Yesterday evening, Jenn and I sequestered ourselves in a Bridgehead Coffee House. She, to work on her lessons for the coming week. Me, to sort and prioritize the many blog entries in foodiePrints' backlog. With the lunar new year only a week away, I have decided to fast track several Chinese food blogs, including one involving of a traditional multi-course wedding banquet. Many of the dishes are also served during a multi-course Chinese New Year banquet. That said, two coffees, one hot apple cider, and an oatmeal cookie later, we both had made some progress.

As luck would have it, two of our friends (@spoonsie and @isfalk), both members of the Ottawa (Elite) Brunch Club, wandered in. They had just completed a grueling session of yoga and needed to hydrate. We decided to head out to dinner together at the nearby Chilean restaurant, Vina Del Mar (1079 Wellington Street W). There, I discovered how worldly one of our dinner companions is, he quickly identifying authentic Chilean dishes and lamenting that the menu included no regional drinks. We both shared a laugh when a Mexican Mariachi trio wandered by, singing Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World."

When we parted, Jenn whispered to me she wanted dessert, so we stopped into Canvas on the way home. With the dining room fully seated, we took our regular seats along the bar and ordered from the evening's dessert menu. Then, Jenn and I realized how long it has been since we last visited the establishment. The dinner menu had changed. The Ottawa Magazine published a piece, including Canvas' Sunday brunch. And, the Urban Foodie had reviewed the restaurant in a Thursday edition of the Ottawa Metro (a complementary commuter paper). Moreover, Jenn and I had discussed the little bistro with several fellow food bloggers the week before. Everyone remarked at the deep baritone voice of one of Canvas' regular young hosts and sometimes Maitre D.

Greeting Canvas' owner, Charles Beauregard, warmly, I ordered the figs ($7.00). Jenn, the berry crumble ($7.00).

Not two days before, I had wandered by Chef Jason Laurin's Sticky Fingers blog, taking note of his asking his readers how they served their figs. Well, Canvas' kitchen serves them topped with bruleed vanilla sugar, local honey, a small piece of honey comb, and C'est Bon Goat cheese.

Figs served with honey comb, drizzles of honey, and C'est Bon Goat Cheese

Close up, showing the bruleed vanilla sugar
Like Chef Laurin, I consider figs an under appreciated fruit. Even I eat them infrequently. With winter in full swing, I was surprise to find fresh figs on the menu. I found the bruleed vanilla sugar and local honey complemented the fruity sweetness of the figs. Whereas, the sharp goat cheese offered contrast and richness. The goat cheese also went incredibly well with the honey comb. It was a blissful dessert.

What Jenn dubbed a bumble berry crumble balanced classic streusel (a mixture of flour, grains, and sugar) and fruit well. There was enough baked streusel to go with every bite of fruit.

Bumble Berry Crumble
Better still, the streusel was not overly sweet, again complementing and not competing with the baked fruit beneath. Unfortunately, as Shari Goodman wrote in her Urban Foodie review, Canvas is at its best in the summer time when locally source produce is fresh and plentiful. The raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries that both made up the crumble and accompanied it fresh, while sweet, were not vine-ripened sweet. The recipe seemed honed to feature the complex flavours and deep sweetness of fruit that was nurtured on the vine, not picked raw and ripened on a truck traveling from either Argentina or Chile.

Still, both dishes were served well and made for good desserts. Best, Canvas is known for great service. That evening again demonstrated such, everyone was friendly and attentive.

Particulars:
Canvas Resto-Bar
65 Holland Avenue
(613)729-1991

More after the jump...

With the brunch club gathering at the legendary Von's Bistro (819 Bank Street) this coming Sunday (November 30, 2009), it is time to revisit last month's (almost exactly 30 days ago) at Canvas Resto-Bar (65 Holland Avenue).

