odd duck | wine & provisions

A decadent dining experience with Jon, Wes, and the dynamite team at odd duck, wine and provisions in Downtown Kitchener! 🍽️🦆🍷🫶 This intimate space at 93 Ontario Street across from the old GRT Terminal packs the best punch possible and is doing something truly special. The staff is so knowledgeable and passionate about their craft and there’s a palpable sense of synergy in the restaurant with such a fun and engaging approach to the service they provide. We opted for the full experience with 3 plates to share, our own mains, plus wine pairings from select offerings one cannot source from a liquor store. The Bar Snack and cocktail menu are reason alone to visit this spot. We started with the shrimp pogos and a couple of drinks including their popular Twig & Fig and Orchard Sour. Absolutely smashable shrimp filled beignets with a spicy sauce on top while casually sipping. 🍹🍤🍸 Our second plate was the roots paired with a DB Schmitt Weiss. Creamy parsnip puree along with the salty crisp of the chicken skins and perfect cook on the heirloom carrots and turnips left us looking forward to the next dish. 🥕😋🫜 Third up was panfried rutabaga & caramelized shallot croquettes with an MW Cellars Semillion. The white pepper candied hazelnuts and pomegranate made this pretty plate so texturally pleasing. Lastly the lady had the pepper steak and bearnaise with a Domain Boucabeille red and this dude demolished a lightly cured artic char along with an Engel Orange in Alsace blend. 🥩🍊🐟 Incredibly well fed and warmly welcomed by a wonderful group of people. This is what local hospitality is all about and I highly encourage everyone to experience for themselves! 🤩❤️👏

This place is a really unique experience. There’s a lot happening on each plate, and some flavors take a little time to get used to. The food doesn’t follow traditional rules, and it’s pushed to a level that feels bold and almost unusual at times. The mushroom bao was a bit overwhelming for me, mainly because the passion fruit flavor was too strong. That said, I can see the thought and creativity behind the dish. The chicken, on the other hand, was excellent—warm, comforting, and something you don’t come across often in places like this. The desserts were well done overall. I really enjoyed the PPP, though the dates didn’t stand out much for me. Overall, this place has a lot of potential. The flavor combinations are not played safe, and that’s exactly what I like about it.

This place was amazing. From the moment we entered to when we left. The food was exceptional and so delicious. It’s hard to pick a favourite. The staff were all so kind, welcoming and helpful. It’s great to hear that it’s an all woman run kitchen and everyone plays a key role in running the place including the menu. Although the food is pricier, they don’t ask and don’t want you to tip. Pay it forward in other ways ❤️

Wow. Thats all we had to say after all 6 courses of the Trust Us Experince. You have not eaten until youve tried the food at Odd Duck. And dont even get me started with the wine pairings. The staffs' passion and genuine love for food bleeds through in how they present the food, how they talk about it, and how it tastes. We are so incredibly lucky to have a restetuant like this in Kitchener-Waterloo. Pricey but totally worth it.

Fantastic experience! I went with my boyfriend for my birthday, and I’ve been craving some of the menu items since. The staff was super accommodating and helpful with dietary restrictions, from preparing a list prior to our arrival and helping me find the best options for us to share. All of the food we had was so delicious!

We hosted a private event. Wes and his team were wonderful. The food was delicious, and the wine pairing was incredible. Isabelle was my favourite server. Thank you, team, for exceeding our expectations.

I want to start off by saying I'm rooting for the Odd Duck, which recently was recognized by the Michelin guide (and well deserved)! My four star rating is just that I think they're really good, but they could be great. The staff is wonderful, both personable and knowledgable about the menu and ready to ask questions if they don't know the answers. The restaurant itself is charming too - you have a small store at the front and then pass by an open kitchen before being seated in a comfortable dining area. I was with a group of 4: my husband, and then another couple he's friends with that I was meeting for the first time. We were told that we should consider 2 dishes per person, and 6-8 for a group like ours with the intention of sharing. I love the chance to get to try many different things, so sharing seemed like the way to go. With that said, some of these dishes were much more challenging to share than others. We got the fried oyster mushrooms (easy to share), eggplant (easy), leek (difficult), roots (medium), duck (medium), crab & shrimp (hard), and mushroom main (easy). To this point, I would suggest going as a couple or with a friend you're quite comfortable with as the dishes feel easiest shared between 2 and not as large of a group. Minor, I know, but still worth mentioning. The food itself was delicious. Stand outs to me were their mushroom dishes (both fried and the main), crab & shrimp, and caramel apple dessert. I loved these for being incredibly thoughtful dishes, wherein the star of the dish was never minimized, and other elements brought in textural surprises or nuanced tastes to compliment what was being featured. The only thing we had that I felt was a miss was the seasonal pumpkin dessert, and for having had 9 dishes with only 1 being a bit lackluster means to me that Odd Duck has 5 star potential! The things that brought this to a four were the pacing, cutlery, and challenges sharing after it had been suggested we do so. With so many plates, I acknowledge the challenge but sometimes it felt like we were waiting quite a bit of time for the next bite of food. While the staff was attentive and refreshed our plates and silverware multiple times, there were a few dishes (leeks, and duck come to mind) that I wish we would have had a sharper knife. Knowing that we planned to share everything, I also wish that we'd been armed with that sharper knife to help divvy everything up accordingly. With that said, I would absolutely return to the Odd Duck. I love that they use fresh, seasonal ingredients and do a great job with them. I hope that when I return some of the things that made them a four have been easily remedied and the experience is a true five stars!

