WILFRID'S — Restaurant in Ottawa

I rarely write reviews but I felt I needed to review this restaurant. Although the booking on line was done with ease, and the hostess was gracious who was seating patrons, the positive experience ended there. We haven’t been to this restaurant since before the pandemic, and we were excited to have Sunday brunch here on our anniversary. Upon being seated, we waited a great deal of time and no one acknowledged us. We began to self serve, and came back to our table with food, waiting for water and tea or coffee. Still no one came. When the waitress finally showed up, she said she was sorry and didn’t see us. That’s okay. I said no problem but that we did need water and asked for a tea. She then stopped to talk for a great length of time to another table who were clearly almost finished their meal. I finally got up to get some juice as that was the only thing available at the buffet, which I don’t care to drink. I had finished a plate of food and she finally came back with water and tea. She did not check in on us at all during the meal for refills but did drop a dessert by and said Happy Anniversary and kept on walking. The waitress had time to walk through the restaurant talking to the manager though. My husband and I commented about the tables in front and behind us. The tables were constantly being checked on and offered fresh coffee and water regularly. One of those busy staff saw our plight and even though it wasn’t her table, she came down and gave us more coffee and water. Our waitress ended up chatting again to the same table, then called the manager over to introduce them, and then she disappeared. I went to stand by the manager to try to get his attention, to no avail. I finally politely said excuse me, do you mind if we get our bill. He finally got us our bill. He asked how everything was and I did say politely that it took a long time to get a drink and a lot of time was spent on one table. I have no problem with staff chatting to friends or family while working, but not at the detriment of other patrons. After we paid our bill and went to leave, the friends of our waitress glared at me. I just smiled and she started shaking her head at me. What a terrible atmosphere for our anniversary. I would never have interrupted the obvious VIP customers’ conversation if I felt I had another choice. Note to management… if your staff are too busy to bring water or tea and coffee, please consider extending your beverage centre to include these items. Such a disappointment. Will not be back for a...

I was visiting Ottawa and wanted to treat myself to the brunch buffet on Sept. 15/24. For $70/person I had pretty high expectations. My reservation was at noon, 30 mins after the brunch service began, but I arrived early and they sat me at 11:45. Everything I picked from the “hot” buffet counter was cold. Eggs, sausage, crepes, salmon puttanesca, roasted potatoes, mushroom ravioli, and roasted carrots (these were also very dry). When I returned to my table I asked for decaf coffee. My server came and poured me half a cup of coffee, which luke warm at best. I thought maybe her carafe was empty and she’d return, she did not. About 20 mins later she came to refill my cup, but only 3/4 full this time, and the coffee was luke warm, again. She came a third time, removed my old cup, and gave me a new one (which had dried food stuck on the rim) and filled it right up with coffee, and it was hot! (finally). Unfortunately, this was the last time my server came to check on me or fill my coffee cup. I really expected better service, and perhaps better coffee (like a latte) other than just drip coffee, especially for the price of the meal. I was not offered a menu or the option to order a breakfast cocktail, or other types of coffee, which is usually standard for a fancy brunch buffet. When I was ready for pastries, I took the pain au chocolat, cannoli, and cream puff. I expected the pastries to be made fresh, especially for the price of the meal. The pain au chocolat wasn’t buttery or flaky. It was hard and tasted stale. The cannoli shell and creme puff were soggy. These were not fresh and I was very disappointed in the quality of the food. I don’t feel that it was worth what I paid, and left disappointed. The chateau hotels in Canada have a quality standard to meet and unfortunately Wilfred’s missed the...

The 5 women in our family came to the Chateau Laurier to celebrate our matriarchs 90th birthday. Sadly, both breakfast experiences at Wilfrid’s we abysmal. The first morning there was a mistake in each of our dishes, the plates all arrived twenty minutes between the first and the last, we had to ask for pepper, butter, ketchup - none of it was on the table. We also had to specially request a beverage, which were included in each of our dishes, but never offered. We assumed this was a once-off, but then returned the next morning to an identical experience. Our matriarch waited 18 minutes after everyone else received their food before she received hers, with barely an apology. Entirely disrespectful for a woman who just turned 90, enjoying breakfast with her two daughters and two granddaughters. Although our server did seem embarrassed in a way that showed this was a regular occurrence.

At $40/plate, this wasn’t worth half that as the food wasn’t exactly impressive. The only positive experience is the pleasant attitude of the staff - everything else is broken and frustrating.

When you enjoy a weekend at a luxury hotel, you expect luxury experiences in the restaurant. This service was less organized than your local...