France (the one north of the border) - Quebec City- July 2014 - September 2016

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August 11th 2014

Published: October 20th 2016

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Looking for the Dirt Roads

North Hatley

Seeing colors we have rarely ever seen

Well it only took us 4 years to make a decision to go to QUEBEC CITY. A little further of a drive than Montreal which we love . Seems like there is this contest between Quebec City and Montreal to be the more "European city". We've now actually made a couple trips up that direction so will try to keep this as brief as possible.

First time up we went through New Hampshire (see previous blog) and spend the night in MAGOG. A quaint little town where we stayed at Au Coeur De Magog ( a little B&B that was clean, updated, affordable and had a good breakfast). Why Magog? Well per the books and as part of the list was the NORTH HATLEY ANTIQUE SHOW in NORTH HATLEY (a couple towns over). Yeah us young one's at an antique show!!! Not a very big show, but some cool stuff and we definitely made the most of it. Can't beat drinking and fingerfood-snacking while antiquing. We bought a couple things and then headed to EAT AT A RESTAURANT IN NORTH HATLEY. Our pick was the Pilsen pub. Nikkie had the duck with cardamon and cranberry sauce with vegetables and mashed

North Hatley

Can you say antique festival?

potatoes (this is duck country and it did not disappoint) and I had the house smoked salmon and we shared the cream mussels with a couple beers in hand. Good times. On the way to Quebec we took a little bit of a detour and hit up CARIEFIESTA in Montreal. Worth a stop if you are in town, but not something to go out of your way to attend (they celebrate the Caribbean heritage so there is a lot of booty shaking). The second time we just headed straight through Vermont and spent the night in Sherbrooke at Hotel le President (nothing special, but it was a place to sleep). Nikkie somehow found the Aragon Cafe (funky place and very little English spoken, but they worked with us). Nikkie had their spin on poutine w/ potatoes, cheese, pepperoni bites, and a baked great fruit (very different but good) and I had the crepes with cream and lots of fruit (good and light). Great brunch experience seeing people just sitting down and enjoying each other's company.

We have visited for various reasons - one it was summer and two for CARNAVAL IN THE HEART OF NEW FRANCE as they call

Cariefiesta in Montreal

Yeah they throw some crazy stuff around

it. CARNAVAL DE QUEBEC is an experience. We did not know how big this was, but apparently it is the carnaval of all carnavals in Canada. And just to be clear. This is in the middle of winter. We would highly, highly recommend this for any family. It was cold - very cold. People are bundled up, but they are out and about. This is Canadian life and growing up a kid in Canada seems like an awesome gig. You get pulled around on anything that will move over ice. There is a one-time fee you pay to get access to all events (for the whole 2 weeks I believe). There is an ice castle with all kinds of ice sculptures, but the main playground is on the PLAINS OF ABRAHAM. Roller coasters on ice, rolling-down a hill in a huge ball, human fussball, cross-country running/stumbling, sleigh-rides, slides, playgrounds, etc. You name it they have it. What a fun place. Can't wait for Everest to be old enough to come back. Oh yeah - Everest. Well I am so far behind on these blogs that in the mean time we've had an addition to the family - Everest Zion. He

Montreal

Cariefiesta in Montreal

was a trooper. At 2 months old he probably should not have been out and about, but we made sure he was really bundled up. More on him later. They sell drinks all over town - you never have a reason to be cold or not "happy". They also have ice sculptures all around town. Lots of good picture opportunities. One of the main attractions is the ICE-SCULPTING EVENTS. People get either a massive block of ice or snow and come up with their best creation. Very impressive what people are able to come up with and create. We had lots of the CARIBOU DRINK. An alcoholic drink served warm consisting of red wine, whiskey and maple sugar (or some form of these ingredients). Definitely keeps you warm during the coldest of times and is actually a pretty good drink. One of the highlights for us was the MAPLE TAFFY AT THE SUGAR SHACKS. Maple syrup is thrown on a block of snow and you carefully roll it up with a stick after about 20 seconds. Messy indeed, but oh so good. There is plenty more to do to keep everyone happy. One of the things we always look forward

Cariefiesta in Montreal

Crazy elaborate costumes

to in Quebec City is drinking amarula (a cream liqueur). No matter the time of year it seems they always have a reason to serve amarula on the streets whether in regular glasses during the summer months or an ice glass during carnaval.

I am sure all of Quebec City is nice, but the real reason you go there is to GET LOST WITHIN THE WALLS OF VIEUX QUEBEC. VIEUX QUEBEC is where it all happens. I will start with what is considered the lower part - very small and probably the most European feel to it. The easiest way to get there is down ESCALIER CASSE-COU STAIRS (break-neck stairs). Please don't let this name fool you. You think the Rocky stairs in Philly was a disappointment. This is a 100 times more disappointing. It's like 3 flights of regular stairs. What is wrong with these people? Right down the stairs you will see the cutest little street QUARTIER PETIT-CHAMPLAIN. This is perfect for a stroll past funky stores, restaurants and little bakeries with flowerpots all over the windows (try some macaroons) and at the end of the little street you have the COOPERATIVE DES ARTISANS ET COMMERCANTS DU

Cariefiesta in Montreal

All the colors!

