Review Prescott Restaurant - Ottawa

After 30+ years, revisiting the Prescott was a blessing. Of course, gone were the metal change makers on the belts of the waiters and the wall of smoke that you walked into and waded through to find your table and order a quart, but the famous meatball sandwich was just as good today as it was back then. It was fun swapping stories with the young lads who were serving and telling them about "the good old days" when we'd come by for lunch at 12, leave at 2, check emails at Jetform, then go back at 2:30 for more bodily harm....

This Ottawa institution never disappoints !! A skate on the Rideau canal on a Sunny Sunday.... a short walk from Dows Lake for a super frosty quart and a meatball sandwich (don't miss this culinary gem)! It doesn't get any better!!! Excellent service also!!!

we arrived just after 7 pm on Saturday night. We had been referred here by several people. I must say when we entered we were unimpressed. We walked here from the marina on Dow's Lake passing several restaurants with outdoor seating and long waits. As we entered the Prescott, it was like a ghost town.. We hesitated whether to stay...but we did & we were impressed! We opted to share a meatball sandwich AND we ordered 2 mini pizzas (we wanted leftovers for our boat voyage tomorrow) I would highly recommend both! Our waitress was also excellent, and efficient. The ambiance is relaxing and homey. The line of telephone booths were a blast from the past. I would return here whenever I'm in Ottawa!

atmosphere was great, the food (except the desert) lacked flavor, and the staff was friendly and competent

You can feel the Canadian vibes, the ambiance, the large meals, the sports channels playing hockey and baseball. It was an enjoyable experience, the portions were big and tasty. We went there around 3 in the afternoon but I think it's a different experience at night, I feel like the place gets packed specially when there's a live game.

Authentic Canadian dishes served here. Good customer service. Happy vibes in the place.

Amazing pizza as always. Ordered the dewy.. Very tasty , amazing crust and so many delicious toppings. Highly recommend

Not a bad place, meant as a good casual spot to hang out and chill with good friends. The food sizes are GOOD, but the tastes is meh. Other then that, its a good beer hang out joint. Highly recommend if you ever drop by to Little Italy to have good talks with old friends.

After a full day of touring and taking loads of pictures we ended up at this bar.. I will definitely return on my next trip to Ottawa, awesome food and staff just out of this world. I recommend sitting in Mark M areas funniest waiter ever

Love to pick up their uncooked “Dewie” pizza. When we have time to stay, the meatball sandwiches are the best. A word of caution tho, the operating hours in Google are wrong and can be misleading. They are open on Sunday!!!!

Though our server was very nice, the service itself was atrocious. They forgot my order entirely and I only received it after waiting over an hour. By then all my family had already finished their meal and desert. Their excuse? The chef burnt my toast and was making a new one. Apparently it takes over an hour to make new garlic toast? When the food finally arrived, it was awful. It had no flavour and was very bland, smothered in sauce. Everything was too expensive for what they were preparing. It was very disappointing considering we had heard good things. We haven't been back since and we will probably never return.

I have been going to the Prescott for quite a few years now. I especially love the Onion Soup there is lots of cheese and it is always nice a hot. Their garden salad is always nice and fresh, the pizzas are square and great. I never have had the meatball sandwich cause I don't particularly like a big meatball but I am sure it is excellent as well. The waitresses are all nice and friendly and we usually have Donna as our waitress she is awesome!! I would recommend the Prescott!!

We showed up on a Wednesday night to celebrate Grey Cup 105. The staff had no idea that they would be serving over 175 of us. There were only 3 servers. They knocked it out of the park. I've never been more impressed by servers in my life. The food was fantastic. Dave P. you rocked it.

I’d like to thank Phil for everything he did to make the 80th surprise party a hit. The food was absolutely amazing. As he knows us timpson always have a wonderful time and know how to party. We are still talking about it 3 days later. Thank you to our bartender who also helped out with making it an even bigger surprise party. Thank you Phil and your staff everything was absolutely amazing. I couldn’t think of any other place to have a party with amazing food then at the Prescott Cheers

Great food! Great staff. Always a great time. Enjoy the history of the place and the stories my parents tell me. How things have changed.

