Cafe Saffron

During a recent youth hockey trip to Ottawa, Ontario my family and I ventured out to discover someplace for dinner. We didn’t have much time, didn’t want to spend a lot of money and needed a place we could all agree on. Fortunately we discovered a small Asian restaurant very close to the hotel that was a very pleasant surprise.

Cafe Saffron is a small eatery in what I suspect was a former Starbucks location, not that it makes any difference.  We arrived relatively early for dinner, around 5:00PM on a Friday evening and had hardly any wait. The menu offered a mix of Asian cuisines with something for everyone in my family. I ordered a house special, Saffron Spicy Chicken.

Our dishes were a little slow to arrive, but only because they were piping hot and were obviously made to order. My dish teased me with huge chunks of chicken in a fiery yellow sauce with plenty of flash fried red chilies.  The first thing I noticed was the chicken. In many Asian eateries chicken entrees offer small, indifferent shreds of meat. Not here. These were large chunks of breast meat that tasted very fresh, had terrific “chicken-ness” and was moist.

The sauce was sweet with a slow, quiet burn at the end. I thought the heat  would eventually catch up with me but it never did. Every sweet bite promised bit of heat, but it never really came. Perhaps I was supposed to nibble on one of the red chilies. But I was quite happy with my dish as it was.

The cafe had an empty steam table and judging from the rest of the menu and setup, I suspect it does a very respectable lunch business. The prices are very reasonable, the service attentive and I felt it was a very family-friendly establishment. Certainly not haute cuisine chinois, but very satisfying and everyone was happy.

I’m sure if stay close to Cafe Saffron on any future trips to Ottawa that it will merit a repeat visit.

Cafe Saffron
195 Kent Street
Ottawa, ON K2P 2M4, Canada
(613) 233-8989

Blue Ginger Asian Bistro

Whenever I travel on business, usually to run a training class, I always ask my students where I should eat or what restaurants I shouldn’t miss. I also always try to eat in at least one sushi joint as well. During a recent trip to Columbus, OH, a few students recommended Blue Ginger Asian Bistro which is technically in Dublin, OH.

At first glance you might not think much of the place, being in a strip mall, although I’ve had some very terrific food in some very rundown strip malls so I’m not one to judge a book by its cover. Inside was definitely a different story. The decor favored a modern Asian design with dark woods and brushed metal tables. A sushi bar occupied one corner.

The menu was a basic Japanese-Chinese blend with a few Vietnamese items and Thai curries tossed in for good measure. The restaurant is an Asian bistro, so the mélange of cultures shouldn’t be too surprising.

I started out with an appetizer of pan dried duck dumplings which were served on a bed of mixed field greens. The dumplings had a slight crisp on the outside and were served with a sweet hoisin-based sauce. I found them tasty and filling, although not especially very “ducky”. Still, the order of 6 dumplings was very filling.

I then moved to their Triple Toro roll. I don’t see toro on sushi menus often, so I try to sample it when I can. Their offering was an avocado filled roll with toro, yellowtail and tuna draped over the top and finished off with a spicy mayo.  The toro melted in my mouth. The mayo brought plenty of heat on its own. I also found the roll a little salty, although interestingly not in every bite.

Feeling confident about their toro, I next ordered a toro sashimi. I received 2 very thinly sliced pieces served too chilled for my tastes. I find if the fish is too cold some of the flavor is locked away. I suspect the toro in the roll was a little warmer, perhaps from the chef’s hands during preparation. I lingered to let the the second piece warm up and it offered up a little more flavor. Certainly not knock me over toro, but this is Central Ohio after all and I was surprised to find toro at all.

I was just about finished when my server convinced me to try kampachi sashimi. I’m glad she did. The fish had a firm flesh like hamachi that gave way to velvety bites of the ocean. I’m very sensitive to salt but this had just the right amount to transport me to tropical beach.

I wrapped up the meal with a chocolate fortune cookie:

Laziness is nothing more than the habit of resting before you get tired.

The total bill including tip (it was just me) was under $40. If I lived in the Columbus area, I would definitely eat there again and I hope you’ll give it a try if the opportunity arises.