I spent part of Canada Day tending to the unwieldy back log of images foodiePrints has amassed over the past two years or so. My digital camera's image numbering reset itself once again (3rd time) and I had to establish yet another "unsorted" folder of images in the archives. In their defense, I don't think Casio ever figured a food blogger would be lugging one of their cameras around with him everyday. The camera's on board software is only capable of incrementing 4 digits of numbers in its file names. And yes, this means that a little over 30 000 pictures have been taken throughout the years.

That evening, Jenn and I watched Ottawa's annual fireworks show from a vantage point outside of the downtown core, on the Scott Street bridge, across from the Bay transit stop, thereby avoiding the crowds and making our Canada Day festivities quieter than usual.

Jenn and I did however walk by Parliament Hill two evenings later, to find the surrounding areas picked clean of litter and the main stage being dismantled.

Parliament Hill 2 days after Canada Day
Along the way, we decided to see how much of our own neighbourhood we could walk during the upcoming weekend.

Wellington West
That Saturday, we took a stroll with a family friend into Wellington West to go to an outdoor art exposition and fundraiser, called "Art in the Alley." It was organized by local artist Alison Fowler of Ali Cat Art and proceeds went to the Ottawa Humane Society.

Art in the Alley

The event was held in the alley way beside the Chick Pea children's store (1395 Wellington Street W), which shares the building with the Ali Cat Studio.

Gorgeous Paintings
Featured artists also included Tammy Shane and Andrew King, whose art we recognized from the the galleries in the Hintonburg area.

Speaking of which, if you frequent Holland Avenue, there is a large piece by Allison Fowler in front of the Foolish Chicken eatery (79 Holland Avenue). Interestingly, Saturday's chalk sandwich sign advertised something beyond rotisserie at the Foolish Chicken.

Jerk Chicken with Dirty Rice
Given our previous experiences with the restaurant, we took a pass.

On our way to the outdoor art exposition, I insisted we take a detour to see Allium's monthly menu. We found the restaurant (87 Holland Avenue) closed and a paper sign stuck to the door.

Closed for Renovations
Accordingly, Allium will be closed for the month of July, re-opening in August. Reason: renovations. I guess Jenn and I will have to wait until next month to sit for a Monday tapas night.

Across the street from Ali Cat Studio, we noticed that the former location of Hair Rods Salon and Spa (1356 Wellington Street W) has been replaced by a soon-to-open Asian tea-house, TeaShop 168.

TeaShop 168
This Toronto-originating chain of tea-houses specializes in bubble tea. I last visited one of their establishments in downtown Toronto on Yonge Street (768), near the Bloor intersection. No doubt, it will give the local tea chain Bubblicity some much needed competition.

We also noticed that Harvest Loaf (1323 Wellington Street W.) was advertising something very seasonal on its menu: strawberry shortcake.

Limited Time: Strawberry Shortcake
With the disappointment from seeing Allium temporary closed, we picked up a cake. For $8.95, the tall and luscious confection generously serves 6 people.

Tall and Luscious

Cross Section

Slice
Covered in a light pastry cream and garnished with quartered strawberries, the shortcake consisted of layer of more cream, sliced strawberries and airy slices of vanilla cake. Realizing that we couldn't possibly make a dent in the cake ourselves, we invited our neighbour to give us a hand.

I should note that, on our way home, cake in hand, Jenn discovered a new beverage enterprise that employs some very innovative marketing.

50 cent lemonade

Available almost daily
Honestly, have you seen anything so daring? And, the advertisements are water proof! Besides, the lemonade is aggressively priced. As our neighbour pointed out, a glass of lemonade downtown during Canada Day easily cost $5. Unfortunately, business must have been brisk because we could not find the young entrepreneurs that day.

Hintonburg and Chinatown
Sunday, we walked to Chinatown to satisfy my craving for pho (Vietnamese noodle soup), taking some of the lesser trafficked roads to avoid the construction on Wellington Street.

On our way to Chinatown, we passed by Credible Edibles (78 Hinton Avenue N.). Finding it closed, we took a picture of something that may interest local cyclists.

Cyclists' Discount
According to the sign, to "reduce greenhouse gases and support good health", Credible Edibles is offering a 10% discount on their "edibles" if you ride your bike to eat-in or take-out. Good stuff!

