I'm visiting Ottawa next week with my wife and teenager. I'm looking for breweries and places to grab a good beer. There were some ideas on a thread from 2019, but maybe there are updates. Bonus if there's decent food available. Thanks!
Downtown Ottawa is a bit of a letdown for beer. Nothing truly remarkable from Clocktower or Lowertown. Bar Lupulus has a great tap and bottle list with food on the fancy side. Braumeinster has german inspired food and beer. Craft Beer Market on Lansdowne has a big list from micro and macro breweries and pub food. On the Gatineau side Le Clandestine has some good Quebec beers on tap. A bit further away in Aylmer, Bistro L'autre oeil has a great tap list mainly from Quebec Breweries with awesome poutine. Breweries: dominion, bicycle, tooth and nail, stray dog in Ottawa. Bas Canada, 5e baron in Gatineau.
Beyond the Pale I would say is the must go to brewery in Ottawa proper in terms of consistently good beer, and the place you need to get beer from, although I wouldn't go there for the scenery. Everything else of what I've had from Ottawa has been very hit or miss. Vimy has this great East Coast Pale Ale & Tooth and Nail - Vim and Vigor is a great pilsner but apart from them nothing really stood out to me, but I've heard good things about Dominion City. I've usually go to Craft Market by Landsdowne for drinking as I usually hit Ottawa to watch soccer games. That said, pretty sure that is a bit of a franchise so I wouldn't call it special. I highly suggest crossing over to Gattineau and stopping at a store called Broue Ha Ha to pickup some Dieu du Ciel and Unibroue to take home. They usually have a mix pack of some kind there.
I would have to respectfully disagree with this. BTP is alright, but in Ottawa proper I prefer Dominion City (east end). Amazing patio and tap room with selection from their own brews and guests. But, overall your best bets are 5e Baron or Bas Canada on the Quebec side. Both are a little out of the way, but well worth the trip.
I can't really speak too much about Dominion City. I only have had two of their beers and I don't believe they brew them anymore. I found them to be ok but nothing to write home about. That said, I've had some acquaintances talk them up in the last year or so, so that is a thing.
Thanks everyone. It was a great time in Ottawa, good family time that made it hard to find time for brewery stops. I left my fam when they went thrifting in Westboro, only to realize that Clocktower was mentioned as a place NOT to go. I grabbed some singles at the LCBO and was pretty happy with the hoppy Flying Monkey stuff. I absolutely loved cycling the off-road paths, and I'll be back for sure to take care of my unfinished business.
