Category: Living in Canada

Trying Cream Ale At Vimy Brewing Company

Vimy Brewing Company is a popular craft brewery in the Ottawa area. I decided to check it out since I was around the Industrial Area.

I had expected the place to be a bit busy however when I arrived it was just my friend and the server. The place however looked very clean and can be a good place to have a big group without running into seating issues.

There did appear to be a couple of people coming in however since it’s a brewery, it’s just people who come in for picking up their order of beers.

Vimy Brewery

I wanted to try out their Flights so that I get to sample a variety of drinks that they offer however I was told that a number of items on the menu were not being offered! Disappointing! So I ended up ordering a cream ale, which I was told is a light beer that they offer. The froth was a bit bitter but I think I like the taste of it!

Another thing I didn’t like is that there is no food! I think it would have been great if they place had some snacks to munch on with your drinks! Though they do allow you to bring in food from other places.

I think I might end up at Vimy Brewing Company again if I ever had a large group of friends headed to have some drinks.

Address: 830 Industrial Ave Unit 11, Ottawa, ON K1G 4B8

Rating – 7/10

Great Patio But Poor Service At Rooftop Ottawa!

This time we went to Rooftop Ottawa which is one of the newer rooftop bars that have opened up in the area. Rooftop Ottawa is located in the Byward Market, and is right above Apothecary Lounge.

Rooftop Ottawa

The place looks slick and has a really nice vibe. I liked the music as well. You can see the streets of Byward Market busy with people, some people playing loud music in their pimped up cars from the Rooftop!

Byward Market

The only issue appeared to be really slow service at the place. After sitting down, we just had to keep waiting for the server to come to our table and then it took a while to get our drinks as well. We had to call servers tending at other tables to get us water.

I could see people just leaving after waiting on their tables long enough. Luckily I got my drink after waiting quite a bit. I had ordered their Layover cocktail which consisted of Rye, Chamomile, and Lemon. The drink tasted strong enough and I could taste the alcohol more than the lemon.

Layover Cocktail

I think the rooftop bar offers a great atmosphere for small groups to hangout however they need to improve a lot on their service.

I was lucky that I had eaten already so didn’t have to order food otherwise I might have ended up waiting for an hour or so.

Address: 54 York St, Ottawa, ON K1N 6Z9

Rating – 5.5/10

BBQ Ribs In The Patio At O’Brien’s Roadhouse

Last week I decided to have a meal at O’Brien’s Roadhouse. The restaurant is located on Industrial Avenue and is a bit far from the Ottawa downtown. Depending on traffic conditions that can be about 25-35 minutes from the Ottawa Downtown area.

O’Brien’s Roadhouse Restaurant

There are two things that I noticed about this place; first of all it’s huge! There is a lot of space and you can bring a large group and have no seating issues. Secondly, this is one of the few places in Ottawa area that play Country Music. So if you are looking for restaurants with a bit of country vibe, you should head to the roadhouse!

Since the weather was nice, we decided to dine in their patio! Not only do they have a lot of space inside but outside as well! Also they do have really nice comfy seats in their patio if you want to drink and relax.

Patio Area

I ended up ordering half rack of ribs and fries; though you have option to replace fries with garlic mash or house salad. The ribs are smoked, grilled and basted with their BBQ sauce. The food tasted real good!

BBQ Ribs and Fries

I am impressed with the service at this place. The server was very attentive to what we wanted; and checked with us often. Also I noticed that she made my friend’s drink real fancy.

O’Brien’s Roadhouse Dining

Even though the area around which this restaurant is based might not feel much, the restaurant has a really good atmosphere and I had a great experience with this restaurant. Highly recommended!

Rating – 9/10

Address: 730 Industrial Ave, Ottawa, ON K1G 0Y9

Can I Work For An Indian Company From Canada?

Yes, it’s possible to work for an Indian company from Canada. There are a number of reasons why you might want to work for an Indian company (based in India) –

  • You might be looking to move to Canada and don’t have a job in Canada already. This comes out as the primary reason why people might want to continue with their Job till they figure out their economic situation after moving to Canada.
  • You might have a higher paying job and want to retain it. While median salaries in India are a fraction of what you can get paid in Canada, that is not true for the top jobs in the private sector.
  • You might be interested in getting exposure to a different geographic/cultural setting. Even though you might be working remote from Canada, sometimes people seek temporary jobs or internships to get that exposure.

Finding a new job can be difficult
While it is possible, it would be very difficult to find an Indian Company since there are usually too many applicants in India for a job and unless you have a very specific set of skills or working with an international organization that provides remote internships/jobs. There might be a few companies who are looking to hire people internationally to have global coverage.

