Ousia

Well I have to say, it is a little perplexing that it has taken decades for a wine bar to open up on Whyte Ave! Seriously, what’s the deal Whyte? You think all we want to do is drink beer and shoot whiskey south of the river? Ok, there may be some truth to that, but still, Ousia is a very, very welcome addition to the 82^nd ave block.
The room is just lovely, very inviting, quaint and simple. The menu is diverse in its proteins; one item spanning the main animal food groups for the main dishes. There are also little plates and tapas, try the Super Bravas, traditional Spanish bravas but with lamb (bacon) bits! Awesome! The menu really has a lot of food that is very uniquely prepared compared to any other restaurants out there in Edmonton. I love that they use very fresh ingredients and that they are committed to the ‘nose to tail’ initiative of cooking.
I thought the wine list was good, it isn’t huge but has some fabulous as well as some interesting picks. Wednesday is $ 2 off glasses of wine night, definitely worth it! Also, like all restaurants that hail from this part of the world, they have an excellent espresso machine and know how to use it!
I struggled between a 3 and 4 star rating for Ousia. Of the 5 dishes ordered I would only get 2 again, and I felt that the 2 mains we ordered were a bit over priced. I don’t mind spending money for amazing food, it just didn’t click for me this time. However, I will go back and try a second time… They are close to 4stars, hopefully on my next visit I can bump it up.

For Valentine’s Day, Joe took me to Ousia for their set menu. Knowing that good food would suffice in making me happy, he didn’t go wrong. It was our first time trying Ousia, and although their regular menu looked outstanding, I didn’t mind the set menu either! Located off of the main strip of Whyte Avenue, Ousia has become one of my new favorite restaurants, making the list of «must try again ASAP». «Ousia», translated from the Greek noun, means «essence» or «substance» although it can be interpreted as «being» or sense of completion in life, as described to us by our server. Seemingly appropriate, as the dinner was outstanding — life now complete!
For the 8pm seating, we were one of the earlier tables to arrive. As soon as we were seated and our drinks arrived, the courses started promptly.
Our amuse bouche was an oyster on the half shell, pickled okra roe, gin granita, and fine herbs. Although delicious and fresh tasting, I would have preferred the «fine herbs» to be a bit finer… I had a mouthful of parsley (I think) with my oyster which didn’t go down as smooth as it should have! Joe’s was a bit more concise and didn’t cause any trouble. Otherwise, beautiful presentation and the gin granita made a great mignonette.
First main course of the night was a shaved radicchio and pea frond salad with grapefruit glyko (a Greek preparation of candied citrus peel), olives, capers, and a tea smoked duck breast carpaccio. The duck breast was beautifully done, although thicker than what I’m use to for carpaccio dishes, and was a substantial part of the dish (it’s below the salad in the photo). The dressing was just right and overall the dish was very well seasoned. My favorite component next to the smoked duck breast was the grapefruit glyko, which reminded me of the Asian version of candied kumquat peels!
As a palate cleanser, the brown butter sorbet was served next. Topped with a candied lemon and sea salt, the flavors were refreshing and definitely served its purpose. The only criticism: needed a bit more time to melt. Because ours was one of the first served, they must have come out fresh from the freezer, making it very hard to scoop out a spoonful. Super cute presentation and great flavors compensates any tiny mishaps though!
The main course was a seared beef short rib, spiced apricot purée, fried leeks, spinach horta, with a deep-​fried soft poached egg. Component of the night: deep-​fried soft poached egg. Say it out loud slowly and you’ll find yourself perplexed as I was when trying to imagine what that tasted like. It tasted amazing, FYI. In combination with the fried leeks, the apricot purée, and a piece of beef short rib, this was a perfect bite! I could have used without the spinach horta (I’m not the biggest fan of boiled down soft vegetables), although it did serve as a nice bedding for the beef and its juices.
Our last course of the evening was a mastic ouzo panna cotta, topped with fresita and black pepper macerated berries, rosewater cardamom-​honey reduction and basil seeds. The panna cotta was silky smooth, and the berries with the reduction were not overly sweet. What looks like a blackberry in the photo is actually the basil seed mixture. So far, I’ve only experienced basil seed in the Asian preparation of desserts, so it was nice to see what it tasted like in it’s pure form: little balls of gelatinous beads. Refreshing!
Within the hour, we finished our 3 course meal (5 if you include the amuse bouche and palate cleanser). At no point did we feel rushed, but I appreciated how quickly the courses arrived. Our server was fantastic, very informative on what was served and very attentive. Can’t wait to return to try other dishes on their regular menu! Thanks Ousia and Chef Seiffert for the night!

We’ve been meaning for a very long time to try this restaurant and we finally got to last night. It was definitely worth it! We got there right when they opened so it felt like we had the whole place to ourselves. The atmosphere was modern, clean, and intimate.
The food was excellent. It was quite unique in choice of ingredients and presentation. A lot of the ingredients that were in the menu and that were mentioned to us were things I didn’t even know! We had their award winning starter made with potatoes (I forget the name of it) which was excellent. Our mains were the duck and lamb entrees and both were also excellent. The dessert was quite unique too as it was a mix of a chocolate tart with chocolate sauce, pistachios, and salt crystals. My only gripe was that it took over 20 minutes for our entrees to come, from when we finished our starters to when we got our entrees. Plus, expect to have a hefty bill when you’re done, as for just the two of us, our bill came to well over a hundred dollars. Other than that, it was a great dining experience and we would definitely return!

This is a great place for a more upscale dinner on the Ave (which is sorely needed on Whyte). The food was delicious and plated beautifully. It happened to be Sangria Saturday, and it was wonderful. Service was pleasant, friendly and efficient. Looking forward to my next visit.

I wish I could give Ousia 4.5÷5…
I finally had a chance to dine at Ousia and was very, very impressed. The interior is dark and sleek, and the menu is concise. We ordered a bunch of «small plates» so we could try as many things as possible. We dove into Croquettes of the Day, which were little bites of heaven. Crunchy potato on the outside and soft potato laced with asiago on the inside. Grilled octopus had great texture, but the accompanying black rice ball had quite an unpleasant, burnt aftertaste. Pickled Beef Tongue on Chickpea patties was divine. The tongue was mild and tender, though the patties (which were more like a thin tortilla) were a bit tough. Phyllo feta triangles with honey were a bit rich, but really enjoyable.
We finished with butternut squash rice pudding and apple sorbet with a goat’s milk crème. Both were utterly fabulous, creative and flavourful.
Our server was great and really knew the dishes well, the atmosphere was chic, and the food kicked it. Looking forward to another visit.