Definitely one of my favorite galleries in Ottawa. It's got such a nice, cozy atmosphere, lots of…read moregreat art and friendly staff, sometimes they even have cheese and bread to snack on while you're browsing the gallery.

Cube Gallery is one of the best modern art galleries in Ottawa. The work shown there is never…read morestuffy or boring or touristy. In addition, it's a great place to hold an event. My company has shot several weddings there and I always appreciate that the backdrop is different at every "shoot". The rotating art pieces make for a different wedding experience for every couple. It helps keep me inspired to shoot their weddings a little bit differently each time too! All in all, it's a great setting for big gathering. I'd highly recommend that you check it out as a venue if you're looking for an event space in Ottawa.

Wellington West is a cool, trendy neighbourhood west of downtown Ottawa. I recently got the grand…read moretour from my friend. It was my first visit here. This Yelp listing has the Wellington West Business Improvement Area (BIA) site as a reference. That site lists Hintonburg as one of Wellington West's communities. It's fitting, as they both exude a trendy vibe that is refreshing and nice. This neighbhourhood has many retail stores, eateries, grocery stores, churches, and more. It's a good mix. It's almost a dream for me to live in this area and walk to a business without thinking of parking. It's kind of like my old neighbourhood of the Beaches, but less preppy and a bit further from a body of water. We ducked in and out of stores during this walking tour, partly because the stores were cool and worth checking out. The other reason was that we needed relief from sweating buckets on a hot July afternoon. We could probably write a guide on which stores have the most effective air conditioning and which ones will take longer for you to cool down when you're inside the stores... haha I like quirkiness. There is a series of marble fire hydrant statues that my friend had mentioned. We walked by many of them and I had to capture their coolness. From corn, to a violin, you get to see a lot of creativity go into each hydrant's design. It's like going to the Twin Cities to find all the Snoopy and Charlie Brown Statues. It's more abstract and refined with marble. Hintonburg is similar. It's still trendy and cool, but it has a more established, older charm when you see a church here and there. Well, except for the half-fallen Hintonburg letters. Again, I like quirkiness. I like that you have Parkdale public market here. Although it wasn't fulyl open when we were there, it's nice that you can get fresh produce and local eats. I learned that it's the second-oldest market in Ottawa, behind ByWard Market. Nice! I wouldn't say that I am now an expert visiting both neighbourhoods for the first time. I had a wonderful introduction, especially checking out places to have a cold drink on a hot day because I was super thirst after a salty meal. To wish that the marble hydrants had water out of them was a thought that came to me. In a way, I'm glad that I could quench my thirst at other places! I liked how friendly and lovely everyone was. I hope to return soon with not-as-tired legs from walking around and sandals that I am not breaking in a day later. (294)

I had no idea that Wellington West was even a listing on Yelp until it popped up in my feed. It's…read morelisted under "Shopping Centres" but it isn't so much a shopping centre as a neighbourhood or several neighbourhoods. I myself would call it a "Local Flavour" in Yelp speak. It's the stretch of street starting in the west from where Richmond Rd becomes Wellington St West and ending in the east where Wellington St West becomes Somerset St. There are many retail shops, restaurants, grocery stores, markets, yoga studios, art galleries, churches, etc. along this strip. Some places are very affordable (there's a St. Vincent de Paul which is a thrift store where you can get pants for $1) and some places are very high end (like Valamode that sells pre-loved Chanel purses for about $3000 each), so there's a real mix of businesses. The stretch is very walkable, and there are lots of places to duck in and out if it's really hot or really cold outside, or if it's raining or snowing. With so much variety, I'm sure there are businesses in Wellington West to suit any tastes. Some of my favourite places in Wellington West are Stella Luna (awesome gelato), Strawberry Blonde Bakery (yummy gluten-free bakery, their donut holes are amazing), AMH and Second Glance (both consignment stores), Max's Shoe Repair (they sell really funky shoes), and Absinthe and Allium (both great date restaurants). In the fall there's Taste of Wellington West, which is an event where restaurants in Wellington West offer free samples of their foods on the sidewalks. There are usually sidewalk sales and some street performers during this event as well. If you haven't been to Wellington West, it's worth the trip to check it out.

