Aulde Dubliner & Pour House - ByWard Market, Ottawa ON — Restaurant in Ottawa

Late-night port in a storm. Lauren, Lesley K and Farron D provided hospitality & victuals.

With the restos in Sandy Hill closing distressingly early, have been heading to the Aulde Dubliner, a late-night port in the early closing storms. The patio is the best in the city. Can't beat the food and drink offerings, access to sports on the big screens, and people-watching opportunities as the young & restless glide by on their duly-appointed rounds.

Locked my bicycle on a recent visit and was greeted & seated by Lauren, a friendly, thoughtful, and welcoming lass. Turns out she's an English major at my alma mater, and a poetry afficionado. Am an ex- Fulcrumite so the literary nature of the evening was established.

Lesley K came by to take my order. Selected the quart-sized Corona, hadn't had a quart-size in years, highly recommended. Took two hands to do the lime-flip but everything worked well. Went for the wings and had a basket of fries for desert. Very nice! The food was a tad overpriced but the Corona was great value-for-the-dollar. Can't beat the view from the patio. The late-night antics of Byward denizens never disappoints.

Turns out Lesley is visiting from Nicaragua. She owns a restaurant called Juntos Beach Bar there, and is back in the national capital during he off- season. Good convo about Nicaragua being a safe place for expats. She recommended getting my passport and dropping by on the Pacific side. Not a bad idea.

Lesley filled me in on the history of the restaurant and the affiliation with the Irish Village. Am appreciative of all things Irish, being from County Kerry on me mam's side. Will order a Guinness next time and hoist one in honour of the Emerald Isle and all who left on the coffin ships for a better life in the new world.

Had such a great time went back the next night. Farron D was my server. Settled on the quart-sized Corona and practiced my flips. We had a good chat about the changing times in the market. Always a lively place. We debated on the merits of ice cream vs. the Chocolate Mousse Cake. After some consideration went for the Chocolate Mousse. Recommended.

Will be back to the Aulde Dubliner for late-night appreciation. Hope to sample the live...

So I went there around July 19, or so. And it turned out to be an awesome place. I don't remember what I ate there. But I do remember the staff was very nice. Which makes them stand out because every bar has nice staff. But this one, they were really nice. And it's a shame I only went there once.

However, something bad happened on my end. It wasn't them. Before going to the Aulde Dubliner, I went to a few bars first. So I was pretty tipsy by the time I got to the Aulde Dubliner. Anyways, my credit card was working just fine when I was at the other bars. So I was expecting it to work when I got there. But for some reason, it didn't work when it was time for me to pay. I was so confused. And it made me look bad. And that wasn't my intentions, since my card was working before going there. So one of the bartenders got upset at me, and told me a few times she couldn't serve me anymore. And she was very upset. And I felt bad. So I had to leave. But I was given a receipt, of all the things I had there. And my total came to $43 something. So a couple days later, I've managed to get some cash from my Royal Credit Line. So I went back to the Aulde Dubliner sometime in the afternoon, and paid them back. Which was the right thing to do, of course. And I gave them $50 and told them to keep the change. So one of the guys working there happily accepted it. And he told me he is gonna make sure it falls into the right hands. Which made me smile. So he thanked me, and we said goodbye to each other. And I walked away, happy knowing everything worked out in the end :) I hope the staff there can forgive me for what happened. My card was working just fine. Until I got there. And I didn't know it wasn't going to work. And it made me look bad when it wouldn't go through. And it made the bartender very upset. And I'm really sorry. That wasn't my intentions. So I hope she'll forgive me, and the others. If you guys ever need my email for some reason, I'll happily provide it. Thanks guys! ~Nolan...

Taste: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ The taste was as expected from the dishes, we ordered a burger and tacos.

Presentation: ⭐️⭐️ Presentation was average, with no real flair. The tacos lacked visual appeal, with the chicken looking boiled and unseasoned; thankfully, they tasted better than they looked.

Freshness: ⭐️⭐️ Slightly concerning given the price and freshness of the food. Upon ordering a burger and requesting crispy bacon, the waiter mentioned it likely wouldn’t be possible, as the bacon and "such" are all pre-cooked.

Portion Size: ⭐️⭐️ The fries portion seemed smaller than what’s typical at pubs in the area—possibly a portioning issue that day. Taco garnishing was minimal, and the burger’s garnish was also lacking.

Service: ⭐️⭐️ Our main server seemed a bit distant and disengaged, and the service was on the slower side. That said, the hostess was warm and welcoming, and a couple of other waitresses who checked in were friendly and made a good impression.

Ambience: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The interior resembles a classic Irish pub, cozy and inviting.

Price:💲💲💲 = Expensive

Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️ Overall, the service and value missed the mark. Our main server was distant and service was slow, though the hostess and a couple of other waitresses who checked in were warm and attentive. On the food front, the burger and tacos delivered on flavour, but fell short on presentation, garnishing, and the portion size of the sides.

At $24 for a pub burger, expectations are naturally higher—especially when similarly priced burgers can be found at more upscale restaurants like Le Métropolitain or other spots in the ByWard Market and downtown Ottawa, where you typically get more polished presentation, fuller portions, and a more attentive overall experience. While the food wasn’t bad, the combination of underwhelming service and underdelivering on value made it feel like the experience didn’t...