Il Vagabondo Restaurant — Restaurant in Ottawa

My wife and I tried this lovely little spot for lunch, on a whim, over the Canada Day long weekend. It's a delight: unpretentious, cozy, with a sincerely welcoming atmosphere. Pasta and sauce: fresh as fresh can be, traditional, and prepared to order. Starters are a little expensive. Soda is served in the can.

It amused me, trying to count the number of Italian Mamas who work the kitchen. You can hear them from the dining room, chattering away while they prep for dinner service. Every few minutes, a new one will pop out to fetch something from the pantry, and mentally you go: "Okay, that's six."

There are few remaining family-owned Italian restaurants in Beechwood Village. After Domicile gets through with the neighbourhood, they'll eventually be replaced with personality-free chain gastro pubs and demanding condo owners.

Until that happens, avoid the much-more-commercial Little Italy on Preston...

I have never had such a dining experience in my life. Firstly, the food was average at best and the service was slow, but this was nothing compared to how appalled our entire table was at the behaviour of the woman serving us. She twice walked away in the middle of taking our order stating that we were 'not ready', even though the second time she came to take our order, I specifically told her we were and asked her not to walk away this time, which she still did. The most horrifying moment, however, was when she attempted to serve hot soup over my baby son just to save herself maybe 5 steps to go serve the person across from him. I have been to this restaurant before and had decent enough food and service to return, but never ever again. I am embarrassed that I brought my visiting in-laws to this place. No wonder there were only four tables seated on a...

That one was a surprise on a Monday night, as my friend and I had planned on another restaurant which happened to be closed. Well, so much the better! We discovered this hidden gem, where you feel like in a traditional family restaurant in Italy. Quiet, a bit dated in the furniture but that’s the charm, homemade food absolutely deliciius with perfect portion size (european style i.e not huge and gargantuan) and the owner/cook/waitress super nice and not bugging you every minute and cutting you in your conversation to see how it goes. If you are looking for great food and not tape-à-l’oeil, then this is the place. We will definitely come back and bring...