Canal Ritz Restaurant

I loved my Veal Marsala!!! Waitress was great! Right off the Canal. Next year when we come back for Winterlude we’ll skate down to here and have dinner again.

Beautiful location on the canal along Queen Elizabeth Drive.
Nicely appointed with indoor and outdoor seating with large umbrellas.
But, we made the mistake of going for an after dinner coffee and perhaps, dessert.
The coffee was fine, but the cup was smallish and the server never offered a refill.
The Apple Cobbler went through a microwave before arriving at our table. What was described as an «Oatmeal Cookie» topping, suggesting a crunchy cookie-​esque bite and chew, was instead soggy and practically tasteless. I understand keeping desserts in a cool place before serving, but the heat up in a microwave is ridiculous. How about a little effort? Put it in the oven for a few minutes and bring the entire fat slice back to life.
This was the most disappointing experience of my three days in Ottawa.
These people just don’t get it.

I ordered mussels and they are tasteless. After I tried that appetizer did not want to order an entrée not worth it.
Very nice and relaxing view in the patio area though.
This is a perfect stop just to have beers.

We came here for a Sunday brunch, had eggs benedict and latte.
Pros: coffee was good, view was amazing, the server super nice.
Cons: food was bad — tasted bad and was not fresh. Ham tasted weird (most likely not fresh), eggs were cold-​ish, the hollandaise sauce tasted bad and was obviously made by with flower, and the salad came already dressed with a sweet sauce, which I find particularly annoying, especially that I wasn’t told before and I happen to not like sweet food.
All in all, the stars were exclusively given for the really nice server and the water view. I wouldn’t go back for food. Just for coffee or beer to enjoy by the canal.

I came to eat here for dinner on New Year’s Eve with my SO. Overall it was a fantastic experience.
The décor was almost reminiscent of a classic restaurant in Paris; felt really nostalgic.
I shared a bruschetta with my SO. Very tasty.
I had a fettuccine in a spicy tomato sauce with ricotta filled meatballs and olives. Fantastic. BF had veal chop with mashed potatoes and vegetables that he enjoyed it very much.
I had a chocolate cake and BF had a lemon raspberry cheesecake. Both were delicious.
Great service, great food, amazing location!

I have to say I was a bit skeptical when I got here. The décor feels very much like it was probably amazing when it was first opened, but hasn’t had the refresh somewhere with such a gorgeous setting really deserves.
But, where it lacks a bit of ambiance inside it has to have one of the best patios in the city. You’re right on the canal and in the summer it’s quiet and peaceful and really an amazing place to have dinner.
The food was actually really great. They do a gluten free crust and I had a pizza that was really delicious. It’s a bit pricier there, but it was about $ 17 for a decent sized pizza (I couldn’t finish it all) and was really good.
You have to try the pear and brie pizza. Seriously.
The service was attentive and good, it got busy and the service got a bit slow, but can’t blame them for that.
It is pricy, especially for the ambiance inside, but the food is very delicious.
All in all I’d go back. Especially if I had family coming and wanted a nice dinner in the summer and sat on the patio.

Very poor first time experience at Canal Ritz. Servers were very unprofessional. We were never approached with follow up of the food, server could not remember who ordered what, server drops the foods and plates in a rude manner. Totally did not expect this type of service for a pricey restaurant. The worst was there are TONS of spiders under the tables on the patio — as they never cleaned them obviously — the server just said «yeah, it’s like this at night». After the server said that she did not even ask if we like to move our seats into the dining room. Poor hospitality overall. Food is ³⁄₅. Environment is ²⁄₅. Service is ¹⁄₅. Good view of the canal but I would NOT eat there EVER again. Bugs and food don’t go together, you know?

Terrible service. Subpar food. Cold bread. Didn’t ask what we think of the food. Sat on a patio that houses tonnes of spiders. Clearly they dont clean their furniture at the end of the night. When reflected to the waitress, she just says. «ya, always happens at the end of the night.» Not apologetic and do not provide solution at all. Will never come again. STAY AWAY!

The setting is great, definitely Canal Ritz’s strong point. The spot is beautiful and there is a parking lot across the street. But the food and service were below average by Ottawa standards — I’ve been living here for nearly two months — as judged by sampling our group of six people. Even the hamburgers were bad. We visited on a weekday with a reservation and had the worst seats in the house, even with other large tables open and available. It took forever to put in our orders, get the food, and then get the check.

I was there last night for a work Xmas dinner, we were seated upstairs, the place is gorgeous but everyone of us froze all during dinner. Had to order the soup just because it was warm, made the evening quite unpleasant, guess I was lucky not to get a seat by the window.

