We spontaneously came across this great vegetarian restaurant. I had the ZORBA and my friend had…read morethe THE RAW BURGER. Presentations were colorful, and artistic, and both, absolutely, healthy and delicious. The staff were so sweet, friendly and helpful, and the service was excellent. I will definitely be returning to try some of the other items on their menu. Thank you for the wonderful experience.

5+++ Omg. Everything…read moreI tried was DELICIOUS. I had the tofu-mushroom burger, kale chips, Flirt kombucha, and a chocolate coconut bliss ball. The burger was . The coconut bliss ball was a perfectly sized, slightly sweet ending. I'd never had hibiscus-orange kombucha - it was lovely. When back in Ottawa, I'll definitely come again, and I highly recommend it.

Excellent concept, chill atmosphere, yummy eats and friendly staff!…read more I just moved around this area and was highly recommended to check this place out. I love to eat vegetarian as much as possible and this place has many tasty options. Lots of salads, vegetables, healthy options and some vegetarian junk food. They charge by weight and I found the price to be quite reasonable (cost around 30$ for two people and it was a ton of food). Desserts are a bit on the pricier side and we didn't try any this time. They also do takeout at a slightly discounted price! Will definitely be returning here!

Très jolie resto végétarian ou tu paye selon le poid de ton assiette. C'est vraiment excellent et…read morele choix est très varrié. Petit parking a l'arrière. Le staff est super friendly et la place cozy on si sent bien.

The Short Version: Small casual vegetarian restaurant…read moreinside an International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) temple. Very affordable and food tasted good. The Long Version: I feel like many large urban cities have a restaurant called Govinda's that is inside an International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) temple (these were called Hare Krishna temples when I was growing up). This one is in Ottawa. I've been to the one in Toronto. And I know there's one in Montreal, although I've never been there. All these restaurants are of the same concept. They serve vegetarian food, it's usually a buffet, and the prices are very affordable. At this Govinda's the all you can eat buffet is $14 or $12 if you're a student (need to show student card) or a senior (65 or over, I'm assuming if you look young for your age they might ask for ID, lol). The takeout price is $10 and you get a tray with a little bit of everything. I got the take out tray. The takeout tray contained white basmati rice, pasta salad, green salad, daal, a kidney bean curry, some stewed cabbage, and a piece of banana bread. It was quite a lot of food for just $10. And what I really liked about it is that the curries were not oily at all. I find a lot of curries way too oily but these ones were great. The lentil curry (daal) and the bean curry were very flavourful. The stewed cabbage was good too. The green salad had romaine lettuce, cucumbers, and tiny pieces of bell pepper. It came with a creamy salad dressing. A bit too much salad dressing for my liking, but it wasn't too soggy and the dressing wasn't too oily. The pasta salad had some tofu crumble in it. It was okay but had a strange medicinal taste to it. The best part was the banana bread. It was a little crunchy on the outside and soft and moist on the inside. Very delicious and not greasy at all. The dining room is small and feels like you're at a friend's house in the basement. Staff were very welcoming and friendly. Some people are hesitant to go to these restaurants as they think those belonging to the temple may try to "convert" them. This has never happened to me neither in Ottawa or in Toronto. Be advised that you must remove your shoes and leave them in the boot trays in the foyer before entering the restaurant or the rest of the temple. So don't wear your Louboutins or Jimmy Choos, LOL. And make sure you wear matching socks with no holes in them. Haha. This location is on a residential street and in the University of Ottawa area. All other customers during my visit were students. I feel this place is a hidden gem. It serves healthy, delicious and inexpensive vegetarian food, so I'm a huge fan. Street parking only. Review #52 (2026)

I'm not normally into vegetarian food, but this is a great spot to go as the weather gets cooler if…read moreyou're around uOttawa campus trying to eat on a budget. This is hearty food with plenty of lentils, pasta, rice, chickpea salad and delicious curries like their paneer curry. There was also some delicious banana bread on the side for dessert. Next time, I'm going to get their zucchini pakoras. Remember to take off your shoes once you get inside. The lady is very nice. I believe it used to be buffet (get your own) style but now she portions things out for you. You will be full for the entire day for $15.

