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- Hours:
Mon-Sun 12 am - 9 pm
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
17 reviews for Restaurant Aux Anciens Canadiens
All Reviews
Really good. Came here for lunch. HEAVY. I mean if you like light meals or are on a diet or don't want clogged arteries maybe try another spot. But, the food was delicious if a bit touristy.
Came here for lunch on a cold, rainy day. In a brick and wood cozy room, ate soup and meatballs and pie. Delicious.
Everyone was nice and I enjoyed it.
Dear Yelping Community,
How could you have led me so astray? Knowing nothing about Quebec City restaurants, I decided to come here due to the generally positive reviews that told me to come for the prix fixe lunch offering. $19.95 for three courses at the oldest (?) restaurant in Quebec (and you get a drink!). It must be decent, right?
Ugh, how naive I was. The food was terrible. Like elementary school cafeteria food quality. Reheated and disgusting, with as many corners cut as possible. Bread was cheap and worse than wonderbread. Soups were unexciting and lacking heartiness. Entrees were clearly pre-made and reheated, and were clearly very cheap to make. My sides were some bad baked beans and a boiled potato. But the texture wasn't even very potato-like. Like maybe they had boiled a potato, frozen it, and then reheated it. And the desserts were just sweet, sweet, and more sweet. Terrible.
Stay away from the tourist trap. The food is not worth eating. I would not eat this food if you paid me to. It's that bad.
On a brighter note, the service was very nice and eager. I felt bad that such a nice person was serving such terrible food.
This place might be different for dinner, but stay far, far away from the terrible prix fixe lunch.
Quite simply, I don't understand all the high reviews for this overpriced, mediocre food-serving tourist trap. Sure it's in a super old house and has been revered for years, but that doesn't give them an excuse for serving mediocre bread and toasting their old bread for something new.
We both had the table d'hote, starting with a flavorless and thin cream of chicken soup. We added a bunch of salt and pepper and tossed in the toasted bread to make it edible.
Next came our main dishes. (They came out far too fast, which meant that they had been premade and were just waiting around to be served. Ick.) I had the st jean meat pie, while my friend had the pheasant legs with baked beans and lard. The meat pie was okay... rather dry and not nearly as good as my rabbit pie from le lapin saute the day before. Chunks of potato and ground up meats. You know how if you keep reheating ground meat you get that grey grisly gunk? That's what my pie tasted and looked like. Gross.
The pheasant legs were dry, and the baked beans not so flavorful. Served with a plain boiled potato. Yeup.
For dessert we had the maple pie and the apple strudel. The maple syrup pie was ridiculously sweet, and served with unsweetened whipped cream. Why would you have unsweetened whipped cream?
The apple strudel was similarly disappointing.
Basically, it was $25 for three disappointing courses, and you had the option to pay an extra say $5 for a good soup, or $10 for a different main course, etc. Tourist trap trying to make more money with inadequate food. SKIP THE FOOD, read the plaque outside and take a picture of the oldest house in Quebec if you really want to. Crowded with tourists.
We ate here on our honeymoon 25 years ago, and it was probably the best meal we had during that trip.
It's certainly gotten more popular in the intervening time, but that's not all to the better. It's very small and cozy, located in the Old Town, with plenty of homey touches, exposed brick, the works. The atmosphere is terrific, but it was louder and more crowded (particularly with American tourists) than we remembered, and we were seated upstairs, which I think is less nice than the downstairs area.
The hook here is authentic Quebec cuisine, and the emphasis is on meat, meat, and more meat, particularly game.
We had the Table d'Hote rather than the a la carte; and started with game pate, and soup. The pate was just OK. I had pea soup, which seemed a bit thin, and my wife had vegetable or chicken (depending on who you asked) soup, which was just OK. She had the Trapper's Treat- meat pie with bison and pheasant casserole, while I had the Country Platter, with meat pie, meatballs ragout, salt pork, baked beans, and more. Delicious, every bit as good (and as heavy) as we remember. Plan to take a walk after dinner.
For dessert, we shared maple sugar pie, which was nice.
We had a bottle of wine, and as usual in Quebec, the price was astronomical.
Service was just OK- the place was very full (this is on a Saturday night during Winter Carnaval, so no big surprise), and we had a little glitch trying to get some extra silverware, but it was eventually straightened out.
Again, you come here to sample a little bit of Quebec culture,and authentic cuisine. They still deliver on this, but the earlier courses were not great, and the restaurant seems on the verge of possibly becoming a victim of its own success, plus it's pretty expensive.
Also, I disagree that this is a good place to take kids. It's relatively expensive, with exotic cuisine, and the atmosphere is supposed to be quiet and cozy.
Overall still a good place for a little bit of old-time Quebec cuisine and atmosphere, but come early (make a reservation) for the $19.95 special[see other reviews for this], be prepared for a walk after dinner, have a beer with your meal and skip the wine, and leave the kids at home.
Wow! Aux Anciens Canadiens looks like an old-time french house, with exposed brick, country decorations, and fine china sitting on every wall. Extremely warm and inviting decor, definitely a place you would go with someone special and probably not somewhere you'd want to have a standard business dinner.