Permission from Company for working remotely from outside India
You will need to let the company know that you would be working remotely. Sometimes there are legal aspects to be considered while you work remote as there might be sensitive information that you deal with at work that is subject to export regulations.

Difference in Time Zones is Day and Night
If you would be working remotely in Canada for an Indian Company then for most of the jobs, you might have to work at night times because there is a 12-hour time zone difference between India and Canada. This can be really problematic as you would be working during the night and sleeping during the day. A lot of people end up getting burnt out over long-term for this reason.

If you could ask the company to accommodate for the time zone difference that can make things a lot easier for you. This might not be possible for a lot of the remote jobs but is still worth asking.

Beware of Taxes
Once you become a resident of Canada, you might have to file taxes in both India and Canada. This can vary depending on the individual’s situation and can also be a little tricky to navigate through. The best thing for you would be to check the tax laws or a tax advisor when you file your taxes.

Quick Tire Change With Jiffy Lube In Gatineau!

I have been looking to get a Tire Change for a while now. Canadian Tire told me it could take 2 days to get my tires changed and would have to leave the car, Mr Lube (Walmart) couldn’t change my tires due to them being low profile and Speedy Auto told me they would need atleast 2 weeks to do a tire change!

Finally I gave a call to Jiffy Lube who informed me they can change my tires straight away. It took them approximately 45 minutes – 1 hour to change my winter tires to summer tires (more time due to them not being on rims)

While changing my tires, I actually ended up learning something that the other service centers never told me before! I was filling my tires at wrong air pressure! Apparently the previous owner had gotten different types of tires than what the car comes with and they need to be inflated at a higher pressure. I had been damaging my rims before which is something I had not noticed before!

They also noticed some issues with my tires and patched it up for free.

However Jiffy does charge a bit more than other providers out there. I think my tire change cost me $160+ however I think it was worth it as I hadn’t been able to get a tire change quick enough anywhere else and also am hoping that my rims won’t be getting damaged anymore due to lower air pressure!

If you are looking to get your tires changed and don’t have time, then definitely head out to Jiffy Lube! This was prolly the quickest tire change I have gotten while being in the Ottawa Gatineau area.

Rating – 10/10

Address: 660 Boulevard Saint-Joseph, Gatineau, Quebec J8Y 4A8

Drinking Cold Beer In The Patio At The Manx!

If you are looking to have drinks in the Patio, then definitely checkout The Manx located on Elgin Street, Ottawa! Initially I was planning to head inside, but the nice weather convinced me to try out their patio instead!

I went for their Manx 20 Stock Ale which I was told is from the Kichesippi Beer Company. It’s a light beer and was served cold, which is how I enjoy my beer.

The Manx

One thing I noticed is that the service at the place is much better than other bars out there. The server tended to me almost the moment I arrived, and kept checking regularly if I needed anything.

Manx 20 Stock Ale

While the patio is located right across the streets close to the intersection, it is not that noisy and can be a great hangout spot for small groups.

There is only limited capacity in the patio and the tables can have 4 people at most though it might be possible to combine the tables (as long as the walkway is not blocked)

Rating – 8/10

Address: 370 Elgin St, Ottawa, ON K2P 1N1

Salsa Dance Lessons In Ottawa At Rahim Salsa!

Looking for something to do during night time in Ottawa? Maybe you can try out Latin Dancing at this Community Center that turns into a Dance Studio on weekends!

The Dance Studio is called Rahim Salsa and offers Latin Dancing Lessons which can cover different variations of Latin Dancing like Salsa, Merengue and Bachata. The most simple one out of these and the one that I personally enjoy is Bachata. Anyone can learn the basics in less than 30 minutes compared to Salsa and Bachata which can be a bit more hard to lead/follow.

Salsa Dancing at Rahim Salsa

There is a charge of $10-15 depending on the night however if you are coming late then you might be able to negotiate a discounted rate of $5.

If you have never done Salsa before; I recommend that you come up early as that’s when the beginners arrive and as the night proceeds, the lessons get more advanced followed by a social where you can practice whatever you have learned.

Something that I didn’t like about the venue was that there is no alcohol as it’s a dance studio. So it might be a good idea to do pre-drinking before you head there 🙂

Don’t be afraid if someone asks you to dance or you want to ask someone to dance. There will be a lot of really good dancers there and they can help you get better with Latin dancing!

Rating : 7/10

Address: 275 Elgin St, Ottawa, ON K2P 0H8

Great Vibe And Delicious Tacos At El Camino Ottawa!

