Ratatouille Bistro

After picking up some Opulence Coffee, we needed to grab some eats before we prepared to check-out of our hotel and make our way to the airport.  We took one last go-around Byward Market and perused a few places for brunch/lunch but nothing seemed to catch out eye.  We finally settled on Ratatouille Bistro for brunch due to some pretty good online reviews.  Sure, those can be sometimes misleading (dependent on who are doing the reviews) but so far in Ottawa, they have been spot on.

So things started off with the Hungerman Breakfast which was a lot of food!  This sported 3 eggs, applewood double-smoked bacon, pork sausage, crab cake, crispy smashed baby potatoes, mixed greens, fruit and toast (all for $19.00).  As you can see, things looked good and in fact, they were good.  The bacon was crispy, eggs were done to our liking and the fruit and salad were fresh.  Only thing that was not-so-good was the crab cake as it was more of a croquette with potato than a crab cake.

On that note, the Crab Cake & Chipotle Crema Benedict suffered from the same issue with the crab cakes.  They were crispy but quite heavy due to the potato and whatever fillers they were using.  Naturally, for $21.00, we weren't expecting 2 crab-filled cakes, but they should either not offer this or charge more money for more crab.  On the positive side, the spice was welcomed and it mixed well with the creamy and tangy Hollandaise.  The soft-poached eggs were perfect too.

Costanza went for the Ratatouille Sandwich featuring 2 fried eggs, bacon, applewood smoked cheddar, avocado, salsa and spicy chipotle mayo.  So no, there wasn't actually ratatouille in the sammie, but it still ate real well with nicely grilled and charred sourdough with perfectly prepared ingredients.  Hence the bacon was crispy and the eggs were done right while the mayo provided spice and the avocado added a creamy counterpoint.

For myself, I had the Short Rib Hash Skillet with wild mushrooms, caramelized onion, cheddar, smashed potatoes and 2 sunny side eggs.  This was quite good with tender braised short rib flavoured with its own braising jus.  The potatoes were creamy and soft with a crisp exterior.  Combination of sweet onions and earthy mushrooms added depth while the cheddar provided smokiness.  Adding a bit of hot sauce on the side would complete the dish.  Overall, the brunch at Ratatouille Bistro was good and well-portioned.  Prices are completely fair and the service is friendly.  They just need to rework or get rid of that crab cake.

The Good:
- Well-priced
- Large portions
- Overall well-prepared brunch

The Bad:
- That crab cake is not very good