The Daily Grind

The service was rude when I visited a little over a year ago … Maybe it has changed.

I wanted to photograph the food but it looked & smelled so freaking delish I just dove in. Bacon cheeseburger, home fries, coconut curry lentil soup & coffee. My friend had the Blackbean burger & green tea. The ambiance is funky, eclectic. There is extra seating room upstairs in various rooms. One has an atari set up and lots of board games and comfy couch. Made me feel like I was back in uni. So AWESOME. Worth trying.

The food here is amazing, everything is gluten-​free and tastes great. They also vegan options. I have had tried their breakfast, burgers, and shawarma quesdia (a MUST TRY). They have beautiful art on the walls that change to feature multiple artists. The service is weird, you have to up to the counter to order food then the server will bring it to you.

First visit to The Daily Grind — hidden gem just east of Chinatown — was worth it. I had a really tasty black bean burrito cuz I couldn’t fathom eating a full black bean taco platter (yes, I was in a black bean mood). I was with a group of 12 and all the meals were well presented and everyone seemed to enjoy their choices. Beer selections were decent enough with Mill Street and Beau’s on tap. They are also really good about accommodating food allergies. Staff was friendly.
The downstairs is a little on the dark-​ish side for me even with the sunlight beaming in from Somerset. They have rooms upstairs to accomodate larger groups and an outdoor section on the side of the building which is a nice touch.
Ample bicycle and car parking on Somerset and the sidestreets.
If you need a break from chinese food in the area, give them a go. :)

By far one of the worst establishments in Ottawa for food. Breakfast was by far the worst I have ever encountered on any trip. Basically, ordered two eggs potatoes and coffee and within two minutes of receiving my meal, I paid my check and left (food was too disgusting to describe). Beware!

This place tries for a hippy-​artsy-​grungy look but in the end it felt filthy. Maybe it’s my own preference but it didn’t feel clean.
Food had their pros and cons. We had jerk chicken wrap, quinoa burger and poutine. The jerk chicken was tasty but too heavy on the spices. Quinoa burger was excellent. The negative was the poutine– the potato wedges were not fresh. And my wife noticed there was still sand or dirt on them; which meant they did not clean them thoroughly before cooking. Not a huge biggie but a disappointment given this restaurant was ranked so high.
The service was poor. They seemed understaffed. Only two ladies working the tables. It was confusing who took the order or how — we ended up queuing at the bar to place our order.
It has an open style kitchen so you could see the chefs at work. One thing that gets to me is that chefs should wear hairnets on their head/​face (beards) when handling food. These guys weren’t wearing any of that — I know this probably happens in other kitchens but if you’re going to allow patrons to see inside your kitchen at least make the extra effort! One of the chefs had a massive hippy-​beard.
Overall it’s an interesting restaurant, perhaps go at a more quieter time (say mid afternoon). Maybe the service would have been better. Definitely not a 5-​star more like 3-​star.

Pretty good neighbourhood place, with the added benefit of being gluten free for my friend who has celiac. The service is maybe a little too relaxed, with the waiter casually cursing while talking to us about the menu. I don’t mind paying at the counter though. It takes a fair amount of time for the food to come out of the tiny kitchen, which is not helped by the fact that the menu is huge. Waffles with pulled pork were great. Eggnog pancakes were glue-​y texture and yuck.

I really like the Daily Grind for beers and the vibe but I recommend sticking to the simpler stuff when ordering food. BLT, Bacon and Apple sandwich, quesadillas, etc. I have found myself disappointed when I’ve ordered more complex dishes… for example, the jerk chicken was too hot to even eat comfortably, and there was nothing jerk spice about it — just an overwhelming scotch bonnet taste. What’s worse is that the server actually recommended it when I asked her about it, and said nothing about the level of spice. Maybe there was someone new in the kitchen who made a mistake because it was practically inedible for both of us who ordered it. Oh well. Anyways, if you stick to the simple things or just grab a few (or many) beers here, it is a great space and worth a visit!

Friendly service! Great selection of beverages (alcoholic and non)! Good food (amazing gluten and dairy free selections)! This is a great place to hit up for brunch, lunch or dinner. They occasionally bring in live music and it’s a good space for it. I’ve tried several things on the menu and have found them to be enjoyable — ranging from ‘yum’ to ‘holy this is fantastic’! They also have an upstairs where you can play games. The eclectic art on the walls is something to see! A definite recommend for a laid back fun time!

I really like this place. The food is gluten free (doesn’t taste like it though) and the prices are reasonable. I had the country fried steak last time I was there and it was delicious! Only complaint– I wished there was more gravy for my potatoes. The staff is also super friendly. I loved their lemon bunt cake, but they were out last time I was there which was disappointing. But the meal and service were spot on. I have been here multiple times, sometimes the food is a little slow to come out, but overall I am always satisfied. I am sure I’ll be back here over and over again for the forseable future.

This place is absolutely amazing! Food is great, service is friendly, rates are totally fair (actually way less expensive than most organic, gluten-​free dishes) and the atmosphere is so chill. Go, you’ll love it.

Awesome relaxed atmosphere… staff is friendly and they make a kick ass breakfast. I especially love the sautéed mushroom and spinach and their lovely toast. It’s all gluten-​free, even the sweets!

This place caught us by surprise, we stopped in to kill some time while waiting for another location and it ended up being great! The staff is down to earth and friendly. Great music was being played at the time (live DJ) as well.
Keep in mind this place is really casual, hipster and informal, so come in here for a chill night. The food was really good, I had the Louisiana blackened catfish, which was great. Another person in the group had the waffles and pulled pork which was as good as it sounds.
Overall, great place, highly recommended.

