Atelier - Ottawa

Food is Inventive, surprising. It was our 4th visit

Attentes culinaires élevées aucunement rencontrées lors de notre première visite. Malheureusement, nous ne pourrons pas recommander ce restaurant. Prix global très élevé par rapport à la qualité culinaire. Very blend, ordinary but yet very expensive dinner. Very disappointed by this culinary adventure. Left us on our appetite.

Extremely interesting food and presentations.

Not terrible but pretty mediocre - the ambiance was presumably deliberate but bad (bright, no music, sparse decor). I had the vegetarian tasting menu and didn't really like any of the items. My boyfriend had the normal menu and thought the last couple of dishes (salmon, duck) were good but the rest were miss-able. Despite the 12 courses, I was far from full and asked for extra bread after the last savoury dish came out - it's smaller than most 5-7 course tasting menus I've done in Toronto (e.g. George, Richmond Station) for the same price.

Great experience. Beautiful presentation and delicious food. Wonderful melody of tastes. Very attentive service. Would highly recommend.

Great food, great staff and service. A great spot for that special dinner.

there were several truly outstanding dishes and wines and the sommelier was extremely knowledgeable and interesting.

Amazing service overall! Wine and food pairing was incredible!

It’s a meal experience like no other.

Nothing compares to it.

Birthday & Anniversary

Unbelievable experience. My girlfriend and I went for her birthday and I believe everyone should go at least once in their life. Service was great, food was even better. Our only complaint was that the woman next to us kept answering FaceTime calls but that’s got nothing to do with the restaurant itself. I would highly recommend it.

Imaginative and tasty food. Attentive service. Pricey...but you get what you pay for.

Food was incredible as you would expect but the service was by far the best I have ever seen. Allison was exceptional. Truly a wonderful evening.

Restaurant was very bright, and silent resulting in odd ambience. Waiters sounded as if they memorized a script, especially the sommelier who was describing the wines verbatim to each table.
12 dishes, two stood out which were the short rib bite and the duck breast, otherwise everything else was tasteless or overly salty.
As excited as we were for this restaurant, we were unbelievably disappointed by our experience at what is supposed to be one of Canada’s top restaurants.

Absolutely fantastic experience from start to finish. The level of care and expertise in everything, from the food to the wine pairings to the service and the overall atmosphere, was outstanding. One of the finest dining experiences in all of Canada.

First time in and it was all beautiful! Curated wine pairing with beautiful back stories from the Somm, dishes were all amazing and inspiring. Looking forward to getting back to tastes what’s next.

Marc never ceases to amaze. Each course complimented the wine and set up for the next one perfectly.
Time flew by and I didn't even realize it was late till we finished our meal.

The sommeliers there are very enthusiastic and enjoy their job, it was great to have ours geek out over wine. It was very nice to see and experience their passion when they served us the wine.

I would recommend you go with the extended pairing, you can even share it if its too much wine ;)

Très belle expérience. Menu dégustation avec beaucoup d'originalité autant dans le choix des ingrédients que dans la présentation. Accord mets et vins intéressant. Excellent service tout au long du repas

Twelve small plates, of which only one was a miss in my opinion (a vegan "short rib"). Both desserts were a little bland. I expected something more elaborate on at least one of them.
But overall, Atelier lived up to its reputation.

Impressed with impeccable customer service at this restaurant. So rare to find this kind of quality nowadays. Thank you for a really lovely evening!

great food, great experience

Like others have said, the experience is best with one of the wine pairing options. It adds to the whole sense of the evening as an event.

Had a wonderful time experiencing all 12 courses. Staff was very knowledgeable and friendly. They brought out a small dessert and card signed by staff for my husbands birthday. Highly recommend!

everything was superb.... as always... the only thing to comment on was the service - the time between courses was a bit long - we found ourselves drinking most of the pairing wines while waiting... it was close to 4 hours, which is a bit long, but nevertheless well worth it.... thanks again for a fabulous and interesting meal!