The wonderful thing about Quebec city is you have access to food and wine like Paris, but you don't have to experience all the bad parts of Paris. The city is clean. Traffic is not a problem. Natives are happy to speak in English (and they have English menus too!) I used my time here to sample the french cuisine and see how it varies from the french chefs in Manhattan.
For starters I went with the Escargot, baked and served on top of mushrooms. I had never had them on mushrooms before so this was a welcomed variation... the texture was a great complement to the snails. Soaking up the buttery-garlic goodness with bread afterwards was fun as always!
For the main course I went with the meat pie. Prepared from 5 different meats and book-ended by a very light buttery crust, this pie was hearty enough to warm the soul on a cold Quebec day. The dinner portion is also served with a side of pheasant and bison casserole. So it's meat-flavor extreme!
Before I start my review I want to at least give the one good, nay great thing about our meal: the apple cheese cake with our creamy caramel sauce (made in house) is truly 5 stars and amazing. Go for the atmosphere and dessert and go elsewhere for dinner.
review:
Would have given 1 star if not for the above mentioned desert.
It was December, 2009 and the snow had come in and dropped a good 18" on the city. Windchill factor to -30 degrees C. The Old City was ours as few ventured out. We walked from our hotel and we heard Christmas music on the deserted street. It was lovely.
As we got closer to the source we found the Aux Anciens Canadiens, a restaurant that I had eaten at years before and that we had recently read a number reviews of (including the review in the Michelin guide).
We knew it to be expensive (I never deduct points for expense), but we were on vacation and ready to splurge.
The staff was great. We were seated right away. They offered to take our coats. And every course was timely.
We each got a "complete meal", which included an appetizer, soup, entree and desert.
We both got the Quebec meat pie which was fine, Nothing special maybe 3 stars but it had been heated up by microwave instead of oven - yuck.
Then French onion soup with no onions & cold pea soup Grand-mère which my wife said was decent.
Main Course:
caribou cooked with a creamy blueberry wine sauce which was just an awful stew with overdone and tough meat & grilled stag, bison and wapiti tenderloin, cognac and pink pepper sauce which although perfectly cooked was wanting in the taste department. Both meals were served with a little carrot mush that was in the shape of the little plastic shot glass cup it was formed in. Not very appetizing.
Dessert:
chocolate fudge pie with fresh cream and raspberry sauce which was hard as a rock and my 5-star apple cheese cake with our creamy caramel sauce.
Wow, previous review was right. The meal is likely one of the heaviest that I have had in quite a while. Especially deceivingly when you have 4 courses that each don't seem overwhelming.
Overall, the food was good, not great. The Trappers Meal that I had included a casserole, a sweet and tasty apple side dish and then bison and pheasant meat in a light brown gravy. Meat in this was a bit dry, but the gravy was good. The casserole was above average with an inedible crust.
Escargot were excellent and the onion soup were very good. The maple pie is quite good, but the presentation was pretty poor as it just kind of was dropped onto the plate.
A bit on the expensive side overall, but an interesting touristy meal in Quebec City. Won't go back, but glad I stopped in once.
I love this restaurant. We make it a point to eat here whenever we're in town.
Their food is fresh, clean and delicious. The menu is inventive.
Some of the most delectable vegetable stew I've ever had anywhere. Service is competent and warm. Non-pretentious.
Wonderful desserts. Homey atmosphere.
Simple, home-cooked, hearty food, in a restaurant lodged in a quaint red-and-white cottage. Waitresses dressed in old-fashioned maid costumes make you think at first that it is a tourist trap (which it might still be, considering that it is located in a pretty tourist-heavy area), but the staff is really friendly and seem to really enjoy what they're doing.
I wish I could say better things about the food, but honestly for me it was just okay. The soup du jour - Tomato and zucchini was ordinary and my salad was creamy and flavourless. My friend really enjoyed her french onion soup and pot of baked beans though - she kept raving about it for the rest of our vacation!
One of our French friends told us this is a restaurant we must try while in Quebec City. This is the place to sample New France's earliest cuisine, Quebecois recipes are cooked here very well. Meaning that there were lots of gamey meat and maple syrup. We dined here for lunch and ordered off of their prix fix menu. (soup, a main course, dessert, and a glass of wine or beer for C$17) I had caribou meatballs w/gravy for the entree and it was very filling and the portion was large. The hubby had the caribou minced meat pie. For desert I had their maple pie with homemade whip cream. This pie was, well, sugary, too sweet for me (and I like sweets). The upside down berry dessert that my husband order was much better and not too sweet. I'd recommend this dessert.
The restaurant was crowded when we arrived and the employees never acknowledge us until we were able to get to the front desk. Once we were at the desk, they didn't make eye contact with us until they were ready. (They walked by several times and ignored us.) I think this is a cultural thing though. So don't be discouraged. Once we were seated, the staff were helpful and friendly.
Yes, this place is a bit touristy but everyone recommends it. If you want to try some unique cuisine, this is your place. If you only eat chicken, then this is not for you!
