Erling's Variety

Had a fantastic experience!

The wait staff were kind enough to create a romantic table as a surprise for when we arrived. They even had my favorite music playing! The chef has great taste in music. I love how the restaurant is set up to see into the kitchen. It's great to see professionals do their thing.

The staff were pleasant and efficient, and as each dish arrived, they exceeded our expectations. Fresh and delicious, each plate was made perfect. My favorite dish of the night was the scallops.

Wonderful experience for solo dining. Sit at the bar and enjoy watching these chefs do what they love. The food was delicious and unique. Hush puppies, Brussels and my favorite the artic char flatbread- all wonderful. The staff were amazing and attentive especially for a solo dining experience they were friendly and made the experience! Worth a visit in Ottawa!

Really attentive service! They have a great happy hour deal, $2 oysters and $20 for the charcuterie board. Everything we had was delicious. The hot het sandwich was my favourite.
Would definitely come back, especially for the happy hour.

Amazing food, friendly and accommodating service and cozy atmosphere and cool decor. Can't wait to go back!

I'm going to be generous and provide a 1 star because at least the Mushroom dish was decent. However, for $26 dish I was expecting some kind of fancier mushroom, not button mushrooms. I could make this at home. Overall for the food quality, size and flavor, the dishes were not worth it's price. Their steak was $48 and came in half the size than when I would get from Harmons steakhouse. We also got the hen, which I thought would be a decent size hen for $28. It was a small amount of meat on two slices of toast. The duck tartare was bland. Can't compare with the beef tartare at Bar Lupulus. The only upside is the toast was pretty good and I'm not sure they made it themselves.

Their cocktails weren't special either. I've had my fair share of great amazing cocktails in Ottawa worth $18-$20, the one I had called paper planes isn't worth $16. I wouldn't even pay $10 for that.

The service was also pretty bad. Our server didn't get our drinks until 20 minutes after we sat down. They took our plates before we finished and didn't ask. Heck, if I'm paying that much for a small pretentious meal I better scrape it all down. They barely came to us to ask how we're doing. They even forgot our drinks and they are asking for 20% tip. Yeah, no.

Overall super disappointed and I do not recommend going unless you wanna spend a lot of money on basic food. We went to Gongfu Bao after and that was a satisfying meal.

This has to be a foodie's heaven! Every dish had amazing flavours, the pacing that the dishes came out to us was just right. Our server's suggestions and explanations of the dishes and cocktails were perfect. Great place to have a visit with friends or family, there's a laid back and comfortable atmosphere.

Most amazing mushrooms I've had, and I'm not usually a mushroom person. Loved the tofu latkes, the gnudi was heavenly. The duck tartare, beef tenderloin and oxtail dishes were all delicious as well. Great spot to explore different flavours and new foods, they know what they're doing.

Came for dinner and ordered about half the menu for 4 of us to share. All dishes were exceptional. Service was excellent, atmosphere was relaxing overall. Looking forward to coming back

Incredible, cozy dinner! Everything was delicious: duck breast tartare, mushrooms on toast, Meyer lemon tofu and oxtail pappardelle. Save room for the lovely profiteroles. Lovely service and wine - can’t wait to come back!:)

Honestly I can't think of one bad thing about this place. Oh, maybe that one of the washroom doors you really have to push to close. But that's a minor quibble.

The food is just next level. We went during happy hour, and got the charcuterie board. Everything was perfectly portioned. The selection of cheeses, meat and condiments was well thought out and worked so well together. The small plates were next level. We're going to keep coming back to try them all.

Service was also EXCELLENT. It was busy, but there were a few tables open when we left at 7: 30pm. Though with food, service and prices like this, you got to go now.

We had an amazing evening reconnecting with old friends at Erling's. Right from the moment we arrived, we were treated with exceptional hospitality by Liam who greeted us warmly. Despite it being our first visit, we felt right at home.

The dinner format at Erling's consists of small plates that are perfect for sharing with your companions. The staff recommended having two plates per person, and we took their advice, enjoying a total of eight servings. Each plate was served individually, beginning with delectable oysters, succulent scallops, refreshing arugula salad, and a generous charcuterie board. We then savoured the flavours of duck, oxtail ragout, Cornish hen, and finally, profiteroles for dessert.

Throughout the evening, the wine was flowing, and there was no sense of urgency. We were able to take our time, enjoying each other's company and the delicious food. In fact, we ended up closing the place down! It's safe to say that Erling's Variety has quickly become one of our favourite restaurants in downtown Ottawa, and we look forward to returning soon.

Friendly and well lit.unfortunately I left here very disappointed.

I understand it's tapas and made from scratch, but there are plenty of expensive restaurants in Ottawa where after dropping $100 I don't leave as hungry as when I left. Food took incredibly long to make it to the table - was 3 hours to get to the last dish.

Beer options were limited and disappointing (again, I understand this is a wine-first place but there is way too much good beer in Ottawa to have such a limited selection).

Maybe the booth seating was more comfortable, but for a 3 hour dinner I found the chairs incredibly uncomfortable; the decor was definitely more "hip" than classy, and again, if dropping $100 a head I would prefer to have classy than "hip".

I understand maybe I'm just not their typical clientele but personally I would not return just based on all the above. Clearly some people love this place, I just can't understand why.

My thanks to the staff for their friendliness, I just can think of a myriad other places where I could spend half the money and have twice the experience.

Very special local restaurant with amazing food. My partner has a gluten allergy and they went out of their way to adapt our charcuterie board by making fresh waffle fries instead of crackers. We did not have to ask for this, but they did so anyway!

If you want to treat yourself to something special, visit Erling's. One of my favourite restaurants in the city because of the incredible care put into their menu, curated with thought and a nod to seasonal dishes with their own special take. The staff are also wonderful, adding to the overall great experience I always have when visiting.

Went here with my husband for a date night and we were super impressed with everything. The atmosphere was amazing, with cool art and lighting. The service was impeccable, we took recommendations from our server who was well informed on wine pairings and where the food was sourced, a lot which is from Canada. We shared the Big Board, Oysters, Duck tartar and Cod cheeks. Everything was so delicious.

This had to be one of the best food experiences we've had in Ottawa for quite some time. The scallop crudo (melt in your mouth) and the latkes and tomato were amazing. The service was outstanding. Glad to see that a neighborhood restaurant has managed to ascend to the top of the list once again.

Best restaurant in Ottawa - hands down! Their changing seasonal menus are phenomenal. Every dish I have tried there (I have been many, many times) is to die for! Amazing atmosphere, super chill vibe. The staff makes you feel like family and I cannot recommend this place enough. Also - don’t skip out on the homemade desserts. So delicious.