We also came across the most darling birdhouses along Armstrong Road in Hintonburg.

Water Melon House

Tea House
Cute, adorable, and food-related!

Pho, Fruit Vinegar, Fruit Ice, Mayonnaise, and Scallion Pancakes follow after the jump...

When we arrived in Chinatown, we decided to eat at the much mocked Pho'Licious noodle house on Booth Street (300).

Storefront
There, Jenn and I both ordered our "usuals" when we crave pho: me, a beef noodle soup with beef tendons and tripe; she, a bowl of beef noodle soup with just beef tendons. Since we both skipped breakfast, we also ordered appetizer shrimp and pork spring rolls.

First, we were served the typical accompaniments for pho, fresh Thai basil, chilis, wedges of lime, and bean sprouts.

Fresh fixings for our pho
Then, our appetizers appeared.

Freshly Fried Spring Rolls

Filling
Freshly fried, these spring rolls were very densely filled and tightly wrapped. Not at all greasy, we enjoyed our deep fried treats. The dipping sauce was slightly sweetened fish sauce. I expected nuac cham.

Finally...pho!

Mine

Hers
The pho was quite good. The soup was made from scratch, an amalgam of long simmered stock and broth, tasting nothing like instant buillon with its overly salty and artificial flavours. We could actually see bits of marrow and fat in the soup. It was rich and savory. The rice noodles were thin (a personal preference of ours) and not overcooked. The beef tendons were plentiful, tender, but still slightly crunchy. My tripe was wonderfully crunchy. And yes, traditional pho is served with thinly sliced "undercooked" beef that is meant to cook through in the piping hot soup. Pho, served with fully cooked beef, is also available on the menu for the more squeamish.

Here is where my better half and I feel Pho'Licious belongs on the local pho continuum (Top 5):

1. Thu Do (765 Somerset St. W)
2. Pho Bo Ga The original, 12A Lebreton Street N.)
3. Pho'Licious (300 Booth Street)
4. Ox Head (790 Kanata Avenue)
5. Pho Van Van (93 Holland Avenue)

Here's their card:

Business Card

On our way back home, we decided to stop by the 168 Market (1050 Somerset Street W.), an Asian ethnic market. While Jenn searched for snacks, I decided to take pictures of the more amusing things in the store.

Tube Fruit Vinegars, Ready to Drink

Fruit Ices that apparently don't Require Refrigeration

The packaging on the following product is awe-inspiring:

Kewpie Doll Japanese Mayonnaise

For Ages 0-100

Armed with snack bags of veggie chips (pictures to follow in another blog), we left the 168 Market and stopped into the Dong Ling Takeout (1055 Somerset Street W). There, we found a wonderfully friendly lady working the counter. She proudly showed off her wares in Mandarin to us. She had a good amount of bakery and a freezer chest full of frozen house-made dumplings. Not understanding a word, I pointed to something I've not had in almost a year: freshly-made scallion pancakes (Northern Chinese-style).

Pan Fried

Incredibly Layered

A pleasure to eat
Unlike the scallion pancakes from Toronto's and Vancovuer's T&T (and more than likely the one that will open in Ottawa this fall), Dong Ling's scallion pancakes are thick and have character. The perfectly seasoned dough is masterfully worked so that the cakes have a multitude of chewy layers. The outside is crisp and the inside has just enough chopped scallion (aka: green onion) to provide the characteristic scallion pancake flavour. At $5 for 4 wedges, this is quite the deal. One will fill you for the afternoon. While you can make scallion pancakes at home, only someone skilled can produce scallion pancakes of this quality. Even when T&T opens in Ottawa this fall, I will come to Dong Ling for scallion pancakes.

Finally, when we made it back to Wellington West, we decided to see what the upcoming week's special was at Sushi Umi (1311 Wellington Street W).

Front Signage

Special
6 Cali-rolls + 2 pcs white tuna, 1 pc tuna, and 1 pc salmon nigiri comes out to $1/piece. That's a steal!

We also found a Swap Box, which someone seems to have roughly handled recently.

Swap Box

And such ends this adventure! Three neighbourhoods on foot, two days!

Particulars:
Pho'licious Vietnamese Noodle House
300 Booth Street
(613)680-5230

Dong Ling Takeout
1055 Somerset Street W
(613)729-3282

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