The Cheshire Cat Pub

Gastropub food at it’s absolute best is served at The Cat. Arriving for lunch at a Monday lunchtime we found the place almost full to capacity which is a reflection of the outstanding food and service to be found here. Build it and they will come. The Cat survived the devastating fire from a couple of years ago and is better than ever, a testament to the visionary owners Crystal and Dustin Therrien. Over 1 million dollars in renovations to the 1820s limestone schoolhouse later we see local cherry and pine woodwork and scarlet and grey paintwork throughout, beautifully simple and classic yet modern. Hung everywhere are posters from Beaus local brewery, pictures which have a way of transporting you back to a simpler time before modernity. Tables are black lacquered oak with silver inlay, very in keeping with the modern feel. Loudspeakers were recessed into the wall, a really nice touch.
Service is fast, given the crowd in the pub. We get menus and choose drinks, I go for a local Kichesippi beer, which is a wonderful hopped-​up bitter ale, the type I grew up on back in Blighty. They have over 26 beers on tap, the best selection in the area, cask beers, ciders, ales, bitters IPA’s; this is a beer drinkers paradise! And over 150 whiskeys behind the bar! I have never seen so many since my years living in the Scottish Highlands. Noticing my pint glass was almost empty, the server offered me another, and I went for the cask ale, Beaus Fous Alliés («Crazy Allies»), a mango fruit-​infused saison beer that was sublime. Served at cellar temperature, this was soft and sweet and bitter and wheats, another incredible beer from Beaus.
When my Elk tourtière came I was in heaven. Pastry was superb, flaky, crumbly, buttery and melt-​in-​the-​mouth texture that is indicative of a chef who knows what is needed in pies. Pastry is so often what lets a pie down. Simple but difficult to render properly, the humble pie shell is the vehicle that transports the filling to your palette. And the filling was meaty, and seasoned perfectly, just moist enough to add the extra oomph to the experience. Traditional tourtière-​ists may not like this rendition but it was one of the best I have had in recent memory. Served with a side of golden creamy mashed and roasted veg. My companions steak and kidney pie was equally as delicious, the kidney coming through after the chunks of steak. The best proportion should be ⁷⁰⁄₃₀ steak to kidney; most pies use as much kidney, as it is a cheaper meat, to make up for less steak. This pie has more steak and no vegetables! That’s the way it should be, just meat. Steak and kidney were both warmed by a succulent gravy, so warming and hearty it was almost too much. Served with a side of wedged fries that were crispy and flaky and roasted veggies.
Lunch for two with tip and 3 beers was around $ 60, well, well worth it.
And on the way out you can buy some of their amazing pies or soups.
The Cheshire Cat is the closest you will come to an authentic British Pub in the Ottawa area. You will not be disappointed.

Not bad, Kanata. On a recent trip to Bonnechere Caves, three of us decided to stop by here for a late lunch (instead of other local stops in Eganville or even Renfrew). That was a really good decision. We’re not usually big fans of pub-​fare food, but when there’s a good patio available and it’s a glaringly nice day — really, why not?
I had the classic mushroom steak and pie and my other two companions had the Cat’s famous fish and chips. The portions are huge! Mine came with mashed potatoes and seasonal roast veg — all local from the Carp’s Farmer’s Market I hear — and with how fresh they were — I believe it! My mushroom and steak pie was delicious, and the mashed potatoes were bang on (pardon the pun). I also had a taste of the fish and chips, and that wasn’t half bad either. They also have a good variety of beer on tap, although for that nice sunny afternoon, I was particularly pleased that they had the Stiegl Radler on tap. Very nice!
The service was friendly albeit a little slow (I hear it gets busier, so I would qualify the customer traffic that day to be normal). The only perceived downside is the occasional whiff of the industrial (probably from the neighbours), but to be sure, not enough to deter. Besides, I would not mind being seated inside next time — it does feel quite cozy and really lives up to the pub-​feel (what little I saw of the inside anyway). A generally pleasant afternoon that I would not mind repeating at all, if we’re ever in the area again.

Very fresh food with a few quirky ingredients thrown on each plate. A very nice outdoor seating area and great staff.

