Review Lago Bar And Grill - Ottawa

Event staff was the nicest and fast service ever. I didn't make there job easy and the staff did amazing. Went for a wedding. Beautiful space. Very clean. Lots of room. Chairs hurt after a while. But that's not too bad. Music was great. Waterfront veiw was amazing. Food was good. I'm sure if they weren't cooking for so many. It would have been perfect. Salads were huge leafs not chopped and way to much ceasar dressing. The steak tasted like it was steam cooked. The meat was just extremely tender. Not how I'm used to eating steak. Maybe the cut of meat. Over Beautiful location. And staff killed it. Bartender was amazing.

We held our wedding at LAGO in the Vista Room this past weekend and cannot recommend this venue enough! We were absolutely thrilled with how everything went off - from the venue itself (perfect space, size, views), to the food, setup, help with decorations, pre-event communication....I could go on and on. They made it extremely easy for us to arrange everything ahead of time. We were super confident going into the day-of. Everything was perfectly setup when we arrived and the staff on the day of were a pleasure to work with. They really went above and beyond to make our special day just that. We are so appreciative!

Very nice place I attended a wedding reception. The food was good, staff is nice and the view of Dow's lake is nice!!

We had our wedding in the main restaurant earlier this month and it was amazing. The staff was so well organized, the wedding went off without a hitch! The room was beautifully decorated, just as we wanted it, and our guests had nothing but great things to say about this venue. Gyneya and Kim were always quick to respond to my many questions and were very helpful in rescheduling due to COVID. I would highly recommend this venue for your next event!

We attended a wedding reception. It was nicely set up and it was nice to have the balcony on a warm night. The food was good; there was a poutine bar and a taco bar with sides. Parking was an issue for us as it was during Tulip Festival so we ended up parking pretty far away.

We held one of our first company events at Lago recently and the staff and Gyneya were so accommodating and helpful. It was very clear that her team is full of super stars that know how to manage an event with ease. The venue is breathtaking and even though it was raining, about 250- 300 employees came together and the space came alive. It is clean, vibrant and welcoming. I would recommend Lago hands down for a venue to anyone looking for a great experience. Vendors we had come in as well, only spoke in the highest regard for Gyneya. You are in great hands. Oh and the food- INCREDIBLE.

We had the most incredible time at Lago! This venue was absolutely beautiful and the staff were amazing and ready to put a smile on our faces! They went above and beyond ! One server I need to mention is Sinbad! She was one of a kind! She truly made our experience a very memorable one! Thank you Sinbad for making us laugh and always being there to accommodate our needs! She is an employee that deserves recognition and you are very lucky to have her! :)

Our wedding here was nothing short of magical. We had the absolute best experience. I'm sure everyone thinks their wedding was the best...but ours really was and it was all thanks to Gyneya and her team at Lago. The food was soooo unbelievable. My only regret is that I was so nervous for my first dance I didn't get the chance to try everything because all of our guests RAVED about the food. Such an amazing place to get married!

I reserved a table for 4 to celebrate a best friends Birthday at the Lago last night. I AM SO GLAD I MADE THAT RESERVATION!!! To Start: There was a miscommunication, and minutes before we arrived our group grew to 7 which the Lago accommodated without a single issue.<br/><br/>The food was fantastic, the restaurant is beautiful, and the service was just out of this world! I cannot say enough great things. The starters (we ordered the fried perch, scallops, soup and Caesar salads) all arrived promptly and beautifully plated! Followed by our mains (the salmon, the stuffed chicken, and steaks), all of which received glowing reviews from my friends at the table, and I can say for myself the Steak was not only cooked to perfection, but the sauce and pairings were also phenomenal! The desserts, tea and coffee finished the evening off on a sweet, warm note. It was the perfect setting for great conversation, over a beautiful meal!<br/><br/> I'm still smiling and raving about last nights dinner to everyone! I can't wait to go back, we are already planning our next dinner at The Lago.

