Canada

iX pour Bistro – My Favorite Meal In Quebec City!

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When researching restaurants for U.S. Thanksgiving dinner in Québec City, I came across iX pour Bistro on a few foodie blogs.  It seemed to get good reviews on ratings sites (TripAdvisor, Yelp, etc.) and the posted pictures looked pretty good.  So, I decided that this was the place for Thanksgiving dinner!  This was a FANTASTIC choice!  The food was outstanding and the service impeccable.  I would not travel back to Québec without eating here, and you shouldn’t either!

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Quebec City Food Tour – A Fun Way To Explore St. Roch

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As you probably know, I LOVE a food tour!  So in Québec, I insisted that we take one!  Based on my research, there are two primarily companies: Quebec City Tours (the one we chose!) and Tours Voir Quebec.  After being so disappointed with my Tours Voir Quebec walking tour of Vieux Quebec, I very happy that we went with Quebec City Food Tours.

Quebec City Food Tours offers one food tour centered around the trendy neighborhood of St. Roch (pronounced Rock).  The tour is more than simply a food tour; it is part food tour and part walking  tour of St. Roch.  I thoroughly enjoyed it and our guide Emily was very passionate about the food and the St. Roch neighborhood.

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Quebec City in November: My Guide To A Perfect Wintery Weekend in Quebec City

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You’re visiting a cold destination in the Winter?!  We get that.  A lot.  We got it last January on our trip to Stockholm (read about that here), previously on Thanksgiving jaunts to Montréal and Toronto, and we got it again this year regarding our Thanksgiving getaway to Québec City!  In short, we always try to go away over Thanksgiving because of the two free vacation days!  Sometimes we take the whole week, others we just take the long weekend.  This year we could only take the long weekend and decided on Québec City because we found fabulous, direct flight deals from JFK (about $200 less than I usually see)!  And it was a great long weekend – even in the cold weather!

Québec City

Québec City (or simply, Québec) is the capital of Québec, the large, French-speaking province in the Eastern part of Canada.  Québec was founded in the early 1600s by Samuel de Champlain as a French settlement, and the Québec province is generally what people mean when they refer to “New France.”  As a result of its French roots, French is the predominant language and the city maintains a very European feel.  For example, Québec is the only walled city in North America north of Mexico and it is home to the famous “castle,” the Château Frontenac.  In addition, the Old Town maintains many of its historic buildings – just like in Europe!  Québec is a great city to visit if you are in need of a European fix without the expense and time of a European vacation.

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Can’t make it to Europe for the famous Christmas Markets? Try Quebec City Instead!

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Every year I read blogs and stalk instagrams of Europe’s famous Christmas markets, and I swear that the next year I am going.  They just look so fun.  So Christmasy.  So delicious.  And every year, I end up using my vacation time or making plans, and alas, I have never been!  But – as I say every year – maybe next year!  I really want to go on a Viking river cruise (yes, far too much Downton Abbey…) through the Christmas markets!

In any case, for most of us Americans, it is just too far to travel, especially around the holidays.  However, Quebec City, which is only a 1.5 hour flight from New York, offers a very European feel and the entire town goes above and beyond to decorate for Christmas.  Plus, they have a legit Christmas Markets (plural!)! Quebec City just may fill that Christmas market hole in your holiday heart!

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Long Weekend in Montreal: A Boozy and Foodie Itinerary

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Montreal is just over the New York/Canadian border, about a 40 minute drive into Canada. While a lot of people only think of Montreal as a bachelor party or underage drinking destination, Montreal is a fabulous weekend destination, and offers travelers delicious food, a European feel and plenty of outdoor activities.  Dan, our friend Pryor (a frequent wareontheglobe traveler) and I, spent a long weekend in Montreal over the 4th of July this summer.  Yes, just the three of us.  We drove from Princeton, New Jersey to Montreal on a Thursday night and back on Monday evening. It was an easy drive, a fun trip and a great way to spend a long weekend!

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Montreal Skyline

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