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PETIT BILL'S, 1293, AT SMIRLE AVENUE

This one-year-old restaurant is all family business. Terry Fitzpatrick runs it with his younger brother, Randy — and they named it for their dad Little Bill, who grew up in a Newfoundland orphanage where the other "Bill" was bigger than him. A curious blend of French cuisine and Maritime flavour, the menu has lobster and halibut along with duck and steak frites. What's not part of the experience here: Any bistro pretensions. On a Sunday evening, Fitzpatrick chats with diners, interrupting one conversation to greet a friend as she passes by with her new baby. "It's like a little town inside the city," he says of the area. Fitzpatrick also describes Wellington West as "a great big menu." Which makes sense: There are now several Italian spots, Indian, Thai and Mexican restaurants on this strip. The only drawback? Construction makes parking tricky until the fall. But the street is far enough away from the city's tourist traps that if you can handle the bulldozers, you're guaranteed an intimate meal,

WORLD OF MAPS, 1235, AT HOLLAND AVENUE

This is the place to ask directions — to any spot in the world. And the map-seekers here, from RCMP peacekeepers heading to Haiti to diplomats trying to pinpoint distant postings, say more about the city than a tour of Centre Block. Brad Green, who co-owns the shop with his wife, Petra Thoms, has just about seen it all. Once, a limousine pulled up at the door and a black-suited security detail covered the entrance while an ambassador shopped inside for flags. A group of "freedom fighters" has come around for military-style maps of a small corner of Kurdistan. Burmese residents requested a map to help them get relief supplies back home after the cyclone. There's always a run in maps when disaster strikes or a country lands in the news, Green says. Mostly, though, the store caters to more pedestrian journeys. On a Saturday morning, you will often hear customers swapping advice on places to stay in Mozambique, or the best restaurants in Rome, while perusing guides and maps along the walls. The store also has a special printer so you can pick any quadrant of the earth and get a custom-made map. All the staff are well-travelled; the owners settled in Ottawa in 1994 after spending a year circling the globe with their 12-year-old daughter. But if travelling by armchair is more your style, you can pick up an old-fashioned globe with a bar hidden inside. Or an upside-down map — because in a political town like Ottawa it doesn't hurt to challenge your perceptions.

THYME AND AGAIN, 1255, NEAR HURON AVE

Sheila Whyte got her start catering to big-name musicians: She has smuggled chocolate brownies to Clint Black's roadies (he had ordered only fat-free foods for them) and Lyle Lovett once kissed her hand in praise of her lamb. Now, her meals and crudités supply the major political events in town — Joe Clark's daughter's wedding and high-end cocktail receptions such as the annual garden party at Stornaway. But even if you don't get invites to such happenings, you can get a taste of Whyte's success in the café here, which is also a prime people-watching location. At noon on a weekday, the place buzzes with all types: government workers who have headed over from offices at Tunney's Pasture for a bowl of homemade soup, middle-aged women on a break from shopping and stay-at-home dads ordering cookies while their kids race around the tables. There's also a take-home dinner menu, a favourite among out-of-province politicians living alone in hotel suites while the House of Commons sits. Or a good alternative to room service for weary tourists.

CLOTHES, 1258, NEAR HURON AVENUE

 In a city with few local designers, Belgium-born designer Muriel Dombret has been selling her own line of clothing for 16 years. The secret to her longevity: Her clothes manage to be interesting without frills or glitz, incorporating new trends while staying classic. Customers can choose from a wide variety of styles — brightly patterned A-line dresses, Asian-style jackets with two buttons at the neck — but the favourite is a wide-legged, low pant called the Nan. Dombret's clothing also comes in materials ranging from high-end linens to stretch suiting that can be tossed in the washing machine, and won't wrinkle in a suitcase. I can usually talk my husband into coming with me to this shop — he stations himself on the couch outside the fitting rooms. For reluctant shoppers, this place is also a one-stop blessing, since it stocks everything from simple leather satchels to $400 suits. Customers can buy off the rack — or have your measurements taken, choose your own fabric and have a new outfit sewn on site, often in less than a week.

 BIJA BIJOUX, 1307, NEAR WARREN AVENUE

 The entrance is a bit dusty right now because of street construction, but inside Bija is a soothing, tastefully understated jewellery box, with items you won't find anywhere else in the city. Necklaces, bracelets and earrings are organized by colour in glass cases that frame the room, many by Canadian designers that owner Margo Scott has known for years. The store specializes in silver jewellery, but it also carries some eclectic choices: There's an Israeli designer who uses brightly coloured fabric and beads to make dangling necklaces, and a Vancouver designer called Pyrrha, who has reproduced medieval seals for sterling silver pendants. "If it's beautiful, I buy it," says Scott, who also designs jewellery on request. "It's a happy little shop."

RED CHAIR KIDS, 1318, AT ROSS AVENUE

When most people describe Ottawa, they say it's a good place to raise a family. But for years the city didn't have much in the way of trendy baby gear — you would have been hard pressed to find a diaper bag that didn't have little pink flowers on it. This store was opened by two local moms, Monica Gallivan and Sarah Kelly, frustrated with their lack of options. It caters to parents who want the perfect matching nursery and have a bit of cash to spend on it. What I like best: the interlocking foam tile rugs and the reusable wall art — in shapes such as dots and cars — that kids can stick on and peel off as they please.

3 TARTS, 1320, AT ROSS AVENUE

Named for the three women who started this bakery 13 years ago, their numbers have since dropped to two. But on a busy weekend, Christine Grenville and Sheila Lynch can churn out more than 200 tarts, with flavours that change with the season. Their most famous offering is the white chocolate cranberry pistachio, for which Ottawa residents will cross the city. The pear almond tart, one of my favourites, is a lighter option. Or for pure decadence, try the French chocolate pâté, which is essentially one pie-sized truffle. If you really want a certain tart for a midnight snack in your hotel room, though, best order in advance, or go early. The Saturday-morning crowd often empties the cupboards.

SHARKY'S SCUBA SUPPLY, 1226, BETWEEN HOLLAND AND HINTON

Sharky's is located in the basement of the neighbourhood Home Hardware: Find the paintbrushes, head down a narrow set of steps, and you could be in the belly of a submarine, surrounded by air tanks and wet suits. Mike Morris, whose grandfather started the hardware store, is an avid diver. So he turned a bit of warehouse space into a small supply shop and it grew from there. Most of the customers are regulars who rent their gear on Fridays and drop it off Monday mornings. But you can also arrange lessons or get directions if you want to explore popular Morrison's Quarry or sunken freighters in the St. Lawrence, an hour away. Still, all this traffic can be puzzling to the patrons of the Great Canadian Theatre Company across the street, who watch customers lugging tanks and flippers out the door. Says staffer Melissa Chancey: "You get people coming downstairs who've been shopping at the hardware store for 20 years, and say, 'I didn't know you were down here.'"

Erin Anderssen is a Globe and Mail feature writer in Ottawa.