This is actually a 4.5÷5.
— exceptional selection of draught beers
— great patio and rebuilt historic schoolhouse for the main venue
— diverse menu, including pub classics such as Fish and Chips, and more eclectic fare such as Thai Green Curry
— nice service and local hotspot
— homemade deserts but usually too full to have them
Our group has had:
— fish and chips ⁴⁄₅
— Thai green curry 4.5÷5 (especially good for a pub)
— beef yorkie ⁵⁄₅
Overall highly recommended. The menu is always changing and improving. Also noticed the herb garden in the back for fresh produce.

Had a great meal. Heard lots about it and finally took the drive out to Carp to have dinner. The staff were friendly and the food was really good.

This is a nice British pub, best pub in Kanata imo. It’s quite tiny so it can feel cramped at times when it’s full, especially downstairs.
There was a fire that ravaged the place but it’s pleasing to see it was rebuilt maintaining all of it’s charm.
They have a good selection of beer available.
I’m partial to their fish n chips, one of my favorites in the city. Sometimes the fries are a bit too soggy.

If you’re tired of the same old processed crap that so many so-​called restaurants in Kanata «prepare», then you need to come to the Cheshire Cat Pub for some home made English pub favourites. Featuring a casual, homey pub feeling the Cheshire Cat offers a nice variety of on tap beers with lots of local selections. The menu is an eclectic mix of English pub standards lovingly made with as many local ingredients they can source. We had the Large Fish and chips and the Yorkie Beef dinner. Along with a lager shandy and a locally made Root Beer. It was all brought to the table by a friendly and efficient wait staff. All in all its one of the best pubs in all of Ottawa. I give it two thumbs up.

Since the Cheshire Cat reopened in late 2013, we have been back a handful of times. The service is hit and miss, so is the food. Sometimes we have a good experience, then other times not so much. We recently visited on a Sunday afternoon. We had a free day and just popped in for a beer and an appetizer on the patio. I guess our visit fell on the same day as what they were calling «the hog and cobb». We didn’t realize this until we stepped into the restaurant. It was 3:30 pm Sunday afternoon. As soon as we stepped into the establishment we were asked if we were there for «the hog and cobb». We said, «No, what was the event?» The waitress was literally blocking our movement forward into the restaurant/​to the patio and acting like if we weren’t there for the event then we shouldn’t be there. We didn’t know what the event was and still don’t as she never explained it. Our greeting at the front door was so unwelcoming by the young waitress that we almost left right there and then.
It turned out that the event was not starting until 5:30 (couple more hours) and we were permitted to come onto the patio order drinks and from a smaller pub menu, but we were kind of stressed out by the time we got there. We are really easy going people and it could have been handled by the waitress so much better and nicer.
Notably, we watched 4 seperate groups of people come in and sit down next to us on the patio and then get up and leave without ordering. After the waitress’s alarming hogg and cobb opening remarks, none stayed. They all got up and left. I am quite sure that the owner was standing right there roasting the pig but I’m not sure he was paying attention to the money that was walking out the door pre-​event.
On a side note, with a friendly greeting and wave in to sit on the patio followed by a competent explanation of the event happening in a couple of hours, we may very well have bought tickets and been two more customers. We’ll never know because to this moment we don’t know what the event entailed or how much the tickets were. Foolish.
I’m on the fence as to whether we’ll return again. With the hit and miss service and food coupled with that last experience we’ll have to think about it.
It’s a nice place, but no place is nice enough for our money and time if it isn’t consistent and especially if it doesn’t make us feel welcome. There are lots of other nice places in Ottawa.

Wow! How did I not ever hear about this place until now?! About a week ago, I was asked if I had checked out The Cat (which meant nothing to me at that time) but now I can understand why locals simply refer to it as The Cat. I know I will be back soon!
The Cheshire Cat is an old English style pub located in Carp, Ontario. Since it is a very popular spot, I would recommend making a reservation (which they only due from Sun — Wed).
The Cat offers British style favourites with a bit of a twist and on the front cover of their menu they list special offerings which is what I chose from. I had a turkey pannini with a strawberry compote paired with a cold strawberry soup. The food was delicious! I love the fact that they were using seasonal ingredients in such a unique way too. The serving staff were friendly and accommodating and overall the atmosphere was enjoyable.
I’m looking forward to my next visit where I hope I can find a seat on their patio to listen to some live jazz!