We were very impressed, not by the building, but by everything else. The atmosphere as you walk in, we felt welcoming. The effort of serving us in French and of course the food. The presentation and explanation of all the twelve services is exceptional. The food is excellent, our experience was very special.

Amazing and unique dining experience

Absolutely incredible

Atelier was an interesting, good experience. Definitely pricey, but not inappropriately. The noise level was way too high though -- perhaps more sound absorbing materials could be added?

Excellent food, service and overall experience that is second to none in Ottawa!

Excellent experience, we enjoyed the extended wine list as we preferred to try the international wines. highly recommend! They made our birthdays fun, exciting and intriguing!

What an experience - Its by far the best experience I have had in a restaurant - the attention to the details, the courtesy of the staff. Even met the chef/owner
I would highly recommend it.

Great food in a setting very much not expected from the outside, food is beautifully presented and a good mix of more traditional and modern flavour combinations very very enjoyable will definitely be returning.

Des saveurs épatantes, des mariages d'aliments provoquants, des présentations aussi délicieuses pour les yeux que pour le palais! Une expérience à vivre. Chapeau à l'équipe de serveurs qui n'ont d'intérêts que pour les clients! Félicitations aux créateurs de ces trésors gastronomiques!

We had an absolutely wonderful time at Atelier!! The food was exquisite!! Our server, Vince, was amazing and gave lovely details of each course presented to us so beautifully. Our Sommelier was fantastic as well and she gave us special tips and interesting facts on the wine pairing selections without being too elaborate, she was a great communicator. A few of our favourites were the beet arrangement dish, the duck, the bison, the soft crab dish, and the absolutely amazing desserts!! It started off with an edible sugar helium balloon...sooo unique followed by an out of this world orange/mandarin frozen sorbet with sous vide cheesecake. A perfect ending to a very special dinner experience.

This is wonderful. The taste, the service and the ambiance. No wonder why it is the top of Ottawa. Everything is so creative and delicious. The chief has conquered my tongue with his talented art of cuisine.

This was my second at Atelier and it was impressive as the first time. This is a great place to share a special occasion and love the fact it is 3+ hours long.

Everything was exceptional including the design of the building with its simple interior. Our server was wonderful and explained each course in detail as it arrived to the table. The food was delicious and we loved all the different flavors. Some of which we were tasting for the first time. It was a memorable evening and I hope to come to Ottawa again to experience it. Do the wine pairing that Atelier suggests! I did not and it is my only regret!

I’ve been twice in a month. The food is the incredibly delicious and the staff is attentive, informed, and very professional.

This is one the best dinning experiences I have had in my life. I also got to experience Raymond's in St John's Nfld, which offer the same type of experience, but I preferred my experience at Atelier.
We loved the anticipation of the next dish, along with the knowledge of the Sommelier, and the great service from Eric, they made this night unforgettable for Amber and myself (Paul)

Thank you for a most memorable experience
Thanks again!
Paul and Amber

The outside entrance to Atelier looks much the same as it did when we were last there: rusted metal railing, industrial metal stairs and door. It looks a bit worse than last time and we still wonder why they left such a tetanus-inducing sight as the first impression to the restaurant.

We were underwhelmed with the food. Many of the dishes were bland tasting, while one fish dish, for my pescaetarian spouse, was overly salty. The presentation was average and not terribly original, having been of a type seen at other restaurants of this type. The desserts too were disappointing, with a cucumber and citrus fruit dessert that mostly tasted of cucumber - not sure if that's anyone's idea of a dessert.

The service was, as expected, impeccable. We were seated on the upper level; the noise level was horrendous, with cocktais being noisily made just a few feet away.

A very expensive evening. The chef appears to have lost his inspiration and is no longer creating bold looks and flavours. We will stick to Alice's from now on, which is nearby, aimed at the same demographic and simply does a much better job.