Best meatball sandwich by FAR is The Prescott on Preston Street in Ottawa's Little Italy section. Soooo good. Must try !!! Tell Phil or Karen (the manager & assistant managers respectively) that Mike R. sent you (same last name as their regular, Frenchie). They'll know who I am :)

I would not recommend this place if you have any allergies as they will not consult the kitchen or chef. I had a terrible experience with a staff member who was very disrespectful about the fact that a family member of mine had a peanut allergy.

A good menu select and pricing was reasonable. From a visit 30 years previous I seem to remember they had decent pizza. Nope. Tasted like toppings on a cardboard. Of the 6 of us at the table the meatball plate was the only edible meal. A shame because the beer prices are great.

If you're looking for a place to have delicious pizza this is the place to be! Amazing friendly service, really fast as well. Also has a great selection of deserts.

Ordered the deep fried ice cream which wasn't actually deep fried. It was a big ball of ice cream rolled in some crunchy coating and it was not warm. Mentioned something to the waitress but she seemed confused that it was supposed to be warm. We've had deep fried ice cream a few times and this was not it!

Poor quality cider options. Nothing local.<br/>Iced tea was offered in a can, nothing made in-house.<br/>Meatball sandwich was ok except the meat sauce tasted like they just reheated a can of chef boyardee. Nothing to write home about.

This place. Ugh. I respect that you've been around for a while. But I've been suckered 2 times too many into visiting. <br/>First time I had cannelloni and I'm fairly certain I could've had the same at half price from Metro. Second time I had nachos (which were decent) but it finally clicked that they don't chill their pop. Your given a tiny beer glass packed with ice and have to wait for that to cool it down....that's a piss off. <br/>Also, if you were planning on talking to someone you came with you can forget that. I've had better luck conversing at concerts. I get that this is a neighbourhood novelty, but unless you're looking for mediocre food at best at the ol' boys watering hole, I'd skip it.

Good food at fair prices and a great ambiance! There are no other pubs in Ottawa that even come close if you want to go out for a drink and a bite!!!

Had the fish and chips. The coleslaw was the best one that I've ever had, the fish was good but the mash were lumpy and tasted like powder milk. The atmosphere and crowd was pleasant and lively, not over the top. Service was good but a bit slow. I will be returning as I enjoyed it.

We ate here August 24th, 2015 for lunch.  Our worst meal during our stay in Ottawa. Tasted like Italian "cafeteria food! The pizza and lasagna tasted like they were frozen and just heated in the oven.  The lunch special of the day-  grilled chicken with penne in a rose sauce lacked flavour.    The only good thing was finding imported Italian beer on tap.

When it comes to this Little Italy standout , you come for the food, and you stay for the history. Established in 1934, this restaurant is famous for its meatball subs, its pizza, and its atmosphere. Great place to watch the game, or to grab a pint.

Very good food! I love the veal scaloppini and the onion soup was incredible. They are also famous for their meatballs. I would recommend this place.

Veal Scaloppini. Excellent! I was pleasantly surprised. Dont judge it by the presentation, it was delicious

Consistency?. I have had many good experiences at the Prescott in the past 30 years, however, my experience on Sunday 22 Feb left much to be desired. We had 2 of the Cadillacs, and they were plain horrible. The meatballs seemed to have some kind of crust on them and the meat sauce had way too much pepper in it. My husband also complained that the meat sauce "didn't smell right, I think I'm going to throw up". We never seem to have this problem during weekdays, it is only on Weekends and holidays that the food quality takes a dive. Maybe management should be looking at their cooking staff a little closer on these days?

