Head just a few minutes north of Gatineau to Chelsea for Les Fougères, arguably the region’s best spot for a romantic evening. The restaurant has been impressing diners since 1993 with delicate French-inspired dishes like veal sweetbread, duck confit, and fresh seafood from nearby waterways. The idyllic, forested setting is special too, with floor-to-ceiling windows in the restaurant that put the birds and trees on display and a curved bar made with rammed earth from the nearby Morrison’s Quarry.

The menu, the name, and even the decor may seem relatively unassuming, but the Fraser brothers (Ross and Simon) are loved in Ottawa. The seasonal food at their restaurant, located on the cusp of fancy Rockcliffe, feels like a microcosm of multicultural Canada: grounded in Ottawa, but with eyes turned to the world. Dinner dishes include Korean fried eggplant, chicken satay slaw, and crab ravioli.

If you eat one thing in Ottawa, make it a shawarma plate from this legendary Lebanese spot on Rideau. Spits are piled high and wide with copious amounts of spiced chicken and beef, and every plate is a feast of meat, rice, salad, hummus, garlic sauce, potatoes, and pita. Sadly for vegetarians, the falafel isn’t as great. There are other branches around town, but the Rideau location tends to have the freshest ingredients.

Award-winning local chef Joe Thottungal’s second venture, after St. Laurent’s beloved Coconut Lagoon, specializes in — you guessed it — South Indian thalis. The contents of each copper platter vary daily depending on what’s in season, but it’s always delightful. A mouth-watering list of curries, vindaloos, biryanis, and soups are also on offer.

By virtue of geography, Ottawa isn’t often thought of as a seafood kind of place, but Whalesbone makes the city the envy of every other landlocked locale. The sustainably sourced seafood dishes, cooked with finesse, offer striking textures and flavors, and you’ll leave wondering why Whalesbone doesn’t sell crispy salmon skin as a bagged snack. The Elgin Street location — spacious compared to the tiny Bank Street flagship — ventures into meatier territory, dry-aging steaks in-house. The Kent Street location and Elmdale Oyster House are under the same group.

Approximately nobody thinks of Ottawa as a destination for Southern food — and, yet, here we are. Union Local 613 does fancied-up versions of shrimp and grits, fried chicken, and side ribs. Upstairs, Jabberwocky Supper Club does high-end monthly menus with vegan options, and the Staffroom speakeasy, set behind a bookcase downstairs, is the spot for cocktails on the hush-hush.

Since it opened in 2020, Arlo on Somerset has been the talk of the town, skyrocketing to become one of Ottawa’s favorite restaurants. Co-owner and sommelier Alex McMahon, who interned at Noma, infuses some of the dogma of the Copenhagen restaurant into Arlo, focusing on fresh, local flavors without pretense. The result is an undeniable success, with terrific seasonal food from chef and co-owner Jamie Stunt and a natural wine list among the city’s best.

The only Burmese restaurant in town, Rangoon dishes up spicy, coconut-laden food at reasonable prices from its Chinatown premises. Expect lots of garlic and ginger, as well as a tea leaf salad, coconut shrimp, and deeply flavorful fish noodle soup that set the restaurant apart. Rangoon is a unique experience in a town where Thai food is more common, and also a great option for takeout.

Walk along the strip of Somerset between Booth and Bronson, and you’ll see plenty of signs for pho. Family-run New Pho Bo Ga La (not to be confused with Pho Bo Ga L.A) is always a solid choice among the options. Flavorful and filling bowls of noodle soup dominate the menu, with options like bún bò huế and Thai tom kha alongside an array of pho options, alongside various plated dishes over rice or vermicelli. The restaurant is open Ottawa-late, so 11 p.m. on weekdays and midnight on weekends.

In a former South Asian grocery with exposed brick, Corner peach is a restaurant and corner store selling craft brews and locally roasted coffee; it’s also about as hip as dining in Ottawa gets. Co-owners and co-chefs Caroline Murphy (formerly at Edgar) and Emma Campbell (Supply and Demand and Oz Kafe) dish up comfort food on small vintage plates reminiscent of your grandmother’s kitchen. The menu changes regularly, but expect options like French onion soup, fried Brussels sprouts, and braised pork belly.

What started as a Preston Street food truck serving no-nonsense tortas has become a must-try restaurant in Chinatown. Along with sandwiches, look for the fries, loaded with sloppy sauces, pickled onions, and toppings like barbacoa, tinga, or cauliflower. While the food can certainly be eaten quickly, stick around for a mezcal margarita with jamaica (hibiscus).

If only every grocery store had a sandwich counter like Di Rienzo’s. This neighborhood institution claims to offer “the best sandwiches in Ottawa” and probably deserves that title. The key is simplicity: No-nonsense Italian subs with mortadella, prosciutto, and more are slightly Canadianized (see: Havarti as one cheese of choice), and dished up at low, low prices, with a limited number of hot and more extravagant options. Younger, “creative” sandwich slingers nearby stuff bread with Doritos or pierogies, but they can’t call themselves a classic like Di Rienzo’s.

Ottawa isn’t lacking for Montreal-style bagels thanks to Bagelshop. Since 1984, the shop has been turning out sesame seed-coated, rink-shaped dough, boiled in honey water, and finished in a wood oven. The bagels are similar to options at St-Viateur Bagel in Montreal, where the shop got its recipe, though Bagelshop does claim to offer the only wood-fired sourdough bagel in Canada, as well as tasty sandwiches and babka.

Husband-and-wife team Steve and Jennifer Wall have a sharp eye for flavor, and they prioritize it over whatever is monetarily hip. The fresh and airy Westboro restaurant has an ever-changing menu that combines fresh-made pasta, raw bar dishes, and exceptionally well-treated meat. The place is always busy, so definitely make a reservation if you can.

As comfortable as the couch it’s named after, this “not-so-greasy spoon” diner does brunch worth lining up for. Classic options like eggs Benedict and waffles are available, but they come with some added flair. Fun mains include the air-fried chicken on challah Benny or Cinnamon Toast Crunch French toast, while sides feature cauliflower poutine and loaded avocados.

Sherwood doesn’t look like much more than a corner store, but its no-fuss sandwiches have captivated the neighborhood for three decades. The most popular is the pulled chicken sandwich with bacon and avocado on egg bread, but the shop also features options like smoked meat, crab, turkey bacon, and other fillings — all for a very reasonable $9 or less.

When the Senators played the Montreal Canadiens in the 2013 NHL playoffs, then-mayor Jim Watson bet a plate of Golden Palace egg rolls on his team (and won). It’s just one sign that Ottawa’s quintessential dish has got to be the egg rolls from this Chinese restaurant, which has been in business since 1960. A concoction of pork and veggies is stuffed into a golden-brown fried wrapper blackened at the tips, and it’s especially great dunked in hot mustard or delicious plum sauce. While the rest of the menu is just okay, people come from far and wide for these egg rolls.

Run by a Palestinian family, this low-key South Keys spot churns out some of the best baked goods in town, like tangy za’atar-dusted breads and squeaky halloumi man’oushe flatbreads. For those with heftier appetites, there are bigger, spice-laden plates centered around chickpeas and fava beans. Takeout and delivery are available.