Top Ottawa Chef Took Me To His Favourite Restaurants in Canada’s Capital City: Where To Eat & Drink Like a Local (With Video)

Are you planning a trip to Canada’s capital and wondering which Ottawa restaurants to add to your dining itinerary? In this guide, I’m sharing some of the best places to eat & drink in Ottawa alongside a renowned local chef. Finding out where to eat can be overwhelming, but getting insider tips makes all the difference.

In a culinary project with Ottawa Tourism, I took a road trip from Toronto and ate my way for two days exploring the local dining and food scene in Ottawa with Chef Justin Champagne-Lagarde. He’s the brilliant owner and executive chef of Perch, one of the best restaurants in Ottawa.

Chef Justin took me on a foodie tour to his favorite places to drink and dine, and I got to meet the passionate chefs and owners who make the city so vibrant. If you want to know what to eat, you’re in for a treat!

When I asked other local chefs and owners to describe the scene in one word, the consensus was clear. Chris Petrie from The Bower Coffee called it surprising, while Witek Wojaczek of Bar Ocelli simply said it is underrated. Cameron McGihon from Bar Lupulus noted it is growing, getting better every single year.

According to Koichi Paxton of Koichi Ramen, Ottawa catches on to global trends while keeping things uniquely local. As The Booj from AHH! Coffee puts it, this city is definitely on the come up!

That’s why it’s not surprising to see amazing mom and pop shops to Canada’s 100 Best Restaurants in Ottawa. You’ll find a wide range of incredible cafes, hidden gem cocktail bars, and neighborhood joints that deliver massive flavors.

The owner, known as The Booj, is a coffee veteran who has been making coffee in the city for 14 years. Because he’s been sober for almost nine years, he created a menu featuring unique coffee and tea mocktails and cold ferments, alongside classic offerings like cortado.

I tried the Captain Ron, an espresso drink with milk, saffron, cardamom syrup, and orange zest. The Jesus Juice mocktail offers a tart and umami mix of matcha, soursop juice, passionfruit puree, and lime.

You can’t miss the gorgeous, custom-painted vintage La Marzocco espresso machine sitting proudly on the counter.

Chef Cam McGihon started working here at 2018 in a three year tenure under Justin, and he focuses on local, seasonal menus with in-house fermentation projects.

We devoured their raw bar offerings, including a fresh bison carpaccio with Avonlea cheddar and a Haida Gwaii tuna crudo, which is Chef Cam’s favourite on the menu.

The smell of freshly baked sourdough bread hit us as soon as we walked in, so we had to get the sourdough served with foie gras mousse and black garlic fudge.

For our mains, the Coho salmon with a sourdough French toast was perfectly flaky, and the Ontario duck breast grilled over a binchotan was flawlessly caramelized.

The name “Ocelli” refers to the eye-like patterns on peacock feathers, nodding to India’s national bird and how India was a main hub for the development of markets and trade routes that shaped how they are today, like ByWard market, to which the bar draws inspiration from the exotic ingredients they use.

I loved their creativity! I ordered the Jerk Chicken cocktail made with Mezcal, rum, actual jerk spices (first time trying a cocktail using this), and chicken fat to cut through the alcohol. Justin had the Olive cocktail featuring an EVOO foam.

You can even ask for a “mystery” cocktail if you feel adventurous. Everything is served over crystal clear ice, making the drinks look as good as they taste.

You must try the incredibly fluffy sourdough pancakes with seasonal fruit baked right into the batter. It’s Chef Blake’s favourite! The bread pudding French toast with whipped cream and granola was a unique and sweet way to start the day.

The Mish-Mash-Hash was a great savory option which has all things delicious in one bite. You absolutely have to order their famous hash browns. They are crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and completely addictive.

He trained in Kyushu and Kurume, Japan, and he combined lessons from different shops to create his unique signature ramen, Koichi Signature. I’m a huge fan of black garlic, and the Black Garlic Tonkotsu with rich pork broth was deep and smoky.

Justin comes here for the Curry Tonkotsu, a creamy pork broth that combines tonkotsu ramen with Japanese-style curry, as Koichi wanted to bring his love of curry udon into ramen.

On top of ramen, you’ll find other Japanese dishes here as well. We ordered crispy takoyaki, chicken karaage and squid tentacles (ika geso karaage) breaded and deep-fried as a perfect snack.

Max also owns the nearby Ward 14. It’s the perfect spot for an after-service drink with great vibes. I enjoyed the El Burro, a refreshing mix of dark rum, ginger beer, mint, and lime. Justin had the Kingston Negroni, a spirit-forward twist using Smith & Cross rum and coffee-infused Campari.

If you like a spicy kick, try the La Piccola, which features chili-infused tequila and pickle juice. If you love the show White Lotus, they even have a cocktail for that, White Lotus SZN II!

With Justin in the kitchen this time, I enjoyed an impressive nine-course tasting menu with a hybrid beverage pairing of wines, sake and house-made mocktails and teas.

This is such a great way to have a culinary journey across Canada as the dishes feature Canadian ingredients from coast to coast. One impressive thing I learned is Justin never uses black pepper in his dishes but uses Canadian alder catkins instead.

You’ll also find some elements of Japanese food as it is one of Justin’s favourite cuisines. A major standout was chawanmushi.

This Japanese egg custard was flawlessly silky and topped with crispy fried sweetbreads, elevated by a secret seaweed vinaigrette that really opened up the dish’s flavors. Seriously, the best non-traditional chawanmushi I’ve had.

I also loved the savory macaron with Magdalen Island scallop mousse, and a deeply flavorful duck breast aged with shio-koji. Plus, other unique surprises like savory cone made from shrimps and a paper-thin tuile made of beets.

Justin published a cookbook, Perch: Soil / Land / Sea, in October 2025 to showcase Canadian producers and his recipes, including the chawanmushi and shrimp cone.

Don’t skip their amazing craft cocktails as well. The Quackulated Risk was wonderfully surprising with the duck fat washed whiskey actually making me taste Peking duck or roast duck.

They focus heavily on meticulously sourced quality beans, often sourcing from Colombia. I tried a cortado, which was great, and Justin grabbed his usual premium filter pour-over.

Don’t sleep on the iced matcha slushie had authentic umami flavors balanced with a perfect touch of sweetness. It’s perfect for the summer!

It’s an inviting, community-focused space with incredibly friendly staff who really care about the craft of coffee making. It’s definitely a spot I can see myself cofficing in often.

While many Mexican spots focus strictly on tacos, I love that they show some love for tortas, which are Mexican sandwiches. I devoured the Carne Asada Torta loaded with AAA sirloin, chimichurri, and cheese on perfectly toasted bread that’s not too thick.

We also shared their famous loaded fries topped with braised beef chuck, guacamole, queso mix, cotija cheese and salsa macha. The Alitas De Pollo definitely surprised as the chicken wings had some deep smokey flavours with its house made morita BBQ sauce.

Of course, you’ll still find tacos on the menu, and I recommend getting a suadero since they’re less commonly found in the country. Wash it all down with a glass of their homemade tepache, a fermented pineapple skin drink.