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    Erling's Variety

    4.0 (40 reviews)
    Open 11:30 am - 2:00 pm, 5:00 PM - 10:30 PM

    Erling's Variety Photos

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    Recommended Reviews - Erling's Variety

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    Scott L.

    I really like this place. Nice selection of small plates along with mix and match of apps and mains. I recommend sitting at the bar and enjoy watching the open kitchen in motion. Favorites are the Brussel Sprouts with house bacon, buttermilk anchovy ranch with Avonlea cheddar. Second favorite is the spaghetti with egg yolk house bacon shallots and garlic. Big selection of wine and a small selection of beer on tap. Nice atmosphere and and awesome guard dog pug Stanley outside.

    Interior - it's only empty because we were there right at opening hour on a Sunday night.  :-)  Lucky us since it was spur of the moment.
    Dawn M.

    A lovely spot, just off of Bank St., to stop for a break while shopping in the Glebe - or for a longer pause for dinner. Small plates are the thing here. We tried two: Scallops, and mushrooms. Both were well thought out and surprising. Hubby, who tends to love vinegar preferred the mushrooms. I agreed it was excellent, but I, tending toward the sweet side of the taste spectrum, loved the scallops. Can't go wrong with either one. Decor was perfect - charming, comfortable. Modern and retro all at the same time. Service was wonderful. The waitress did make a point of explaining it was small plates, a lesson I think she may have learned the hard way. It is on the more spendy side, so if you don't see the value in fresh well thought out food, this may not be the right choice. If you have an open mind and love to try new food combinations, try it! Would I recommend: Yes - but perhaps a bit choosy about to whom. I would only recommend it to people that I think would really appreciate - i.e. foodies. Would I return: Yes.

    Jojo L.

    I must say that I was very disappointed to go here for dinner. It is small plate which means you spend double the money to eat something. We tried several dishes between the four of us and we each ordered 2 dishes plus each of us had 2 glasses of wine and my bill was $120‍ it would not have mattered if I had a decent meal but it was all very kitchy and the desert was horrible. I will stick to brunch at the place from now on. I stopped at McDonald's on the way home!

    Tofu
    Bong B.

    The place is a bit hidden from the main street but it's a great discovery. The cuisine is refined and the plates are beautifully prepared. The decoration is very hipster. There is a huge shelving unit with plenty of random stuff on it, which makes it somehow cosy. On the other side, there was an exhibition of paintings for sale. The kitchen is completely open. On the one hand, it's entertaining to watch the chefs cooking and on the other, it's a good way to engage with them. In fact, it's possible de give a round of beer to the staff which creates a very pleasant link between the cooks and the customers. The service was also very enjoyable. I would definitely recommend it for a date.

    Strawberry cheesecake parfait
    Ali M.

    It's great to see something like this open in Ottawa - exceptional, friendly service, amazingly beautiful and delicious plates, great cocktail list and talented barkeep, great ambience! Very happy to have found and experienced Erling's Variety!

    Cute decor great good good wine list. And good beer on tap.
    Nini J.

    This place is interesting. Hipster-ish but it's also got the glebe-Ites. Very limber-sexual. Great selection of beer on tap and wines -eclectic. The brussel sprouts are a must try. Had the fries which were bland. Need salt! Would come back again.

    Interior

    Great restaurant - good vibe, doesn't try too hard and is very good at what they do. Seafood dishes are excellent - scallops were a highlight of the meal. Meat plates are meaty enough to satisfy and sides are flavorful. Next time I would love to sit at the bar to see all the plating and delicious food go by! Cocktails were nice, staff was friendly, ambience and decor are great.

    Benedict
    Anh T.

    We were going to try out Wilf & Ada's but the wait was over 2 hours. We decided to walk down the street and found this place. We ordered the benedict, the omelette and regular breakfast. The omelette and benedict were decent but the regular breakfast was just okay.

    Lavender pavlova
    Sierra P.

    A wonderful atmosphere and delicious menu! The wait staff were great, knowledgeable, and gracious about our large party with lots of questions, musical chairs, and separate checks (especially Mel, who did an amazing job!). Small plates were perfect for sampling lots of flavors, good wine list, good local coffee. Pasta was fresh and prepared beautifully with kale and other seasonal veggies. Lavender pavlova was amazing.

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    8 years ago

    Brunch was mediocre. Soggy waffles. Hollandaise sauce was greasy and unseasoned. Curdled vinaigrette. Distracted service.

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    Play Food And Wine - Lingcod ah mazing

