OTTAWA, Ontario — It's tulip festival time in Canada's capital. Thousands upon thousands of colorful tulips are in bloom on the outskirts of downtown Ottawa.
What a great excuse for a road trip. And of course, a great excuse to sample one of the great restaurants in this lovely city.
The historic Byward Market district is a must this time of year. It's a two-block area filled with shops and pubs and restaurants and street vendors. Soon farmers from outlying towns will be selling fresh produce off the backs of their trucks, a ritual that city dwellers look forward to every year.
There's cuisine of all kinds, from Italian to Irish, Japanese to Vietnamese.
Dine indoors or outdoors; formal or informal. It's all within easy walking distance in the Market.
We found a restaurant that covers all the bases. It's called The Black Tomato. It's funky and fun; its food and music are eclectic, and there's some wild artwork on the walls of this vintage 1800s building.
The neat little old-time wooden bar in a corner of the open dining room drew us in like a magnet.
If you were looking for a chocolate martini, you came to the wrong place. They've got one vodka, Absolut, and one rye, Canadian Club. They're stocked to the hilt with great imports and microbrews on tap and a myriad of single-malt scotches. And a very nice assortment of wines by the glass, half-liter and liter.
The menu is a mix that can work only in a big city. Get started with chicken curry filos, crab cakes or quesadillas. Or coconut, chicken and galangal soup.
Or toasted naan bread wth tzatziki dip.
On a warm summer day, enjoy a fresh salad in the courtyard. Have a Greek salad or a spinach salad or a sautéed tofu salad. Or how about a warm pecan-crusted chèvre (goat cheese) salad with wild mushrooms?
Sandwiches? Smoked salmon antojito. Vegetable tortilla trwist. Grilled artichoke and tomato flatina.
And entrées like Asian pork tenderloin, roasted red pepper agolotti, grilled barbecued duck breast, and cracked black pepper-crusted filet mignon.
Pinky was our server. She delivered a basket of warm bread knots to our table. Was that blueberry butter in the basket? She was laid back and cool and fit right in. While the guys were exploring the bar, the ladies ordered baked brie and mango chutney ($9.95) for the table.
There was no bartender, per se, but a very knowledgeable and enthusiastic employee saw us gazing at the selection of draft beer and helped with some good recommendations.
Back at the table, two balls of warm brie had arrived, encased in light, buttery puff pastry, served on a plate painted with mango chutney.
Next we ordered spanakopita ($8.99), delicate filo pastry wrapped around a blend of spinach, feta, leeks and onions, served with tzatziki, a cucumber yogurt dill sauce. Tasty little morsels. Pea sprouts protruding from the ramekin of tzatziki were a nice touch.
We ordered lime chicken and avocado salad ($11.95). Pinky must have noticed that we shared the appetizers, and brought the salad to us on four chilled plates.
Good move.
Beautiful baby garden greens together with chopped tomatoes, Kalamata olives, shredded cheddar, scallions and corn chips (which added a nice crunch) were tossed with an avocado dressing sporting a hint of garlic. And of course, bite-sized pieces of grilled, lime-marinated chicken. We liked this a lot.
A fresh filet of Atlantic salmon ($21.99) is marinated in Ontario maple syrup and perfectly cooked, moist and tender inside. A very interesting potato pancake made with green onion and dotted with flecks of bacon was served alongside. The plate was completed with an artistic medley of market vegetables that included broccoli, sliced carrots, snap peas and squares of sweet red pepper.
Prosciutto-stuffed chicken breast ($21.95) was filled with more than just the cured Italian ham. It was a mousse of baby spinach, prosciutto, asiago and padano cheeses, served over a bed of potato gnocchi, marinated portobello mushrooms (excellent!), chunks of onion, roasted red peppers and zucchini.
Spicy Thai noodle bowl ($18.99) was "nicely spiced," according to the Thai food fan at our table. It contained lots of rice noodles, authentic Thai sauce, fresh sea scallops, tiger shrimp and julienned vegetables. A delightful dish.
Perhaps it was a selling feature. Or maybe it was a warning. The description under chicken and shrimp jambalaya ($18.99) began: HOT! HOT! HOT! Actually, there were seven "HOT!"s. Pinky said the kitchen could do it half-hot. Being a bit of a wimp when it comes to hot, I asked if it could be done quarter-hot.
Well, it came out pretty hot. Even the Thai guy at the table thought it was hot.
It's a rice and tomato dish with diced green and red bell pepper, a good number of nice sized shrimp, quite a bit of smoky sausage and pieces of dark chicken meat.
All entrées were very nicely presented and arrived at the table hot.
Wine pairings are indicated with most of the menu items. We tried a half-liter of Penfolds Koonuga Chardonnay ($23.95) from Australia and a Cline Zinfandel ($27.95) from California, seemingly a little more costly than we are used to paying in restaurants in the States. A St. Ambroise Rousse beer was $5.25.
Lemonata sparkling water cost $2.49.
Desserts included chocolate chip cheesecake ($5.50), Bailey's cheesecake ($5.50) and "Mrs. B's" homemade apple cranberry cobbler with oatmeal crumbs ($3.95). The cheesecakes had a commercial look to them, but tasted great. We all agreed the cobbler was excellent.
Dinner for four cost $148 in Canadian funds, or about $137 with the exchange.
Beer and wine came to $67 or $57 U.S. These prices include 15 percent in Canadian taxes, some of which you can reclaim at the border by filling out some paperwork at the duty-free store.
Other than the carpet needing a serious vacuuming, our visit to The Black Tomato was a very positive experience. There's even a selection of eclectic CDs for sale that you can preview at a listening station.
And many of the menu items are available for purchase — the soup, the mango chutney, the avocado dressing, the Thai sauce and the barbecue sauce served with the duck breast.
TIDBITS
The Ottawa tulip festival runs through May 21. Get complete information at www.tulipfestival.ca
High school prom season will be upon us shortly. If your kids will be going to a restaurant on prom night, be sure they understand the custom of leaving a gratuity and how to figure it. Doubling the amount of the sales tax is a good starting point that equals approximately 15 percent. The norm these days is 15 percent to 20 percent.
You can contact Walter E. Siebel via e-mail: wsiebel@wdt.net.
The Black Tomato
11 George St.
Ottawa, Canada
1 (613) 789-8123
A funky little restaurant in Ottawa's Byward Market serving an appealing eclectic menu.
HOURS: 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. seven days a week
APPETIZER PICKS: Baked brie with mango chutney; spanakopita
ENTRÉE PICKS: Maple syrup-marinated Atlantic salmon; spicy Thai noodle bowl, chicken and tiger shrimp jambalaya
DESSERT PICK: Mrs. B's homemade apple cranberry cobbler
RATING: 4 and one-half forks
