Heart & Crown, Ottawa

The Heart and Crown, a well-established business since 1992, is a sprawling Irish pub and restaurant located in the historic ByWard Market area at the heart of the city. This impressive venue stretches across an entire block, consisting of five distinct pubs and six inviting patios. Despite its size, the Heart and Crown tend to become quite crowded, especially on weekends. Alongside delicious pub food, patrons can enjoy a wide variety of beers on tap and an extensive selection of bottled options. As one of Ottawa's most beloved pubs and restaurants, the Heart and Crown can comfortably accommodate over 500 guests indoors and nearly double that number when including the outdoor patio spaces.

The Heart & Crown story began in an Irish pub in Omagh, Ireland. Larry Bradley, a young man, spent time there bottling and labeling Guinness. Pubs were a gathering place for people of all ages, offering good food, drinks, and lively conversation. Larry brought his love for pubs to Canada in the 1970s. While working as a hydro linesman and later starting his own construction company, he missed the cozy atmosphere of an Irish pub, which was lacking in the ByWard Market area. Supported by his wife Michèle, Larry took over an old French restaurant at Clarence and Parent intersection. In 1992, they opened the first Heart and Crown pub. Today, the company has expanded, with multiple pubs throughout the city.