Cafe Le Hibou — Restaurant in La Pêche

RE: customers with dietary restrictions and needing small modifications - stay away!!!

We’ve been going to Le Hibou since August of 2010.

This afternoon I asked for my eggs scrambled instead of poached for brunch. I always eat the same thing and the modification has always been made without fail. The waitress told me she would have to check to see if she could and ultimately said no. When I asked why they could no longer make it she said it had always been like that and they’d make one final exception. I politely pointed out she ordered it that way for me before, that I wasn’t upset with her but that I didn’t agree. I even said that I would order something else if the modification wasn’t possible. The waitress said they’d make it for me but that the manager said never again.

The manager later came out and introduced herself. The first thing she said to me was that if wanted scrambled eggs in the future not to bother coming back. Those were the exact words she used. I told her that her approach to customer service was terrible, explained our long history with the establishment. I’ve never been spoken to that way before. She said she didn’t care and that modifications would not be made again in the future. Her argument was that the pans for scrambled eggs were different and that they took longer to make which got in the way of “pumping out 400 orders a day”. I said I wouldn’t have minded waiting longer, at which point she stormed off and said loudly on the packed patio that we wouldn’t have a bill to pay.

Both my mother and I requested our bill when a different younger male waiter came to our table asking if we needed anything else in a clear attempt to have us leave the premises. We told him we wanted to pay our bills since we ate. The food was fine, and I insisted on paying for my order. The manager sent him back out and refused to provide us our bill.

As a general manager of two busy medical offices, I would never behave like this towards customers and I certainly wouldn’t use my employees to ask patrons to leave. This was an all around embarrassing, immature and absolutely terrible display of customer service. I’ve never seen anything like it. All is this for what - scrambled instead of...

We had a really disappointing experience here. Right from the start, our server seemed irritated and unfriendly—as if we had done something wrong just by showing up. She barely looked at us, and her attitude felt cold and impatient throughout the meal.

One of our group has a serious gluten allergy, and when she asked about gluten-free options, the response was curt and unhelpful. The server mentioned a gluten-free bun for a burger, so that’s what she ordered. But when it arrived, it came with fries—without any mention that the fries weren’t gluten free. When she asked about it, the response was condescending, like she should’ve known better. They took the fries away but wouldn’t replace the burger, even though it had been sitting with the contaminated food. Instead, we were told it "hadn’t touched the fries too much," which is not reassuring for someone with a real allergy.

To make things worse, the burger had barbecue sauce on it, which often contains gluten. When my friend asked about the ingredients, the server insisted it was gluten free but refused to show an ingredient list or offer any confirmation—just brushed it off without concern.

Throughout the meal, we were barely acknowledged. We had to wave multiple times just to get water, and even then, it felt like we were bothering the staff.

Overall, the experience felt careless and dismissive—especially regarding food allergies, which should be...

No reservations but we walked in on a Saturday night and they had a lovely table for us. First, the service is lovely. Our waitress made us feel like guests but also old friends all at once, and was very attentive. The food, well jeez, it was amazing. The appetizer was a feta whip with fried cauliflower and the garlic in that dish just hit so well. The real star was the duck gumbo. The duck is perfectly crispy and tender and seasoned. It sits on this bed of delicious wild rice, but the gumbo with okra is the absolute star. I rarely have zero complaints, and I had zero complaints. I told the waitress to let the chef know that this is one of the best dishes I have ever had, and I was not being dramatic. I said "mm" after every spoonful, i was actually sad when it ended! Finished things off with a delectable tahini flourless chocolate cake that had the most adorable white chocolate owl on it, it was so delicious. They don't get lazy with their desserts like some other places, this thing was out of this world. I have to also add, the prices for this exceptional food are very reasonable! My fiancé had the veggie burger which he really enjoyed as well! I can't wait to come back and have that gumbo again, or see what new and fun dishes the chef has on the menu. Well worth the drive for Ottawans, you will...