ZOE'S — Restaurant in Ottawa

3.5/5

I really enjoyed my experience at Zoe's but I have to mention 3 key points on why it wasn't perfect.

40 min wait. We reserved a table for 1:15 PM, arrived at 1:14 PM and was told to wait as they set up our table. It wasn't until 1:54 pm (a whole 40 min after) did we get to go in. When you book at Zoe's, you are really paying for the experience and buying into a fantasy because it is quite expensive. To have to wait 40 mins even with a reservation was extremely disappointing for what you paid for. I understand that the guests during the 11:15 AM session didn't leave on time but as a restaurant with clear instructions up front that each session is 2 hours, the staff should've stepped in and reminded the guests of their remaining time. I'm glad Zoe's was able to provide us with the full 2 hour session and provided the table a glass of complimentary prosecco, but it really shouldn't had happened as it was a controllable situation. It soured the mood from the start.

Poor temperature control We went on a 30C+ day and the inside of the restaurant was just as hot. Because of the windows and the sun, Zoe's was essentially a greenhouse. This should've been taken into consideration as it made the experience extremely uncomfortable, especially when you pair it with hot tea.

Food options I enjoyed 99.99% of the food offered but I wished there were more savory dishes and less sweet dishes. I think 2-3 desserts max would've been better. I got sick of the amount of dessert while I craved for more savory dishes.

Now onto the positives.

Staff The staff members were extremely polite and kind. There was a little incident with our water and the waiter was clearly distressed and sad about what happened. It was hard balancing a full plate of ice water while maneuvering around full table of plates and glasses. To be honest, the ice water really cooled us off (especially in such a hot greenhouse). The service everyone provided made our visited very comfortable.

Amazing food I have to say, I didn't expect the food were going to make us full or that I would like all the dishes, but the food was fantastic individually (see point above savory vs sweet). The tea were also very delicious. Our table was able to try all sort of tea. The variety was impeccable. I was glad to be able to try everything from light/refreshing to strong/comforting tea.

The star of the meal was the scones with mascarpone cream, and house made strawberry jam. It was absolutely DIVINE. The scones were the perfect balance of butter, salt and flavours. The texture was also spot on, airy not greasy. The mascarpone cream and jam just completely knocked it out of the park. Zoe's REALLY needs to consider selling the mascarpone cream and jam because I would buy a year worth of supply.

Overall, I enjoyed the experience. I do recommend everyone to try it once. Although there is room for...

The tea ceremony is highly overrated. We attended Christmas tea with the children. Before booking, I saw the difference in price between the Regular Afternoon tea and the Christmas tea and was surprised that there was no hint of Christmas on the tables, except for the tree at the entrance. Two stars only because the staff at the entrance were polite and attentive, and the lobby was beautiful. There was no Christmas atmosphere at Christmas Eve. We were first for tea at 11am. At the same time, while we were waiting for snacks, we noticed a lot of garbage and crumbs from the previous day on the floor under the table, the table was already sticky, and there were dirty stains on the rim of a glass of ice water. The cutlery needed cleaning - the grooves in the patterns were clearly not cleaned and there were bent parts on one of the forks. The premises itself are clearly without an owner-administrator. The glass has noticeable sticky or greasy hand marks, the baseboard from the window on the floor is coming off and there is no one to put it in place. This is not at all the restaurant of the best hotel in the city. When the three-tier serving of appetizers arrived, the children's menu was a big loser. It is clear that it is almost half the price of an adult, but a jam sandwich between bread and a banal bacon sandwich is just ridiculous. The adult set had a third of a croissant, dry ham, tired appetizers. As they wrote in other comments, the cucumbers were no longer fresh, it all looked like it had been cooked the night before. For dessert, 4 types of sweets were served individually for adults and 3 for children. The children's were quite simple, like profiterole, shortbread and a simple sponge cake with coconut. Adults are unlikely to surprise anyone who has the slightest idea about cooking desserts and French pastries. Very very primitive. The tea was excellent. The tea party was designed for a maximum of 2 hours, while the waiter independently began to offer to finish, insisted on bringing boxes for leftover food and was clearly in a hurry. From the excessive courtesy at the beginning to the hasty farewell at the end - not very impressive. Total for 200 dollars for 1.20 hour you get an unkempt restaurant, food without sophistication, and strange behavior of the staff. I still don’t understand the difference between Christmas and regular tea, it’s no longer interesting to check. We are new cameramen, we have lived in Europe all our lives, and we were very surprised by such quality in the restaurant in the main hotel of the...

The food was good (especially the scones) and all the decor is lovely. The service was not great unfortunately. Our server was rude to us over a misunderstanding and I can’t help but wonder if we were ‘ladies who lunch’ or older men in suits if we would have been treated better. One of the 5 guests had tried to order off the kids menu (as she is on a diet and wanted a smaller portion). The spread is not clearly labeled as a kids menu and no age restriction was listed on the menu and it was listed on the same page as alcohol.

The server was not nice about it at all and brought out the kids spread for the guest anyway. Without forewarning she charged the guest the full adult price though she had eaten the smaller kids meal. Had she been advised, she would have ordered the larger meal and potentially asked for a doggy bag etc. The manager tried to smooth things over and reimbursed her the difference but the experience was ruined.

Interestingly, in Toronto at the Royal York Fairmont, the sister hotel, there is a separate menu for children at high tea with pictures of animals and is clearly labeled “ages 12 and under”. There is no mistaking that this option is not for adults. What is more, they allow guests more flexibility with the menu such as adding more plates or sandwiches. I hope Chateau Laurier Ottawa can learn from Toronto.

A poor taste has been left in my mouth about Zoe’s and I won’t be going back despite the two positive experiences beforehand. I strongly recommend that they amend the menu by specifying the age restriction to avoid miscommunication and teach their staff to be professional and precise when dealing with clients. Furthermore, the staff should be given sensitivity training about the many reasons someone may be interested in a smaller menu that have nothing to do with price. And even if they suspect price may be the issue, every client is deserving of dignity and respect.

As Ottawa expands, there are other places in the city offering similar high tea experiences with a modern twist. If Zoe’s does not modernize their menu and treatment of guests, they will be...