My wife and I celebrate our birthdays together since hers is on August 21st and mine on August 23rd.  We like to go out for a nice dinner and quiet conversation.

I like to try new restaurants from time to time and gamble on getting a good meal and good service.  And from time to time I find something worth writing about.  I’m sure most of you know that not every establishment is to everyone’s taste, but certainly food done properly and service that is efficient and friendly is appreciated by all.

We went to Cyranos last evening for dinner to celebrate our birthdays.  The atmosphere is slightly rustic, a mix of old world Mediterranean and modern.  Mood lighting  to encourage romance.

The kitchen is at the back but open to public view which ads to the personal feel of the place.

The service was very good, friendly, quick and courteous.  Bonus points – I didn’t have to ask for anything.

For starters our server brought us some very fresh hot bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.   I ordered a Smithwicks beer and we shared a Bruschetta – tomatoes, black olives and onions with fresh basil.  Very nicely done.

My wife ordered the Linguini with shrimp, swiss chard, roasted red peppers, sundried tomatoes, garlic and olive oil.  After the Bruschetta and bread we ate earlier she had little room left to finish her meal, so the remainder was happily packaged up to take home.

I ordered the Spinach fettuccine, large sea scallops, pancetta shiitake mushrooms in a parmesan cream sauce.  The sauce was very full with the flavour of scallops and mushrooms.  I found the food much to my liking.  Fresh grated cheese was left at our table along with fresh ground pepper.  This night they offered some extra selections of wine by the glass.  I opted for a nice medium bodied red from Spain that complemented this meal nicely.

Cyranos Restaurant is located in Ottawa’s West End at 39 Robertson Road Bell Mews Plaza Nepean, Ontario.  For reservations phone: 613.721.0510

Visit them on the web at http://www.cyranos.ca/Welcome.html