Very popular so reservations essential. A small English style pub with seating upstairs for eating. Food and drink is very good and the menu offers something for all (except vegans which is a good thing). Beer is either local and micro brewery or usual brands. Being from England found they selection and taste very good.
Food is good, well priced and with plenty of taste and texture. Caters for lunchtime and evening meals with menus to match. Service top notch even when full. Plenty of regulars which is always a good sign.
Nice atmosphere and family friendly if your kids are used to eating out and are well behaved. The seating is close together so no room to run around plus a screaming kid would not be well received. My two eat out a lot and know that the first sign of messing around and it is to the car and home so tend to be well behaved now. They like the kids food as it is big (for a 7 year old) portion, not child like and looks like grown up food. So for example the chicken strips are proper breast meat in breadcrumbs with plenty of veg on a grown up plate.
Plenty of parking on site and easy to get to off the 417. Has a good reputation that is well deserved. A gem and would prefer if you didn’t go so I can get a table.

Best place in west end of Ottawa for beer or whiskey. Thursday burgers are also fantastic (beef, lamb or elk)

Our group of 9 actually lucked out and got seated with 10 minutes on a very busy night. The server was great and paid just the right amount of attention, letting us linger and take our time, making sure out drinks never got empty. The food was awesome — see the pic of the cottage pie I just posted. Will go back EVERY time I’m in Ottawa!

Had heard about The Cat and intended to get there — when it burned down. :-/​Well, now it’s up and running again and we were hearing good stuff so we made the trek out to there to check it out.
Arranged to meet friends for 6p. Got there and the parking lot was full, had to park on the street. Went in — friends had gotten there a bit earlier to put names on the waiting list with a total expected wait time of 45 minutes. Squeezed into the bar and carved out a corner to stand in, got some beers and in no time we were called for our table.
Got seated upstairs. Waiter was attentive. (I’m betting he was also new! Didn’t have a practiced air — but he was still wonderful.) Food came — it was delicious! I had the tourtière and hubby had fish and chips. Both were fantastic.
This pub has more of a ‘France’ attitude to the service. They let us sit and talk instead of giving us the bill — which was really pleasant. So — be prepared — you do have to ask for your bill when you are ready to get it.
Owner came by to check on us personally. Really wonderfully service oriented.
Of note: As we were leaving at 8:30, no lineup. Next time we’ll probably go over a bit later — say for a 8p dinner, instead of a 6p dinner, which is more in line with our normal schedule anyway. Crowd avoidance technique. ;-)
Would I recommend: Yes
Would I return: Yes — it’s a bit of a drive for us (½ hour) so we won’t become regulars, but I definitely think we will make the effort on occasion to get out there.