The Short Version: Small independent theatre. Has an old…read moreschool vibe. Tight seating. Weird washrooms. The Long Version: The Gladstone Theatre is an independent theatre and also a registered charity. It provides a venue for independent artists to showcase their work. The theatre is small and only seats 230 people. The seats are tiny. This comment is coming from someone who is 5'0" and 105 lbs, lol. The theatre has a classic theatre vibe to it which I found charming. The stage is not raised. So if you sit in the front row you are literally at the same level as the stage. There's a large centre section for seating and on either side against the walls there's a narrower section. We sat on the right side section and our row only had 3 seats, but the number of seats increased as you go farther away from the stage. My husband and I saw a production of A Mid-Summer Night's Dream there. It was a weekend matinee. There's a small bar that's open before the show and during intermission. They sell basic drinks both alcoholic and non-alcoholic and some snacks like chips and candies. You can bring the drinks into the theatre but not the food. I got a can of seltzer for $4 and my husband got a bottle of ginger beer for $4. Prices are what you would expect at a theatre. The women's washroom had only 3 stalls so lineups were long. There were also huge gaps at the stall doors, where people can look in and you can look out. Weird. I didn't like it. They have a single gender neutral wheelchair accessible washroom that's a private room though (I didn't go in, but that's what the sign said). And I have no idea what the men's washroom is like. But I was not impressed with the women's washroom. There's also no on-site parking. So you have to park on the street. Most of the theatre productions my husband and I see are at Meridian Theatres (formerly Centrepointe Theatre), so I guess I'm used to free parking on-site and roomier seats. I support the local arts so I'm glad this theatre exists, but I'm uncertain if I personally will be attending many shows here in the future. Review #190 (2025)

We went there over the Christmas break for Alice in Winterland. Have to say the show was wonderful!…read moreThe theatre itself is beautiful. Very retro. There isn't a bad seat in the house. There is a bar/snack bar out front and you can bring your purchases into the theatre. The staff was very friendly and helpful. The only downside, and it is kind of a big issue in the winter, is parking. There is no onsite parking. We parked a block over in a paid lot. Considering it was snowy and cold, it was kind of a drag to have to walk to the theatre. In nice weather parking wouldn't be an issue. On the up side, it is right off Preston with lots of choice for restaurants to dine in before or after the show. Other than parking, the place is great!

The EX has got to be one of the most popular festivals in Ottawa. Even if you're not a fan, if…read moreyou're an Ottawa local, guaranteed you've been to it at least once in your life. It's a long-running outdoor festival that has stayed a family favorite for years. Kids love it, but it can also be a cute little date idea. It's been held at Landsdowne Park every year for as long as I can remember, from mid to end of August. This is actually a really good time to have it since it isn't blazing hot out. It's also pretty inexpensive so you can get in a full day of fun. There's all sorts of entertainment - concerts, stunt demonstrations, circus performances, stand-up comedy, magic shows, and educational shows. There are also petting zoos, exhibits, a ton of rides, and my favorite, the Ferris wheel! Nothing more romantically cliche than grabbing a corn dog, winning a prize, and riding the Ferris wheel ;) I am quite sad though, as I've heard that after 2010, the EX will no longer be held at Landsdowne Park :(

Founded in 1880, this art gallery in Ottawa Ontario Canada is a grand light filled structure of…read moreglass and granite. Featuring sweeping views of Parliament Hill and the Ottawa River. The iconic Maman Spider sculpture is right outside the entrance. The tickets are $15.68. This large museum premiers over 100,000 works. This includes the Group of Seven collection of Canadian landscapes, Indigenous and Canadian art, and International Masterpieces.

