SOFIA MISENHEIMER
Reporting from the edges
I started looking for magic close to home when everything else was closed off. During lockdown, I introduced a radio segment called Sofia Staycations, sharing one hidden gem a week — curiosities, local lore, strange monuments — to help people feel connected to where they were.
That early work has become Roam Unknown, an editorial project romanticizing the everyday, supporting independent business and documenting local identity through the kinds of places people may pass without noticing.
Roam grew from the same conviction as Art/iculation, the award-winning arts and culture magazine I founded to make space for un(der)represented voices — that paying close attention is a form of care, and that the stories people tend to overlook often reveal more than the ones we’re taught to remember.
Follow my progress with Roam Unknown on Instagram @roamunknownco or read the latest dispatches on the site.
Exploring the unexpected
News & Features
Check out some of my published work below.
Coffee is keeping Ottawa retail alive in unexpected ways
August 2025
By the time many Ottawa cafés switch on their grinders, the espresso machine at Birling has already cleared morning rush. The skateboard shop opens hours before anyone comes in asking for hardware or grip tape, and pulls coffee shots for regulars, most of whom have never felt the jolt of a board underfoot.
July 2025
Ottawa bakeries make Montreal-style bagel tradition their own
Montreal bagels originated down the 417, but the debate over which shop in Ottawa does them best is alive, and surprisingly personal. The label applies to four local recipes — and four devoted customer bases prepared to eat accordingly and defend their choice with conviction.
June 2025
New gothic Italian speakeasy hidden behind a bookcase in the ByWard Market
A concealed door swings open onto candlelight and the low thrum of The Cure. You’re not in a club, or near the noisier parts of the Market that flood with bar spillover after hours. You’ve found Tredici, accessed by faux bookcase on Clarence Street.
