9 lesser-known places to get an affordable lunch near Parliament Hill

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The federal government begins phasing in a four-day office requirement on July 6 and among the first places public servants may notice the change is lunch hour. More people will be downtown, leaving nearby offices in the same midday window to scavenge a bite to eat.

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By noon, the best-known restaurants can get crowded, and anyone who doesn’t want to wait in line will need another option, ideally one the rest of their building hasn’t thought of yet.

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A number of the better-value lunches downtown are a floor up or down from street level, in office towers and concourses that foot traffic passes without a glance. The nine places below are within a 10- to 15-minute walk of the Hill and priced between $9 and $20 for a meal that will get you through the afternoon.

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$11 chopped chili pepper noodles from Chef Bai

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This Bank Street restaurant serves the regional flavours of Shanxi, a province in northwest China. Instead of the sweet and soy-based sauces common in westernized takeout, black vinegar, garlic and cumin give their dishes a bold kick. The chopped chili pepper dish layers chilis, peas and pickled daikon radish over thick noodles. When you mix the bowl, the vinegar and garlic coat every strand for a mouth-tingling finish.

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Flatbread buns on the menu are simple and portable, making them a great snack to grab for the walk back to the office. The spiced pork burger ($8), known as a roujiamo, uses pork shoulder stuffed into a crisp, pan-fried flatbread. For a lighter bite, the savoury egg bun ($7) switches out the meat for a simple layer of mushroom and egg. If you want a sugary finish, the sweet bun ($5) has a pleasant custardy filling.

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$9 banh mi from Choux Atelier

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People may think of Choux Atelier as a destination for sweets, but for those who know to ask the Vietnamese-French bakery also makes a traditional Saigon-style banh mi, which piles a crisp baguette baked in-house with cold cuts, pâté, pickled daikon and carrots. Pairing the sandwich with their coconut Vietnamese iced coffee ($5.99) is a treat, since the syrup balances the intensity of the dark roast over crushed ice.

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It’s an affordable lunch option that gives you the perfect excuse to add a choux pastry to your order. The light and hollow French pastry shell made from an egg-rich dough bakes up crisp on the outside and comes filled to the brim with flavoured cream.

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$15 Thai curry chicken from Corner Kitchen

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300 Sparks St.

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Corner Kitchen is in the underground concourse of the Transport Canada building and finding the escalator the first time can take some hunting. . The reward is a spacious downstairs room with comfy booths and TVs that play World Cup matches. The kitchen handles the midday rush with a selection of hot food, making it a reliable spot for a quick meal.

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The Thai chicken curry combo is a staple order with rice, salad and a drink. You can customize the plate by splitting the base half-rice and half-salad, or add sriracha if you want some heat. The chicken is pre-cooked, so think convenient weekday refuel rather than a from-scratch meal. Large pots of house-made soups, like chicken noodle and broccoli cheddar, change daily for a grab-and-go option. They also bake a dozen kinds of cookies ($2.50) in-house. Keep your eye on the clock if you plan to visit, because the kitchen keeps office hours and shuts down completely by mid-afternoon.

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$14 smoked chicken crepe from Crêperie Rim

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This family-run cafe prepares orders fresh right before your eyes. Customers can grab a seat on the small outdoor patio or climb to the hidden upstairs seating area, which stays surprisingly cool on hot summer days. The view over the counter lets you watch the batter heat up on the griddle while your meal comes together.

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Savoury crepes are the highlight, made with a signature dough that stays soft and chewy while keeping a crisp outer edge. The smoked-chicken crepe is a top pick. The kitchen “smokes” the deli meat by charring it on the crepe griddle, then layers it with lettuce, tomato, cheese and mayo in a hefty serving. The smoked turkey option is another reliable choice for the same price.

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If you want a sweet finish, options include gelato, which the shop imports from a specialty maker in Montreal. The only downside is that the indoor space is tight, so if the upstairs tables are full, you’ll be taking your lunch back to the office.

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$15 tteokbokki from Elisa’s Bunsik

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Elisa’s Bunsik is a new Korean counter on Bank Street, set up mainly for online orders with a few seats inside. The name refers to bunsik, a Korean culinary term for casual comfort food and street snacks made from flour or rice. K-pop music plays overhead and customers can browse a fridge stocked with fresh kimchi.

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The popular tteokbokki mixes chewy cylinder rice cakes and thin sheets of fish cake in a gochujang sauce that delivers a sweet start and a spicy finish. Paired with the walk-in special takes $3 off when you add the fried chicken. Ordering this in person triggers a walk-in special that takes three dollars off the bill when you add the crispy fried chicken. The rich jajangmyeon black bean noodles are also highly popular for a heavy, comforting alternative. Skip the bibimbap, which comes pre-prepared for the lunch rush and tastes flat next to the rest of the menu. The small room heats up fast on a warm day, so taking your lunch to go is the smart move.

