Bar Ocelli- Ottawa

17 William Street, Ottawa • ByWard Market • Visited May 2025

Some bars are built for flash. Bar Ocelli is built for cocktail lovers. Located just off the main strip in Ottawa’s ByWard Market. Past the shouting patios and souvenir maple syrup. There’s no sandwich boards. No kitsch. It doesn’t lure you in with neon or noise Just a brick front, moody windows, and a door you almost walk past. Inside, it’s dim bordering on dark, with an apothecary meets speakeasy vibe. It’s very vibey.

Atmosphere

The lighting doesn’t just flatter-it conceals. The kind of warm, indirect glow that makes everything feel a little more cinematic, but impossible to photograph. The backbar is stacked like a museum of libations – some bottles you recognize, and plenty you don’t, each lit like it’s the main character. And the bartenders move like they’ll get whiplash if they stop. Honestly, there’s no unnecessary flair, no forced charm. Just rhythm.

Drinks & Service

We started with the Pomme et Poire Galette (boulard grand solange calvados, briottet poire williams edv, gentian,  verjus, co2), and it might be the bar’s most disarming drink. It lands like late October – ripe pear, a flicker of spice, and just enough acid to keep things sharp. The Classic Martini is icy, bracing, no nonsense. And then the Fig (siempre plata tequila,  cocchi americano rosa, luxardo bitter bianco, fig garnish) is darker, rounder, and a little mysterious.

What makes Bar Ocelli really great isn’t just what’s in the glass. It’s the way the bar works. The bartenders are so dialed in you’re never waiting long, for a cocktail to be made. The team know their craft and expediently deliver it. Ask a question and you’ll get an answer – smart, specific, and to the point. They care, but they’re not trying too hard. They’re trying to make your drink better than you expected. And they really do.