QUARTIER PETIT CHAMPLAIN MURAL. You can make your way down to the ST. LAWRENCE RIVER and explore the rest of the COBBLED STREETS as you duck in and out of GALLERIES, souvenir shops, and all kinds of fun little stores while exploring and admiring hidden squares. One of our favorite places is the PLACE ROYALE PLAZA with the EGLISE NOTRE-DAME-DES-VICTOIRES right there. On our carnaval visit we were down there in the evening and it started snowing lightly and with all the lights, snow, etc it just felt like Christmas and what Christmas in Europe probably feels like. One of our favorite moments with the little guy (his stroller was covered in snow).

You can take the funicular back up to the upper town area. Here you will immediately see the DUFFERIN TERRACE PLACE FOR VIEWS. Gorgeous views of the river. Head up a little slope and you will see the CITADEL - an active military compound that was used to defend the city over the years and that you can tour. One of the greatest things for us is the old CITY WALLS. There is a really pretty GATE IN THE WALL right by the parliament building. Walking

Laurie Raphael

Getting ready for a good meal

the STREETS IN THE UPPER TOWN AREA leads you down alleys and sidewalks past everything from restaurants and cafes to Christmas stores and anything else you may want. There are cute little nooks and crannies with little statues and fountains. This area is also littered with SQUARES and parks. Just walking around, getting lost in the streets, shopping, eating the quintessential Canadian dish of POUTINE, and stopping at Le St-Creme for ice cream makes for a great day. During the summer they have a massive musical festival - FESTIVAL D'ETE DE QUEBEC. We only attended a couple free shows, but they throw a big party for this and this runs for a couple weeks with a massive stage.

There is also plenty to do in the area around Quebec City. One thing we found was the STE. ANNE-DE-BEAUPRE BASILICA. A beautiful, massive basilica about 30 minutes outside town. In the front of the basilica you have the OAK SCULPTURE OF ST. ANNE. The basilica has been "credited" with many healings so when you walk in there is a pillar filled with crutches and other walking-assistance items and the story goes that people walked in with these and were healed

Laurie Raphael

Can you tell she is excited!!

so they left them. There is the IMMACULATE CONCEPTION CHAPEL FOR A STATUE OF THE VIRGIN MARY as well as a REPLICA OF MICHAELANGELO'S PIETA. On the grounds there is also a MEMORIAL CHAPEL and a SCALA SANTA REPLICA STAIRCASE which people pray and crawl their way up (lots of stairs). The ST. ANNE MUSEUM is not really that impressive. To us one of the neatest things was the life-size sculptures outside depicting the 13 stations of the cross. Well worth the visit for a morning or afternoon to break things up.

As far as hotels go. It's not the cheapest of places to stay. Especially our first night it was very hard to get a hotel at a reasonable price. So we settled on the Hotel Du Nord which was a couple miles from old town. Basic, clean and not the greatest neighborhood but it got us through the night.One of our favorite places was the AUBERGE PLACE D'ARMES. Right, smack in the middle of old town with some charm, smaller rooms with some sections of exposed old red-brick walls (which gives it an awesome character) and a good breakfast. The great dame of them all is the

Laurie Raphael

Weeds whelks in grass (not everyday you see presentations like this for food)

CHATEAU FRONTENAC. Keeping guard over the St. Lawrence river and the rest of old town it is hard to miss this building. A beautiful building with excellent service, nice rooms and most of the time some pretty crazy prices. Well worth it though for a night of pampering. We also tried the HOTEL LE GERMAIN-DOMINION which is located in the lower section of old town. A little tucked-away, but beautiful rooms and an awesome fireplace where we enjoyed drinks in front of the fireplace. Now that we have the little guy we traded in late night photography escapades for a glass of brut and amarula in front of the fireplace.