So I stopped by the brand new, greatly anticipated Cheshire Cat. my first stop by since it had unfortunately burned down. Today I was pleasantly surprised by the BEAUTIFUL job they have done reconstructing the interior. ALthough it is nothing like the original, the architects made better with the space, and modernized everything from the staircase to the fabulous bar. As before the fire we seated ourselves casually without being seated (this time bringing our newest edition, our son born this past Halloween), and settled ourselves in for what we no doubt knew was going to be a fabulous experience. After all this was the place my husband and I had been coming for over 8 years, we didn’t expect all that much to change. WRONG!!! Although I had read the new reviews, I turned my nose up at them, wanting to give this new experience a chance, and we did. Unlike the others, we had AMAZING service! The waitress was kind and very attentive. The only downside to this is our guiness, which I’d raved about being the best in the city fell short this time. Wether it was the waitress or the bar man that poured it, it was served to us while still bubbling, and it was unsettled. The next was the menu. although I give this little place a lot of credit, we were handed a beer splattered, paper printed menu that was held together with a staple. Okay, so they’ve been open for two weeks, and still organizing a menu, so I can’t be to hard. However there was little of the old menu left, and we were extremely disappointed with the available appetizers. They were pretty much all deep fried, and the burgers that we were looking for, simply we’re not on the menu. Okay, we decided just to stick with the beer, until my husband mentioned our much beloved plough mans lunch, which was not on the menu, and more or less an appetizer on the old. Although it wasn’t listed, the waitress went out of her way to make the plough men’s platter happen. As we waited for our order, the table next to us stood up abruptly and exclaimed «I knew we should have gone to monkey joes, I’m sure the service would have been faster.» (Table off 4) this was surprising to us because we were having a great service thus far.
Our plough men’s lunch came and it did not look anything as it had before. Mind you, they had made it especially for us, however, chopped lunch meat ham in the place of cured meats was not all that appetizing, along with pickled onions and beets, with chutneys that belonged on hamburgers. When I asked the waitress what I thought was ragu (turned out to be their «tomato chutney» — originally served on their fitzroy burger, which is no longer on the menu) It was, the owner, Mrs. Therrien, who promptly stepped forward and said «it’s our tomato chutney, we have had it for years, it’s just not generally served on that plate.»
Okay, not that I’m trying to complain, but there was a point were my husband and I were regulars for at least two times a week for a year and a half… and I used to eat that very same chutney with my French fries and not a meat and cheese platter. As beautiful and as kind as the chef was to cater to us, the pairing was absolutely horrible, as was the bread (dry). After being such a good customer for so many years, contributing to the fire fund, and being treated like that from the owner doesn’t make me want to give the location a second chance, HOWEVER we have hope the food will improve, because this spot has a lot of history and good memory’s for us. Yes the waitress took the «main course» off our menu, but made a point of avoiding the owners for the rest of our sitting. The owners attitude is what upsetted us the most, even being a customer for over 8 years… shame.
We will be returning, but only to see if things have improved… and if they have, we will be the first to salute them for their effforts!

Not impressed with the re-​opened Cheshire Cat pub. They are still working out the kinks of a new restaurant it seems.
Service 1 star
The server took forever to see us after we were seated, and then our beers were given to another table who came in after us. We had to ask her for the beers again and they finally showed up right as our food was coming out.
Food — 2 stars
I ordered a club sandwich and not sure what they brought out. There was no tomato or lettuce on the club. It was loaded with a sweet BBQ sauce and it was greasy. The sandwich tasted good but I expected something that tasted more like a traditional club. An the fries were stone cold, my biggest pet peeve in a restaurant is cold fries, there is no excuse for it.
I wouldn’t recommend going here until the spring when they have a few months to work out the issues and get back up to par.

A+ for atmosphere! This pub is full of charm from the stone exterior to the gorgeous wooden tables. The first floor has the bar scene AND tables, while upstairs is strictly a dining room. We probably would have preferred the coziness of downstairs but upstairs was hopping as well with many family gatherings.
Sunday featured a roast and yorkshire pudding classic, so I was lucky that two people at my table ordered it and I could sample. The meat was very tender with amazing mashed potatoes and some pretty heirloom vegetables were close by.
I myself ordered the famous fish and chips, half chips and half cesar salad at no extra charge. The fish was extremely tender and tasted like it was straight from a lake. I’ve had lake fish before, I know. The breading was nice and crispy, as were the fries. I appreciated how there were two lemons wedges on the plate, one for my fish and one for the cesar salad. My only disappointment of the meal was how the plate was hot. I appreciated the combo, but salad on the same hot plate became warm. Next time, (there will be a next time!) maybe I’d go for a separate plate or I’ll just commit to fries.
A pint of Beau’s was a nice accompaniment to the hearty meal. Service was very friendly with no confusion bringing a drink from the bar to the dining room upstairs. I would definitely return to take in more of the picturesque scene and satisfying, wholesome food!

