Ottawa's restaurant scene rebounds, but patrons still 'counting their dollars'
Some 360 new food premise licences issued since March 2023
Arthur White-Crummey · CBC News
Posted: Jan 20, 2024 4:00 AM EST | Last Updated: January 20
When she stepped onto a Barrhaven strip mall parking lot last fall, Caroline Rossi was struck by an uncanny feeling.
"It was the strangest feeling I think I've ever had," said Rossi, who'd been at that same mall, in the depths of the pandemic, when her family's restaurant of 17 years shut down.
Operating La Porto a Casa through shifting public health orders on a skeleton staff was emotionally and physically exhausting, Rossi recalled.
But last September she was back, locking up and saying goodnight to her staff, after opening in a different space in the mall.
"It was the craziest déjà vu I've ever had," she said. "It was like yesterday — and yet three years had passed."
La Porto a Casa is part of a restaurant rebound in Ottawa: according to city data for food premises — which include restaurants, bakeries, butchers, caterers and cafés — there were 360 new licences issued from March 2023 to now.
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https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ot...s-still-counting-their-dollars-1.7089664
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