A properly baked scone is a beautiful thing. Its slightly crusty outside protects a pillowy and light inside. The improve it further, slather it with strawberry or raspberry jam and a generous dollop of clotted cream. Then, pair it up with a nice pot of tea…
I have been lucky enough to have some near perfect tea and scone moments in my life so far. Lavenham in the UK is perhaps the ultimate tea and scones destination. But across the pond, far far away, there is another spot where you can get a very nice cuppa, an unlikely spot. The Scone Witch in Ottawa Canada. Now this isn’t what you will find in Lavenham, and that is a good thing. Scone Witch have taken the tradition and given it a bit of a wild spin (for scones that is). They have a daily rotating selection of freshly baked scones, both sweet and savory. Then choose from, again, a daily rotating selection of locally made jams. Pay the little extra for the clotted cream…because…again, jam cannot be separated from clotted cream when it comes to scones. And there you have it. My selection of choice; the lemon poppyseed scone with wild blueberry jam but the rhubarb ginger jam is also a winner.
Of course, I had to have my scone with hot chocolate instead of tea. Like so many places, they didn’t put the same love that they put into everything else they sell into their hot chocolate, but it warmed me up and hit the spot nevertheless.
If you are visiting Ottawa you are unlikely to find yourself on this side of town. However, if you have a mode of transportation and are visiting, for example, the Governor General’s place it is a nice bike ride/drive away. After you have your scone visit the independent book store next door (we need more book stores like this…everywhere) and then cross the street to visit one of one of the best restaurants in town. There are also two other locations, one on Elgin and one on Cyrville.
Verdict: Hmmm, scones….The Scone Witch, Beechwood Avenue, Ottawa, Canada.
