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Zen Kitchen
Categories: Restaurants Vegan Restaurants Vegetarian Vegan, Vegetarian [Edit]
634 Somerset St WOttawa, ON K1R 5K4
(613) 233-6404
- Hours:
Tue-Sun 5 pm - 10 pm
Thu 11:30 pm - 2 pm
Sun 11 am - 2 pm
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
13 reviews for Zen Kitchen
13 reviews in English
-
Review from Sarah M.
Montréal, QC
5/23/2012
This was my first visit to Zen Kitchen with my brother and his wife, who are vegan. It is one of their favorite places in town so I had to try it.
We went for the brunch hour on a sunday. It was a superb day and we sat outside on the terrace. I had a veggie soup with a delicious house salad afterwards. I heard the Frittatta is amazing, and it looked and smelled very appealing ! I got a strawberry shortcake for dessert and it was fabulous !
again, very tasty, well located but a bit pricey. -
Review from Ashley A.
Ottawa, ON
4/27/2012
I have visited Zen Kitchen multiple times in the past 3 years. I am not currently a vegetarian (but have been in the past) and have always enjoyed my meal.
Recently I visited with my fiance to celebrate our engagement. I love the small and quiet atmosphere here, and we decided to do the chef's tasting menu with wine pairings. Dave is an excellent sommelier and the service was excellent - having each surprise course introduced as it was brought out made our night even more special. Every time I go, I am pleased with the quality of the dishes, the excellent service, and the commitment to a calm and relaxed dining environment.
It truly is my favourite dining spot in Ottawa. -
Review from Michael J.
Ottawa, ON
3/18/2012
Don't go here unless you're vegetarian. Even then, it's only okay.
You can get substantially better food at The Table and it will cost you less. The food there tastes better, despite being buffet style. Hard to believe.
My mushrooms were soggy and bland. -
Review from Sheila B.
Ottawa, ON
5/12/2012
I like meat. I reeeeally like meat. Especially when I eat out. So, although I'm a Chinatown resident and was intrigued by the outside of Zen, it took me some time to decide to spend a chunk of change without getting a little hunk o' meat outta the exchange! FInally, spurred on by a new gluten-free diet and the fact that our guest was a vegetarian visiting from Glasgow, I decided that the time was right. I was pleasantly surprised by the menu which was very creative and combined some really interesting ingredients. I was impressed by how tasty and interesting a vegan meal could be. (and yes, the Table and the Green Door are very nice and all, but at the end of day, when they weigh my food, I want a little creativity and a tad of innovation - not chickpea/vegetarian curry done 18 different ways. The whole experience is about as sexy as Birkenstocks; I'm not saying that there is not a place in this world for practical footwear and a good chickpea curry, quite the opposite - it's just it's not what I want when I take visitors out for a meal in Ottawa!)
-
Review from Jeff S.
Ottawa, ON
1/17/2012
This was my first visit to ZenKitchen. This visit was out of the ordinary, as volunteers of the local MP's campaign were treated to a buffet dinner. I was very excited to try the place out, as I enjoy trendy modern eateries. I knew nothing about the place, and came in with zero expectations.
ZenKitchen is located in Chinatown, just east of Bronson and the magnificent Chinatown Gateway. Metered parking on Somerset West.
I dined here with a large group. I love meat, I am not a vegetarian, but I would not consider myself as an adventurous eater.
ZenKitchen did a wonderful job of making gluten-free, local and organic food look, smell and taste VERY GOOD. They present themselves as gourmet vegetarian.
Unfortunately, I can't remember exactly what I ate, but I had a wonderful spicy soup and a curry dish with rice. It was self serve, so I cannot comment on service, but it seemed that everyone really enjoyed the food.
This was a very pleasant surprise, and my gluten free celiac wife and I will definitely be back to sample a funky addition to the Ottawa restaurant scene.
Visited May 2011 -
Review from Min Min T.
Scarborough, ON
10/23/2011 5 photos
While I fell in love with this place when on my first visit, I wasn't quite as impressed the second time. My sister and I came out for a late Sunday brunch - which normally runs from 10 am to 2 pm - and was met with luke-warm plates.
Even the tea I ordered wasn't steaming hot. While they have a sommelier on site to help with taking orders and serving the dishes, it's appalling that they can't boil water.
Zen Kitchen has the potential to be 5 stars, but they are sloppy on the minor details.
4/5 starts -
Review from Saeed T.
Ottawa, ON
11/9/2010
I think the previous reviews of this restaurant might be suffering from a bit of pro-vegetarian bias. To be sure, it's nice to have an upscale veg place to bring your veg friends to in this city, but Zen Kitchen is only ok, given the prices.
When we were there on a Sunday night, the service was very eager and available, which was nice. We were advised that the special for the night was an Eastern European "surprise". Intriguing, but visions of beets danced in my head so I took a pass.