Although we live in the Glebe, we don’t go to the Ritz very often. But on a recent hot summer evening, the thought of dinner by the canal drew us back once again. We got a table by the water and watched the ducks swimming in and out of the algae floating on the surface. (The NCC should really try to do a bit more to keep that under control.) The cool breeze off the canal was nonetheless wonderful.
The food was OK. We each had a salad: mine was with pears, blue cheese and walnuts; my wife’s was with roasted beets. Both were enormous — almost a meal in themselves. But frankly, we make better versions of those salads at home. We then split a thin crust pizza that was OK, but far from the best in town. We passed on the desserts, which looked from the menu to be the same as you might find at any family restaurant. I did finish with a very good espresso.
Although other reviewers criticized the service, our waiter was friendly and efficient. We felt neither rushed nor ignored.
Food — two stars. Location — four stars. I settled on three overall.

What a disappointment.
I keep going back to restaurant because of the location…
The steak, overcooked and low grade (full of fat and nerves?), but conveniently overpriced.
Waiters, most of them think they are doing you a favor by taking your order. I don’t want to blame them but there obviously is something wrong. I’ve had some very nice waiters too but I mostly bad experiences.
Service, very slow and it’s not uncommon for them to miss a thing or two.
This restaurant makes money because of the location, near the canal. I wouldn’t go there if it wasn’t for the view. Don’t let their image trick you into thinking this is a decent restaurant, because it is not.

The Canal Ritz was nice, but it was a bit disappointing. Not that it was bad in any way, but the three other Unilocal reviews led me to believe that this was a classy Italian restaurant, when it was a rather standard, touristy restaurant. Which was fine, since I am a tourist.
I was, however, expecting more than plastic chairs and tables with alcohol-​sponsored umbrellas, eating on the too-​hyped-​up patio. The «outstanding» wine list? Well, not by California standards. Sorry. It’s a *good* wine list, but I’d never call it huge. Just good. There’s nothing wrong with that either — I’m just trying to keep it real!
I do give them props for their convenient, private parking lot across the street. I always like restaurants on the water, too. The food was rather mediocre. Nothing really to say about it. But the wait staff was friendly and helpful!
Would I go back? Probably not… there’s a lot of other great Ottawa restaurants that I’ve yet to try. But there’s not any reason to avoid this place, either!

I used to eat here once a month with friends. Now I always take visitors here on their first trip to Ottawa. The setting is really pretty, in winter the skaters, in summer the ducks and boats. Sadly, the food is only adequate and the menu a little nondescript. Either Goat cheese salad, or the antipasto is what I finally settled on as my staple dish after trying almost everything else. (not cooked) The desserts are purchased so are sometimes stale and too pricey for purchased desserts. So go for the view, not for the food. A few times, I took my leftover pasta home. The next day it was swimming in a pool of (maybe butter?) oily stuff. Yuck. They should try to prevent their patrons from taking leftovers home. You don’t need to know that you ate that much fat the night before in your fettucine alfredo.
Oh and most importantly. It’s WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBLE which is why we went there in the first place.

The Canal Ritz is a really popular restaurant! All sorts of government officials, dignitaries, and local celebrities have eaten here. Both locals and tourists love the food, but the view of the Rideau Canal is really beautiful and it’s incredibly convenient to get to. A lot of people even bring their families here, especially for more upscale pizzas and desserts.
They serve Italian food here, both traditional and contemporary, as well as some other International-​Italian fusion fare, including jambalaya penne pasta, Mediterranean pizza, and chorizo sausage calzones. They also boast a large beverage menu, with many wines, liqueurs, cocktails, coffees, and non-​alcoholic options.
The food and drinks are all tasty and made well, with fast and friendly service, as you would expect. I find some of the items on their menu are completely reasonable, which others a bit overpriced. It all really depends on what you’re in the mood for, but it’s definitely a place you want to visit at least once.

This place is a spectacular setting. Don’t believe me? Ask Bill Clinton. Jean Chretien brought the U.S. President there to have dinner at the table that overlooks the canal in the upstairs.
Several years later I enjoyed a nice December dinner in that same spot — minus the VIP’s!
The food was pretty good and I actually expected the «Ritz» to be more expensive. I had the salmon which seemed a bit odd to eat while looking out over the stagnant (but pretty) Rideau Canal. It thankfully wasn’t local.
This place has a huge wine list and the staff were very helpful in choosing the proper one.
What was unfortunate and what we felt slightly guilty about was that we were a large group of about 25 people and we *thought* we had the entire upstairs but they seated couples and small parties around us which must have really sucked for those people.
The patio outside hangs out over the canal. Summer (watching the boats) or winter (watching the skaters) presents a breathtaking view of Ottawa and I’d highly recommend.

I happened to be driving along the river when I spotted a restaurant that appears to have THE greatest view in the city. Canal Ritz, as its name suggests, is perched along the banks of the Rideau Canal. It is an Italian restaurant serving all the Italian basics — bruschetta, ravioli, pesto, manicotti, linguini, veal, pizza, etc. Entrees start at only $ 15 and go only as high as $ 28 (the steak). I ordered the ravioli — I am a sucker for it! I enjoyed it, but wish the portions were a little larger. The wine list is OUTSTANDING — they have almost 40 wines available, including reds, whites, roses, and sparkling wine. Sadly, it is not terribly intimate — the tables are close together. But, the food is devine, the prices are great and the VIEW is spectacular.