Don't believe the hype. Heard about this fantastic meatball sandwich and was very excited to try it out. Boy was I surprised when it sucked. It sucked in every possible way that it could suck - sauce / bread/ meat/ temp. I won't be going back unless it is to drink quarts of domestic beer with the downtrodden regulars.

Classics. So this place is fantastic. The meatball is the goto but I say take it to another level. The meatball melt is even better. Other highlights are the wings, the Italian poutine, chicken parmigiania and all the daily specials.

If you feel like getting ripped off then this is the place to go! I bought two beers costing 22$ have the bartender 40$ and I got 8$ back, she kept ten dollars of my change! And the food is not that good!

Seriously after all the dislikes recently.... I don't frequent the Prescott all the time however when the craving for a meatball sandwich and/or meatball melt arises, then, alas, I (we) succumb.<br/><br/>Yes, service was slow last Tuesday however my waiter (name to be introduced here) made up for extras on my order and it was all good. And the food was awesome.<br/><br/>Perhaps just a "we didn't know we would be so busy on a Tuesday evening, so we didn't plan accordingly...staff wise"?<br/><br/>Regardless, <br/><br/>I will continue to frequent. xox

Terrible Service!. I went here on July 4 at lunch time to grab some lunch, maybe a drink and watch a soccer game with some co-workers. We were a group of about 12. We walked in and the main room was packed, but a gentleman took us to the back and told us there was lots of tables at the back and there was a TV available to watch the game. We were unable to find a table large enough for our entire group so we had to spread out. There were 4 of us at a 4 person table, another 5 of use at a 8 person table and 3 people at a 4 person table ( we were waiting for another person). The waitress ignored us for about 10-15 mins, when she finally came over she yelled at us for taking up too many table during a lunch rush. We explained to here that there was not a table large enough for us to sit our group so we had to take 3 separate tables but that we were all ordering lunch so it wouldn't be a waste. She then yelled at us and told us we needed to face toward the tables and that we were not allowed to move our chairs to face the TV screen. We ignored her and told her we were paying customer and we wanted to watch the game while we eat so we would have to turn to see the TV. She then just left and served 2 tables that had come in after us. They got beers and lunch and then she came over and gave us menus. We were sitting for a very long time before we got menus or water. She then yelled at one of our tables because there was one seat empty, which we explained to her was for our friend who was running late. She eventually did take our orders but she was extremely rude and we could see her point at us from the bar while she was talking to her friend. The food was normal, but because she took so long to serve us we decided not to order drinks. She could have made a ridiculous amount in tips had she been even slightly polite and not extremely out of line. I would give this place another shot but if that waitress is there I would ask to be seated in a different section. I have never been yelled at in a restaurant and found this to be completely unacceptable.

The best meatball sandwitch ever. Cannot say anything wrong.

Horrible. I went on a Sunday during Italian Festival with my family. We were a group of 7 and the restaurant was maybe 20% full, so lots of empty tables. They sat us in the corner, next to the bathrooms. So after taking our drink orders I asked if we could be moved out of the dark corner where you can hear everything going on in the mens bathroom, to one of the many open tables. They made a huge fuss about it because they had to move 2 tables together. <br/><br/>After that, our drinks came and then the waiter left. We saw him take the drink, then food orders of people that came in after us but he still hadn't taken our table's order. FINALLY 20min later he comes back to our table and takes our order. <br/><br/>3 people at our table were splitting a pizza, which came 15min before the other 4 peoples food. Half the table is eating while the other half is waiting for their food. When the other people's food finally did come, it was cold. Also, my sister was supposed to get soup with her salmon but they never brought that out.<br/><br/>I asked for a glass of water after I had finished a beer, and the waiter brought me a dirty glass which looked like it had relish or something in it. He also put a straw in it but not anyone else's water, which makes me wonder if maybe he saw that it was dirty after he poured it but then was to lazy to pour a new one and just stuck a straw in it so I wouldn't notice the glass.<br/><br/>Just terrible service, that really ruined our night. Will defiantly never be retuning.