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$10 chicken wrap from Fattoush Lady

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Fattoush Lady recently traded its 90 Elgin dining room and signature wall mural for a lean, lunch-only counter a few storefronts over, so pick-up is the only way to go. The signature dish is the fattoush, a traditional Middle Eastern bread salad originating from Lebanon to repurpose leftover pita scraps. The bowl ($18) pairs crisp toasted pita chips with fresh vegetables like broccoli, cabbage, tomato, cauliflower and heirloom carrot to create a satisfying textural crunch. Well-seasoned chicken and a light garlic dressing pull everything together. Ordering the salad spicy elevates the dish from good to outstanding, especially when paired with a guava Mexican Coke, a real-sugar import that swaps standard high-fructose corn syrup for tropical cane sweetness. If you want a more portable and budget-friendly lunch, order the ten-dollar chicken wrap. It’s a smaller overall portion but delivers the same well-seasoned flavour while saving you eight dollars.

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$17 vermicelli bowl from Ugly Monday

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The jumbo cookies ($5.50) and quality drinks are reason enough for regulars to keep coming back, so save room. For a lunch on a budget, the banh mi ($11) does the job, though the vermicelli bowl is a fuller plate of rice noodles, grilled meat and salad. It comes with Nước Chấm on the side, a classic dressing and dipping sauce that is light, tangy and doesn’t weigh down the palate, making it a erfect dish for a hot day.

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Pair your meal with a Vietnamese coffee, like the one topped with salted cold foam ($6.75). The salt cuts the bitterness of the dark roast while drawing out the sweetness of the condensed milk underneath. The drink relies on a Vietnamese Phin, a traditional metal dripper that brews an aromatic cup of coffee, ideal for robust Vietnamese iced coffee. The eco-friendly, fully compostable packaging is a massive plus for sustainability.

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$15 bulgogi bibimbap from Kimbap

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Kimbap is a compact Korean restaurant on Bank Street, named for the seaweed-and-rice rolls Koreans pack as a portable lunch. While often confused with Japanese sushi, kimbap has a unique history originating from ancient Korean “ssam” wrapping traditions and twentieth-century adaptations. Instead of vinegar, the rice is seasoned with sesame oil and the fillings focus on cooked or preserved ingredients like marinated beef, egg strips and pickled radish instead of raw fish.

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The bulgogi bibimbap is a generous bowl of rice, seasoned vegetables, thin sweet-marinated grilled beef and a spoon of gochujang you stir together at the table. If you want something for the walk back, the traditional kimbap rolls travel incredibly well and cost just twelve dollars for a thick, fully stuffed ten-piece set. Eaters looking for a bit more heat can even level up to the $15 spicy fish version. The room is small and fills up at the noon rush, so go early to secure a table or plan to take your roll out to a nearby bench.

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$9 wanpaku sandwich from Some Coffee & Some Tea

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On a second-floor mezzanine inside L’Esplanade Laurier, this hidden counter makes Ottawa’s only wanpaku sandwiches. Wanpaku are Japanese overstuffed sandwiches, sliced to reveal colourful layers of breaded protein, cabbage, cheese and sauce, then boxed for the walk back to work. The turkey club and shrimp tempura versions are customer favourites, helped by owner Xiang Xu’s house-made Japanese mustard sauce that has a wasabi-like kick. Instead of standard sandwich bread, Xu uses shokupan, a square Japanese milk bread soft enough to press around the filling. The first bite is plush, then crisp from the breaded protein.

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The drink menu covers specialty coffees and teas, like black sugar coffee lattes, red bean jelly matcha lattes, cheese foam teas and fruit yogurt drinks, but the Einspänner ensures your beverage has as many distinct layers as your lunch. A double shot of espresso is capped by a thick layer of cold whipped cream, a recipe from nineteenth-century Vienna. The name refers to single-horse carriage drivers, who used cream to keep coffee warm and prevent spills while steering one-handed.

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Best of all, every item is under $10, letting you pair a sandwich and a drink without breaking a twenty. Plentiful seating in the food court fills up mid-day and usually clears after 1 p.m., making a late lunch easier than the noon rush.

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$15 rice bowl from SKYBIRD Asian Grill

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This new fast and casual Vietnamese-fusion bowl counter by Constitution Square is useful for public servants who want a large lunch and control over the specifics of their order. Customers move along a glass assembly line, choosing rice, lentils or a split base before picking a protein, toppings and house sauces. The tuna poke bowl and pulled pork topping are popular options, since the beef and chicken can dry out under the counter heat lamps. Staff use a flame torch to char and caramelize the meat right before serving and the kitchen uses separate serving tools to keep halal and vegan options free from cross-contamination.

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To get the best experience, keep two things in mind. The seven-topping step can bottleneck the line, so decide your ingredients ahead of time. And while a main draw for budget-conscious diners is the large portion size, regular-sized bowls are packed to the brim and can easily stretch into two full meals. If you’re on a budget, you can save five dollars and leftovers if you order the mini bowl instead.

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