We used the Groupon which I would suggest. If not using Groupon, maybe not. Here's why:<br/><br/>The good: We hoped for a fun, fancy date night and that's what we got. The location is incredible, nothing is more romantic than looking out on the Dows Lake. The service was exceptional, they brought me free non-alcoholic mixed drinks because I'm pregnant and couldn't partake in the bottle of wine that comes with the Groupon! The scallops, lamb and crème brûlé were all really well seasoned and beautifully plated. <br/><br/>The bad: All the food was a bit cold! It was the only distraction from the great meal. But at this price point it's a big distraction. Also if I hadn't used the Groupon it would have been very very expensive and no longer worth it. The Groupon is 90, and with tax and tip about 140$. The meal would have been over 200$ without Groupon at which point it would be unreasonable and I would have been far far less impressed. <br/><br/>Would I go back? Maybe not since we don't go out for expensive dinners often. But it was fun while it lasted and a great Groupon try!

Mediocre food, poor service.  The only thing to recommend Lago is the view of Dow's Lake.  Better you should pack a picnic (maybe pick up the ingredients in Little Italy) and eat in Commissioner's Park or in the Arboretum.  Or if you want to dine at a table with tablecloths, head for Little Italy.

Amazing service and great food. My sister was in town from Seattle and I had a Groupon for Lago that was about to expire. We checked the reviews and they were a mixed grill of comments. I am so glad we ignored the negative comments and went last Friday night. <br/><br/>Although the decor walking in was a bit sparse, we were shown to a lovely table by the window with very comfy chairs. Our waiter Djinny and Manager Rembrant were wonderful and could not be more helpful or attentive. My sister ordered the Lobster bisque and I had the Baked Brie. Both were delicious! Our main courses were just as good. We were too full for dessert but they looked very good. I also had a very good decaf cappuccino which really was decaf! I can't tell you how many times I have ordered decaf in a restaurant and wanted to call the waiter at two in the morning when I couldn't sleep!! <br/><br/>The whole experience was wonderful and I came home and bought another Groupon for Lago as I want to go back. My only complaint was the food could have been a bit warmer.

Good Experience - Enjoyed the Food. I am huge fan of Groupons, for trying new places. We went to the restaurant, which is great because there is a GIANT parking lot (parking if free if you eat there too!). We walk in and the venu is beautiful, we had a lovely window seat and could look out at the water. The Groupon menu is small, and I was not in love with the options - all I really wanted was a steak (I was in a weird mood) and they had Tandoori flank steak, but I really don't like Tandoori. We asked if we could pay extra could we get a regular steak... and they were more then happy to do it for an extra $10.00. Boy was I happy I asked, because the steak was cooked perfectly, and very tender ... the sauce on it was a bit strong and had a lot of pepper, but I was a fan. For the appetizers we both had a the brie, which is a huge portion and so delicious. My husband had the Tandoori steak as he loves the spice and taste and was delighted - he said the sauce on top was divine. It also didn't stop there we had the cheesecake for dessert as well. The piece, was HUGE! My piece should have been for four people instead of one. The only issue is that the cheesecake must of sat for a bit, as the bottom was a bit soggy from sitting in the sauce. However, this is a minor minor detail because it was really delicious. the wine choice is great, we ordered the rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon - as we both had steak and we love deep rich red wines. I thought it was great that they had a selection of three for each. The servers were nice, but seemed slightly inexperienced. The person we had was very friendly and even chatted about his favourite dishes, which is always nice to hear because it shows they've tried the food and are passionate about it. We will certainly visit again, as the wine and food won us over!