Had the chai $5.50, eggplant lasagna $18.50, thali platter $23. The food was very tasty and I…read moreappreciated the salad that comes with each dish. I only wish the portion sizes were bigger. The chai also did not hve the traditional rich milk base, but was still enjoyable. They also have some sweets in a display case, though we didn't try any. Service was very friendly. The staff genuinely seem kind and at peace. This may be related to the beautiful plant corner they have with lovely Norfolk pines. Ambiance is bright, casual, and so pretty by the plant corner. Good spot for vegans and vegetarians.

Some of the food options here are great, the desserts are yummy and there are good, simple soups…read morefor offer. The tofu, tomato sandwich was nothing to write home about, the bread choice and ingredients do not match the price, but its accompanying soup was tasty. The atmosphere is very cute and humble, and staff are friendly and knowledgeable. Good for a snack!

When my friend and I walked in to get some work done, the staff were automatically welcoming; it is…read moreevident that the staff care about good service. The food itself was amazing, and contained lots of healthy microgreens. This place is great for those that care about their health and want high quality service.

I am not sure if I was hungry if the food was actually good the experience was fantastic. They took…read moretime to make the dish and it felt very fresh and tasty! The restaurant is in a cute area in Ottawa downtown. Highly recommend this for vegetarians!

Highly overpriced compared to what you get. Food was fresh and flavors good (not extraordinary)…read more But extremely expensive, save your money.

This Pure Kitchen location on Elgin Street was their second location (they have 5 altogether now)…read more It opened in June 2016 where Maxwell's Bistro and Club used to be. It's fairly big inside, with a mix of tables (some round, some rectangular), booths and bar seating. The front windows open completely, and in the summer months they open it up, so you can sit inside, but still get some fresh air. Admittedly, I've only ever gotten takeout here. They have a fridge where you can grab stuff to go. They also have a freezer where you can grab frozen stuff to cook at home. It's a vegetarian restaurant. They have mostly wraps, sandwiches and salads. They have lots of cold pressed juices as well. All their menu items have inspirational names like Transformed, Energized, Renewed, etc. I've had most of their wraps, sandwiches and juices and everything is good (except for one juice that had parsley in it, which I thought it was gross, but everything else has been good). Some items are sometimes too salty for my tastes, but sometimes not. I guess it depends on who's making it, lol. My favourite salad is the Transformed Kale Caesar salad. My favourite wrap is the Blissful Burrito. My favourite juice is the Electrify (beet, pineapple, cucumber, apple, lemon and ginger). I love that after eating their food I feel full, but not bloated and gross, lol. Definitely recommend for vegetarian food. It's a bit pricey though. Expect to pay $15+ for a salad/wrap and a 16 oz juice is $10+. Street parking only.

I've been told Ottawa has the best shawarma and decided to give this place a try since it had the…read morehighest ratings for shawarma around the Byward Market. It's a tiny place with a good selection of wraps, plates, and Lebanese pies. The owner was super friendly, and makes an effort to be humorous. There are no seats inside, but there are a couple of small tables with chairs right outside if you don't want to take your food to go. After placing our order, we were told to have a seat outside while he prepared our food, and will bring it out to us when it's ready. The portions were good, however, I was not impressed by the chicken shawarma wrapped I ordered. I liked how fries were included inside the wrap, but the chicken was dry, and the overall flavour was not that great compared to other shawarmas I've tried.

I love Lebanese meat pies, so when I saw this place while strolling around the Byward Market, I…read morecouldn't resist popping in to try one. It was pretty good. The price is a bit higher than at other places outside of the downtown core, but given the location, this is to be expected. The meat pie was $4.50 taxes included. The crust was a bit on the thin side, but the filling was plentiful. The edges were crispy but the centre was soft, maybe a bit too soft for my tastes, but still good. Parts of the edges were blistery, which I love. The meat flavour was good, it didn't have that smokey element to it that I like, but it was still very enjoyable. I asked for spice, but no lemon juice as I don't like the sourness that lemon adds. The spice is not hot spicy, so don't shy away if you are concerned about heat. Service was efficient and friendly. A great addition to the Byward Market for sure! The only issue of course is parking. There are paid parking lots in the area and paid or free street parking depending on day and time.

