Why you shouldn’t miss New Edinburgh-Lindenlea

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For a central Ottawa neighbourhood that’s home to some of the city’s highest profile VIPs, New Edinburgh-Lindenlea flies surprisingly far below most people’s radar.

I’m not quite sure why that is. It’s fairly small, sure, and it’s wedged between two arguably better known ‘hoods—posh Rockcliffe Park and working-class Vanier. However, it has just about everything you’d want in a day trip destination: restaurants, parks, a river, a secret skating rink, cute shops, history, embassies and a waterfall. All that and a million-to-one chance of spotting a political honcho’s limo—what’s not to love?

If you’re visiting for the first time, my advice would be to start by exploring on foot. Wonderfully compact, New Edinburgh-Lindenlea is a neighbourhood tailor made for the aspiring flaneur (that’s a fancy French word for someone who likes to meander aimlessly).

Note: As always these days, please stay within your region if you’re planning an outing. If you’re coming from far afield, please use this post as inspiration for future day trips!

Walking to Rideau Falls

Start at the corner of the Vanier Parkway and Beechwood Avenue and head north. From that point, you have several appealing routes to choose from. You could follow the Rideau River Eastern Pathway, or stroll along Crichton Street or Stanley Avenue. On Crichton, pop into the charming Union Street Kitchen Café (42 Crichton Street) for a pick-me-up—an organic espresso, a croissant, a pizza or some avocado toast, perhaps. If you’re on Stanley, keep your eyes peeled for the Mongolian Embassy (132 Stanley Avenue) and the Spanish Embassy (74 Stanley Avenue).

Stanley Avenue or the river path will take you within sight of the Minto Bridges—three Gothic-style metal spans that hopscotch across several islands in the Rideau River. Built in 1900 and once conceived as part of a grand ceremonial route from Rideau Hall to Parliament Hill, they’re now just a pretty place to pause and photograph the river.

Keep walking and you’ll soon get to Sussex Drive. On the opposite side of the road is Rideau Falls Park, where you can ogle the namesake thundering cataract, created by the Rideau River plunging over a cliff into the Ottawa River. If you want to impress your friends with useless trivia, note that Rideau Falls is actually two separate waterfalls, divided by Green Island. In the 1800s, this area was studded with mills that used the falls as a power source. Now, it’s a beautiful slice of nature right in the middle of the city.

Immediately east of the falls is the Royal Canadian Geographical Society’s headquarters in the Centre for Geography and Exploration (50 Sussex Drive). The building often hosts great lectures and other special events, but the real attraction for the casual day tripper is at the back.

There, from spring through fall, you’ll find Tavern on the Falls (official address, 1 John Street), an outdoor eatery with a sweeping deck overlooking the falls, the Ottawa River and the Gatineau Hills. It’s one of the most jaw-dropping patio views in the city, and many people don’t even know it’s there. While enjoying the vista, you can nibble on tacos, salads, wraps or souped-up hot dogs, washed down with coffee or cocktails. (In the morning, there are pastries and breakfast burritos, too.)

Closer to Sussex Drive, the park is also home to the International Peace Garden and several monuments, such as the Commonwealth Air Forces Memorial.

Just east of the park, on the north side of Sussex, you’ll spot a striking grey-stone-and-glass building. That’s the French Embassy (42 Sussex Drive), one of Ottawa’s best examples of 1930s Art Deco style. It’s not normally open to the public, but you may be able to get a peek inside during the Doors Open Ottawa festival each June (in 2021, the festival will be virtual).

Political residences: 24 Sussex, Rideau Cottage and Rideau Hall

Keep walking east and you’ll soon see a rather forbidding-looking gatehouse. That’s about as much as you can glimpse from the street of 24 Sussex, which has been the official residence of Canada’s prime ministers since 1950.

Politician and lumber baron Joseph Merrill Currier commissioned the house in the 1860s and named it Gorffwysfa, which means “place of rest” in Welsh. Unfortunately, no one has been resting much there lately, as it’s fallen into such disrepair that the current prime minister and his family have decamped across the road to Rideau Cottage on the grounds of the governor general’s official residence, Rideau Hall (1 Sussex Drive). The entrance to the grounds is easy to spot, as it’s dominated by a massive statue of Queen Elizabeth II on a horse.

Don’t bet on getting anywhere near the GG here, unless you’re showing up to receive a medal or something. You can, however, stroll around the expansive grounds, which include a visitor centre (with washrooms and free wi-fi), picnic tables, Indigenous artworks, a cricket pitch, commemorative trees planted by visiting dignitaries and more.

