Corner Kitchen at Kent & Laurier: Reasonable food, Reasonable prices!

Downtown Ottawa is a zoo at lunch-time at any time of year but in the deep of winter it is at its worst. If you want to meet someone for lunch who works in one of the many office towers, government or otherwise, time is always of the essence. Also, weather can be a major factor, since people don’t want to go to the hassle of dressing and undressing just to go a block or two. It’s also pretty hit and miss as to whether you are going to be able to find a seat and be served within the allotted time period. Of course, many of those in the higher echelons do not have to worry about such trivialities, but for the majority of us, it is a major consideration.
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So it was that I was meeting with Dorothy and Kim for lunch after which, I was going skating on the Rideau Canal Skateway. Since she works in the Department of Fisheries and Oceans building at 200 Kent Street, we had lots of choices of venue.

Where we went: For quite some time, Dorothy had been talking about the food at Corner Kitchen, a cafeteria-style establishment situated right in her office tower. It is owned and operated by a catering company that has a second location in Place de Ville. This is not a fully-fledged restaurant since it is self-service only and no alcohol is available. Also, Corner Kitchen is only open from 9-5, Monday through Friday. That being said, for what it is, we were pleasantly surprised at the experience. We were fortunate enough to arrive before the real onslaught and thus had no trouble finding a seat. Had we been even ten minutes later, this would not have been the case.

What we ordered: Dorothy had been extolling the virtues of the Pad Thai, so I selected that, while she and Kim opted for the Hot Thai Soup with stuffed Naan bread.

Pad Thai?

What we got:After the fact, I wished that I had also selected the soup and Naan bread since both were streaks ahead of my Pad Thai which was really a plate of mildly-spiced noodles which had been waved in front of some chicken. It was not horrible but neither was it really Pad Thai. It is probably close to the best that one should expect at $6.95. Still, I would rather have paid more for the real thing. I would not order it again, but definitely would go for the stuffed Naan.

Summary

• Positives: Fast and inexpensive.
• Negatives: Food is what one would expect for cafeteria-style food!
• Recommendation: If you are in the neighbourhood and in a hurry, this might be your spot!

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