I went here with my parents and my in-​laws. I had heard great reviews about this place, but have to admit that I was a little skeptical when my in-​laws suggested it as it is in a old converted school house and across the street from a landfill (!) I am a city girl through and through, so trekking out to Carp was a departure from my regular activities.
Anyway, we made reservations and I’m glad that we did, because the place filled up quickly for lunchtime on a Saturday. We were seated promptly and ordered our drinks. Drinks came quickly. We then ordered our meals. We waited a while and then everyone’s meal came expect for mine and my mother-in-law’s. Everyone else was almost finished theirs by the time the final 2 meals came. (They did make it up to us though, and I’ll discuss that later).
So I’ll talk about the food first. Three of us had the Hot Beef and Yorkie Platter (including me). The Yorkshire pudding was divine. Crisp on the outside, yet soft and gooey on the inside, quite possibly the best Yorkshire pudding I have ever tasted (besides by mom’s of course). The beef was good, thinly sliced and flavourful, although a little fatty for my liking. The gravy was rich but also a tad on the salty side (although the other 2 who had the same dish, did not find the gravy too salty — I have come to accept that I like low sodium dishes and almost everything I eat unless I made it myself from scratch will taste too salty for me). It came with a side and I chose fries which were good and plentiful. Others ordered the Elk, Ale and Wild Mushroom Pie, the Goat Flatbread (flatbread topped with goat cheese, grilled veggies and salad — the salad was literally on the flatbread, which I thought was unusual) and the Fisherman’s Plate (a seafood stew with garlic bread). Everyone seemed the thoroughly enjoy their meals. And everyone’s meal smelled so delicious. It might be because the place is small, but every time they brought someone their food (whether it be at our table or another table), you could smell the delicious aroma.
The food here is a notch up from what you would expect of regular pub food.
So I’ll get back to their little goof up. They readily apologized that 2 of the meals came significantly after the other meals. So to make up for it they offered us 2 free desserts (there were 6 of us). The free desserts were ice cream sandwiches (2 chocolate chip cookies — like the size of a «Chips Ahoy» cookie– with vanilla ice cream in the middle). It was kind of small to share one between 3 people, but I appreciated the gesture.
They were not having a great day because then their computer broke down and they had to tally the bill up by hand (well, with a calculator). The calculations were correct, we paid our bill and then left.
Despite the non-​smooth course of the visit, I would come back. The food was good and different and they readily acknowledged their mistakes and made efforts to patch things up. The fact that this city princess is willing to drive out to Richardson Side Road past the dumpster to visit this place again says a lot!

I have been to the Cat three times in my four visits to Canada. The first time I went there was for my friend’s rehearsal dinner five years ago and I came back this week! :) The new patio is amazing (and I hear it’s beautiful at night-​time in the summer) and the food was DELICIOUS.
I’m so grateful to the Brown family for taking me to the Cat! If you’re in Ottawa there’s no reason not to come here!

I just had my first experience at this little pub that is based out of a stone house. It’s small, cramped and has a nice charm about it. The place was packed for lunch and packed with the best things… LOCALS!
They have a decent selection of beers on tap and I went with a trusty Newcastle. We stood around waiting and after sometime we were shown to a table upstairs.
The upstairs reminds me of an attic lined with tables. It’s surprisingly larger than I thought. I had a beef melt on this visit and everything on it was really good… minus the beef which I found really overcooked but maybe that’s the style? The beef did have nice flavour though. It had what tasted like home made horseradish mayo on fresh bread and local cheese. The fries were also good.
The menu looks delicious and I don’t doubt I’ll be back in the near future.
Even though the place was packed the servers were fast. They messed up my bill, quickly apologized, fixed it and had me out of there in no time! Other places in Kanata would take up to 20 minutes to turn that mistake around… trust me!

This cozy little pub has an authentic, homey feel of a British pub, although it is a very small place. It is usually crowded in the evening and especially on weekends, when the parking can be bad (hard to believe they can fit so many people on there, sometimes! But now it has improved since there’s the upstairs.) The menu is very good, and the selection of their beers is stellar. We have been a regular here for years!
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UPDATE: Restaurant reopened in December 2013. Doing a BOOMING business! After checking into the restaurant :-) look them up in Facebook and see how many fans they’ve got! OH yeah!!!
January 28 2013 was a very sad day indeed: The Cheshire Cat Pub burned down to the ground from a fire that apparently started inside the building. The stone walls were left standing but apparently are not safe. At this time, the fire department has not deemed this to be arson. The owners have vowed to reopen, which was reinforced by the outpouring of love and sadness on their Facebook page (look for «Cheshire Cat Pub Regulars» in Facebook.) There will be a fund raiser to help the staff which have all lost their jobs due to the fire; details can be found on facebook under «Cheshire Cat Community „Tip Jar“» Kudos to them, and good luck. I wish them much luck and success.