Perhaps the best-kept secret at Rideau Hall is the vintage skating rink, built in 1872 behind the house. It even has an NHL connection, as the sons of Lord Stanley—yes, he of the namesake cup—used to practise their hockey moves here when their dad was governor general. (Check the Rideau Hall website for the latest opening hours and reservation details.)

Depending on the time of year, guided tours of the house and grounds may be available. The oldest part of the house dates to 1838, when Rideau Canal contractor, mill owner, mason and general mover-and-shaker Thomas McKay built it as his family’s residence.

Once you’ve explored Rideau Hall, you can meander south on MacKay Street back toward Beechwood Avenue to sate that hunger and thirst you’ve worked up, or to do a bit of browsing. (In case you’re wondering why the people who named MacKay Street chose to spell it differently from the surname of Thomas McKay—well, that’s one of the enduring mysteries of Ottawa history seemingly designed solely to bedevil copy editors.)

New Edinburgh shopping

It would be a stretch to call New Edinburgh-Lindenlea a major retail hub, but it does have a few distinctive shops worth a special trip. One of the few independent bookstores left in the city, Books on Beechwood (35 Beechwood Avenue) is a lovely, sunny place to look for mysteries, biographies, cookbooks, children’s literature, CDs by local artists and more. A recent discovery for me is the charming Electric Street Gallery (299 Crichton Street), where the eye-catching window displays of paintings and other artworks change regularly. The neighbourhood is also home to a venerable consignment shop, Clothes Encounters of a Second Time (67 Beechwood Avenue). It’s been selling gently used fashions—often including upscale labels from the custom-designed closets of nearby Rockcliffe Park—since 1982.

Check the next section for my recommendations for some great food shops in New Edinburgh.

New Edinburgh cafés, restaurants, bars and food boutiques

One of my favourite places in New Edinburgh-Lindenlea for a quick snack or light lunch is The SconeWitch (35 Beechwood Avenue). You can enjoy the sweet or savoury scones straight up with butter and/or jam, or use them as the base for a sandwich. Poached salmon on an herb and onion scone, or an oatmeal scone with raspberry jam, are my go-to orders.

Red Door Provisions (117 Beechwood Avenue) got its start by making jams, marmalades and pickles, then set up this café serving coffee, grilled cheese sandwiches, and cookies and other baked goodies. Check the shelves for cool packaged goods, coffee carafes and so on.

If you’re hungrier, the Fraser Café (7 Springfield Road) offers a frequently changing seasonal menu with some international twists—you might find anything from tourtière to Korean-style fried chicken. Pub goers can get casual fare at the neighbourhood branches of two city-wide chains: the Royal Oak Beechwood (1 Beechwood Avenue), which also has a sleek upstairs space called the One Up Cocktail Pub; or the Clocktower Brew Pub (422 MacKay Street), which sells its own beers in addition to the usual big-name brands. The Jasper Sports Pub (18 Beechwood Avenue) serves up pizzas, nachos and burgers, as well as salads and Asian-style bowls. And a few doors down, SushiMe (8 Beechwood Avenue) serves a wide range of sushi, sashimi and rice dishes, along with beer, wine and sake.

New Edinburgh-Lindenlea is a great place to shop for treats to enjoy at home, too. At Jacobsons (103 Beechwood Avenue), ask the experts who preside over the cheese case for their recommendations; the Buchette aux Fleurs—a French goat cheese rolled in fresh flowers—may just make you the star of your next book club meeting. The upscale store is also a fun place to shop for charcuterie, oils, crackers, spices, chocolates, fresh produce, frozen entrées, kitchen equipment and other goodies.

If you go

New Edinburgh-Lindenlea is three kilometres from Parliament Hill. The map below highlights many of the places I’ve mentioned in this post and shows you the nearest accommodations. (Note: If you book any of those accommodations via this map, I’ll receive a small commission, for which I thank you in advance.)

To get there by car from downtown, head to the ByWard Market and drive east on St. Patrick Street. It becomes Beechwood Avenue once it crosses the Rideau River. If you’re driving from elsewhere in the city, take the Vanier Parkway north from Highway 417 to Beechwood Avenue. Hang a right and start looking for street parking (it can be scarce, so grab a spot if you see one).

Alternatively, leave the car at home. The neighbourhood isn’t on the LRT, but it’s easy to reach via several local OC Transpo bus routes. You can also cycle, walk or inline skate there along the Rideau River Eastern Pathway or the Ottawa River Pathway (both routes become snowshoe and cross-country ski trails in winter).

For visitor information, see Ottawa Tourism and the neighbourhood’s main website.

Looking for more ideas for things to see and do in Ottawa, the Outaouais, Eastern Ontario and beyond? Subscribe to my free weekly newsletter or pick up a copy of my guidebook, Ottawa Road Trips: Your 100km Getaway Guide, from which this post is adapted.