There, the club welcomed several new members. Existing ones caught up with each other. And, everyone ordered various omelette, French toast, and eggs benny (eggs benedict) breakfasts, some with sides of Piggy Market double smoked bacon. Me, I opted for the quiche, but, when plates arrived, the new hostess realized she misplaced my order in. She apologized profusely, disappeared, and a beautiful slice of quiche appeared.

Mile High Slice of Goat Cheese Quiche

In their defense, it was the day after this year's Taste of Wellington event (2009), which saw hundreds of people discover Ottawa's Epicurean Row, a neighbourhood densely packed with locally-owned eateries and fine food shops. Many people noticed Canvas offered brunch the next day. That morning, it was busy, every seat taken, with large groups, coming and going. The brunch club actually was one of the smaller tables.

My impossibly delicate quiche was very flavourful, sharp with goat cheese, carefully baked egg providing fat to carry flavour and protein for texture. Accompanying it were freshly cut home fries, crisped on the griddle, and ripe fruit. At $12.00, it was an excellent breakfast. Surprisingly, the quiche breakfast was cheaper than the omelette breakfast, it costing 50 cents more ($12.50).

The brunch club thoroughly enjoyed their meals, many vowing to return.

Particulars:
Von's Bistro
819 Bank Street
(613)233-3277

Canvas Resto-Bar
65 Holland Avenue
(613)729-1991

More after the jump...

This morning, I found myself replying to the twitter account belonging to CTV's Canada AM morning show. Its tweet wished everyone a happy Friday and asked about our weekend plans. Here is my reply:

@CTVCanadaAm Invited a bunch of people to go to an outdoor food festival in Ottawa http://www.twitpic.com/i474q. Then, Sunday brunch :)

Outdoor Food Festival:
The outdoor food festival is a "walkable tour" of what the Ottawa Citizen's recently retired food columnist Gay Cook deemed Ottawa's Epicurean Row, the Wellington West Village. Called the "Taste of Wellington", the event is the Wellington Business Improvement Association's (WBIA) third annual. The association intends the event to offer both residents and non-residents an opportunity to discover the food shops, restaurants, bakeries, and caterers along Wellington Street W., from Island Park Drive to Somerset St. W, including some along Holland Avenue. In total, 32 venues will participate, many serving free food samples.

Here is a partial list participants from the WBIA website:

• Absinthe
• Allium
• A?Roma Meze
• Bridgehead
• Canvas Resto Bar
• Cozy's Diner
• Credible Edibles
• Emerald Bakery
• Harvest Loaf Bakery
• Helen?s Cuisine
• Herb & Spice
• Istanbouli Restaurant
• Khatoon Persian Restaurant
• Nectar Specialty Tea Shop
• Ottawa Bagelshop
• Parma Ravioli
• Petit Bill's Bistro
• Royal Oak Tavern
• Siam Bistro
• Sushi Umi
• The Diner
• The Wellington Gastropub
• Thyme & Again
• Viña del Mar
• 3 Bakers and a Bike
• 3 Tarts Bake Shop

My more loyal readers will immediately recognize a number of these food shops and eateries as the foodiePrints' team calls this neighborhood home. We visit many of them often.

Besides food shops and eateries, other area shops and local galleries will also participate by setting up sidewalk sales, holding special tours, and hosting live music. The Westboro Massage will set up a street side massage station. The Elmdale House Tavern will host Barry Buse and his band Still Dangerous just outside its doors.

The Taste of Wellington will also launch the Herb and Spice's 36th anniversary celebrations. And, the Great Canadian Theatre Company at the corner of Holland and Wellington will offer a peek at its new cafe, Viva Loca.

The event starts at 1:30 pm on Saturday, September 26, 2009 and runs until 3:30 pm.

Unlike last year, to participate, admission may not be free. Participants may be required to purchase a $5 button. This, according to September 2009 edition of the Hintonburg Voice, the Hintonburg Community Association's newsletter.

...2009 will see one major improvement: visitors will now purchase a $5 button to participate in the event, with all proceeds going directly to charity...

Having spoken to several of the venues, I have not been able to get this confirmed. The cards (above) only say that the samples are free.

