Before anyone asks, yes it has been almost 3 weeks since foodiePrints has seen an update and this one is only a linker to something I put together for another website. Rest assured we have not forgotten our own blog. We have however been revisiting the new layout we mentioned earlier this past fall and will be re-launching foodiePrints with a slew of new entries. For those of you who follow us on Twitter, these entries will include foodiePrints taken at restaurants in Toronto from our 3 and a half day visit during New Years.

That said, just before the Christmas holidays, Ian Capstick (@iancapstick) from MediaStyle asked us if we would like to write a guest post, listing our favourite Ottawa food blogs. We already maintain a non-definitive list of them. While somewhat tardy, I cobbled a piece together and it has been posted on the MediaStyle website.

Here is a screen capture for posterity:

foodiePrints on Ian Capstick's MediaStyle website

It was literally an honour to write the guest post. Ian and co-owner Shawn Dearn of MediaStyle are really good people. Their media work, more recently donated to a successful TEDxOttawa, is impressive. Moreover, Ian is usually one of the first tweeps many Ottawa residents come across when they go on Twitter. He was one of the first I followed. He is approachable and he genuinely cares about developing better communities.

The post also allowed me to showcase what I feel are three of Ottawa's best dedicated food blogs: Whisk: A Food Blog, Rachelle Eats Food, and Nooschi. Go to MediaStyle's blog to find out why. Visit the food blogs too. I guarantee you will develop an appetite reading Shari's, Rachelle's, and Jessica's blogs.

During the most recent Hintonburg supper club, I spoke with a neighbourhood local who was surprised when I told her that there were dozens of local food blogs besides foodiePrints. I then directed her to foodiePrints' list of Ottawa food blogs. But, I neglected to tell her that a number of local eateries and Beau's Natural Brewery also maintain blogs. Many more have gone on Twitter to micro-blog. Here is a list of eateries and the like that Tweet:

Coffee Houses:
Bridgehead Coffee House(s)
Blog: Bridgehead: A blog for Bridgehead Staff and Friends
Twitter:

• @Bridgehead
• Ian Clark (@_IanClark)

Address: Various locations in Ottawa

Morning Owl Coffee House
Twitter: @morning_owl
Address: 538 Rochester Street, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613) 680-8336

Two Monkeys and Coffee and Tea House
Facebook: Two Monkeys Coffee and Tea House
Twitter: @2MonkeysCoffee
Address: 14-4100 Standherd Drive (Cedarview Square), Barrhaven
Phone Number: (613)843-7463

Restaurants:
Atelier Restaurant
Blog: Atelier Restaurant
Facebook: Atelier Restaurant
Twitter:

• Chef/Owner Marc Lepine (@marclepine)
• Chef Michael Holland (@pastryoverlord, twitpic)
• Chef Sarah Allen (@sarah_j_allen)

YouTube Channel: AtelierOttawa
Address: 540 Rochester Street, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613) 321-3537

Beckta Dining and Wine
Twitter:

• Co-Owner Stephen Beckta (@stevebeckta)
• Co-Owner/Chef Michael Moffatt (@michaelmoffatt)

Address: 226 Nepean Street, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613) 238-7063

Bin 790 Bistro Tapas & Wine Bar
Twitter: @bin790bto
Address: 790 Kanata Avenue, Kanata
Phone Number: (613) 591-3287

Blue Cactus Bar & Grill (Firestone Group)
Facebook: Firestone Restaurant Group
Twitter:

• @bluecactusbandg
• Firestone Restaurants (@frginthemarket)

Address: 2 ByWard Market, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613) 241-7061
E-mail: info@bluecactusbarandgrill.com

Credible Edibles
Twitter: @creded
Address: 78 Hinton Avenue North, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613) 558-7569

Cobra
Twitter: @CobraOttawa
YouTube Channel: CobraOttawa
Address: ?
Phone Number: ?

