The stereotype of remote workers is that we spend our days in coffee shops drinking lattes. I don’t do this very often, but it happens. The beautiful thing about house sitting is that I almost always have a fantastic space to work in.
The thing is, it can be hard to find a spot in your favorite coffee shop — and I’m always a little too aware of how long I’ve been taking up a table. So, if you’ve already had your fill of lattes and are looking for somewhere different to work, here are the best spots in Ottawa:
National Arts Centre
The NAC hosts free public performances in the lobby, but when there’s not a special event going on, it makes a great space to work.
There are a variety of spaces and types of seating, including couches, tables, and stadium seating. The tables and couches don’t have outlets, but the stadium seating does. The wifi is fast and doesn’t require Facebook login or any of that nonsense.
The space is bright and open. The acoustics are good (naturally) so you can take a call or have a conversation without disturbing everyone else.
There’s a coffee shop in the front section of the lobby. There are also clean washrooms and water fountains.
Ottawa Art Gallery
Ottawa Art Gallery somehow is left off of the recommended list of places to visit in Ottawa, despite being a fantastic museum. It’s in a gorgeous modern building just south of Byward Market. It’s open from 9am to 9pm. The wifi is fast and doesn’t have any tedious login procedures. And best of all, it’s free.
There are several sunny spaces for you to pull out your laptop, including a nook on the third floor that’s a dedicated working space. Unfortunately, that spot has no plugs, but it’s probably better because otherwise it’d be full all the time. When your battery runs out you can check out the galleries on the way to another work space with outlets.
Whole Foods
The Whole Foods in Landsdown Park is another great spot to work. There’s a variety of seating options, including plush booths, in this sunny space on Bank Street.
The cafe has a ton of prepared foods, in addition to everything else in the store. No one’s going to judge you if you make your own cheese board (although they might be jealous).
Being Whole Foods, there are bathrooms, a water bottle station, and free samples.
The cafe closes at 7pm, even if the store is open later.
CF Rideau Center
The food court at CF Riseau Center is always busy, but there’s tons of space and tables turn over quickly. The wifi requires a Facebook login, which isn’t ideal, but it works.
The tables don’t have outlets, but there is bar seating with plenty of outlets. It can be tough to snag a spot to charge at prime times, but it’s usually possible.
Naturally, there are plenty of good options if you get hungry. The bathrooms are clean and oddly spacious.
Do you have your museum membership handy? So many museums have wifi and nice seating areas. They make an ideal place to pull out your laptop to catch up work when your brain needs to time to recover between exhibitions.
