Thursday, September 22, 2011

Mariposa Farm


I have a new restaurant to add to my top 5 in the Ottawa vicinity list.  Well, truth be told, I don't have an actual "top 5 list", but if I did, Mariposa Farm would be on it.  So would Les Fougeres. which I raved about here.  

I had been thinking about going to visit, but didn't have any concrete plans.  Then, I saw The Twisted Chef's post  about her visit and decided that I had to go.  I sold the idea to R as a birthday brunch (for him) and made a reservation.  The restaurant opens one a week for brunch on Sundays.

We were among the first to arrive and I was already feeling warm and fuzzy before sitting at our table.  


Rather than a traditional written menu, Mariposa Farm has a visual menu, where you can view the three starters, three mains and three dessert options.  This is awesome, particularly if you're a visual person.   I often have trouble deciding what to order.  But deciding based on the visual menu is probably the fastest decision I've ever made in a restaurant.

The centrepieces of the table, fresh vegetables, were really cute.  I've already stolen the idea.


Quickly after sitting, you get a basket of homemade bread.  So good!


For starters, R ordered a beet salad with a nut encrusted goat cheese:


I ordered the foie gras:


It didn't take long into our meal (and my picture taking) for the owner to ask me about whether these photos would end up on a foodblog.  Busted!  
  
For the main, I had duck on a bed of spaetzle.  This course was my favourite.  The duck was succulent and perfectly spiced.


R had bison, which he thoroughly enjoyed.


For dessert, R got a peach and apple galette


I got the cheese platter.

Overall, the meal was excellent.  None of the dishes are things that I would usually order in a restaurant.  But, because I could visually see what I was getting myself into, I was eager to try something new.

The service was good.  The owner has a strong, welcoming (slightly quirky) presence in the restaurant.

After eating, we walked around the farm.



I loved visiting the geese.  They look so distinguished and elegant.





Overall an awesome experience.


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5 comments:

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

You and your mom are blogging machines this past week or so. This restaurant sounds like my kind of place Psychgrad.

giz said...

OK, next time I'm in Ottawa you need to take me here. It looks fabulous and right up my alley.

kat said...

I love the light in that dining room.

That Girl said...

I need to work on a top 5 restaurant list.

Torviewtoronto said...

lovely review and pictures
nice to have met you today :)
regards
Akheela

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