Courtyard Restaurant
Facebook: Courtyard Restaurant Staff Past and Present
Twitter:

• @courtyard
• Chef Michael Hay (@michaelthehay)
• Line Cook Curtis Luk (@blueicus)

YouTube Channel: Michaelthehay
Address: 21 George Street, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613) 241-1516

D'Arcy McGee's (Ottawa)
Twitter: General Manager Jeff O'Reilly (@pintinhand)
Address: 44 Sparks Street, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613) 230-4433

DiVino Wine Studio
Blog: DiVino Wine Studio
Twitter:

• @DiVinoOttawa
• Event Coordinator Larissa Beznaczuk (@LarissaOttawa)

Address: 225 Preston Street, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613)221-9760

Farbs Kitchen and Wine Bar
Twitter: @Farbskitchen
Address: 18 Beechwood Avenue, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613)744-6509

Le Cafe
Twitter: Chef Michael Blackie (@michaelblackie)
YouTube Channel: MBcuisine's Channel
Address: 53 Elgin Street, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613)594-5127

Luxe Bistro (Firestone Group)
Facebook: Firestone Restaurant Group
Twitter:

• @luxebistro
• Chef Duane Keats (@DuaneKeats)
• Firestone Restaurants (@frginthemarket)

Address: 47 York Street, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613)241-8805

Navarra Restaurant
Blog: The Iron Bull
Facebook: Navarra Restaurant
Twitter: @navarrarest
YouTube Channel: NavarraRestaurant
Address: 93 Murray Street, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613) 241-5500

Petit Bill's Bistro
Twitter: @littlebills
Address: 1293 Wellington Street W., Ottawa
Phone Number: (613) 729-2500
E-mail: petitbillsbistro@gmail.com

Play Food and Wine
Facebook: Play Food and Wine
Twitter:

• @playfoodandwine
• Co-Owner Stephen Beckta (@stevebeckta)
• Co-Owner/Chef Michael Moffatt (@michaelmoffatt)

Address: 1 York Street
Phone Number: (613) 667-9207

Santé Restaurant
Twitter: @santeresto
Address: 45 Rideau Street
Phone Number: (613) 241-7113

Stella Osteria (Firestone Group)
Facebook: Firestone Restaurant Group
Twitter:

• @stellaosteria
• Firestone Restaurants (@frginthemarket)

Address: 81 Clarence Street
Phone Number: (613) 241-2200

Stoneface Dolly's
Twitter: @stonefacedollys
Address: 416 Preston Street
Phone Number: (613) 564-2222

Thi Fusion
Twitter: @ThiFusion
Address: 790 Kanata Avenue
Phone Number: (613) 599-0880

Toss It Up: Fresh to Go
Twitter: @tossitup
Address: 208 -parks Street
Phone Number: (613) 216-2845

Vittoria Trattoria
Twitter: @vtrattoria
Address: 2 Locations (35 William Street or 3625 Riverside Drive)
Phone Number: (613)789-8959

The Works Gourmet Bistro
Twitter: @worksburger
Address: Various Locations

Zola's Restaurant
Twitter: @zolas_ottawa
Address: 194 Robertson Road
Phone Number: (613) 721-0227

Fine Food/Catering:
Crazy 4 Chocolate: Artisan Chocolate Truffles
Facebook: crazy4chocolate.ca
Twitter: @crazy4chocolat
Phone Number: (613) 424-0076

Epicuria Fine Food Store and Catering
Blog: Epicuria Fine Food
Twitter: Chef/Owner Tracey Black (@epicuriadotca)
Address: 419 Mackay Street
Phone Number: (613) 745-7356

Essence Catering
Blog: Sticky Fingers: Culinary Adventures in the Nation's Capital
Twitter:

• @EssenceCatering
• Catering Coordinator Kelly Serjeantson (@kellskitchen)
• Chef/Owner Jason Laurin (@chefjayl)

Address: 430 Parkdale Avenue
Phone Number: (613) 850-4776

Jacobson's: Concept Gourmet
Blog: Jacobson's: Gourmet Ottawa Food
Twitter: @JacobsonsOttawa
Address: 141 Beechwood Ave
Phone Number: (613) 746-6002

