La Favourita - Ottawa

My wife and I were in Ottawa briefly, and decided we wanted an Italian meal at a Preston Street restaurant. We chose La Favorita. When we arrived, there was a bit of a lineup, but nothing too off-putting. However, the owner came to us and told us we were welcome to come in, but we were going to have to wait a while for our food: the restaurant was short in the kitchen, and a massive power failure after a severe thunderstorm that afternoon meant a huge number of delivery orders. We decided to stay, and as we went to our table a woman, who was just leaving, said to us, It 's worth the wait! We ordered a bottle of wine, got served fresh rolls and butter, and prepared to wait. And we watched. We watched the servers get orders to the table as quickly as possible. We watched the owner smooth over a few mistakes in orders, and calm down some people who were getting impatient. We watched a kitchen staff working their hardest to get food out--and I could see that everything was being prepared fresh and steaming-hot. Yes, it did take longer, but we spent the time sipping wine, chatting, and just observing--because the owner had prepared us, the wait didn 't seem that long. And yes, that woman was right--the food was well worth the wait. I had penne amatriciana, while my wife had manicotti. The pasta seemed fresh and was perfectly cooked, my sauce was clearly made in-house. The meal was absolutely amazing, prepared with as much care as if the place had been empty. I want to congratulate the owner and his staff on what must have been one of the most stressful nights of their lives. Our server was always relaxed, professional, and attentive; the talent in the kitchen brought their A-game even on a terrible night, and the owner was charming and so appreciative when we thanked him for a great evening. I would highly recommend La Favorita to anyone--I certainly can 't wait to go back.

We all had a great time at this restaurant. The service was friendly and the food was delicious. We ordered personal pizzas and alfredo pasta. Even my teenagers enjoyed the live music and singers.

I was looking for fine dining quality Italian supper with the convenience of delivery for my busy family of four. In this case, I ordered on Uber Eats, my first time with La Favorita. We ordered two seafood pastas, one veal parm, one large caesar salad and one penne with bacon and tomato sauce. My son wanted sausage, but there was no drop down option to add sausage to the penne. I requested they add sausage in the comments section (and left a tip with fingers crossed). Food arrived, with sausage in the penne thank you! Everything was amazing quality and flavour! The caesar salad was REAL not the cheap fake caesar salad that 90% of the Italian restos on Uber Eats serve. I have a new Favorita for Uber Eats Italian!! Great job and thank you La Favorita!! We’ll be ordering again (and often)!

A group of us were in Ottawa for a men's retreat getaway and we had a wonderful time in the city. We decided to stop for lunch and a leisurely walk in Little Italy, choosing to dine at an old favorite of mine, La Favorita. We were the first customers of the day and though the restaurant was still getting ready for the day, we were warmly welcomed and seated by the window. Pablo (Paul) took care of us with a good sense of humor and just the right amount of friendly banter. He was polite, attentive, and very good at his job. We ordered our lunch mains - two of us had the veal calzone, while the others had spaghetti and meatballs and cannelloni. The food was excellent, seemingly made in-house and perfectly seasoned. The veal calzone stood out as a highlight with its quality cut of meat. We also enjoyed a few drinks, as the restaurant had a selection of beers on tap and bottles. Overall, La Favorita offers a perfect blend of relaxed and classy atmosphere, with delicious food and top-notch service. We highly recommend it!

Had an excellent meal here. Great service and ambience. Quite lively but able to carry on conversations without shouting. Good wine list. As expected, mostly Italian recipes on menu. We had reservation early and long line up awaiting our and other tables. Would definitely return on our next OttawA visit.