Post by Dominic Maggiolo, Ottawa food philosopher and blogger on vegetarian food and culture. With his series of exposés on women food entrepreneurs, chefs, bakers and more, he hopes to showcase the wonderful talent here in Ottawa and in the area. Check out other posts in this series or some of Dominic’s other writings on his blog, Le Jeune Gourmand. “Ice cream is exquisite. What a pity it isn’t illegal.” Voltaire (Francois Marie Arouet) (1694-1778) – French philosopher. There couldn’t be a better time to be reading this article. With... | Continue reading article

Sun, heat, and a long weekend add up to one thing: gelato (they also add up to patios, but math was never my strong point). Gelato is ice cream’s Italian cousin: sexier, more sophisticated, and – just to add insult to injury – less fattening. Since the May long weekend marks the perfect time to indulge in the ultimate summer treat, we’ve asked Ottawa’s Twitterati to let us know who they think makes the best gelato in town. The fact that I live one block from Truffle Treasures has apparently... | Continue reading article

By Samantha Everts When you’re headed to the market for a night on the town chances are you’ll either end up at an overpriced bistro with too small portions, or you’ll gorge on greasy diner fare. If you’re looking for something different, fear not, The Collection has ambitiously taken on the challenge of providing a fun and relaxing place to enjoy delicious, locally sourced gourmet food at affordable prices – and it does so in a very cool atmosphere complete with changing art exhibits. I spoke with head Chef Ivana... | Continue reading article

Posts and photos by Jennifer and Don at FoodiePrints Almost a month ago, we were approached by Apartment613 to do a pho round up, having blogged numerous posts on the subject of Vietnamese noodle soup in Ottawa. Apartment613′s Ryan Saxby once referred to us as “pho obsessed.” After some thought, we agreed to participate. We decided to visit five pho noodle houses in Ottawa, all recommended by friends or colleagues. Practical, low cost, and satisfying, Ottawa is blessed with a large number of pho noodle houses. Pho is a popular... | Continue reading article

After the self-proclaimed success of the Apartment613 Blog Walk for last year’s Jane’s Walk festival, we decided to take a group down Bank Street to some of the more interesting stops along our favourite slice of Bank Street. About 20 walkers braved the threat of rain, collected some local lore and learned a bit about the people who make Bank Street the home for their business. Here’s a taste of what we saw…

By long-time Ottawan Samantha Everts, who ended up out west for love but quickly came back to the city she truly adores. Being an Ottawa native who is connected to alterative food culture, I’ve been spoiled by a small community initiative that has surprised and delighted me each month with a full and varied food basket. The Ottawa Good Food Box is a local collective that purchases large amounts of fruit and vegetables for bulk prices from local farmers and wholesalers while promoting food security in the many neighbourhoods it... | Continue reading article

The best part of travelling to an American university campus is  Chipotle Mexican Grill, the fast food joint that for years has had New Yorkers lining up outside for a lunch time bite is cheap, delicious and filling. So when Toronto got its own location a few years ago, we thought the expansion up North might include Ottawa. Seems it wasn’t meant to be. Instead, what Ottawa finally has is Burrito Borracho, our own healthier, more authentic version of Chipotle. Alex and Mario, two guys from Mexico, opened Burrito Borracho... | Continue reading article

Why do they call it soul food? Because after the inevitable heart attack your soul will leave your body – but rest assured, it’ll be going to heaven. Fried chicken, waffles for dinner, hushpuppies,  candied yams…just thinking about it all makes me both want to drool and dust off my gym membership. So when I heard a new soul food restaurant had opened up in Ottawa, I grabbed fellow Apartment613 editor Francois, slapped on my sweatpants and made some vague promises to hit up the Y the next day. The... | Continue reading article

Cupcakes: they’ve taken Ottawa by a storm. Critics and supporters alike have been seen to swoon after just one bite. They’ve been referred to as “the latest and greatest fad to hit the baking world since sliced bread,” “a gift from the gods,” and “cakes – but tiny!” In essence, cupcakes are a personal, not-for-sharing decadence. Curious about this tiny trend, local filmmakers from Dawghaus Studios sought out the secrets behind each cupcake lovingly created in our capital city. Bakers from Isobel’s, L’Oven and Auntie Loo’s, along with Ian Capstick... | Continue reading article

Pizza? In a cone? Am I dreaming? Help wanted ads have been spotted in Used Ottawa and Kijiji for a new pizza joint to be called Ombrellina’s Pizza. They also have a very unhelpful and slightly odd website. The store is allegedly going up at 527 Bronson and will specialize in the pizza cone, a delicacy recently featured in the ‘this is why you’re fat’ website. The Pizzacone joins House of Georgie’s Gravy pizzas in the list of locally available variations on the classic pie. The origins of this stroke... | Continue reading article