Koko Chocolates
Facebook: koko chocolates
Twitter:

• Co-Owner/Chocolatier Lori Sword (@kokochocolates)
• Co-Owner Jon Sword (@jonsword)

Address: 45 Spencer Street
Phone Number: (613) 277-3254

The Magic Fridge
Blog: The Magic Blog
Facebook: The Magic Fridge
Twitter: Owner Julie Broczkowski (@themagicfridge)
Phone Number: (613) 837-8476

Thyme And Again Creative Catering And Take Home Food Inc
Twitter: @thymeandagain
Address: 1255 Wellington Street West
Phone Number: (613) 722-0093

Bakery
The Cakery: Custom Cakes & Cupcakes
Twitter: @thecakery
Phone Number: (613) 281-0897

Let Them Eat Cake Bakery
Blog: Let Them Eat Cake Bakery
Twitter: @I_Want_Cupcakes

Little Cakes
Blog: Little Cakes Cupcakes
Facebook: Little Cakes Cupcakes
Twitter: @LitttleCakes
Phone Number: (613) 286-3532
E-mail: info@littlecakes.ca

Life of Pie
Facebook: Life of Pie
Twitter: Owner Kerry Duffy (@lifeofpieottawa)
Address: 70A Leonard Avenue, Ottawa
Phone Number: (613) 693-1853

Sugar and Spice Cakes
Twitter: @SugarSpiceCakes

The Flour Shoppe
Facebook: The Flour Shoppe
Twitter: Melissa Somers (@TheFlourShoppe)
Phone Number: (613) 513-3752

Breweries/Wineries
Beau's All Natural Brewing
Twitter: @beausbeer
Address: 10 Terry Fox Drive, Vankleek Hill
Phone Number: 1-866-585-BEER

More after the jump...

Last month (May 2009), fine foodie Shari posted a blog on Whisk: A Food Blog, listing Canadian food bloggers who were on Twitter. The list is quiet long, demonstrating that many Canadians are food enthusiasts. Better yet, a good number of whom blog and micro-blog.

I decided to do something similar for Ottawa's food-related websites and blogs. Using the Ottawa Start website and Ottawa Foodies' Doku Wiki, I compiled the following lists, cross-referencing with the growing list of local bloggers I follow on Google Reader. The first, represents local food-related websites. The second, Ottawa food blogs.

Ottawa Food/Food-Related Websites

• Beer Hunter
• Betidings: Social Event Calendar (our calendar)
• Bon Appetit Ottawa
• Buy Local Food Guide
• Cheapeats Ottawa (@ceot)
• Canadian Organic Growers (COG) - Ottawa Chapter
• Eat In Ottawa - photos of local restaurant food
• EatSafe Ottawa - Ottawa restaurant inspection reports
• FoodMODE Magazine
• Just Food
• Ottawa Foodies
• Ottawa Good Food Box
• Ottawa Organics and Natural Foods: Organic Food Delivery Service
• Ottawa Restaurant Guide
• Ottawa Start - Food and Restaurant Guide
• Ottawa XPress - Restaurant Reviews
• OttawaPlus.ca Bars and Restaurants Listing
• OttawaWeb listings
• Restaurant 911: Ottawa Restaurants
• Savour Ottawa
• Slow Food Ottawa
• Specials Today Ottawa (formerly Cheap Tonight)
• The Food - Ottawa Food Blog Aggregator
• The National Capital Sommelier Guild

Ottawa Eateries Blogs (not on Ottawa Eateries on Twitter List)

• 42 Crichton Street Fine Foods
• The Urban Element - Unique Culinary Experiences

