O Canada! The home of maple syrup, hockey and POUTINE

Canadian cuisine is definitely not as well-known Italy’s, Spain, Mexico, India and many MANY other countries in the world. But as a Canadian I am proud to bring you the POUTINE. Simple, yet packs a punch!

A poutine can be dressed up or dressed down. Great fast food but it can also be found in fancy restaurants. Poutine on its own is amazing but some places put their own spin on it, taking something simple and making it SPECTACULAR. Let’s check out some of the out of the best poutine creations in OTTAWA.

Yes, I am taking you to OTTAWA, our nation’s Capital. No, the capital is not Toronto contrary to popular belief.

Ottawa is the city where I went to university so it holds a special place in my heart and in my stomach. Although it is not as big as Toronto, Ottawa is a beautiful city! With Parliament Hill, the Rideau canal, St. Laurent River, the market and museums you will find plenty of things to do and EAT in Ottawa.

Poutines, pronounced by anglophones “poo-teen” and by francophones “putin”, are one of the greatest things Quebec has provided the world after Justin Trudeau.

What is a poutine? WELL, it is French fries, cheese curds and gravy!

I know what your next question is, what are cheese curds? The best way I can explain what cheese curds are is that it is cheese before cheese. My further research has told me that cheese curds are moist pieces of curdled milk. So, exactly as I described.

During my 5 years in Ottawa, there were many study sessions and dates where I was craving a good ol’ poutine! But, I found a couple places that have extraordinary poutines!

Milanos Pizzeria – Milano’s has what has to be my favorite poutine on this list, three words: TATER TOT POUTINE! YES YOU HEARD ME! Tater tots on their own are amazing and poutine on its own is amazing so putting them together was just a GAME CHANGER! The texture of the tots gives a crunch to every bite and they sometimes mix in some mozzarella with the cheese curds. On another note, aside from bomb pizza, Milanos also has DEEP FRIED CHEESE CURDS. You’re welcome!

Brothers Shawarma – You probably weren’t expecting a shawarma place to make it to this list but TRUST ME. They serve regular poutine, no tater tots or anything special BUT one of my friends changed my life and told me to add GARLIC SAUCE. Mind blown! Adding the garlic sauce they use for the shawarmas really took this poutine to the next level for me!

FlapJacks – This place is NOT KNOWN for their poutine but for their maple syrup, PANWICHES (Pancake sandwiches) and overall breakfast menu! They even have battered bacon! When I came to this place for breakfast I was super content with getting battered bacon, but then I saw on the menu that they had HOME FRIES POUTINE. I knew I had to try it! Home fries on their own are amazing so I knew the poutine would be amazing! On the menu there is also something called the breakfast poutine and it comes with a sunnyside up egg, cheese curds and hollandaise sauce! YUM YUM YUM.

PURE KITCHEN – This one goes out to all my vegans out there! Everyone should be able to enjoy a poutine and PURE KITCHEN is a great place to find a vegan poutine. Pure Kitchen is a vegetarian kitchen and juice bar. They make everything from scratch with fresh and healthy ingredients! They offer a vegetarian poutine and a vegan option as well! The poutine is made with fries, mushroom gravy and cheese curds or cashew cheese for vegans. This is an amazing place to get vegetarian food, everything is made with love and super healthy! LUXE Bistro – This place is where poutine turns into something more than just junk food. They made the poutine bougee, taking something so simple and adding a little bit sophistication and class. This restaurant serves an amazing LOBSTER POUTINE. I

love lobster and this poutine is to die for! They don’t skimp out on the lobster either. It is rich, decadent and an amazing treat! If you are feeling extra fishy you got to try the lobster burger as well!

Industria –I may have saved the BEST for last! Me and my best friend stumbled upon this restaurant in Landsowne Park one afternoon. The reason we walked in was because we saw that had a GNOCCI POUTINE. The gnocchi poutine has deep friend gnocchi with veal reduction gravy and cheese curds. The gravy really turns this into a proper dish, it is so rich and creamy. The gnocchi is fried so it is crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. I cant get enough of this poutine whenever I go back to Ottawa I HAVE to stop by Industria. Another appetizer that is on promotion are the pulled bacon lollipops! At first sight it kinda looks like dog food but I assure you it is amazing! They also serve it with maple syrup, if you haven’t tried bacon and maple syrup you aren’t living life right.

All this talk about poutine is getting me hungry and HOMESICK! I wish I could just hop on the next flight to Ottawa and grab a poutine to go. If you are planning a trip to Canada don’t overlook Ottawa, not only does it have amazing places to get out of the box poutines but it also has amazing museums, monuments, scenery and of course JUSTIN TRUDEAU.

April Jereza, auxiliar de conversación