After the event, the WBIA encourages everyone to stay, shop, and make reservations for dinner.

Me, I decided to invite a number of people to join me and Jenn on a "foodie crawl." Our aim, to wander the neighbourhood in a large group, sampling, chatting, and having a great time. It will also be a mini-tweet-up as several of the tweeps I follow will be coming along.

Sunday Brunch:
The next day, Jenn and I chose Canvas to host September's meeting of our brunch club. This time around, we went beforehand to try it, as we did not want a repeat of another somewhat disastrous brunch.

Canvas now serves brunch from 10:30 am until 2:30 pm. Here is the menu from our visit.

Menu

From it, I ordered the eggs benedict ($14.00) and a coffee ($2.75)

Eggs Benny
Instead of the traditional ham, in-house duck prosciutto was substituted giving the runny yolks a cured flavour to carry. It was served with surprisingly flavourful smashed fingerling potatoes with sweated onions, fresh melon, a wedge of grape fruit, a slice of ripe white Niagara peach, and local berries.

Runny Poached Eggs

Duck Prosciutto

Jenn ordered the frittata of the day ($12.50) with brioche toast and a lychee juice ($2.75). The frittata turned out to be zucchini.

Zucchini Frittata
Accompanying the frittata were the same sides as mine.

Jenn thoroughly enjoyed her frittata. It was made with fresh young zucchini, onions, and very young chives. She feels that it was started on the stove top with butter, but finished in an oven. The egg was delicate, lightly seasoned, and seasonal.

All-in-all we were impressed, making Canvas a good candidate for the brunch club.

Here is Canvas' new business card:

Business Card

This just in: The thrift shop on Wellington got into the spirit of the Taste of Wellington too.

Display in front of St. Vincent De Paul

Particulars:
Canvas Resto-Bar
65 Holland Avenue
(613)729-1991

My better half and I just had a spectacular dinner at Canvas to celebrate the end of summer. I swear, it seems that every time we visit this restaurant, the food keeps getting better, aspiring to match its tremendous friendly service.

Mine, was a beet root soup starter with a fish of the day special: a lovely fillet of Ontario walleye, peppered, pan seared and served with a beurre blanc. It was accompanied by yellow peppers, shallots, and a halved and grilled Asian egg plant. The walleye, besides being wonderfully tender, went well with the sauce that mingled with the juices from both the fish itself and the yellow peppers. It was the best fish course I have had in months, and I just returned from Vancouver! The beet root was garnished with a dollop of creme fraiche, which gave the earthy sweet taste of the soup just a little richness.

Hers, was a lovely plate of gnocchi with local field green peas, sun dried tomatoes, and seared local cherry tomatoes. It is amazing what freshly-made does for gnocchi, almost delicate and smooth, not at all starchy like store-bought. It was also garnished with creme fraiche to give a little richness and carry the flavors of the veg.

Between the seasonal fish and veg, dinner at Canvas was an excellent way to celebrate the fall's coming bounty.

Oh, Jenn also had strawberry and golden kiwi cheesecake, beautifully garnished with swirls of raspberry coulis on the plate, and locally source berries. The cheesecake was rich, yet light and sweet, yet bright.

Total cost: $76.15 (including drinks, taxes, before tip)

PS: Regarding why there are no pictures of this meal, my powder blue Casio EX-S600 bit the dust. Its CCD mishandles light so badly that I am forced to look for a new one. With the foodiePrints prototype online, I am thinking of going SLR to match the new functionality!

Particulars:
Canvas Resto-Bar
65 Holland Avenue
(613)729-1991

More after the jump...

After missing March's Hintonburg Supper Club event, my better half and I vowed to attend the next one. Having exhausted the restaurants on Wellington Street, April's event was held at the Canvas Resto-Bar on Holland Avenue.

Canvas Resto-Bar
For RSVP'ers, owner Charles Beauregard put together a very respectable table d'hote. The starter was soup (the day's "chef's creation") and a small seasonal salad. The main, a choice between steak or poultry. The dessert, a choice between custard or chocolate mousse.

