Frugal Fun Ottawa goes on an Urban Quest

Josée is an Ottawa engineer and mother of two who loves to find free and frugal activities and events happening in Ottawa. She puts her research to good use over at Frugal Fun Ottawa.

A few weeks ago, Hubby and I decided that it was high time for a real date night. Our kids are two and four, so life is a big hectic right now. And like many parents of young children, we don’t often take time for ourselves. When my sister offered to babysit for the whole day (thanks sis!), we jumped at the chance.

With the kids taken care of, we just needed a plan. What to do? 

Our day on the town was a Saturday, and the weather was looking great. We decided to try UrbanQuest‘s Quest in Time. (Disclaimer – I got three free Quests from UrbanQuest.com through my website, Frugal Fun Ottawa.) The Quest in Time takes place downtown, and leads participants to various historical locations. In case you’re not familiar with these Quests, here’s how it works: 

• Choose one of five Ottawa Quests at UrbanQuest.com. Quests range in price from $19.99 + tax (meal costs are extra) to $89.99 + tax (meal costs included).
• Print your clue package, then choose a price range for the restaurant that will be the last stop on your Quest. You can also indicate what type of restaurant (ie. family-friendly or date-friendy) you’d like. The name and exact location of the restaurant aren’t revealed until you’ve figured out all your clues.
• When you’re ready to start, launch your Quest. This can be done at home, from a smart phone when you’ve arrived at the first destination on your Quest, or from an internet cafe. You get two hours to complete your quest once it’s launched. I recommend choosing the “launch at a later date” option when you’re at home and setting the start time of your Quest.

I don’t want to give too much away and spoil the Quest for you, so I’ll just say this: Hubby and I really enjoyed our Quest in Time. We live downtown and walk around the downtown core all the time, but we don’t actually see what’s right in front of us most of the time. The Quest forced us to actually pay attention to some interesting historical monuments and landmarks, and we learned a lot. 

Valiants, by Vince Alongi (Flickr)

It took us about an hour and a half to complete our quest (we had to Google a few things, but that’s ok – it’s allowed!) and we enjoyed working together to solve the clues. Once we had solved all the clues we decided to walk down along the locks by the Chateau Laurier before heading to our supper destination. Playing tourist was so relaxing compared to our usual state of rushing around! We really enjoyed just being in the moment. 

Rideau Canal, Empty Locks by Ian Muttoo (Flickr)

Then came time for supper. Since we were on a date and ready to splurge, we had chosen a date-friendly restaurant at the higher end of the price spectrum. I won’t reveal the name of the restaurant here, but if after reading my gushing review you’d like to know, email me at contactme(at)frugalfunottawa(dot)ca and I’ll let you in on the secret.

Hubby and I shared a beet salad with goat cheese, and a dish of roasted brussel sprouts with seasonal vegetables. (I never knew brussel sprouts could taste so good, but in a word: scrumptious!) For my main dish I had an incredible melt-in-your mouth gnocci dish with asparagus and mushrooms in a cream sauce, paired with the white wine suggested on the menu. (I forgot to write down the name of the wine. I’m pretty picky about wine, and am always looking for a new favorite – this one definitely fell into that category.

No problem though, since we’ll be going back to this restaurant as soon as I can line up another sitter!) Hubby had a terrific grilled steak with frites. He let me have a bite of his steak and I will definitely be ordering it on my next visit. If you do visit this particular restaurant, I would suggest sticking with the incredible appetizers and main dishes and skipping dessert – my chocolate paté was a bit too bitter, and Hubby’s apple tart was, in his words, “Ok”. (Our views about dessert may have been affected by the incredible high expectations we had by this point!) 

All in all, we had a great time. We would never have stopped to look around and take in the downtown core’s rich history on our own without the Quest in Time, and we certainly wouldn’t have had supper at the restaurant chosen by UrbanQuest.com, since Hubby and I are creatures of habit who rarely step out of our comfort zone. So thanks sis, for making it possible, and thanks UrbanQuest.com, for making it happen!

Thanks for the post! We can’t wait to go on our UrbanQuest, now that the weather is so beautiful! Also: judging by your description, we’re pretty sure that restaurant is one of our favourites!

My frugal Valentine: last minute VDay advice from Frugal Fun Ottawa

"Love Canal" was taken by photographer Robin Kelsey (www.robink.ca/blog)

Josée is an Ottawa engineer and mother of two who loves to find free and frugal activities and events happening in Ottawa. She puts her research to good use over at Frugal Fun Ottawa.

It’s Valentine’s Day! If you’ve left the planning to the last minute, you may be wondering if it’s too late to wow your sweetie. But I have some frugal, yet romantic, suggestions that will keep you out of the doghouse and out of the poorhouse.

My first suggestion is very old-fashioned, but that’s precisely why your sweetheart will love it. I suggest that you both take some time to write hand-written letters to each other. My husband and I have been doing this for years, since we decided that Valentine’s Day was just becoming too commercial. I love this tradition for many reasons: the process of writing the letters forces us to put into words how much we love and appreciate each other; it’s wonderful to have the letters to re-read and remember major events in our lives; and the whole family is included – when our children were born we started writing them Valentine’s Day letters too. If writing a letter isn’t your style, you can write little notes on heart-shaped paper and hide them around the house or your sweetheart to find. Hide some in hard-to-find places so that Valentine’s Day lasts longer than just one day!

If writing letters seems like too much work for a Monday, take your partner to the movies – but not just any movie! Only a romantic comedy will do on Valentine’s Day, and if it happens to be a French romantic comedy, well, nothing can top that. Amélie is exaclty what Cupid would recommend, and it just happens to be playing at the Bytowne Cinema tonight at 6:30. Tickets are $10 for non-members (members pay $7.00). My husband and I went to see it when it first came out, and he describes it as “a decent story that is well-written, that just happens to be a romantic comedy.” Pretty much the highest rating a romantic comedy will get from him. And don’t worry if French isn’t your forte, the Bytowne is showing it with English subtitles.

Today’s forecast is calling for mild temperatures and light snow, so don’t be afraid to ditch the traditional restaurant supper and box of chocolates and opt for some outdoor fun instead. How about taking your sweetheart for a romantic evening skate on the Rideau Canal? (Don’t forget to share a BeaverTail!)

If he or she is the adventurous type, visit UrbanQuest.com and purchase their Original Quest package: tor $19.99 (plus tax) they will provide you with clues that lead you around Parliament Hill and other downtown locations. It’s a fun way to explore the city to see downtown Ottawa in a whole new light.

Happy Valentine's Day from Local Tourist Ottawa!

If your date is more historically-minded, take in the city by following one of the three downtown walking tours in the NCC’s Discover the Heart of the Capital brochure. It includes interesting facts about various Ottawa landmarks and points out interesting sights along the route. Be sure to bring your camera – the view from the Portage and Alexandra Bridges is particularly beautiful at this time of year.

After your quest or walking tour, warm up and get a romantic view of the snow-covered city by going up the Peace Tower at Parliament Hill. (If my husband planned this one for me he would earn himself a whole lot of brownie points!) The Peace Tower is open today from 9:00 a.m. to 2:50 p.m.; visits are self-guided. Keep in mind that you will have to go through security so there may be a line-up.

You really don’t have to spend a lot of money to have a romantic Valentine’s Day. All it takes is little imagination, and being lucky enough to live in a wonderful city like Ottawa!

Thanks for the ideas Josée!

Single or coupled up, how are you spending your Valentine’s Day?