Place is really cozy and has an amazing feel to it. It always smells delicious, artwork is impressive and staff is supper friendly! Definitely 5 stars experience! Sitting area is not big and place is extremely popular and always full. Best tasting Earl Gray I’ve ever had!!!

Es hat so gut getan, in diesem Café zu sitzen und ein frisches Morgenessen zu geniessen! Sympatische Bedienung, coole Einrichtung.

Yep, I’m bumping this one up to a five star experience. The Daily Grind has changes things up a little bit in the past while — the blue room upstairs is now gold, the downstairs ordering area is much bigger and improved, but the place still maintains their vibe of pure awesome.
Sister Laura B and I came here for an early lunch this week and I was seriously blown away by their menu. They have their usual in the menu, but the chalkboard is positively full of specials and it took us a while to decide! We ended up going with the berry salad to split and I got the chicken quesadilla. Both were excellent. And the service? Couldn’t be better!

Daily Awesome. They have Atari. Seriously, just go upstairs. Upstairs is like using the key to your friends’ place to get away from an «awesome» new room mate. Little nook patio was great for drinks. Don’t forget to hop to the bar to place your order.
Cheesy quinoa burger is delicious. #So quinoa. Staff are super chill and interesting. There’s nothing boring about the Daily Grind.

3.5 stars if only I could.
This quaint neighbourhood restaurant has a very homey feel, which is not surprising considering that it’s in a converted house. The stairs to the top floor are a bit rickety and it’s not over spacious inside. Our group occupied one room on the top floor at the back and this was a good thing, as we were loud!
The food we had was good, and the service was ok. I ordered a really awesome drink of Irish Cream and chocolate that was verrrry tasty! You couldn’t even taste the alcohol in it. I wanted seconds! Two of us shared nachos with chicken on it, which was tasty and had real chicken on it (not over processed chicken loaf), and plenty of cheese. It was large enough that we had lots of leftovers.
This event was a lot of fun, as it was a «crafter’s event» planned by our very own Community Manager, Andrea! Way to go! I’m really glad I made it out! The bonus being that I’ve got a souvenir! THANKS!!!

I was here for a Unilocal Elite Arts and Crafts Event (thanks Andrea B!).
This place is cool in a quirky kind of way. It’s in an old converted house. The space downstairs is really small, but there’s an upstairs too with several smaller rooms. We were in the larger back room upstairs. I wouldn’t be surprised if the building was over 100 years old. The floors were not even, there was a marked sloping of the floor. The walls look like they have been painted over many times. However, the place is covered with artwork from local artists, and it looks very charming in a rustic kind of way. It reminds me of a lot of the old houses in The Plateau in Montréal. One of the upstairs rooms would be a great place to chill and just hang out.
I had a carrot, orange, apple and ginger juice ($ 6.95), my husband had a lemonade ($ 3.95) and my husband and I shared the Cheesy Quinoa Burger ($ 14) (thanks again Andrea B!). The juice was delicious. It is just juice, no added sugar. I had a taste of my husband’s lemonade, it was a little too sour and tart for my liking, but he seemed to enjoy it. The Cheesy Quinoa Burger was amazing. Instead of a regular burger bun, it was served on an herb biscuit. The quinoa burger itself was really tasty but was a bit fall-​apart and messy to eat. We got to choose what we wanted on the burger and we got lettuce, tomato, pickles, ketchup and mustard. It also came with a tiny portion of coleslaw made of red cabbage (it was served in one of those tiny containers that you get at fast food restaurants to pump your own ketchup into when you are eating in), and some rippled potato chips. The chips were incredibly salty and you don’t get very many. I felt that the portion overall (burger and sides) was really small to begin with (and of course sharing it made the portion even smaller). I feel that the prices are high for what you actually get.
This place reminds me a little of The Tea Party in the Byward Market, except the food at the Daily Grind is so much better. However, both places have an eclectic, mismatched, quirky kind of feel to them.
The servers are nice and friendly.
Street parking only.
Fun fact: this location used to be a Korean restaurant called Seoul House before it became the Daily Grind.

I spent some time here getting work done, and really enjoyed the environment and service. It’s a pretty casual place, with lots of little rooms, nooks, and crannies in which to sit and do what you want. The main café area is small, but cozy, with a nice open window to enjoy the outdoor air. Upstairs, there are three other rooms — one with a record player and Atari 2600 (!), another with couches, and a third for larger groups. There’s also a small patio.
The service is friendly and attentive. The menu is pretty extensive. On my two visits here, I tried the quesadillas and the feta burger. Both were good, and reasonably priced. I wasn’t thrilled with the salsa (a bit watery for my taste), but the quesadillas themselves were quite good.
The café also has regular evening events such as live music, a DJ, art shows, and others. Check their website for a schedule.
Overall, this café provides a great, earthy break from the usual visits to large franchise cafes. A hidden gem!

I’m a fan of this quirky little restaurant with it’s community style seating. The menu is written in chalk (a good thing in my mind) and the emphasis is on healthier food — you can find vegan and gluten free options here, no problem.
Went in today and had Chicken Torilla soup and a Monte Cristo sandwich. Soup was excellent and the sandwich was to die-​for. Make sure you wander beyond the ground floor. (Hubby was playing packman in the ‘living room’ on the upper floor as we ate.)
Oh — I should mention — I had a most excellent Latte there today too. Perfect.
It’s not glamorous. It is charming and full of spirit and life and always full of people that look incredibly interesting. Better yet, the food is delicious.
Hints: Look for the chalkboard. Get the wifi password at the counter.
Would I recommend: Yes
Would I return: Yes