Early on this blog, I said there were three** fish restaurants in Ottawa that were worth it. The first two, The Pelican Fishery and Grill and Lapointe's, I have already reviewed. It is now time to comment on the third - The Whalesbone.
** Since I started this blog, a couple more places have arrived on the scene: the Elmdale Oyster House and Tavern, which is connected with The Whalesbone, and which I highly recommend; and Supply and Demand - haven't tried that one yet, but I have heard good things.
The Whalesbone has a speakeasy feel - a laid back, welcoming atmosphere. It is small, the space dominated by the bar. There is one large table in the front, a booth in the back, a bench seating with small tables along the side opposite the bar, and the seating at the bar. Walls are exposed brick, chalkboards tell you about desserts and oyster or other features. When busy, and it is often busy, it can be quite noisy, and if you're going at prime meal time, I strongly recommend reservations. Service is friendly and knowledgeable. Their thing is sustainable seafood, which is great; therefore, this isn't the place to go for rare, premium, or overfished stock. Their product is caught or farmed from sustainable fisheries, and the quality is impeccable.
I visited on Friday for lunch, and also looked into my archives for pictures from a dinner last fall.
I don't usually comment on bread and butter, but... the bread was good, and the butter great. It was whipped brown butter. I love brown butter.
This is an oyster house, so for pictures (and eating) I had to start with the oysters. They are 12 for $35, or 18 for $50. Or $3.25 apiece. And they are marvelous. Well shucked - meaning no bits of shell or grit, beautifully presented. On this day, I actually got a baker's dozen - there was a single lonely Virginian oyster that was added to my platter. I gave it a good home. From the top, there are oysters from New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and completely bordered by lemon, a lone Virginian. I like it when the oysters come from different places, because you can better appreciate the variations. The New Brunswick oysters had that sharp brininess I like, as did the BC oysters. The BC were meatier - though small, they were more substantial. I also liked their ripply, scalloped shells. Very pretty. Served with lemon, as you can see, and fresh grated horseradish, which I LOVE. Also, you can see in the top left corner part of the caddy of sauces. A traditional mignonette and a HOT sauce made with scotch bonnet peppers, as well as cocktail sauce, a couple of bottled sauces, and some aged scotch. I tried scotch bonnet sauce and scotch as well as the mignonette. I always like the mignonette best - it is what I make when I have oysters at home (I cannot shuck nearly as well - invariably I drive bits of shell into the oyster). For me, the scotch takes away from the oyster, where the mignonette enhances it. But to each their own. I selected the Clocktower Oyster Stout to have with my oysters. Stout and oysters are a classic, classic pairing. Usually I go with Guinness, but since Clocktower (local microbrewery/brew pub) brews this specifically for oysters, incorporating crushed oyster shells into their process, I had to give it a try. It was a good match, the shells adding a hint of the brine to the beer as well.
I followed my oysters with seared tuna.
The tuna was beautiful. Cooked perfectly - light sear on the outside, rare rare rare on the inside. Served with potatoes, radishes, beans, and an orange-mustard compote. Kind of marmaladey. It was a sharp contrast to the smooth flavour balance of everything else. It was good, and took the dish to the next level, but I could have done with a bit less of that part on my plate. It threatened to take over, but I liked that there was something unusual and thought-provoking.
On a previous visit, I had a mixed shellfish app. Fried clams with pickled onion and creme fraiche, baked oysters, and some mussels. Though I generally prefer them raw, the oysters were not overdone, and the mussels were a much better version of something I loved as a kid - nostalgia! Prepare for a digression.
Although I was generally a picky eater, as a kid there were certain things I prided myself on loving, often things the my dad loved, and that other kids, particularly my brothers and sister, thought were disgusting. This is how I came to be an 8 year old who would not touch rice, and wouldn't eat potatoes if they were mashed (I know, I was weird), but loved blood pudding and liverwurst. Another thing I loved in all forms I could find it was fish, and shellfish. I was not the kid would only eat The Captain's fish sticks. I would eat fillets. I loved the canned smoked oysters on crackers we'd have at New Year's. And I loved the pickled mussels in a red sauce that my mother bought as an occasional treat for her and I on a Saturday. We'd come home from the Saturday shop and crack open the jar, each with a fork, and go to town on those firm, chewy, piquant pickled mussels. End of digression.
This lobster risotto was ordered by my dining companion, L. As you can see, it was beautiful to look at, and they didn't skimp on the lobster. She enjoyed the risotto, and also had a sesame tuna dish:
Gorgeous, as you can see, with sesame seed crusted tuna with some fresh veg - cucumbers, microgreens, an edible flower, croutons, some creme fraiche, with sauce and balsamic drizzles decorating the plate.
The Whalesbone is more than just a restaurant. A couple of blocks away, they have a fish market where you can get fresh and smoked fish, oyster platters for home (or where ever you want them, really), and they do a brown bag lunch on weekdays of which I have heard nothing but good things. The fish market supplies many, many of the restaurants in Ottawa, which speaks to the quality of their product. Often, these other restaurant credit Whalesbone as their supplier on their menu, which suggests how highly regarded they are, that the supplier has become a selling point to the consumer.
As I mentioned above, the Elmdale Oyster House and Tavern is affiliated with The Whalesbone. Different atmosphere, different offerings, same quality fish and seafood. I am sure they will be the subject of a review in the future.
I highly recommend giving the Whalesbone a try!
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