Worst Mothers Day Brunch EVER. So about a month before Mothers Day I started goggling best brunch spots and came across Lago in my mix of restaurant reviews. Their menu seemed delicious, full of everything, so many items and to boot it's on the water and you get a view! I thought how could this go wrong? It sounds amazing! So I went ahead a booked a reservation online. In my notes I asked for a booth with a view. The price I thought was a bit steep ($40 per person), but I justified it because of the extensive food list and menu that they had listed online. I was genuinely excited to take my family here on Mother's Day, and my excitement was passed on to all of them as well. So when we walked in the door and we were taken to "our table" we were severely disappointed. Our table was a table, not a booth, and it was squished in between other tables right beside the only people in the place. So I said to the host before we sat down, I had requested a booth with a view and this is definitely not that. I could see plenty of open booths, although most were still dirty from previous customers. He got all flustered and didn't know what to do. I pointed out to him that I specified a booth in my reservation and there are booths open so could we not sit at a booth? He then brought us to a booth, a dirty booth, and had us sit there. We sat in this dirty booth for 10-15 minutes until someone came to clean it. I could see the host scattering about and talking to different people. Clearly they were flustered that a customer wanted what they asked for. Having grown up in the service industry it's beyond my common sense thinking why they wouldn't of had us wait in the lobby while they prepped a booth for us then sat us down. A waitress tried serving us drinks over the messy table even. Like honestly! At this point my mom was so annoyed with this place I thought lets just go get a plate of food from this so-called-amazing brunch. So on to the brunch we went... There was prime rib (nothing prime about it) The guy cutting it was on his cell phone texting as we walked into the brunch area. If I'm paying you $40 you better not be on your cell phone. Where is the service at now a days? They had no potato, or rice to go with the meats. Although, the prime-rib-texting-cutter-boy suggested we put home fries with it - Like REALLY??? It was my dad who then turnt to us and said this is disgusting and pathetic we are not paying $40 for this junk and we asked for a manager who apologized but seemed to know how bad it was herself. <br/>We then left and proceeded upstairs to Malones. Who had a booth with a view open (bonus!!!) a Mother's Day brunch for only $27 (great price!!!) and they had potatoes and rice to go with their meats (side dishes!!!!) and the beef cutter was professional (not texting!!!!)... Our server was beyond pleasant at Malones and we had the best brunch ever there and will definitely be going back anytime!<br/>Malones is a thumbs up for sure! They saved our Mothers day from being ruined! <br/>Lago, I think you should remain closed on Sundays and don't attempt a brunch again.

Meh.. A gf of mine picked up the groupon for Lago, I thought this place was only open for special events, but I learned they are open as a regular restaurant. I got the baked brie appetizer which was covered in really sweet blueberry compote. It was ok. For dinner we had a skirt steak with a yogurt sauce. Big problem was that the steak was cold when it arrived. The flavors were ok, but the temperature not so much. Desert was ok but clearly not made in house. Bottom line, won't be going back again.

Great dishes. Apps are huge and almost fill like an entree. Service was great. The restaurant is gorgeous and huge. Would be a great place for a private function, corporate party or birthday bash. Server also stamped our receipt and paid for our parking. Classy place.

Beautiful place, beautiful setting, BUT.... ... don't go here if you're hungry.<br/><br/>For starters, Lago looks more like a posh martini bar for moneyed hipsters. That's never a good sign if you're a foodie.<br/><br/>Where the food is concerned, dishes are way overpriced and portions are tiny. You're paying for a lot of empty space on your plate.<br/><br/>To add insult to injury, the parking lot across the way will charge you $12 for the privilege of getting ripped off at the restaurant.<br/><br/>Bottom line: nice place to go for drinks if you're trying to impress a fashion model, but otherwise, eat somewhere else.

