Murray Street Kitchen doesn't look much like a restaurant from the outside, well, at least not to me. In fact, I thought it was a butcher or deli from the street view and it was my friend who walked up to read the menu offerings. It was 4 PM and like many restaurants, we were helplessly between dinner and lunch. They did have a charcuterie menu, available at this time, offering a choice of 3 cheeses and 2 meats for 30$ (or 3 meats and 2 cheeses) and considering we weren't really that hungry, only curious, that was going to suit us just fine.

Entering the restaurant felt a little like heading into a sugar shack. A very modern version of a sugar shack, with dirndls and lederhosen. Yes, Beau's All Natural Brewing Co. (the very beer I had just polished off at a bar around the corner!) was hosting some sort of an Oktoberfest event until 5 PM. Chef/Owner Steve Mitton greeted us and offered to seat us on the terrace, but it was extremely hot and humid that day and my delicate features would never handle it. Then my friend spontaneously made us a 5:30 PM reservation and we slid off for drinks at a pub around the corner.

When we headed back to the Murray Street Kitchen at 5:30 PM, all signs of the Oktoberfest had disappeared and the true feel of the restaurant was clear. Homey and comfortable. And oh so friendly. Our waiter, Geoff (he looked more like a Geoff than a Jeff), came over to us immediately and informed us of the drink menu for the evening. I couldn't resist the peach margarita and my friend ordered the pisco sour. When I saw fresh peaches being sliced for my margarita, I knew it was going to be delicious and I was absolutely right!

I still had the charcuterie menu on my mind and was still not very hungry, but after Geoff related to us the plates of the evening, I wanted it all, everything. I would order the cheeses and meats, as well as the lamb with roasted beets and yogurt sauce, and oh, yes, I want the pork shoulder too. My friend and Geoff reasoned with me, that maybe that would be a little much and so I compromised and ordered just one cheese (Grey Owl) and one meat (Elk Salami) along with their Spatzle Poutine. For our main dishes, my friend ordered the Sockeye Salmon and I ordered the Lamb with roasted beets and yogurt sauce.

Apparently we had gone from not very hungry to famished because we cleared our plates and I ordered the housemade S'mores. I cannot talk about it, nor write about it without my mouth watering up. It was fabulous. Simple and fabulous! Pure decadence in a Mason jar.

I honestly cannot find the words to describe what a wonderful experience it was to dine there. Some of the greatest discoveries are made by accident!

Murray Street Kitchen
Ottawa, ON
110 Murray street
(613) 562-7244