We started with the Le Coprin mushrooms. They were good, more about the textures than anything else: the sesame crust was very nice against the meaty mushrooms. It's a dish meant for sharing, but it was still surprising how generous the heap of mushrooms was for an app. I would've preferred they were cooked in a slighly lighter oil, but I'm an oil snob so I might be nitpicking.
The mains were not as good, unfortunately. The pesto cheese ravioli was very wilty. The pasta literally broke apart as you lifted it, and there was an over-the-top tanginess to the whole dish, as if someone garnished twice by accident. The lemongrass curry was better, but completely unspicy, which is a bit unexpected for a curry.
Overall, I wouldn't avoid this place, but also wouldn't go out of my way to visit again. -
Review from Nicole H.
Toronto, ON
10/18/2010 5 photos
I tried Zen Kitchen when I was in Ottawa back in May, popping in for an early weekend dinner. A very nicely decorated & smallish restaurant, it's got a lovely atmosphere and is quite laid back. The service is quite attentive and helpful, & I was taken care of very well from the moment I sat down, til the moment I left (with a lovely little chocolate truffle accompanying my bill).
Zen Kitchen is a lovely dining experience overall. While waiting for your appetisers and mains, you're treated to a little amuse-bouche (mine was radish with cashew creme & vegan caviar) and also bread (mine came with an amazing white bean & truffle oil dip).
I love that the chef will have a special of the day according to the sorts of produce seasonally available, it really mixes things up a bit. The portion sizes for both the appetisers and mains are really very good, and the quality of the ingredients and flavours is out of this world. I think the only thing that disappointed me was my dessert (Lime Mousse Pie), which was more a personal taste/texture issue in the end. Overall, Zen Kitchen shows a nice variety of tastes & flavours and is creative without being inaccessible. Brilliantly gourmet vegan food that never leaves you craving.
This is more of a high 4.5 star rating, due to the prices & the fact that I felt a little awkward there as a solo diner (it seemed geared toward groups, even small ones, especially with their taster menus) - & there were even very few couples there. But I don't think it'd stop me eating there again for a treat if I go back to Ottawa. Would love to see somewhere like this in Toronto (I think it'd blow Fressen out of the water). -
Review from Amanda D.
Orleans, ON
3/12/2010
After hearing rave reviews from friends, we decided to give them a try. We went for their lunch menu. I have the empanadas and my husband had the chickpea curry wrap..both with fries. The fries were cooked perfect and the homemade ketchup was really delicious. It was sweet and full of spices..cloves stood out strongly.
Service was fast as the restaurant was slow at that hour.
For dessert, we both had the chocolate brownie and ice cream. The brownie was soft and full of chocolate chips and the entire brownie was swimming in chocolate sauce. It was heavenly!!!!!!!
Lunch was priced as you would expect of a high end restaurant. We left quite satisfied. -
Review from Chloe P.
Ottawa, ON
3/7/2011
just ok.
this is known to be the vegan/veggie fine dining of ottawa. i was impressed, but not overly.
service is great, just step up with the menu please! -
Review from Michael C.
Ottawa, ON
3/14/2010
This gourmet vegetarian restaurant is a welcome addition to Ottawa's burgeoning selection of vegetarian/vegan restaurants and is unquestionably the best veggie cuisine you will find in the National Capital Region. Refined yet robust flavors and colourful, unlikely pairings created by NYC-trained chef Caroline Ishii. If the food wasn't enough Zen Kitchen also has an impressive wine list, a charming interior and mouthwatering vegan desserts.
It is pricey but this is truly some of the best vegetarian food you're likely to find in Canada. -
Review from Katie D.
Ottawa, ON
12/30/2010
Zen impressed this meat eater!
The dishes I ordered were well seasoned and nicely presented. The service was attentive and the kitchen included some nice touches such as an amuse bouch at the start of our meal and a chocolate covered truffle "gift" at the end.
The wine list is extensive and focused heavily on Ontario wines - a good or bad thing depending on your perspective. One drawback is that they do not have corkage.
Zen is small and cozy and has a great vibe. Think casual funky Beckta. It was absolutely packed on a Wednesday evening so reservations are recommended. -
Review from Ellen C.
4/4/2010
We dined here with a large group for my birthday in October 2009, fairly soon after it opened. I'm vegetarian, but to the average person, a restaurant specializing in raw/gluten-free/local/organic food is weird and unappetizing. Chef Caroline manages to make the food 'not weird' but taste and look good, too.
Unfortunately, I can't remember exactly what was ordered. I think the chef provided complimentary appetizers to the table. This may have been some kind of veg dumpling with peanut sauce. We ordered a spicy bean soup and then shared a curry dish with rice. Both were quite good and the flavors well developed. I tried bites of portabello ravioli and it was extremely good. Dessert was a little disappointing as the vegan Mexican chocolate cake was a little on the dry side.
Service was decent, and my non vegetarian friends seemed to enjoy the restaurant as well. All in all, a surprisingly pleasant gourmet-veg addition to Ottawa's restaurant scene.