I had a great experience at this gallery. It was our first time with my family and we were able to…read morelearn about different art installations, it was cool. It wasn't too busy and it was clean and well-maintained. They also had multiple security stationed inside. Fairly priced and would definitely recommend checking it out at least once.

The Arts Court is great because you can go to see many different galleries without leaving the…read morebuilding. Within the Arts Court "complex" there is Saw Gallery, video and Club, The Ottawa Art Gallery, the Firestone Collection of Canadian Art, Le Groupe Dance Lab. Entrance is pay what you can, though I did not see where to put my donation! I really enjoyed browsing around, as the gallery was literally empty except for my friend and I, so we could see things at our own pace. It's great to have works by such different artists all in one place. It would have been nice to have some help finding the different galleries though, there were not many staff people around to give directions or answer questions about the exhibits.

I might be a bit biast as I work in the building, but it is truly a hub of local artists and arts…read moreorganizations (over 25!). There is so much going on inside these heritage building walls! From the Ottawa Art Gallery, to the Theatre, Club Saw/Saw Gallery/SAW video to Ottawa Dance Directive - there is always something happening here. Most of the activities in Arts Court are free, fundraising or at very low cost and the programming benefits a wide audience. The down side is that the listings aren't grouped anywhere together, outside of the Artlist (Artengine's e-blasts). In addition, the old Courthouse's layout is a real maze to navigate and unfortunately, some people get lost, give up and get out before they've discovered something exciting or found what they've come to see in the first place.

First time here. Its a large mall, with some anchor stores attached like Simons,…read moreHomesense/Marshalls and Costco and a massive food court with chains that we don't have in Ottawa. They also have 2 restaurants that we do not have in Ottawa, being La Bella & La Boeuf and a pizza restaurant called Enoteca Monza Pizzeria Moderna. The fam and I were planning to eat at one of the two, but opted for some greek food and french fries in the food court. The mall did look quiet promising, but besides the stores listed above, we basically ended up just walking around. It's a great mall for mall walking and we were pooped by the end. We did hit up the Lindt store where they have so many different truffles that we had to buy a few. I would avoid coming here at lunch time during the week, as it was packed with nearby students heading to the food court. Parking was plentiful and easy. Just avoid the Costco parking lot. Bilingual service was non existent and we were spoken to in French in all the stores we shopped in, even though we were clearly corresponding in English and engaging with associates in English. It was an eye opening experience, especially being 10 minutes from downtown Ottawa. I assumed service would be billingual? Brush up on your French if your planning on shopping here. I was in between a 2.5 stars but rounded it up to a 3. It's an A-OK mall, but I would not rush back.

I only come to this mall to get my eyebrows done. It is quite a huge 1 level mall. I do appreciate…read moreall the parking. It is also connected beside a Costco!! Even on very busy days, you will find parking. It is right off the highway and close to the bus station, and the major boulevard around this city. There is every type of store you could wish for (age/gender/style). Something I found impressive was they have a room for parents to change their babies. There is even a microwave! The mall is kept clean and has great wifi if you may need it.

If you are visiting Ottawa from elsewhere, you will eventually think of buying a piece of Ottawa or…read moreCanadiana for friends or family or even for yourself. Do yourself a favour. Do NOT go to those cheesy souvenir stores that sell generic "Canadian" or "Ottawa" trinkets - the mountie figurine, the snowdome, the "my parents went to Ottawa and all I got was this lousy t-shirt" t-shirt. Instead, try Gallery 93. Yes, it is a souvenir store. But, you will find some really different items to remember the Canadian capital or just amaze your friends back home - where ever home happens to be. For instance, how about a 1/5th size model of a Spitfire fighter with RCAF markings? What about a 1/3 size Haida totem pole? Or, how about a huge soapstone carving, or a soapstone lamp? If you want to buy a souvenir for your family, but don't want the same old crap, then go to Gallery 93 at the corner of Sparks and Metcalfe - right around the corner from Parliament Hill.