Jaunted - Quebec City

What It's Like at Quebec City's Wild and Wintery Carnaval

Chanize — 2010-02-04T16:35:12-05:00

Thousands of people are snowsuiting up and heading to Quebec City for Winter Carnaval, held this year from Jan.29 through Feb.14.

Despite frigid temperatures (it plummeted to -4F on Saturday), locals didn’t seem to mind the weather, instead numbing the cold with the potent Port and brandy-infused Caribou liquor

The Chocolate Museum

travelingmcmahans — 2008-12-18T11:35:33-05:00

It may be a little chilly right now, but Quebec offers as much culture as Europe for way less cash. And thanks to the resurgence of the dollar, there's never been a better time to head to Canada. Dana McMahan just got back and is dishing on the province's eats all this week.

You know how you feel obligated to visit museums when you travel? Well, I do, especially when it’s a country that speaks another language. But somehow, by day three of my visit to Quebec City, I still hadn’t visited the first museum. Happily, I was able to remedy my philistine status pain-free. With hot chocolate.

Where To Spend Every Last Loonie

travelingmcmahans — 2008-12-17T16:30:32-05:00

It’s a tradition on my travels that the husband and I have one splurge dinner each trip. And everything I read in the foodie world pointed me to laurie rapha�l--lowercase letters included!--for our obligatory spend-fest.

A Crepe Break In Quebec

travelingmcmahans — 2008-12-16T11:00:31-05:00

Nothing says "French" quite like flipping crepes. Well, maybe the Eiffel Tower, but I was in Quebec City, not Paris, and wanted to feed the fantasy that I was, in fact, across the Atlantic. Casse-Cr�pe Breton beckoned on a snowy day at lunchtime with low prices ($8 or less for crepes) and a warm, crowded interior.

Back of the Envelope Travel Guide: Quebec City's 400th Birthday Celebration

BS — 2008-07-02T09:30:10-05:00

If you've never celebrated a quadricentennial before, get thee to Quebec City this weekend, because QC is turning 400.

Quebec has actually been celebrating all year long, but the big blowout is this Thursday through Sunday. To be honest, give the line-up of events, a three-day event may not have been necessary, let alone a whole year. There's the opening night party, featuring a show from Van Halen, ending with fireworks over the St. Lawrence River. After that, the offerings get a little less blockbuster, so you'll surely have a few hours to kill.

Back of the Envelope Travel Guide: Quebec's Winter Carnival

laurenuta — 2008-01-29T15:45:01-05:00

Any festival with a hybrid snowman-elf mascot is bound to get our attention. The creature, named "Bonhomme," shows up every year at Quebec's Winter Carnival, a 17-day celebration of all things cold. Don't let the name fool you, though. This isn't Mardi Gras; most activities are for the 12-and-under set, like a foam sword competition or the circus featuring Ketchup the Clown.

A few events, however, should keep the attention of all age groups, such as the dogsled races, a ski competition and performances by acrobats. So, if an hour spent attending a concert with a group called "Funkyzone" doesn't strike your fancy, we've found the best grown-up places to eat, drink and party--sans Ketchup the Clown--in Quebec City.

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Québec City: It's Not All Gravy in the QC

artextor — 2006-07-07T10:15:02-05:00

Poutine has its uses, especially if your goal is to grow a belly or engage in heavy lifting in the dead of a Canadian winter (Hugo Girard didn't come out of nowhere, after all) but it's not really a high-class foodstuff. Happily, there are many amazing gourmet-appropriate restaurants in Québec City.

Case in point: L'Initiale, a quite remarkable restaurant in Québec City. Its current prix-fixe lunch (for CAN$45) includes fluffy lobster with a rhubarb and sandwort cream, a bison filet, and spiced hot chocolate and saffron sorbet for dessert.

Chef Yvan Lebrun utilizes many foods sourced from Québec to produce menus that change with the seasons. In doing so, he cites the richness of the province's farmlands while maintaining a high level of sophistication.

Less expensive three-course lunch meals range between CAN$16 and CAN$23.

With a Relais and Chateaux designation, L'Initiale isn't really hurting for accolades. Nonetheless, it deserves all the attention in the world. L'Initiale is a gourmand's dream.

[Image via troy-lovegates/Flickr]