Great choice for lunch when on the go or in and around the downtown area. They have ready made…read moreoptions as well as the choice to choose your own option. They move fairly quickly during "rush hour" so make sure you know what you want to order before you get to the counter. All of their dishes are labeled with either vegan, vegetarian or if there is gluten. Not the opposite as all are pretty much gluten free. I like the fact that all the items they have are biodegradable, compostable or recyclable. They really try to keep the garbage to a minimum. I've been here several times, on this occasion I ordered the butter Cauliflower curry. A warm option for a cold day! The rice was a tad crunchy and felt a little undercooked. Though this could be due to the fact that it was the end of the lunch rush so it may have sat for a bit or was rushed during cooking. Overall great salad or rice bowls. If you can't eat a certain item just let them know and they will replace it with something else. Will have to come back to try more bowls. I am a bit sad that the soba noodle bowl is no longer available.

This restaurant hits all the big points for a conscientious business - water fountain, compost and…read morerecycle (no garbage) bins, reusable dishware for eat-in customers, mobile ordering, and donating meals to others if you use the app! I am literally blown away by these details. I have never seen all of these tackled by one company in a single restaurant. Well done! As for the food. They offer quick grab options, made for you menu items, and a customize your own salad. I chose a menu item since this was my first time. I chose the ginger sesame chicken salad. Incredibly tasty and fresh. Good mix of flavours. I would have used less dressing myself. I might ask for dressing on the side next time just for personal preference. They also offer lots of dessert options that would definitely warrant consideration. Overall, I'll definitely be back!

I've been wanting to try Ottawa Perogies for some time, but they have limited hours and are a bit…read moreout of the way for me, so I only recently got around to it. They sell perogies and other Eastern European snacks. Overall, the food was good, and reminded me of the home cooking of the mothers of my Slavic friends. I found the prices a bit high for what they were, but I guess nowadays that's not unsurprising. I got a ground pork and rice bun ($4), a ground beef crepe ($4) and a cottage cheese pancake ($4). The ground pork and rice bun was reminiscent of a cabbage roll in bun form, minus the cabbage and the tomato sauce, lol. It was heavy on the bun and rice and light on the pork, but tasted like comfort food. It reminded me a bit of the Asian buns filled with fillings like BBQ pork or curry beef as well. The bun was soft and almost brioche-like. The ground beef crepe was tasty, albeit a bit oily for my tastes. The crepe is a bit sweet, while the meat is slightly salty. The cottage cheese pancake was slightly sweet and I should have eaten this one last, as it was more dessert-like. I like that the cheese was thick and had a nice texture. Overall, the three items made a good snack. Service was courteous. The lady asked if I wanted the items warmed up and I liked that she placed them on a real plate to microwave them before putting them into a styrofoam box (I have seen some places put styrofoam in the microwave [shudder]). I mean I would have preferred if the box was cardboard, but at least they don't microwave styrofoam. The shop is located in a strip mall. There's plenty of free parking in the strip mall.

The place is to go only, there's no sitting available inside. Perogies were freshly made and tasty…read more The size of one piece is slightly smaller than expected. The service is good, all my questions were answered. Also tried pyrozhky, they were just ok. You can purchase Ukrainian souvenirs at this place as well.

Had a smash burger craving and found this place on google. As GTA-ers, food trucks in a parking lot…read morewith picnic tables is a relatively new thing for me. Kinda feels like a semi-permanent establishment. Smash Daddy Burger - A double patty of flattened beef was delicious. It was a melange of flavours that worked very well. I wish the patty was more crispy so that there is more texture in the patty. Naked Fries - The spiced fries were one of the best fries I've had. Fries were super crispy with fluffy interior. There was a good amount of seasoning on the fries making it tasty in flavour and texture. Would come back just for this!

Food truck in parking lot…read more Smash burger very tasty. A bit greasy, but doesn't take away from it. Two patties well smashed. Love the crispy brown look. The fries are nice and crispy/crunchy and come seasoned. Very friendly staff/owner? Serves food to the small patio area, and checks in with patrons on how they find the food. I would come back again.