Pretty good for a bar. Our group (8) went there last friday. We had the pizza, meatball sub, fish & chips,lasagna, prime rib dinners. Not one complaint from anyone and the service was fine. So what if we had to ask someone where the bar side was, not a big deal. No one had to ask where the bathrooms were so the two cancelled each other out. It was also nice to get the quart size beers which were ice cold. I'd recommend this place to anyone looking for good food and a relaxed atmosphere.

Bad food, overpriced. I just had lunch today at the Prescott. I ordered the Special: a 6 oz steak with fries and salad. I figured ordering the special would be quick, but I waited 20 minutes for the meal to arrive. When it did, the fries and steak were both cold, so I figure it had been sitting on the server's counter for at least 10 minutes. The fries were greasy and mushy, the steak was gristly and poorly cooked. The salad was mostly celery and cabbage with an inedible house-made lemon dressing. I had two thimble-sized glasses of the house red - probably Bright's from a box - it was barely drinkable. The bill was $27, not including the tip. The waitress was OK but a little patronizing. I'm visiting from the West Coast. The same meal in my hometown of Nanaimo, not exactly a culinary capital, would have been excellent at 2/3rds the price - with really good BC wine to boot.I won't be back.

Again another bad experience at the prescott. The food is TERRIBLE. Never hot and quality not there. This place has gone way down and no one seems to care to change it.<br/><br/><br/>-----22 Apr, 2014-----<br/><br/>I agree, i have been going here for years and the loyalty and appreciation towards regulars is NON EXISTENT. The servers are confrontstional and get an attitude if you are not happy with something. Ive noticed over the years they have developed a self righteous attitude almost like they are owed something because they work at the "prescott". The manager doesnt entertain any complaints either , which explains how the servers are able to continue their behaviour . This establishment has a long reputation because of us regulars, you would think they would be kissing the ground we walk on. But no the service and food continues to decline and allow their servers to act like WE owe THEM something. Disgusting behaviour! All stemming from management and ownership.

Open many years for a reason. The Prescott is a bar that makes good meatballs and good pizza. If you're looking for a chicken parm or something a little fancier, you have fifty other good spots to go to on Preston Street.<br/><br/>Their meatballs are large and delicious. The atmosphere as the Prescott is friendly and I've always had very good service there.

Pizza, drinks and atmosphere are very good. Everything else on the menu gets a pass

Well, when o first walked in, there is a door to the right and to the left. We stood there waiting for someone to seat us, and were asked if we were there to drink or eat. We said eat so he pointed to the left and walked away. So a nice start. We sat ourselves then flipped through the menu, I chose a club sandwich which is usually a safe bet. I got onion rings with it on the side. The sandwich came with mayo on the side which I really don't like, since the sandwich falls apart when you put it on. The onion rings were chewy and cold. The bacon was so old and over cooked that it crumbled apart like chalk. I got sauce on the side which costed extra as well as the onion rings costing extra so I paid 26 dollars before tip for a terrible sand which. When we waited for the bill, the waitress was at the cash eating. Very unprofessional. I will not go back. I mean how can you mess up a club sandwich??<br/>Also, my friend had the meatball sandwich which they are apparently "famous" for, it was a disgusting cold sloppy mess. Very bland and is really unappealing.

Square Pizza Nostalga. Dinner Group had 2 Pizzas at the Prescott ... <br/>Service was Fair but the food was cold.<br/>Restaurant was not busy at all during visit<br/>Relying on former glory and name like many companies are doing <br/>WILL NOT RETURN OR RECOMMEND

Okay for bar food. Had the beef dip in the bar tonight, better than most.

Overpriced & Overrated Italian Food. Made the mistake of trying to find an authentic Italian restaurant in Ottawa that served lunch on a Friday after two pm and for the record none exist. So after seeking the advice of a local who happened to be walking by on the side walk we ended up at the Prescott. My husband ordered the original meatball sandwich while I chose the chicken parmigiana. The food was warm and filled us up but everything else about it was disappointing. Looking back on the experience I think I would have preferred skipping lunch if I knew what waited for me at the Prescott.

