Caveau Méditerranéen
1638 Bank St., 613-260-2626, caveaumed.com
Open: Tuesday and Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., 4 to 9 p.m., Thursday and Friday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., 4 to 10 p.m., Saturday 4 to 10 p.m., Sunday 4 to 9 p.m., closed Monday
Prices: main courses $17 to $29
Access: no steps
Gluten-free options: designated on menu
Despite its unremarkable exterior, the fourth restaurant in the last decade or so at 1638 Bank St., just south of Heron Road, is looking as good as it ever has inside.
The space is warm, with new plants, lots of stonework on the walls and a sunny atrium banishing the memory of this address’s previous businesses, which were more casual eateries that specialized in fish and chips. Many years before, this was a Lady Jane doughnut shop location.
These days, this freestanding restaurant with its own parking is Caveau Méditerranéen, opened more than a year ago. Based on my two visits last week, it’s a good and even ambitious neighbourhood restaurant in a neighbourhood that could use more of them.
The Caveau’s liberal interpretation of Mediterranean cuisine allows it to roam widely. Its founders and co-owners are Lebanese-Canadians, and at times Arabic music plays over the sound system. Along that line, there are excellent, fresh, made-in-house mezze including impeccable hummus, voluptuously textured baba ghanouj and assertively lemony quinoa-based tabouleh.
Caveau Méditerranéen’s range of mezze (small plates).
But in addition to well-made and amply portioned kabob platters, there are also a few pizzas, a few pastas and some more composed main courses. For those whose old ordering habits die hard, there are still fish and chips, and the halibut rendition that I sampled last weekend was nicely seasoned, not greasy and well worth ordering.
Fish and chips at Caveau Mediterraneen
In charge of the Caveau’s kitchen for the last few months has been chef Alan McEwen. Since the late 1990s, he’s made the rounds of Ottawa’s professional kitchens. Most recently he was at Lapointe Seafood Grill in Bells Corners, but his other employers have included Il Piccolino, Fratelli in its early days, Bytown Catering and Tulips and Maple Catering.
McEwen has a stake in the Caveau, too, and he’s taking the opportunity to stretch out a bit. The restaurant has had two theme nights this fall, serving $39 (taxes in) table d’hotes. One Saturday in October was dedicated to the French Riviera (think smoked octopus salad and bouillabaise, among other dishes). A mid-November Saturday’s theme was the Greek Island of Skopelos (think roast chicken stuffed with plums, honey and mint, or braised lamb shank with olives.)
But back to the more straightforward and solidly made items that are served night after night. In addition to the mezze, kabobs, (the lamb served with a cilantro sauce stood out in particular)…
Caveau Méditerranéen’s lamb kabobs
…and fish and chips, two appetizers impressed us. Grilled shrimps served with a sauce that blended tomatoes and baba ghanouj were a treat.
Caveau Méditerranéen’s shrimp appetizer with baba ghanouj / tomato sauce.
A single but hefty ball of deep-fried risotto with a mushroomy core was just as good, although its tomato sauce was just a little heavy on the salt.
Arancini at Caveau Meditteraneen
Grilled calamari was more ordinary, with the less flavourful squid needing its tzatziki and especially its fennel and arugula salad.
Grilled calamari at Caveau Mediterraneen
Over the two meals, we found that with several other dishes, the proteins seemed a little underseasoned and that the bigger punches of flavour on the plate came with sauces, whether it was the full-on garlic hit of chicken kabob’s sauce or the roasted red pepper sauce that accompanied slices of seared rare tuna or seared scallops. I would have liked the scallops more too, had they come with a harder sear and more colour, and if they had been warmer.
Chicken kabobs at Caveau Meditteraneen
Seared Tuna at Caveau Mediterraneen
Scallops at Caveau Mediterraneen
But these weren’t huge grumbles, and it helped that we liked the brightness and range of flavours of the fennel and arugula salad, dotted with capers, that completed those and other plates.
Caveau serves a range of familiar desserts, made-in-house. The chocolate torte and a coconutty cheesecake were tops among those we tried. Tiramisu, while massive, was all about the cream.
Chocolate torte at Caveau Mediterraneen
Cheesecake at Caveau Mediterraneen
Tiramisu at Caveau Mediterraneen
You would do just as well to go for the baklava, brought in from Montreal.
Baklava at Caveau Mediterraneen.
Jazia Azzi, also a founder of the restaurant, served us twice with enthusiasm and pride. When my dining companion asked for some vegetables that he could dip into the mezze, she returned with a large plate, fully loaded with the stuff.
The restaurant’s first year, she confided, had had its challenges, with renovations that were more involved than anticipated. But she beamed about McEwen having come on board, and about plans to remove the Caveau’s unused buffet table and convert the space into an espresso and wine bar with high tables.
The changes required to make the Caveau what it is may not have been easy, but from what I’ve seen and eaten, they’ve been worth it.
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