Caravela Restaurante — Restaurant in Ottawa

What an absolute pleasure it was to discover this place! While the area's dining options are almost entirely limited to corporate chains that offer good-enough food and service (but very little in the way of dining as an experience and not just a meal), Caravela is a tucked-away treasure that offers up a warm, intimate atmosphere, service that makes you feel like a special guest in someone's home, and truly outstanding food.

We were greeted by our server, who escorted us to one of two high-top tables that have been moved right up against the bar — a setup I've never seen before, but it was a surprisingly nice touch to the small interior. The owner approached us as we were being seated, and he is a lovely man! He chatted with us for a few minutes about Portuguese food and their specialties, then excused himself to go help in the kitchen.

We were served drinks and complementary olives and bread with a flavourful, slightly-spicy butter. I know it seems silly to rave about the free bread, but it was incredibly soft and fresh! The menu is just the right size, and has simpler offerings mixed in with several elegant choices. Wine list is approachable, but not at all boring or lazy.

We started with an assortment of cheeses and one of their signature offerings, the cod cakes. Heavenly! I'm not usually a huge seafood person, but I was blown away by these. Soft, savoury and creamy yet light, subtly crisp on the outside. They were served with an aioli and halved cherry tomatoes. Delicious and unpretentious.

I also had the Piri-Piri chicken, which is a favourite of mine. I was not disappointed! Wish I had ordered the rice instead of the fries, for no other reason than fries are just fries and you can get 'em anywhere. We saw some desserts go by, but we were more than filled up by dinner, so we decided to wait until next time to try those.

Wish I had more...

I've never written a bad review for a restaurant before but I was extremely disappointed today. We waited 20 minutes at our table before we were asked what we wanted for drinks. I pointed to the lunch menu and asked what he (owner) recommended and he said the cod. We each ordered our soups and after two of the 3 arrived, I asked where mine was and he mentioned that he ordered us the dinner plates and not the lunch and walked away. The lunch plates come with a soup. There was never an apology except he laughed that my dad parked in his spot in the front. Mind you, my dad backed up into the spot and didn't see the owner had put a sign stating that's his spot. My dad apologized and said he didn't see the sign until now and he had moved his car right away when the owner said it was his spot. We received our meals and not once did he check in or ask if the food was good or whether we needed anything else.

I had explained it was my dad's 75th birthday. I ordered dessert for my father and he came with the bill and machine. I asked where the dessert was and he said oh yes, 1 or two custard tarts? I said just one please, then he took the bill and came back with the new bill and machine. It would have been nice to bring the bill after the dessert, either comp the dessert or even say happy birthday.

Again, this is my first time ever reviewing a restaurant with poor service but I was very disappointed as I had read amazing Google reviews which landed me to this resto since my dad wanted a resto with good fish. I also don't live here so I was going solely based on reviews.

As for the food, the cod cakes were delicious but the atlantic cod was very salty for both plates.

I expected so much more from this restaurant, especially from the owner himself. The table next to us were served with smiles (a group of...

My father and I visited on Monday as we assumed it wouldn't be crazy crowded and we were correct. . There were only A few other tables with people made for nice environment and lots of opportunity to talk with the owner and even the chef was out at one point telling with us and others. . We had a nice glass of white port to start as a recommend Portuguese drink.. very nice. . The pre dinner bread was amazing. ..warm. . Super light and soft..with crispy crust.. made perfect by the flavoured butter.. for apps we tried the cod cakes and grilled octopus. . Cakes were smooth and delicate and delicious.. the octopus was so tender.. and delicious they way it was served..

For mains. .. I'm not even sure i got the one i ordered.. but it was delicious. . I thought i ordered the seafood rice... but think i might of been served the other seafood combo that i was told was more liquid.. what i had was very liquid.. but oh so delicious and full of seafood i loved it. .

My father had lamb shank. .while he enjoyed it. . It didn't look the picture he had seen on the web site of a roasted shank this was more steamed delicious and excellent puree potatoes. . And nice fresh veggies. .

Tried a desert as well. .had a Portuguese Egg Tart.. very nice. . But dad had house made coffee cake... i wouldn't call it a cake. . It's made of cookies soaked in coffee then arranged into a creamy? ? This sets and cuts into nice pieces..was very tasty. .both dad and i though coffee flavor needed to be stronger. .

So over all excellent and we will try again in...