Menu
Cost: $45 before tip or taxes and drinks were extra. For drinks, Jenn and I ordered "Whispers of Summer" ($5.90 for 2), which is an off-the-menu mixture of citrus and mango juices that features some very summery flavours. It is quite refreshing.

The starter turned out to be a roasted tomato soup and it came with a mixed green salad.

Soup and Salad Starter
The soup was finished with finely shredded Parmesan. The salad featured young dandelion leaves sprinkled with pecans and a raspberry citrus dressing.

While the salad was more seasonal (a wonderful mixture of peppery greens, cherry tomatoes, and a sweet and tart dressing), the soup tasted like a throwback to fall. That is when tomatoes are ripe in Ottawa. It tasted of concentrated tomato, punctuated with sharp tastes from the cheese. Served with Art-Is-In bread and slightly caramel-tasting brown butter (beurre noisette), the dinner opened with promise of good things to come.

For my main, I chose the Quebec Guinea Fowl Supreme: breast meat quarter with wing drumette (aka: date portion).

Poultry Main
It came with sauteed green string beans and smashed fingerling potatoes. The plate was drizzled with a red wine reduction.

I found the supreme portion somewhat overdone for my tastes, slightly harsh. However, its sides were well cooked and well portioned, allowing me to pair meat with either potato or string beans for very agreeable mouthfuls. The fingerling potatoes were a welcomed change to singularly textured mashed.

For her main, Jenn chose the steak frites.

Steak Main
The steak was a tenderloin cut. It was accompanied with bistro fries and a garlicy aioli. The plate was drizzled with a port reduction.

My better half seemed to enjoy her meal. The bite of steak she gave me came from the outer portion of her steak. It was quite well done. Since she ordered medium, this meant that only the center of her steak was done as requested. The fries and aioli, on the other hand, were freshly made and creamy respectively.

For dessert, we both had the Kahlua Creme Brulee

Creme Brulee
The creme brulee, with its delicate custard and thin melted sugar crust, was served with fresh berries and a slice of mint. Their acidity and freshness helped to cut the richness of the custard.

Overpowering Bite
However, the custard itself tasted overpoweringly of Kahlua, each bite packing a powerful alcoholic punch. Less would have been greatly appreciated. Jenn couldn't finish her dessert. I mostly finished mine as I enjoy portioning properly crusted creme brulee with a spoon - every bite of custard with some sugar crust.

All in all, the meal was good and our table mates (Joanne and Brad) sang the restaurant praises both before and after dinner. Save for the dessert, we agreed. What issues we had were minor. The platings were very fetching. Service was also spectacular. Food was served quickly and efficiently.

Beauregard, who was our host, knew his menu and restaurant well, happily sharing information about its dishes and wine. In fact, the yellow chair that is randomly placed in the dining room from evening to evening is a result of he having extra yellow paint during renovations after Absinthe took its leave. It is meant as a conversation starter and was very effective.

The Yellow Chair

Much of our dinner conversation was about the restaurant scene in Ottawa, Ottawa's food critics (including a certain Ottawa Citizen Food Editor), and the Ottawa Magazine. When Canvas was mentioned, Beauregard interjected that the year it was listed on Chris Knight's "To Watch List", Knight walked into the restaurant within days of its opening.

Knight, in the unlikely situation that you are reading this review, I feel that Canvas is a good fine food eatery. It has potential to be much more. Determination: Ethnic European French/British: -$$$, --***

Here is Canvas' business card:

Front

Back

Almost forgot: If requested, Beauregard signs copies of special event menus for you. I plan on collecting special event menus from restaurants when they are offered to patrons.

Updated: If you're interested in brown butter (beurre noisette), The Traveler's Lunchbox blog has a recipe for brown butter ice cream.

Particulars:
Canvas Resto-Bar
65 Holland Avenue
(613)729-1991

More after the jump...