Disappointing experience.... I often come to Ottawa on business and every time I do, I like to make a point of exploring new food spots in or around the region. One I had been hearing about for quite some time was Lago, a bar & grill several of my friends had spoken highly about in the past. Recently I was able to check it out with a group of associates and I have to say, we were all utterly disappointed. <br/><br/>At first the scenery of the grounds immediately grabs your attention, as well as the design of the restaurant itself so upon entering, we felt confident it would live up to its hype.<br/><br/>Unfortunately the rest of the experience quickly fizzled. I will write this in the most non-complaining manner possible as I am completely understanding and aware of the stress involved in this type of industry. However, my group was met with a rather incompetent waiter who layered mistake after mistake throughout our night. Within our first drink order, he brought back 3 orders that myself and two other guests never made and then acted as if we didn't know what we had ordered. He eventually brought us back the right order and now seemed rather apologetic which at the time smoothed things over just fine. Shortly after that he began to bring our water out in dirty pitchers and tried to ignore our objection. The nightmare continued when our meals came out; my order of the 10oz. New York Striploin which I had asked for med rare, came out bloody as if it had been cut off the cow in the kitchen! After raising my concern, I was met with a wave of hostility and told that it was in fact med rare (BIG MISTAKE SINCE I AM THE PAYING CUSTOMER!!). He finally relented and took my steak back only to return 10-15 mins later with a VERY WELL DONE steak. <br/><br/>The mistakes and attitude from our waiter continued throughout our meal (my meal was far from the only one from our group that had problems) and a number of my guests complained that their drinks were very watered down which I've noticed seems to be a common theme on this board. HOWEVER, the biggest issue we had with this place was with management. I cannot recall if we spoke with a manager or the owner of the bar so I apologize, but after telling this individual about my issue with the steak, she gave me a look of "And your point is?..." and was made to feel as if I was making it all up! <br/><br/>Perhaps she felt as if I was looking for a free meal out of it (which I was not) but would it really have hurt to comp'd a drink or dessert?? Really, just to extend any form of courtesy or sympathy would have worked in this case. I can't see that being a major issue but perhaps hospitality isn't exactly their strong suit.<br/><br/>All in all, a very poor experience, especially from a service/hospitality standpoint. The sad part is the food overall wasn't bad (aside from my noted issues) as a couple of my guests rather enjoyed their meals but the bad far outweighed the good in my eyes and this will surely be my first and only trip to Lago.

Very disappointing experience. The tables were moved to the side of the room. Service was not professional. Ordered steak medium rare and it came well done. Pasta dish was bitter and the meat in it was tough and bland. All round negative experience veil not be returning.

Good Times. I have read many mixed reviews about Lago. I just got engaged and their venue looked ideal for a wedding reception, so we figured we might as well go and try out the food. I will admit at first, that I was worried when my fiance ordered a lemon drop that had 5 slices of lemon, no sugar and about a cup of ice cubes thrown in a martini glass. We generally don't return things at restaurants but it was undrinkable. The waiter was great about everything. He brought her a new (different) drink and gave here a complimentary drink as well. The food was delicious. I had the bacon wild mushroom chowder which was delicious and the Atlantic salmon which was great as well. My fiance had the maple salad an a mushroom frazetti pasta that she loved! We both split a dessert, a pumpkin creme brulee with pumpkin ice cream, which was amazing! We plan on getting married in the fall and if we choose Lago as a venue we will definitely be requesting that as one of the desserts on our menu. <br/><br/>I've read alot of reviews saying that the drinks are weak. I ordered a rye and ginger to test it out and it seemed fine. Every drink my girlfriend got had plenty of alcohol. She even said when she drank the mojito that there was lots of alcohol in it and really enjoyed it, as well as the sangria. All in all it was a great evening. Our waiter was super friendly considering he was the only waiter due to an event upstairs and another waiter calling in sick. He felt bad that we had to wait a bit for desert (which we didn't even notice) and comp'd our desert. Other than the bogus drink (which was handled very professionally) at the start of the meal everything was fantastic! Will definitely go back again!

I've come here a few times now and the food is always amazing. Great atmosphere and wonderful service.

Nice looking restaurant with good food but horrible service they get the orders wrong not just mixed up and charge you for it

New Year's Eve. Altogether it wasn't a bad night... the dinner was very well priced at $55 and was pretty good. We had 3 choices for appetizers/main and they were all pretty plentiful. There was however a definite issue with the drinks! One of our water glasses was filled with some sort of vinegar concoction and the waitress and manager refused to admit that it was vinegar. They absconded with the glass and said that it tasted lemony... Not the end of the world... just odd! Gin and tonics appeared to be made with soda water? and gin martinis tasted very watered down. Wine selection was surprisingly good. Nice to see some stellar BC wines on the list. Not sure if it was because of our issues but someone managed to wrangle us free tickets to the after dinner party which were reasonably priced at $30.

