Restaurants

Not long ago, it was fair to say that this gloriously scenic city had no temples de cuisine comparable to those of Montréal or Manhattan. That has changed. There are now restaurants comparable in every way to the most honored establishments of any North American city. What's more, surprising numbers of creative and ambitious young chefs and restaurateurs are bidding to achieve similar status. It is now easy to eat well in the capital -- quite well, in an increasing number of cases.

By sticking to any of the many competent bistros, the handful of nuovo Italiano trattorie, and a couple of jazzy fusion eateries, you will likely be more than content. Another step up, a half-dozen ambitious enterprises tease the palate with hints of higher achievement.

Even the blatantly touristy restaurants along rue St-Louis in Upper Town and around the Place d'Armes, many of them with hawkers outside and accordion players and showy tableside presentations inside, can produce decent meals. The less extravagant among them, in fact, are entirely satisfactory for breakfast or simple lunches, particularly useful if you're staying in one of the many old town guesthouses that serve no meals.

The best dining deals are the table d'hôte (fixed-price) meals. Nearly all full-service restaurants offer them, if only at lunch. As a rule, they include at least soup or salad, a main course, and a dessert. Some places add in an extra appetizer and/or a beverage. The total price is approximately what you'd pay for the main course alone.

Game is popular, including venison, quail, goose, caribou, and wapiti (North American deer). Many menus feature emu and lamb raised just north of the city in Charlevoix. Mussels and salmon are also standard, but you might want to look beyond those staples.

At the better places, and even at some that might seem inexplicably popular, reservations are all but essential during traditional holidays and the festivals that pepper the social calendar. Other times, it's usually necessary to book ahead only for weekend evenings. In the listings below, where no mention is made of reservations, they aren't necessary. Dress codes are rarely stipulated, but "dressy casual" works almost everywhere.

Remember that for the Québécois, dîner (dinner) is lunch, and souper (supper) is dinner, though the word dinner below is used in the common American sense. Also note that an entrée in Québec is an appetizer, while a plat principal is a main course. The evening meal tends to be served earlier in Québec City than in Montréal, at 6 or 7pm rather than 8pm.

Smoking in restaurants, bars, and most other public places in the Québec province has been banned since 2006.

Picnic Fare

Les Halles du Petit-Cartier is, in effect, a mall for foodies, containing a collection of merchants in open-fronted shops purveying fresh meats and fish, cheeses, sushi, pâtés and terrines, glistening produce, deli products, pastries, confections, and fancy picnic items. There are a few fast-food counters and delis that make up sandwiches to order. How about a cooked lobster for your picnic? It's open 7 days a week and located just outside the tourist orbit: west of the Parliament Hill district, in the Montcalm residential neighborhood, at 1191 av. Cartier (1 block north of Grande Allée).