Old Québec City
at 44 Rue des Jardins has a lovely French
menu featuring seafood, and wild game in
season along with thoughtful wine list
featuring a smattering of Canadian
wines. When you ask a local where to find
the “new, hot restaurants in town”
including the larger area of Quebec City
they will likely reply, “Non, we don't really
have new, hot in Québec. We have classics
and the owners sell to long-time employees
who continue to run them.” To that I
second what French Master Chef Paul
Bocuse once said at dinner, “Vive la
Cuisine Classique.”
Travel to the Old City of Québec is
relatively easy. There is a great train
system in Canada, a nearby
international airport and of course
cruises lines come to this port of call
regularly in season. When you arrive
there is so much to delight you that
you should book several days here.
ly
r
Go to Quebec Region for a complete
listing of year-round events and travel
ideas.
If you are a fan of winter, you will love the
Winter Carnaval de Québec, beginning the
very last days of January or first of
February until mid-February. On going
events range from the silly (Bain de NeigeSnow Bath), the sexy or quirky (Ice HotelHotel Glace- with spa and sauna and
rooms for rent), the incredible
(International Ice Carving competition), to
the raucous fun of the D.J. hosted outdoor
dance parties. You'll be sure to meet
Bonhomme from the North Pole who is
presented with the keys to the city by the
mayor of Québec City for the duration of
Carnaval. The larger-than-life
mascot presides over all the festivities and
lives in his magnificent Ice Palace
created from 300 tons of ice while there.
But there is so much more to this fantastic
event so find out online.
Something fun to do is hop the ferry at Place-Royal for
a trip to Levis across the St. Lawrence and back. The
Round trip is about 45 minutes and gives you a
different perspective of the Old City.
Photography by Kurt Winner.
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MARCH 2014 •LUXE BEAT MAGAZINE
FEBRUARY 2014 • LUXE BEAT MAGAZINE