with!)

Next time I’m in Ottawa, I want to do more downscale ethnic stuff. We drove through the Chinatown area (more of a Pan-Asia Town), and there were many enticing options there…