And last but not least there is the food. I will start with a couple highlights. I read - and it was on the list - that LAURIE RAPHAEL is one of the top restaurants in all of Canada. Seems like a place for us. We got a reservation at a later time and just made it in time. We did the tasting menu and had the following:
1) Herbs mojito and weeds whelks served in a bed of grass (very good and great presentation)
2) Vegetable sticks to

Laurie Raphael

Yeah this is food - and it was awesome

dip in "cuttings dipping, sweet garlic whipped cream, hummus, rouille, garlic flower cream" with the sauces served in pot plants (we have never seen presentation like this)
3) Beef tartar, cherry tomatoes, balsamic reduction, w/ buffalo yoghurt (served in jam jars in a bucket of ice - good)
4) Foie gras and zucchini flower, fruit meat juice (fried dish and not our favorite which was really disappointing since we love foie gras)
5) Eggs and chanterelles served in three 3/4 eggs in an egg carton (most impressive presentation and really good)
6) Halibut and scallop, summer minestrone, sea grass, broad beans and peas (very good)
7) “Voltigeur’s farm” chicken, homemade mustard, fresh almonds, onions and garlic flower charred (good)
8) Bison skewer, stuffed potatoes, tomatoes, pork confit and smoked mayonnaise (you cook your own bison here - really good)
9) cheese and cherries - really good (by this time we were stuffed and pretty much the only people left)
10) lemon gelato w/ champagne (this was awesome)
11) Ile d’Orléans strawberry basket

What a meal. The presentation was spectacular and the food, selection, variety was incredible. Very happy - would highly recommend. Plating does make a difference!!!

Next

Laurie Raphael

“Voltigeur’s farm” chicken, homemade mustard, fresh almonds, onions and garlic flower charred

up was Le Continental and only because Anthony Bourdain just started doing his show "Parts Unknown" and Quebec was one of the first places he visited (and this restaurant). We started with:

1) a champagne cocktail and vodka tonic
2) foie gras w/ toast as an appetizer (delicious and very smooth)
3) Veal Sweetbread in Truffle Oil Ravioli w/ Sautéed Mushrooms & Creamy Marsala Reduction (awesome)
4) Continental's Main Feature Fillet Mignon en Boîte (with an unbelievable sauce cooked table side)
5) creme brulee (good)
6) bottle of cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon

What an experience. Old world place with old world service. Some of the food is cooked table side and these guys have worked there for forever. They know their stuff and they are more than happy to strike up a conversation. A must go place.

We also tried CAFE ST.-MALO - just one of those old time little cozy French restaurants. We had the:

- duck confit with greens for an appetizer (delicious)
- veal brains with potatoes, peppers and squash (extremely rich, creamy and just too much for a main course)
- rabbit stew with vegetables and mustard (not really a stew,

Laurie Raphael

Eggs and chanterelles (served in empty egg-shells in an egg carton)

but really good)
- creme brulee
- capuccino and espresso

Great French meal right by the fireplace as the snow was falling outside. What else can you ask for.

Other than this Quebec is a great place for just little bites. Le Petit Chateau is a little creperie where we had the Saint Louis (mushroom and ham crepe with cream sauce (really good)) and the crepe w/ bananas and rum flambee (terrible) along with a couple of cappuccinos and beers. The rum was all you tasted so not the greatest choice. At the Chateau Frontenac (we were forced inside since it was about zero degrees outside) we started with a cheese plate (3 cheeses, grape, bread (great plate)), had the neige (local specialty) drink and wine and also tried the duck and foie gras poutine (awesome). Since we stayed the night we enjoyed the typical Fairmont buffet the next morning where everything is over the top along with the price. While in Quebec you got to have FOIE GRAS. For brunch/ breakfast we recommend Cochon Dingue. We had the French crêpe stuffed with a duck, leek and onions filling served with hollandaise sauce and cranberry French toast w/

Laurie Raphael

Halibut and scallop, summer minestrone, sea grass, broad beans and peas

a poached egg, seasoned hash browns and onions (delicious and a mouthful). We also had the country special scrambled egg on toast, topped with mushrooms, bacon and hollandaise sauce served alongside a French crêpe filled with caramelized cinnamon apples and a maple cream sauce with Swiss cheese and seasoned hash browns and onions (really good). Also can't go wrong with starting the day with a bloody bacon cesar (very fresh tomato juice).

As with any place we also had some less than stellar meals. Restaurant L'Omelette where we had french onion soup (good), ham and chicken crepe (terrible) and poutine (ok). Since this is poutine country we tried the Snack Bar Saint Jean for the steak poutine - really more like ground beef so definitely disappointing. We bought some chocolates at La Fudferie and not really our favorite.

Likes

- love the cobbled streets and European feel
- just like Montreal it seems like there is always a festival or two going on

- loved Carnival and the fact that $15 per person gets you access all 2 weeks and tons of activities

Dislikes

- old town feels really tiny

Ste. Anne-De-Beaupre Basilica

The full spectical

Suggestions

- none really. Just enjoy the food

As so our adventures in Quebec City comes to an end - for now. A must visit for those East Coasters who never cross country-lines. Crossed 6 thing off of the list Vieux-Quebec, Getting lost within the walls of Vieux-Quebec, St. Anne-de-Beaupre, and Carnaval in the heart of new France. So 272 down and 5,509 to go. Long way to go.

'Til next time from France (the real France if you ask the locals)

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