    Play Food And Wine

    4.2(262 reviews)
    2.2 km
    $$$

    TL;DR/The Short Version: Delicious food at popular…read morerestaurant in the Byward Market. The beef cheek was melt-in-your-mouth. The Long Version: I was at Play Food and Wine Bar for a professional event that was sponsored by a pharmaceutical company. We were a group of about 30-40 people and had a section of the restaurant to ourselves. We had a set menu with a choice of mains (beef or vegetarian). We started off with a few hors d'oeuvres served on spoons. Servers were going around with them and I got to try two different types. One was a shrimp on a dollop of wasabi cream and the other was a gnocchi. Both were tasty and prepared us for the delicious meal to come. We all had the mixed salad, which was a spring mix with grapes, candied pecans, and whipped goat cheese, in a cucumber and mint vinaigrette. I loved the different textures and even though the salad came pre-dressed (I always prefer dressing on the side), the dressing wasn't heavy, so I didn't find it too overdressed for my tastes. For my main, I chose the beef cheek (the vegetarian option was gnocchi). The beef cheek was so tender and literally fall-apart. I didn't even need a knife. It was so flavourful too. It came with mushrooms and mashed potatoes. There was an olive and sun-dried tomato sauce on the beef that I found a too potent and overwhelming in flavour, but overall I still enjoyed the main. For dessert we had the chocolate tart. It had salted caramel on it and under the layer of chocolate was a layer of white chocolate fudge. It was very rich and decadent...overly so. I finished it nonetheless, lol. Service was excellent. We had several servers assigned to our group and they were attentive. They kept our water glasses and wine glasses full. Although I enjoyed the Pinot Grigio, I was driving, so had to limit myself to a glass and a half. Play Food and Wine Bar is owned by Stephen Beckta, who is a bit of a local celebrity, lol. His first restaurant is Beckta, which I have been to and while it's more upscale than Play, I actually enjoyed the food at Play more. His other restaurant is Gezellig, which is in my neighborhood (Westboro) and I've been to it a couple of times, and I definitely like Play better. I'm glad I was introduced to Play. The room we were in was lovely. It was long and narrow and had a bar. As with all restaurants in the Byward Market, parking is paid parkade parking or paid street parking only. Review #139 (2025)

    Our server was awesome. In fact the staff here were so friendly and fun. She didn't rush us and…read moremade sure everything was to our liking. We had such a great experience here.

    Photos
    Play Food And Wine - Inside the restaurant

    Inside the restaurant

    Play Food And Wine - Shrimp hors d'oeuvres

    Shrimp hors d'oeuvres

    Play Food And Wine - Inside

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    Inside

    Soif Bar à vin de Véronique Rivest - Assiettes de fromage

    Soif Bar à vin de Véronique Rivest

    4.3(23 reviews)
    3.5 km
    $$$

    "Soif: A Wine Bar That Forgets About Dinner" I understand…read morethat Soif is primarily a wine bar, but if food is on the menu, the portions should at least resemble a proper meal. Last night, I ordered the fish with vegetables. What arrived was honestly insulting: two tiny, sad slivers of fish perched on a bit of kale -- for $22. I'm not exaggerating when I say it couldn't have been more than 10 grams of fish. Imagine going out for dinner and your "main course" looks more like a garnish. My friend didn't fare any better. She ordered the crab guédille, which turned out to be served on what was essentially a hot dog bun. For the price and the setting, that choice felt lazy and downright ridiculous. Soif may be a place to enjoy wine, but the food should not feel like an afterthought or a joke at the customer's expense. Unless you plan to eat beforehand and only sip here, I cannot recommend Soif for dinner.

    Was looking for a wine bar and wanted something different. What sets this spot apart from other…read morewine bars is that they specialize in organic wines. The selection is huge so getting recommendations is very important. I decided to go with a good wine pairing so I could try many different wines. I was not disappointed with the selections. The staff knew so much about every bottle and had a story to go along with it. Service was impressive. The food was good. The highlights were the charcuterie board, pork belly and Brussel sprouts. Ambience was casual and low key. It was a good experience especially having the opportunity to learn and try so much.

    Photos
    Soif Bar à vin de Véronique Rivest - Vin rouge

    Vin rouge

    Soif Bar à vin de Véronique Rivest - Tartelette au chocolat et noisettes

    Tartelette au chocolat et noisettes

    Soif Bar à vin de Véronique Rivest - Médaillon de wapiti

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    Médaillon de wapiti

    Arlo

    Arlo

    4.4(12 reviews)
    1.0 km

    My husband and I had a wonderful experience at Arlo. I ordered the duck frites, which were tasty…read moreand cooked to perfection. My husband ordered the chicken, schnitzel and escargot. This was also delicious and had such an interesting combination of flavors - I was very pleasantly surprised. The restaurant is very quaint and cozy. Our server was also friendly and attentive. Definitely recommended.

    My hubby and I go to Arlo every year for our anniversary, it's where we had our very first date, so…read moreit's super meaningful to us. The vibe is always cozy and romantic, and the service is honestly top-notch every single time. Everyone is so friendly and attentive. We were seated next to a loud group of ladies, and without us even asking, our waiter noticed and moved us to a quieter section. Such a small gesture, but it made the night so much more enjoyable. He even brought us complimentary wine to help us celebrate, which was so thoughtful. The food was a bit of a mix this time. The tuna crudo was bursting with flavor: fresh, bright, and hands down one of the best dishes of the night. The lamb kebab, though, was way too salty, to the point where it was hard to really enjoy the flavors. And the salad was drenched in dressing, which made it wilted and heavy instead of refreshing. A shame, because Arlo is usually so consistent. Dessert totally redeemed things, though. The panna cotta was delicious, silky, smooth, and the perfect way to end the meal. Even with a couple hiccups, Arlo still holds a special place for us. Until next time, Arlo!

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    Arlo
    Arlo
    Arlo

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    Erling's Variety - tapasmallplates - Updated May 2026

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