The Bower Coffee Co — Restaurant in Ottawa

The Great Pyramids of Giza, Machu Picchu, the Colosseum. All testaments to what the human species can achieve with the right mix of vision, labour, and a dream. Today, I am adding The Bower Coffee Co. to this list.

While Ottawa has an increasingly large list of quality, independent coffee establishments, they pale in comparison to this shop.

The coffee is the focus, and while you can’t get a venti Frappuccino with extra caramel made by a staff who isn’t allowed to go on strike due to the need to increase shareholder value, you can get quality coffee, made with quality beans, made by Canadian roasters, made by wonderfully knowledgeable staff who clearly enjoy their work. It’s the best parts of the coffee culture of Australia, but nestled on the main strip of Westboro.

These staff are, without a doubt, some of the best in the city. Not only are they warm, not only are they as happy to serve you a drip coffee with milk and sugar as a pour over, but they must have been hand picked from an improv troupe - but like, not an insufferable one - because their ability to riff is elite. Even if the coffee was terrible - which it isn’t - it would be worth coming back just for the vibes alone.

Coffee? Amazing. Staff? Amazing. Atmosphere? Amazing. Music selection? Especially amazing. Food? Amazing. (Try the avocado toast with egg - to die for)

We should celebrate that we in Ottawa can have a spot like this to grab a cup, a treat, and a joke. Truly an amazing accomplishment in a city that is more interested in giving our tax dollars to billionaires than doing anything to help small business owners.

Way to go...

Just visited this place and am seriously impressed. As others have mentioned, they carry and brew more than one roastery's beans simultaneously, providing opportunity to acquaint one's self to roasters previously unknown. On my visit they had two different company's beans on drip, and also offered two other roasters via pour-over, in addition to their espresso option. It's very refreshing to see that their primary focus is indeed coffee. They also have a selection of teas that seem to be equally conscientiously picked out, which should please tea-folk, although not being a tea-drinker myself, I can't confirm this. On my visit I tried and I got their medium drip, Ella (Guatemala; Todos Santos) by Rogue Wave, which was fresh and very delicious (consumed black). I paired it with a plain butter croissant (made by Art-Is-In), which, while pricey ($5!) was about as perfect as a croissant could be: beautifully browned and crisply flakey on the outside, soft and airy on the inside and Oh. SO. Buttery. The baristas were both friendly and very pleasant, and the one who interacted with me was personally knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the cafe's coffees. They were attentive to the tables in lobby, removing empty dishes, saying hi to customers, and cleaning up within a short of time of patrons leaving. The cafe is small inside, but there are seven 2-person tables plus a wide bench-ledge at the front window. I did not observe many outlets. I definitely plan to visit this place regularly to explore...

Really excellent coffee here — they care a lot about the quality of the beans they serve and how they’re prepared. Lots of interesting roasters’ beans on hand to buy as well. The staff are also very friendly and bus tables quickly, as well as deliver dine-in drinks to your table directly. The food is solid, in particular their toasts and breakfast sandwich; I really love how softly they cook the eggs and the sauce they use is really nice too. Overall, a lot of care is evident here and makes it a nice visit.

The downside is how popular they are. Deservedly so! But it’s SO crowded and such a small space that things can get a bit uncomfortable, with crowds blocking the door as they wait for their take-out cups, and confusion over where the line starts to order. Somehow, however, turnover of tables is fairly quick; I’ve sometimes had to wait for a seat but never longer than 10 mins or so. Maybe with all this success, some day they can move into a nearby...