▪️ Early Bird registration for Rochon Garden’s 2025 Community Support Agriculture programme (starting May 12 for 24 weeks) is now open. Full, Half, and Lite Shares are available. 

▪️ It’s Appy Wednesday at Soca Kitchen, today and every Wednesday during the month of January. Buy One, Get One Free. 

▪️ Ameya Charnalia at Eat the Strip satisfied a crave for Nigerian food by heading to Detola’s Kitchen. Once he started his egusi, a ‘comforting Nigerian dish featuring doughy fufu served with a rich, nutty melon seed stew, tender beef, and a balance of spicy heat and savoury flavours’, he ‘couldn’t stop’.

▪️ Dunn’s Famous Deli in ByTown Market is selling its buildingalthough the 24 hour resto is still operating.

▪️ In Apartment 613’s latest Best Bites column, Hannah Manning and Kiersten Vuorimaki eat at East India Company (‘I recommend trying the gulab jaman: round, soft cake pieces soaked in rosewater cardamom syrup’), Dukes (‘Bacon, scrambled eggs and processed cheese are lovingly tucked into a super soft potato bun, with a sweet, creamy secret special sauce and tangy pickles. I’ve never had pickles on my breakfast, but now I’m hooked’), and Art-Is-In (‘My favourite regular menu pizza is the Hipster Pepperoni with small crispy pepperoni, Pecorino Romano cheese and fresh basil’).

▪️ After 20 years of work La coopérative de solidarité Épicerie de l'île de Hull has given up on trying to open an affordable grocery store in the Hull quarter. 

▪️ Peter Hum in the Ottawa Citizen locates his sugar high in Moo Shu’s brûléed ice cream sandwiches. Hum says the sandwiches flavours ‘feel like what you’ve been missing all your life when you eat them’.

First look at foodie Valentine’s Day

❤️ Create your own gift box of 24 macarons from Quelque Chose Patisserie on Montréal Road. You’ll save 20% if you purchase before January 31. 

❤️ Maker Feed Co., those specialists in romantic dining experiences, present a four-course Valentine’s Italian Dinner on Thursday February 13. 2607 Old Montréal rd, Cumberland K4C 1A2 

❤️ Brookstreet Hotel is offering not one but two Valentine dinner options as well as a romantic staycation option. 

❤️ You have decisions to make at NeXT. Will you choose the dining-in, seven-course exercise in epic romantic eating on either Friday February 14 or Saturday February 15? Or will you celebrate the day of romance at home with The Cuisine of Portugal? 

❤️ Almonte’s Hummingbird Chocolate has experiences for Galentines and Valentines: Bring a friend to watch the classic Chocolate (popcorn and a drink included) on Thursday February 13, or book the Fondue for Two on Friday February 14. 

❤️ Give a classic Valentine’s Day box of chocolates. Stubbe Chocolates’s Heart Box is filled with truffles (choose from alcoholic or non-alcoholic fillings). $35.50. 

❤️ Canadian chain Chocolats Favoris offers sweet treats for significant others as well as littles. There’s something for every budget. 

❤️ Urban Element Catering has a choice of Roast Beef Tenderloin or Celeriac and Mushroom Wellington for stylish at-home dining on February 14. 

The per centage increase of rent increase above guideline notices to Ottawa renters between 2020 and 2022. Known as an L5, landlords can increase rent more than inflation if they claim there was an increase in taxes, security costs, or capital expenditures.

The number came out after Somerset ward councillor Ariel Troster asked City staff ‘analyze data from the Ottawa Landlord Tenant Board amid concerns about people being evicted unfairly’.

Founder of the Kansas City Current soccer team and four times Olympian, Winnipegger Desiree Scott has joined Ottawa Rapid FC as it builds its inaugural team in the Northern Super League. Scott was deemed ‘The Destroyer’ by former women’s national team coach John Herdman for her aggressive tackling play.

– Jodi Browne, one of several parents of special needs kids who are disappointed with the Ottawa Carleton District School Board’s plans to cancel dedicated specialized programmes for integration in neighbourhood schools. 

No more meetings this week

▪️It will cost $15 million to build the tent-like sprung structure for asylum seeking. The City posted on its Engage Ottawa website that it had found a contractor at the price and it would take one year to construct. The shelter, to be located at 1645 Woodroffe, is intended to house refugee claimants. The City considers the tents more dignified that using recreation centres.

▪️Premier Doug Ford is the latest person to wear a ‘Strong and Free’ toque from an Ottawa entrepreneur. After US president-elect Donald Trump made comments about annexing Canada, Liam Mooney launched an online store selling toques and baseball caps reading ‘Strong and Free’ and ’Canada Is Not For Sale’ in English and ‘Fort et libre’ and ‘Le Canada n’est pas à vendre’ in French. Ford made a Tweet promoting the hats this morning.

▪️Various sections within the City have critiqued plans for Lansdowne 2.0 in the lead up to a building permit. 

The City is both the developer of the project with Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group and the regulator. Some of the criticisms from City departments are:

• The 6,500 people exiting from a sold-out new arena will mix with the Para Transpo drop off and the loading docks.

