Prohibition Public House — Restaurant in Ottawa

It's been awhile since I'd been here last so I decided it was time to try this place again. I have gone semi-regularly since it opened as my partner knew one of the owners (possibly previous owner as I believe Jamie is somewhere else now) and we wanted to show our support. We have generally always loved our visit and the food here at Prohibition. I was there awhile ago and didn't have a great experience, but I would generally prefer to let the owners know about the issues rather than just leave a review. First off, the service is still impeccable! I have always loved the laid-back and friendly service here and the gentlemen who served us on my last visit (wish I'd remember his name) was excellent! Also, the atmosphere here is amazing, it brings me back in time as there are a bunch of rooms, a lot of wood, and it has (to me, anyway) an historic feel--playing on the name of the business for sure. So the atmosphere is top-notch and really enjoyable. A few people in my group liked their food, but a couple of us decided to have a mixed salad which sounded really good. Unfortunately there wasn't much in the salad (the menu stated there was cheese, nuts, fruit etc) but we all noticed it was pretty much just the lettuce and not much else. We even had to ask for more dressing because it was quite dry, but I do understand that can be a personal taste. I'm not one for a lot of dressing on my salads, so if I am asking for more dressing that's a sign it could probably used more. Anyway, for those of us who had the salad we were extremely disappointed and I believe it was over $20-25 for the salad as well. I didn't say anything to the server as it took a long time for our food (understandable as it was quite busy) and I, personally, didn't have time to wait for something else. I then decided it would be best to email the establishment and let them know (I work in the industry and I know they prefer to get feedback directly, especially if a customer is unhappy). They did reply fairly promptly and thanked me for writing them which is nice, but then all I really got in reply was: "We'll take it from here!", that's it. Nothing to fix the issue, address it, or make us want to be happy or go back. I may still pop in with friends for a cocktail every now and then because their drinks are really fun (and they do great mocktails as well!), but I don't think I'll eat here again. It's too bad because it really is a...

Great new joint: servers need to chill out a little!

I had the joy of visiting and experiencing Prohibition in Ottawa on a trip over from London (UK) in April. Being in the food and drink industry myself in a city rich with innovative food culture, I was super excited to visit one of the new gems Ottawa has to offer. We (me, my sis, her partner) made a reservation weeks in advance for 9pm as I had a late flight into the city.

The menu offers and wine selection were top notch, I would highly recommend a visit just for the eclectic charcuterie board alone.

We did have a few issues with our server, who again, is lovely, but had far too many disclaimers for what should have been a very easy task, as we are a friendly bunch. The art of good serving is truly making a very complicated job look effortless, breezy and leaving your customers to enjoy the food atmosphere and themselves. I won’t go into too much detail, but the service was a little over the top, perhaps as it’s a new and ‘hip’ place and management of course wants everyone to feel well taken care of.

But being well taken care of can go the other way, and come off as a little artificial (at best). We were also told that the kitchen ‘stayed open just for us’ when we said we would like a bite (at 9pm!) and that they would ‘still happily serve us’. Again, we were made feel like staff were bending over backwards to essentially just do their jobs. My sister had made the reservation weeks in advance, so we of course were expecting the whole shabang with food, etc. If the kitchen closes early or runs out of dishes by 8pm, that could have been communicated beforehand, not instead making us feel guilty for ordering upon arrival.

So hopefully this is a constructive review, and we will be coming back. If the service improves, I'll happily give it a 5-star rating next time.

Some gentle feedback to management: sometimes when it comes to serving, less is more. And server, we didn’t really care if ‘you’ve worked for 20 hours’ - I myself had just done 20 hours of travelling and was VERY hungry and excited customer about to delight in your...

We visited the Prohibition Public House with enthusiasm and high expectations but left feeling underwhelmed and over charged. We have a wonderful server named Sam (who was also the bartender). Overall his service was fantastic. We ordered the Jake Walk and the Speakeasy cocktail. Both delicious! For appetizers we order the mushroom tacos. I highly recommend!

Now the aspects that left us yearning for more. The music was a tad loud. I'm not that old, a fresh 30, but I could barely hear the conversation from across the table. I love music that bumps, but this was over the top. Next, was the mains. I ordered the butter squash gnocchi. The gnocchi was barely able to stay together. Granted it was tasty, but the texture was closer to firm mashed potatoes when you bit into it.

Additionally, the dish lacked the necessary salt to bring the flavors together and the sweet pea puree was very thick and did not have the consistency of a sauce (which it was trying to be). For the price of $32 per plate, I expected better.

A fellow diner at our table ordered the vegetarian tagliatelle. In the menu it stated there would be blistered tomatoes, bussel sprouts, and veggies. It was completely missing the veggies and only contained the blistered tomatoes and Brussel Sprouts. It was brought to the attention of a staff member, but no one visited the table to rectify the situation, nor did our waiter check in after our food arrived. We waited longer (until the rest of the table had finished their meals) and finally got the attention of our waiter, who did get the dish re-made. The entree was given free of charge at the end of the night which was appreciated.

I would like to give this place another chance, but feel my money is better spent just a few doors down at Jabberwocky...