Bella Via Cafe

I had a late lunch here this past week and it was pretty good. I’ve walked by many times but for whatever reason never came in until that day. Truth be told, I was actually planning on eating at the elusive Wellington Sandwich, but when I walked there they were closed, despite it only being 3pm on a Wednesday (!) and Bella Via wasn’t too far away and they were open.
You know the chain Cultures Restaurant owned by the MTY Group? Well, Bella Via reminds me of a less corporate Cultures Restaurant. There are many ready-​made sandwiches and salads to choose from. I would say the quality is better than at Cultures and there’s more attention to detail.
I got a roast beef panini with a bean salad and a bocconcini and tomatoes salad ($ 10). I also got a bottle of Perrier ($ 2.50).
The roast beef was deli meat, but it was good nonetheless. I got mustard, lettuce and tomatoes on it. The bean salad was nice. It wasn’t drenching in oil and wasn’t too salty. It was a mix of kidney and garbanzo beans with diced red and green peppers. The bocconcini and tomatoes salad was excellent. They used grape tomatoes, which I loved because it didn’t get soggy or make the salad too juicy. There was a good amount of cheese and also some fresh basil leaves. I loved how they drizzled on some balsamic glaze over the salad before serving it. I also got 4 tiny black olives with my meal. I usually dislike olives but they were the best olives I’ve ever had. They were dryish, still with the seed in, and incredibly potent.
They also serve gelato! I will have to try some next time.
The décor is café-​like with a modern twist. I love the transparent blue plastic chairs.
I was served by an older man who was friendly and helpful.
They are right at the corner of Parkdale and Wellington, on the first floor of a mid-​rise building. Kitty corner to the Rexall pharmacy. Street parking only.

Delicious sandwiches for an amazing price! My partner and I just moved to Ottawa last week and we’ve already gone back twice. despite the slightly abrasive woman working there.

I stopped in at Bella Via today for the first time in search of a latte and something sweet to eat. I’ve passed by a few times a week for a couple of years now and until today I’d never considered giving it a try. I think the reason I’d been avoiding it is because I had read something elsewhere online about it not being very good/​never being open, but I enjoyed myself today. I also note that on their website, the hours are listed as 7am-​10pm. So something must have changed recently.
I ordered a pumpkin spice latte and two biscottis: one white chocolate, the other milk chocolate. As I was paying, I spotted the gelato for the first time, totally forgetting that the store front has «gelato» spelled out in huge letters. There were about 6 flavours and one of them was bright green. I asked the barista which flavour that one was, and she said it was pistachio (which I love!). I said I’d have to come back again to try it and she offered to give me a sample. And it was then confirmed that I’d have to return at some point (preferably tomorrow) to get a serving of their pistachio gelato!
I decided to take my coffee and biscottis home with me to eat. The store seemed pretty quiet though, so I think that I’d have been just as happy to sit at the window and people watch.
There’s plenty of seating, especially in the afternoon; only one person besides myself was there at 2pm on a Tuesday.