Ottawa Area Food Blogs

• After the Harvest
• Aplace
• Apron Strings
• Beans and Caviar
• beFOODled
• Best Tools for Schools: Lunchtime Solutions
• Boyfriendly Cooking
• Breakfast Blogger
• Capital Dining - Ann DesBrisay, Ottawa Citizen Critic
• Cheap Eats Ottawa
• Cooking with Kilby
• Daily Dinner
• Daingean's Food Blog
• Definitely Not Martha: Daily Struggles of the Domestic Un-Goddess
• DiGeSTive TraCKs
• Eat, Drink, Ottawa
• Eaten Up
• Eating In Ottawa
• Epicurean Ottawa
• Equal Opportuniy Kitchen
• Eva's Food World
• Fine Diners Club
• foodiePrints
• Gluten-Free Ghetto
• How to Start a Brewery - Beau's All Natural Brewing Co., Vankleek Hill
• It Ain't Meat Babe
• Janet Is Hungry
• Kell's Kitchen
• Kitchen Graffiti
• le jeune gourmand: i eat. i write.
• Lord of the WINGS
• Nooschi
• Nourish by Larissa
• Nutrition Nibbles
• Omnivore's Ottawa - Ron Eade, Ottawa Citizen Food Editor
• Ottawa 34
• Ottawa Bites
• Ottawa Cooking Examiner
• Ottawa Food Reviews
• Pho Ottawa
• Pizza Ottawa
• Plum Cake
• Pumpkin Pie Bungalow
• Rachelle Eats Food
• Reality Bites
• Sassy Monkey
• She Eats Bears (also Le Piège à Ours)
• Sheltered Girl Meets World
• Simply Fresh
• Slurp & Burp
• Spoonsie Quits Bacon
• The Bacon Bible
• The Gouda Life
• The Humblest Fruit
• The Lemon Kitchen
• The Mad Adventures Of FoodGrrl
• The Ottawa Breakfast Club
• The Waffle
• Urban Hippie
• Whisk: a food blog
• WildUnknown Cooks: A bit of this, a dash of that
• Wine and the City

For now, I have the unenviable task of maintaining this list statically. In the next layout-revisit of foodiePrints, the latter list will form a blog roll.

I never understood those "something of the month clubs." Perhaps it's a symptom of our information-driven world that a lot of us, myself included, have become accustomed to having just about everything at our fingertips. If the megamart or department store doesn't have it, the local large-mart will. Even the more obscure products can be found available online, VISA or PayPal accepted and just a click away.

The same can be said for good food photography. While I long for my favourite culinary magazines to show up on news stands with their full page splashes of professionally plated and expertly photographed dishes, most are published monthly. Some are published every other month.

To fill the gap, I turn to the Food Porn Daily website, which I recently discovered. This website displays macro-like images of dishes in all their delicious glory. Each day, the image changes. Yes, it is safe for work. Though, some url-filtering firewalls may block it.

The site was built and is maintained by a collaboration from the founders of two popular food blogs. Amanda and her husband Tyler from What We're Eating and Nicole from Pinch My Salt take images submitted to the Food Porn Daily website and select those to display. According to the "Submit a Photo" form, photos must be high quality. They must be 1200x800 pixels or larger and they must be original. Food Porn Daily will not post photos submitted for other people.

For those of you who aren't satisfied with just looking, recipes are available for a number of chosen entries.

To me, the Food Porn Daily website reminds us that we eat with our eyes first. Go have a look see!

Perhaps one of the most "head-slapping, why didn't I think of it mash-ups" is the MenuDB web application, which currently only hosts scanned menus from restaurants situated in Ottawa and Kingston. It has an intuitive web 2.0 interface (AJAX-ified) that features a Google Maps widget with tags to all restaurants for which the application has menus. Click on a tag and MenuDB renders a webpage with the name of the restaurant, its address, its phone number, and its menu.

MenuDB organizes restaurants according to categories ( "Asian", "Carribean", "Casual", "Pizza", "Spanish", "Thai", etc.), and by location ("Downtown", "Lowertown", "Market", "Nepean", "Somerset", "Chinatown" and "Vanier"). One of the most useful features has to be the fact that the team that maintains the web application also stores the hours for each restaurant. MenuDB tells you whether or not a restaurant is open, whenever you select one for display.

Here is a link to the Ottawa version. There are tags everywhere!
Here is a link to the Kingston version. Not surprisingly, the majority of tags are along Princess Street.

Cheers, to the developers. This is a bloody good idea!