Better off with Chef Boyarde. Ordered the cannelloni but it tasted terrible - meat was consistent from canned pasta. Looked like they baked the dish but 1/3 of it was not cooked and probably came from the freezer. The service was good but wouldn't go back there again. More like a pub than an Italian restaurant.

Unprofessional behaviour. My family and I just dined at the restaurant part of February 24, 2013. We had our young kids with us (2 and 4 years old) along with my father and mother-in law. The service was good. My father-in-law had made a complaint at the end of the meal in regards to the veal scaloppini he ordered saying the veal did not taste good and was burnt. He did mention to the waitress to mention it to the cook.<br/><br/>What resulted from the complaint had made a very disgusting show of unprofessionalism from the establishment. The gentlemen who confronted our table was determined to show us that it was "real" veal by displaying the box and pointing out the words like we were children. My father-in-law had an opinion and was still sticking to it. I guess criticism on their food is not liked which is pretty sad as this shows a display of unprofessionalism and disregard to their clients. Any respectable establishment would try to apologize and appease their client instead of berating them and making them feel belittled. The gentlemen then decided to continue to be confrontational by indicating we did not tip the waitress the "suggested" 10% of the bill and thought we were taking it out on the waitress. Firstly, why does not providing a full tip indicate a client taking it out on the services, maybe a client was short and could only afford so much or could have miscounted the tip; it does happen. Secondly, for someone to complain and mention this to a client is very childish and again unprofessional. To top it all off my young children had to witness this display of vulgar unprofessionalism from the gentlemen who worked at the establishment. I would hope they would have some sense to explain to their staff that this is no way to treat their clientele even if they are receiving some criticism. Being confrontational to their clients will only lead to more criticism and losing their clients in return.

Good for the price. Honestly it is a good place if you want some hearty food for a good price. I usually like to get the meatball melt. It is big so I get to take some home for later. The calamari is good too, especially the dipping sauce.

Relaxed atmosphere, home comfort food.. Loved the meatball sandwiches!

Good times. Went for Game 7 of the Sens v Rangers. Place was packed but the server helped us find a place. The wings were mammoth and delicious, bruschetta was great, service and atmosphere were great. Would definitely go back.

Dewie Extra Cheese. Went out to meet friends at The Prescott last night for a beer and pizza. I really wish they would update their beer list to include something craft brewed or local. The pizza on the other hand is my favorite in Ottawa which isn't saying much. Crispy light crust and better than average toppings makes it stand out over the mediocre Ottawa pizza scene. I usually don't go for the heavy cheesy style Ottawa is known for but it is winter after all and something on the heavier side seemed appropriate. If you have to eat pizza in Ottawa this is one of the better places to eat it.

Try the Meatball Melt. There has been much debate as to the ranking of the meatball sandwich. If you "Wonder" how good the meatballs could be without the bread, try the Meatball Melt from the pasta section of the menu. Delicious, in my humble opinion.

I was at the Prescott this evening and it's generally a great place to hang out with friends etc... And I've never been disappointed until today. The place was packed and I understand that when it's busy service generally takes a bit of a dip but we were neglected by our server, he never asked how our meal was and it took an unreasonable amount of time before I had to get up and ask for my bill. The food was terrible. The clubhouse sandwich was alright but the fries were stale. My girlfriends ravioli was over cooked and it tasted like it came out of a can. It was almost unedible.

Charming in an old dumpy cement floored high school kind of way. Server was nice but we rarely saw her. I heard about the meatball sandwich for years do I tried one about 5 years back. It was your basic meatballs between a couple slices of wonder bread. I thought it was a joke. This MUST be the wrong place. I ate it, and it was fine, but anyone one the planet can do the same thing and it would be just as good. Probably better if you try some real bread. If you are happy with mediocrity, you will enjoy it. Please stop spreading the word around Ottawa that this dish is above average. You are just making yourself look stupid.