I went here for my birthday dinner with about 12 of my friends. Everything started great. Then service started going downhill. First, our server brought out the wrong appitizer for one of my guests. Second, she mixed up everone's orders, especially mine. She brought me the wrong dish, everyone got their food and I got mine about 40min later. Luckily, the food tasted great. If only the service could match the food. There's a lot more I could say about the horrible service but I might end up writing a short story.

A really nice spot. Free parking accros the street. Lots of room, delicious menu, good service.

Artsy Canadian Contemporary Cuisine with an EXQUISITE VIEW!!!. Upon walking into this restaurant last summer, we were impressed at the contemporary design and layout of the restaurant. but what was most impressive to the atmosphere was the spectacular view of whole of dow's lake with all the boats docked near the patio going all around floor.<br/><br/>since we love comfort food, LAGO has made quite an impression on us and we have been back many times. the menu changes seasonally as well so it is hard to fit it all in one review. <br/><br/>my favorite is the beef tenderloin with lobster truffle butter which is an amazing flavor explosion for this tender beef. comes with generous sides of (VERY UNIQUE!) braised beef short rib potato gratin and pancetta wrapped asparagus.<br/><br/>another favorite is the atlantic lobster spaghetti with a large 1/2 length sliced lobster tail, claws and langoustines with a tasty roastes tomates and fresh basil. i enjoy fresh tasting seafood not overpowered by excessive sauces and spices and this dish was great!<br/><br/>some of the new appetizers i've noticed are fantastic. what was striking was their amarena cherry BBQ ribs. WOW! cherry spiked BBQ sauce was a total knockout!!! <br/><br/>another particular delicious app there was the beef carpaccio with truffle oil, pickled artichoke salad, a heaping pile of crispy onions (or crispy thinly sliced potato) and large shavings of parmesan. <br/><br/>the rare ahi tuna was delcious, done medium rare with an assortment of baby veg ratatouille.<br/><br/>one of the seafood mains was a beautiful mushroom crusted halibut alongside with delcious buttered chanterelle mushrooms topped high with red watercress garnish, a heaping side of mashed potatoes with whipped parsnips and 3 different colored carrots. such a nice variety and artfully presentated.<br/><br/>there are so many things in each dish that it is hard to isolate a favorite so much so that you want to return and try something else until you've sampled the entire menu. <br/><br/>there was an incredible mac and cheese with black truffles which used to be a side dish to their grilled chicken which is now upgraded to a full lunch entree. not too many restaurants in ottawa use truffles and truffle oil! <br/><br/>recently i had the pork on your fork dish with bacon braised cabbage with beau's ale (a local ottawa and organic beer). i'm not usually a fan of cabbage but this was a delicious mix with the tender bacon and pancetta-wrapped porn terderloin done medium.<br/><br/>the toblerone fondue was amazing.<br/><br/>i've noticed they use higher quality ingredients that justifies their prices compared to than similar bar and grill restaurants!! their kennebec french fries are incredible. probably the only restaurant in ottawa to use kennebec potatoes exclusively recommended by that famous chef thomas kellar!!<br/><br/>i believe friday nights they have 2-for 1 apps and specially priced drinks. we stayed after dinner on saturday nights at 10pm where the they turn into a classy club with bottle service. seems to be really popular place as it was jam packed with classy and very attractive women who show up dressed to the nines!!! forget the byward market, LAGO has grown to have it all.<br/><br/>highly recommended. i've posted some pics of their dishes on www.ottawafoodies.com as well as those of my other restaurant reviews.

The event was organized as a cocktail party with a few carefully chosen providers: linen and dish rentals, photographers, makeup artists and, of course,

BB's wedding reception at Lago Bar and Grill was a great time, and I was touched by the moving speeches that her and the groom's family's gave. Her wedding reception was a hybrid between a formal wedding reception, and a cocktail party, and there were ele