• A cover of live green grass for the new roof of the arena is considered too expensive, so the project is going for polyvinyl painted green. Pictures show the arena clad in what looks like wood but is actually aluminum.

• In another cost-cutting move, the new north stands in the stadium will not have a roof for the seated patrons.

• Despite Lansdowne 1.0 winning a National Urban Design Award for its landscape design, the great lawn will be reduced in size.

▪️Porter Airlines is making the Ottawa – Las Vegas and Ottawa – Fort Lauderdale routes year round. Porter started flying to Las Vegas and to Fort Lauderdale in November, initially as a winter schedule. The airline has now decided to continue the routes all year round.

▪️ Tell a tale or support others while they do at the Ottawa StoryTellers Open Mic. OPL Sunnyside branch (1049 rue Bank).

▪️ USEFUL Quick Cranks (1089 Somerset St. W)’s series of five Pay What You Can Community Bike Repair Classes cover everything from riding through the snow to fixing a puncture. 

🆓 Enjoy a program of Schubert’s Arpeggione with the Bibek Duo at today’s noon - 1:00 pm Doors Open for Music at Southminster concert. Also on livestream. 

▪️ ByTowne Cinema: The Seed of the Sacred Fig, L’Amour ouf, Detour: McCabe & Mrs. Miller 

▪️ Mayfair Theatre: A Real Pain, Queer, Rabid 

Gigs

▪️ Girls to the Front featuring Becks & Shannon Eddy. Irene’s Pub

▪️ January Game Dev Show ’n’ Chill. Avant-Garde Bar

▪️ Music Bingo. Brew Revolution

▪️ Taproom Trivia. Stray Dog Brewing Company

▪️ Your first theatre outing of 2025 has got to be the Stratford Festival production of Salesman in China, presented in English and Mandarin and playing the National Arts Centre tonight through January 25.

▪️ The JazzWorks January jam session is taking place at Festival Japan restaurant (149 Kent St). 

▪️ Keith Pedro plays The Brass Monkey. 

▪️ Ottawa Senators meet Washington Capitals at Canadian Tire Centre. 

🆓 Sad Girl Café - a women’s open mic - returns to GigSpace Performance Studio. Get your free tickets in advance for the 35-capacity event. 

▪️ ByTowne Cinema: The Seed of the Sacred Fig, Detour: The Legend of Billie Jean, Ciné-Club d’Ottawa: Les Hommes de la Mère 

▪️ Mayfair Theatre: Queer, A Real Pain, Vixen! 

Gigs

▪️ Joe McDonald. Irene’s Pub

▪️ Silent EM, Infinity’s Astrum, The Seance. House of TARG

▪️ Open Mic. Café British (Aylmer, QC)

▪️ Search Party with Cattail Creek, Occasional Pudding, and The Wayward Sound. LIVE on Elgin

▪️ Comedy Night. Pour Boy

▪️ Epic Karaoke-Dance Party at the Nuvo Lounge

▪️ Road Trip: The Haunted Walk will be conducting Paranormal Investigations at the Historic SDG Jail in Cornwall tonight and tomorrow night. Are you brave enough to go? 

▪️ Queers & Beers are back at Queen St Fare for an evening of socializing and dancing. 

▪️ Rocker veterans Top Shelf play Rainbow Bistro. 

▪️ Have your say in the results of the Art Battle at Overflow Brewing. 

▪️ Listen to your favourite songs by Radiohead, The Band, and Angel Olsen at Irene’s Pub, as cover bands High Waters, Main Street Revival and Annie Martel perform. 

▪️ Catch a fundraising performance of Hamlet by The Company of Adventurers, Friday January 17 and Saturday January 18 only at the Gladstone Theatre. It’s free, but the cast will be passing a hat around after the show so please dig deep. 

▪️ The final draw for The Snowsuit Fund’s For The City 50/50 event is today. At the time of writing the winner will take home nearly $300K and many area kids will benefit from the Snowsuit Fund and BGC Ottawa programs. 

▪️ ByTowne Cinema: The Room Next Door, The Last Showgirl, Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat 

▪️ Mayfair Theatre: A Real Pai, Anora, The Rocky Horror Picture Show 

Gigs

▪️ Double Experience. Broadhead Brewery

▪️ Radio Days. Brew Revolution

▪️ The Start. Heart & Crown (Barrhaven)

▪️ Jim Bryson. Red Bird

▪️ Eric Montpool. Art House Café

▪️ The Yodas. The Barley Mow Merivale Road

▪️ The Ruffianz. House of TARG

▪️ Warm Songs for Cold Months. LIVE on Elgin 

▪️ Sunflower Soaps will teach Galentines to make their own lip balms and body scrubs on Thursday February 13. Participants will take home a jar of body scrub and at least two lip balms. 

▪️ Cirque du Soleil will bring OVO to the Canadian Tire Centre July 2 to 6. 

Bear Witness of The Halluci Nation - the band formerly known known as A Tribe Called Red - had a good interview on CBC Radio One’s Q with Tom Power today. They are promoting their new single, Babylon, which pays tribute to the late, lamented Babylon nightclub whose parties kickstarted their career.