If you are on Elgin street, you should really checkout this Taco place called El Camino whether it’s for tacos or just drinks! The restaurant is located in a semi basement however despite that they do have a patio experience as well in case you want to enjoy outdoor dining during summers.

As soon as you enter the restaurant, you will feel that not only does it look elegant but also has a very good atmosphere making it perfect spot to hang with close friends or bring a date. Whenever I have been to El Camino, I have always found it to be bustling.

The venue does have loud music that they play off their record player however it wasn’t deafening and it’s still possible to have a conversation with the people across you easily.

El Camino – Tacos and Raw Bar

I ended up ordering Beef Barbacoa Taco and Ox Tongue Taco, both of which turned out to be great! The Beef Taco came with a special sauce that added more flavoring to the Taco.

Delicious Tacos!

I highly recommend that you try the Tacos with their Spicy sauce that you have to ask for separately. Dip your Taco in the hot sauce for a mouth watering experience! They do have a sweet sauce as well but the Spicy one is the best!

The price of each Taco tends to be on the higher side and can be almost double compared to some of the other places that I have been to however they do have a large variety of tacos to choose from.

It appears that the restaurant has another location opened up at Clarence Street however I haven’t had the opportunity yet to visit that location.

Rating : 8/10

Address: 380 Elgin St, Ottawa, ON K2P 1M9

Chicken Wings Night At Summerhays Grill

My hunt for finding out the hottest chicken wings in the Ottawa region continues. A while back, I was recommended by someone to try the hot chicken wings at the Summerhays Grill and finally found the opportunity to do so this month.

The restaurant has a number of different flavors for their chicken wings to suit your taste – from BBQ to specialty sauces like sweet mustard, Dave’s sauce and crazy Paula’s but their hottest flavor they have is called ‘Suicide’.

As soon as the order arrived at the table, everyone could smell the amount of heat that was packed in these wings. The Suicide Chicken Wing at Summerhays Grill are one of the most dark red colored wings I have seen and they do deliver well on their name.

I prefer to enjoy my wings so usually go with ranch dressing when eating really hot wings. For these ones, I definitely recommend as even if you are used to hot food, you are going to need something to cool you off a bit!

Trying out these wings and being at a number of other restaurants that offer hot wings, I can definitely say that these are so far the hottest wings that I have had so far in the city. (Though I have had even hotter wings in other places)

Suicide Wings

Do give the Sucide Wings at Summerhays Grill a try if you are looking to try some really hot and delicious chicken wings. They would not disappoint you! Caution needs to be exercised if you have not had hot/spicy food before.

In case you are looking for something that is less spicy you could either go for their Medium or Cajun wings. Personally, I got to try the Cajun wings and didn’t enjoy them all, so wouldn’t recommend anyone to go for the Cajun Wings.

Rating: 7.5/10 (overall rating – based on vibe, service, food etc)

Business website: https://summerhaysgrill.ca/

Address: 1971 Baseline Rd, Ottawa, ON K2C 0C7

Good Pakistani Indian Buffet At PakIndia Restaurant In Ottawa

Finding a good buffet spot can be a bit hard to find as such restaurants usually tend to focus on quantity rather than quality. Not this one though!

PakIndia is a Pakistani and Indian cuisine restaurant located in Orleans and is a good 15-20 minute drive from downtown Ottawa. This was my first time going to a Pakistani Buffet restaurant and I had lower expectations from this restaurant (because of it being a buffet). The place does look like an ordinary hangout spot.

One thing that I have never noticed before is that this place serves Rooh Afza (drink), I have been to a decent number of Indian restaurants before and have never seen that drink before at any! Also, I think the last time I saw that drink was more than a decade back!

Their Buffet has a variety of dishes that serve both vegetarians as well as meat lovers! I ended up trying out their lamb and chicken dishes along with some biryani and naan bread but my favorite one of all the dishes was the lamb.

Rice, Naan Bread and Variety of Meat!

I didn’t feel if any of the dishes were very spicy. They just had the right amount of spice for someone who might be looking to try Pakistani or Indian food.

Also; they did have a limited dessert option as part of the buffet which includes rice pudding and other Indian sweets like Gulab Jamun/Rasgulla.

Since this restaurant offers a halal menu, they do not have any pork options. While the food is definitely enjoyable, the place lacks a bit of atmosphere because maybe they cater more to people who want takeout food. Also the service is a bit limited, so if you need anything you will need to go to the counter and ask for it.

Rating: 7/10 ; Good food! Okay atmosphere.

Business website: https://www.pakindiarestaurant.com/

Address: 4025 Innes Rd, Orléans, ON K1C 1T1