To many Hintonburg residents, their neighbourhood, that is bordered by Centretown's Chinatown and the West Wellington Village, is under siege from forces bent on its gentrification. The culprits: commercial developers and, to some extent, Ottawa's municipal government. Both are seen as overly eager to remake Hintonburg in Westboro's image. Already, there are no less than four large scale construction projects putting up buildings in the West Wellington Village, either multi-story condo buildings or "pigeon-hole"-style townhouses. There are rumours, developers are eyeing Hintonburg next, some homeowners even reporting agents questioning them about their intentions to sell their properties.

Ottawa's Epicurean Row, a stretch of Wellington Street West, that is shared by both Hintonburg and the West Wellington Village, is renowned for having an extremely high density of locally-owned eateries and fine food stores. It now hosts a Booster Juice (1277 Wellington Street W.) and Tea Shop 168 (1356 Wellington Street W.), both franchises of arguably large chain businesses, here defined as non-locally owned and having many storefronts or locations in other cities.
v
Recently, the Ottawa Citizen (a local newspaper) even intimated the close of Melrose Groceteria/Helen's Cuisine another casualty of gentrification, the building soon to be renovated to house an upscale pizzeria. To Robert Bostelaar, writer and journalist for the Ottawa Citizen, neither Helen nor Buddy Saikely were forced out of their business. After 40 years serving a grateful community and at least two generations of loyal patrons, they deservedly retired. Theirs was an eatery and convenience store that reflected a closely-knit community where residents know their neighbours and get together for street parties.

Hintonburg, however, has another eatery that reflects the neighbourhood, the Wellington Sandwich Shop.

Storefront

Counter
This eatery is somewhere, known mostly to locals, inconspicuous and often passed by by people driving through Hintonburg. Inside, a wonderful woman named Filomina operates a place where people get together to eat, enjoy each other's company, and catch up on the local gossip. Patrons partake of food more familiar with times gone by.

Filomina cooks entirely from what we at foodiePrints calls first principles. A chicken sandwich or wrap starts with a marinated chicken breast, entirely raw, being thrown onto a gas-fired grill. A burger starts with measuring out ground meat, seasoning it, shaping it into a patty, and throwing it onto a gas-fired grill. Sandwich toppings are prepared to order to ensure freshness. For example, tomatoes are sliced as orders are taken. Soup, salads, and bakery are made daily. The soups are also seasonal and change from day to day.

Daily Soup and Specials
During the last two weeks she made yellow split pea and cream of broccoli, both made from scratch, both disappearing quickly during lunch.

If you are at all regular, Filomina will not only learn your name, but will remember how you like your orders. This includes young children.

What does somewhere that knows your name look like?

It has handwritten chalkboard displays

Its seats are warm and inviting

Its walls are softly coloured and decorated with unique decorations

It offers artisanal products, like homemade soap

What does it serve? Really good homemade food! To date, Jenn and I have only ordered hot sandwiches from the grill.

Hot Sandwiches
On a previous outing, we ordered the BLT and veggie burger, the latter a recommendation from Melissa Dimock of Refashionista (@refashionista).

This time, we followed another recommendation of Carol Paschal, the organizer of the Hintonburg Supper Club, and had the hamburgers. She, the "Homemade Hamburger" ($4.95) with 100% lean ground beef.

Homemade Hamburger
Me, the "Wellington Burger" ($5.95) with cheese, bacon, and fried onions.

Wellington Burger

My thoughts, my hamburger patty was incredibly fresh tasting and wonderfully crusted. Its toppings, exceeded expectations: fresh and crisp veg, browned and singed fried onions, melted cheese, and flat top grilled bacon. The kaiser rolls are also grilled crisp.

Slightly Dry Pattie
Unfortunately, with the patty made from lean ground beef, grilling it well-done results a somewhat dry texture. It is the only issue with what is otherwise a great homemade burger.

To finish, we had butter tarts, highly sought after commodities at the Wellington Sandwich Shop.

Butter Tarts
Dense, buttery, and sweet with a thicker pastry, these are the best butter tarts in town.

If you are in the area, drop by for breakfast or lunch. However, be warned. Filomina opens early and closes at 3:00 pm, Mondays to Saturdays. She only recently started taking Interac and prefers cash.

The next time we head over to the Wellington Sandwich Shop, we plan on ordering the turkey sandwich and asking why turkey's aren't allowed...

No Turkeys Allowed

Particulars:
The Wellington Sandwich Shop
1123 Wellington Street W.
(613)722-5946



Bookmark with: