Ottawa’s annual Poutine Fest was held over the weekend of Oct. 16-18 on Sparks Street. The festival enticed Ottawans to stop by and enjoy a taste of authentic Canadian cuisine from a total of 18 different vendors.
Arriving on Sunday afternoon, I decided I was having poutine for lunch— lots of it. Food trucks were parked all the way down the street, decorated with pumpkins and banners, all in the spirit of the fall season.
One of the vendors with the longest lines was Fat Les. Their banner promoted an award-winning bacon double cheeseburger poutine and many people were lined up to have a taste of it, including me. Ottawa’s food lovers braved the icy winds as we all waited in line. It was a small price to pay for some of the best poutine in town.
I dug my fork into the poutine, and it made perfect sense why it was being raved about so much. It had the standard poutine base, fries with gravy and cheese curds. But what put it over the top were the bacon pieces and shredded cheddar that the fries were buried under.
It was just warm enough, the bacon was crispy, and the gravy was a balanced combination of savoury and sweet with a good consistency. The only thing lacking was the cheese curds that topped it were too cold.
Fat Les offered one size of poutine, and even shared between two people, the dish was quite substantial. It was a satisfying dish and especially delicious, definitely my recommendation for cheese lovers.
The Upper Deck Diner, which looked like a London bus, was another highlight, especially their Pogo poutine, which consisted of poutine with sliced pieces of Pogo on it. The heated dining area was full, and people only got up to leave because others were standing by the stairs waiting to get a seat.
Having travelled an hour from the Ottawa Valley, Terry Wall and her family decided to spend their Sunday afternoon at Poutine Fest.
“I was drawn to the London bus board because I’m from England and my mom used to be a conductor on a bus like this,” Wall said.
Wall expressed her satisfaction with her plate of poutine from The Upper Deck Diner.
“First time I’ve had sweet potato poutine. [It was] very good,” Wall said.
Sarah Wall, Terry’s daughter, described the variety served at the food festival.
“I thought it was interesting, the different types, like I’ve never heard of a lobster poutine. There’s a lamb one too,” she said.
There was a great variety of poutine, ranging across many cuisines and cultural backgrounds. Pong’s Poutine served up a range of Asian delights, including chicken curry and sweet and sour chicken poutines.
Twisted Tomato & Gourmet Ketchup brought some crispy twisted fries to the festival and this was a big hit, as people were walking around with long sticks of twisted fries, enjoying the toasty treat in the cold fall weather.
Carleton University students Agatha Bartoszewicz and Laura Alkhoury enjoyed their dishes from Fadi’s Fabulous Foods and said you could smell the festival from down the street.
“The smell, when you walk down the street, that’s what brought us,” Bartoszewicz said, “I’m sure the city will cry if it’s not held again next year.”