Great History and Food. The Prescott has to be one of my favorite places to go for good food at a good price.Real Italian pasta sauce and the best calamari in town. Dine in the restaurant or have a quart at the bar.Its nothing fancy, It is what it is!

The meatball sandwiches are legendary. Order them "toasted, sauce over." drizzle some hot oil on them and be prepared for a greasy yet spectacular treat!

Not at all what I expected.... Frozen dough, tastelss and for Pete's sake, the pepperoni tastes boiled on the bottom!!! I have yet to have good pizza in Ottawa !!! And service lacks... I hate sitting with an empty drink and the waiter ignores us!!!

Dirty and confusing.... I found this place confusing when I walked in because one door led to the bar, and the other just left you standing at the end of a room, feeling like you walked in the exit door. There was no one to help guide me or my date- who was equally confused. The service wasn't the greatest, (they needed another waiter because ours was frazzled and got confused easily) and neither was the food- I found the pizza greasy and not nearly as tasty as some other places in Ottawa. I also found the table quite sticky and the floors as well; the smokers from outside could also be smelled every time the door opened, and we weren't even that close to it. It could have been the one day that it was like this, but I still wouldn't go back.

Pizza yes, meatball no. Go for the pizza it's great and don't forget to ask for the spiced oil, but skip the "meatball' unless you don't mind getting a piile of plain ol' meat sauce on white bread.

Great place to eat meatball sandwich is legendary

Nice bruschetta, great pizza and friendly service. Others I dine with say the meatball sandwiches are great as well.

Great food! Lots of history, exciting to eat in a place that my father, grandfather and great grandfather all went to in their day. The "meatball sandwich" was a hit!

Re: meatball sub???. Nowhere on the menu does it say meatball "sub". nowhere. "sandwich"? yes. "cadillac"? certainly... and it is exactly that - the cadillac of meatball sandwiches. i can understand the surprise, though. without a heads-up going in, one wouldn't likely expect to receive a towering, sauce-covered take on the accepted standard. so, if you're looking for a ho-hum meatball sub that you won't need a knife & fork to enjoy, then go to subway with the rest of the mangia cakes. instead, if you're looking for a delicious italian treat (plus all the nutrition of wonder bread!) steeped in tradition - since 1934 - then you've found the right place. toasted w/ cheese, and topped with a little parm and some of the spiced olive oil, this local delicacy can't miss. 5 stars.<br/><br/>ps - the pitchers of suds (complete with a frozen cylinder to keep it friggid) are genius.

Meatball sub? really?. After hearing about the meatball subs for years. I finially went with a 3 friends. I guess the expectations were pretty high but to see our 'subs' arrive as a lousy meatball between 2 pieces of wonder bread was a great dissapointment. The meatball did not outshine the wonder bread and we left sad but confused as to why the legend? I guess ottawa was a white bread kind of place at one point.

Founded in 1934, The Prescott was one of Ottawa’s two original licensed drinking establishments, The Lafayette being the other. Located in Ottawa’s little Italy, the business started as a corner store with founder Antonio Disipio making his own sausages and serving cheap beer. The Prescott Hotel was named as such in 1941 because the hotel was the last building on the highway to Prescott, a town 65 miles away, hence it’s nickname, “The Last Chance”. The spot is spacious and can accommodate a lot of people. It regularly hosts live bands and acts from the Ottawa area. The three telephone booths are still in place, labeled French, English and Italian in order to facilitate access for customers. This old school tavern is still popular after all these years, people gathering to watch a game, have a pint and grab some grub.

I'm not a big pizza fan, and thank god because Ottawa isn't exactly the best place to live if you really like pizza. The extent of my pizza-eating is House of Georgie's Gravy Pizza at 3 in the morning after a night of socializing a little too much. I gr