A really wonderful experience. The staff were all so knowledgeable and attendant. We selected six different dishes to share and everything came out promptly and tasted great. Lots of interesting flavour combinations and excellent wine pairings.

I want to start off by saying I'm rooting for the Odd Duck, which recently was recognized by the Michelin guide (and well deserved)! My four star rating is just that I think they're really good, but they could be great. The staff is wonderful, both personable and knowledgable about the menu and ready to ask questions if they don't know the answers. The restaurant itself is charming too - you have a small store at the front and then pass by an open kitchen before being seated in a comfortable dining area. I was with a group of 4: my husband, and then another couple he's friends with that I was meeting for the first time. We were told that we should consider 2 dishes per person, and 6-8 for a group like ours with the intention of sharing. I love the chance to get to try many different things, so sharing seemed like the way to go. With that said, some of these dishes were much more challenging to share than others. We got the fried oyster mushrooms (easy to share), eggplant (easy), leek (difficult), roots (medium), duck (medium), crab & shrimp (hard), and mushroom main (easy). To this point, I would suggest going as a couple or with a friend you're quite comfortable with as the dishes feel easiest shared between 2 and not as large of a group. Minor, I know, but still worth mentioning. The food itself was delicious. Stand outs to me were their mushroom dishes (both fried and the main), crab & shrimp, and caramel apple dessert. I loved these for being incredibly thoughtful dishes, wherein the star of the dish was never minimized, and other elements brought in textural surprises or nuanced tastes to compliment what was being featured. The only thing we had that I felt was a miss was the seasonal pumpkin dessert, and for having had 9 dishes with only 1 being a bit lackluster means to me that Odd Duck has 5 star potential! The things that brought this to a four were the pacing, cutlery, and challenges sharing after it had been suggested we do so. With so many plates, I acknowledge the challenge but sometimes it felt like we were waiting quite a bit of time for the next bite of food. While the staff was attentive and refreshed our plates and silverware multiple times, there were a few dishes (leeks, and duck come to mind) that I wish we would have had a sharper knife. Knowing that we planned to share everything, I also wish that we'd been armed with that sharper knife to help divvy everything up accordingly. With that said, I would absolutely return to the Odd Duck. I love that they use fresh, seasonal ingredients and do a great job with them. I hope that when I return some of the things that made them a four have been easily remedied and the experience is a true five stars!

Not the nicest location (across the Kitchener bus terminal, in the plaza by the convenience store), but the venue inside is nice (simple and industrial). My friend recommended this place. They change the menu every two weeks or so (and she may or may not have tried each menu change...). There was four of us, and we got 10 dishes to share, as well as the cheese sampler. The service was good, and they brought out two at a time so we could savour it all. We started with the cheese sampler which came with two local cheeses, and a nice strawberry sauce, and their homemade crackers. (See pictures for the menu we had that night) The carrots came with a tasty sauce. The turnip dish was nice, but for me the mushrooms were the star of this dish. I didn't find the tuna fishy, and the lime crema paired well, as well as the sesame tuile (cracker). The scallop may seem overpriced at $30 for just one, but it was perfectly cooked (the knife just glided its way down), and big enough to share among the four of us. Certain parts of the beef were more cooked than others, but had a nice tasty sear. They didn't ask how we liked it cooked and came medium rare to medium (I usually order rare). The blueberry and peppercorn jus paired nicely with it. The lentil salad may have been one of my favourites. It tasted like it had lemongrass in it (which is one of my favourite flavours) and a convincing way to introduce lentils to those who may not be a fan. The bok choy was presented nicely and the mint paired well with it. I especially liked the rice paper chip. The gnocchi had a nice chew to it, and I liked the basil and sour cherry sauce. We finished off with their gluten free chocolate cake, and the mousse. They were both tasty, but if I had to choose again, it would be the mousse. The cake is soft and the (hibiscus & licorice root coconut) ice cream happily reminded me of coconut sago. The mousse is a bit misleading, as it's nothing like you would expect: not a soft creamy dessert, but instead ice cream with a hard ruby/dark chocolate coating on the outside. The chocolate coating is a bit hard to break, but tasty once you do. If the menu remained the same I would reorder: the turnip dish, scallop, lentil salad, gnocchi, and tuna. Menu looks a bit pricey, however they don't charge gratuity, as they pay a thriving wage. Would definitely come again.

Creative, fresh, fun small plates! An adventurous wine list! Friendly, informative servers! Love me some Odd Duck. On my second time dining here I took the wife and enjoyed a lovely golden hour meal in the intimate dining room. We were waited on with care and joy. The food was outta control, with beautiful preparation, generous portions (the morels were so good and so much!), and really fun flavors. Also had some super good wine pairings from their eclectic list. Great cocktails too. Duck around and find out!

This is an amazing restaurant. The food was outstanding, the sauces to die for. Servers were so friendly. When we went to check out we found out the most impressive detail - there is no tipping!! Why? They pay their staff a liveable wage, with benefits. And, it didn't seem to be passed on to the customer, the total meal price was comparable, but the quality of the food and experience exceeded other places.