Restaurants & Bars

If you find yourself around Lévis and you have a soft spot for spirits with character, do yourself a favour: push open the door of the Distillerie des Appalaches, on rue des Riveurs. It's the kind of place you stumble onto and don't forget. What we liked right away is the philosophy of the house. Here, they take their time. They bet on Quebec's own ingredients, they try pairings you wouldn't see anywhere else, and they own a real creative streak — without slipping into gimmicks. Craft know-how, modern technique, quality ingredients: the recipe is nothing revolutionary on paper, but the result in the glass speaks for them. The flagship line is Kepler, a collection of gins that travels from the classic to the boreal, the fruity and even the maritime. Special mention to the Kepler Sous-Bois, dominated by balsam fir with a fine touch of grapefruit — a true cottage gin, perfect with tonic and a late afternoon that stretches out. Anyone who likes saltier notes will fall for the Bord de Mer, where strawberry, rhubarb and wakame seaweed meet in a blend that shouldn't work… but does. Beyond gin, the distillery also plays in spiced rum with Lilly Queen, and even in maple eau-de-vie with Moins 40. And for those easing off the alcohol, the Zéro line offers mocktails that stand on their own — not just coloured water. In short, the Distillerie des Appalaches is a fine address to put on the map. A team that enjoys what it does, and you can taste it.

Tucked away at 44 rue des Jardins, within the historic walls of the former Café de la Paix, the restaurant Le Clan has established itself over the past few years as one of the great fine-dining addresses in Quebec City. At the helm: Catalan-born chef Stéphane Modat, an essential figure on the Quebec culinary scene, recommended in the MICHELIN Guide 2025 and named Restaurant of the Year at the Lauriers de la gastronomie. From the entrance, the tone is set: you come into the restaurant through the open kitchen, where you can already sense the intensity and the passion of the brigade. Upstairs, the hushed dining rooms, adorned with hunting and fishing trophies — a nod to the chef's passions — create an atmosphere at once elegant and warm. But what truly sets Le Clan apart is its philosophy: celebrating the Quebec countryside in all its richness. The tasting menu invites you on a genuine journey across the province: fish, game, noble meats and seasonal vegetables are worked into refined boreal creations. For a more accessible experience, the lunch menu offers an interesting way into this world, and the weekend brunch (served Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.) is unanimously hailed as a must.

Note that in 2026 Le Clan joined  the prestigious list of Michelin-starred restaurants!! Breaking news!

On rue Saint-Vallier Ouest, right in the heart of the Saint-Sauveur neighbourhood, the Diner lives up to its name… but only halfway. The decor may call the classic American diner to mind, but what lands on the plate plays in a completely different league. Here the comfort classics are reworked with fine-dining care: local products, house-made preparations, and a generosity you don't always expect from a bistro menu. The DINER burger has become a signature, but it's the fried waffle — served as dessert, alongside chicken, or even as a burger bun — that has the whole neighbourhood talking. Crisp outside, soft inside, light as a cloud: worth tasting at least once in your life. The reworked pâté chinois with a runny egg on top, the goat cheese and tomato pasta, the chicken and waffles, the "macaroni like at home" for the kids… every dish has that little something that tells you this isn't quite the diner around the corner. Open every evening from 5 p.m., it's the perfect address for a relaxed dinner that's out of the ordinary — as long as you book, because the place fills up fast.

An address full of character in Saint-Sauveur. L'Étal – Boucherie Pirate, the fifth little brother of the Restos Pirates, has been quietly open since December 2024 and offers meats, charcuterie, prepared dishes and much more. The Restaurants Pirates group is already well established in Quebec City, with L'Affaire est Ketchup among others. A new-wave neighbourhood butcher shop, with a creative touch very much in the image of Quebec City's "Pirates."

Tucked away on avenue Jules-Verne in Sainte-Foy, Les Botanistes is one of those addresses you almost want to keep to yourself. Tall glass walls, generous ceilings and plants in profusion: you walk in here as into a light-filled greenhouse, where the plant world invites itself right onto the plate. The atmosphere is part warm bistro, part winter garden, with that extra bit of soul that comes from attentive service and staff who take their time. The kitchen, for its part, banks on the local and on whatever is good right now. The menu changes with the seasons and the deliveries, with genuine generosity in the portions and a presentation that flirts with fine dining without ever taking itself seriously. 

The Union Oyster House, which opened its doors in 1826, is the oldest continuously operating restaurant in the United States. The building, put up in part between 1716 and 1717, has been listed as a National Historic Landmark since 2003.  Before becoming a temple of Boston dining, the building housed Isaiah Thomas, who published his patriot newspaper the Massachusetts Spy there, and served as headquarters for the paymaster of the Continental Army during the War of Independence. In 1796, the future king of the French, Louis-Philippe d'Orléans, even gave French lessons there from the second floor. Among the famous regulars are several American presidents — including JFK, who came almost every Sunday for lobster. Booth 18 upstairs was reserved for him and is still dedicated to him. The horseshoe-shaped oyster bar, where senator Daniel Webster was also a steady customer, has stayed in its original position since 1826. On the menu, New England seafood and specialties rule: oysters, clam chowder, lobster roll. On the Freedom Trail, near Faneuil Hall, it's as much a history lesson as a meal.

Founded in 2009 by Luke Holden, a third-generation lobsterman from Maine, Luke's Lobster is a B Corp certified family business that buys directly from fishermen to guarantee full traceability for its seafood.  The Back Bay address, steps from the Boston Marathon finish line and the Boston Public Library, serves lobster rolls done the Luke's way: a New York–style toasted brioche bun, a touch of mayo, cold lobster meat, a drizzle of lemon butter and their secret seasoning. The popular Luke's Trio lets you try the lobster roll, the crab roll and the shrimp roll all at once in half portions, ideal for anyone who can't decide. The atmosphere is relaxed, the service quick and the prices fair for the quality on offer. A simple, effective address, the opposite of fine-dining ceremony, but one that delivers some of the best lobster rolls in the city.

Crowned "best new restaurant in Canada" by EnRoute magazine in 2017 and awarded a Bib Gourmand in the Michelin Guide in 2025, Battuto is an intimate 24-seat restaurant tucked into the Saint-Roch neighbourhood. Behind the project are three friends driven by their passion — Guillaume St-Pierre, Paul Croteau and Pascal Bussières — who opened together in December 2016 with no idea of the honours that would follow. Everything is made in house, from the charcuterie to the pasta by way of the bread and the ice cream. The wine list, pared down but thought through, mixes little-known labels with prestigious names, with a preference for Italy and France. Reservations — opened once a month — are gone within minutes. An institution of the lower town.

A genuine Charlevoix institution tucked right into the picturesque downtown of Baie-Saint-Paul! The hardest part? Choosing among a dozen variations on Joe's famous smoked meat. With its friendly atmosphere and its traditional counter, you'd think you were in a little Montreal deli, but with Charlevoix warmth thrown in. 

The meat is cut the traditional way, and table service brings you a delicious smoked meat sandwich with house coleslaw, chips and a pickle. Smoked meat is served all over Quebec, but Joe's stands out for its tenderness, its perfectly balanced smoke and just the right amount of fat. With the restaurant's growing success, a shop has even opened right across the street for the takeout version.

At 1 rue Saint-Jean, on the line between Montcalm and Saint-Jean-Baptiste, Nonna Taverna came out of three co-owners falling for a space full of character. The concept is anchored in the name itself: Nonna means grandmother in Italian, and the idea is cooking that's warm, generous and made with love. From the carpaccio to the burrata, from the ravioli to the risottos, the portions are generous and the dishes feel homemade, in an intimate, relaxed setting.  A neighbourhood restaurant you'll happily come back to, with a wine and cocktail bar as well, and flavourful brunches.

A few steps from the Old Port, this restaurant hangs on its walls the portraits of its former owners, Rioux and Pettigrew, wholesalers who occupied the premises at the end of the 19th century. A gentle scent of the past drifts over the rustic decor: plank floors, brick and stone walls, shelves holding antique tin cans. In charge is chef and co-owner Dominic Jacques, winner of the show Les Chefs! in 2012 and named chef of the year 2021 by the SCCPQ. His seasonal market cooking marries the riches of the Quebec land with flavours from elsewhere, and he also offers a secret menu where you hand your appetite over entirely to his expert hands. The restaurant appears in the Michelin Guide Canada.

An institution in the Saint-Roch neighbourhood! Rooted in its community since 1997, La Barberie is the first craft-brewing co-operative in Quebec. Its mission: to produce and serve original, distinctive recipes with a concern for making beer accessible to everyone and building a sense of community. On site, 8 taps in constant rotation are available, and the beers they brew are pleasantly affordable. The tasting carousel is a must, best enjoyed on their beautiful terrace — a Quebec City classic.