I was leery of eating here because I thought it might be a tourist trap. You know - the oldest house in Quebec (era 1600's) reinforced by prominent advertisements in tourist booklets. But, I'm so glad we went! It was really special.
The interior is impressive - the rooms are homey and cozy. We ate in a room with 5 seating areas and shared a long banquette with two other tables. At times it felt like we were too close to our neighbors, three men at a business dinner, whose awkward socializing and wandering eyes were more noticeable in the small room.
But the food was delicious and unique. Specialties include game. I had caribou cooked with a creamy blueberry wine sauce, served in a pastry shell, similar to Beef Bourguignon, but oh, so much better! My dining partner had the peasant with smoked bison and oyster mushrooms, which was equally delicious. If you like to try new things and don't regularly dine on game, there are plenty of choices. It is very pricey - main courses ranged from $28-38 CAD.
Service was friendly and efficient - our water glasses were never empty and our waitress let us know when items were on the way. I'm a sucker for waitresses who say, "Ah, excellent choice" after I order, because everything is a competition, right? This waitress made me feel like a winner.
Avoid the awkward situation that we faced when we were trying to figure out which building to enter. We entered a door to the left of the Anciens Canadiens, which was manned by an aggressive host, looking to fill tables. We were seated and presented with full water glasses, a menu, and a waiter in a manner of seconds. With horror we realized we were looking at a menu of routine Italian food. We swallowed our pride and walked out, excusing ourselves for having entered the wrong door. We said we'd be back another day, but truthfully, when that day occurs, we'll go back to the Anciens Canadiens!
After reading various travel guides, this place was on the top of my list for restaurants to try in Quebec. I wanted to try some food with traditional area character. Restaurant Aux Anciens Canadiens did not disappoint. I sampled some tasty dishes made with games meats usually not found on other menus. The dishes were hearty, well prepared and tasty. I enjoyed my caribou in it's sauce/gravy.
The place is not fancy, it's somewhat dark inside but charming. I understand the restaurant is in one of the oldest surviving buildings in Quebec. Service was good. Prices very reasonable. On our 2nd visit we tried the fixed price menu, this 3 course was a fine meal deal. Maple pie was delicious.
Great FOOD, Great Atmosphere! the really OLD Stuff taht French Canadiens used to eat!
We went for the $20 table d'hote which ends at 5:45. Included were beer or wine, soup of the day, main and dessert.
Had the red wine, which was surprisingly good. Soup of the day was potato leek which I also enjoyed.
For the main I had the Wild Meat Pie (comes with bore, elk, bison...) and my boyfriend had the veal. I thought the meat pie was pretty good, he liked it better than his veal. I thought his veal was good too though. Portions were reasonable as well, although not huge. Food was not wow, was ok.
For dessert we both had the maple sugar pie. I liked it as well.
Overall, we couldn't have gotten more for $20. I'm glad to have seen the inside of the house and have had "authentic" food, although I can't guarantee that it is :) It was also reeeally busy, as a couple we were lucky to get a table at 5:40 because of the $20 special.
We ate dinner at this restaurant six years ago and it was very romantic & charming. The building is from the 17th century and the restaurant is very historic. The meal was delicious, the service was terrific and we had their specialty dessert (maple syrup pie).
The prices were a bit high and the dining rooms a bit crowded, but the food and the service were both excellent. I had the pheasant on cheddar with smoked bison, and loved it. The mushrooms were especially good. My son had the maple syrup pie for dessert and he was in heaven.
In attempting to devour as much local game meat as possible during my stay in Québec, Aux Anciens Canadiens with the first place on my to-try list in Québec City. It is on the very touristy rue Saint-Louis in Vieux-Québec (Haute-Ville) and is housed in one of the oldest buildings in the city, built in about 1675. The restaurant specializes in traditional Québec cuisine in an old-fashioned colonial atmosphere.
We made reservations, but it turned out to probably not have been necessary on the night that we went. We were seated upstairs; luckily the tables immediately next to us were not occupied or we would have felt rather crowded. The decor is somewhat kitchy, the waitresses were all dressed in costume, the atmosphere is very casual, and most of the clientele appeared to be tourists. We started out with a cocktail of cloudberry juice, vodka, and spruce beer, which was quite good. We got their version of a table d'hôte, which allows you to select an appetizer, soup, main course, and dessert; the price varies based on your choice of dishes. For our appetizers, Vince got the warm goat cheese salad with maple vinaigrette and I got the bison tartare. Both were pretty tasty, especially Vince's salad. The goat cheese was actually bruléed with the maple syrup, and maple worked surprisingly well as a salad dressing. Next up was soup; Vince got the lobster bisque, which was pretty good, and I got the soup of the day, which turned out to be a very boring plain vegetable soup. For our main courses, Vince got the "trois mignons" of stag, bison, and wapiti, and I got the wild caribou filet. First off, I have to say that their portions were HUGE. In addition, for once someone actually took me seriously when I ordered my meat rare, and this was one of those rare occasions where it was actually TOO rare, so I didn't enjoy my meat as much as I should have. Everything was also covered with some sort of sauce or gravy, which I'm not too into, but that's just part of the style of food they serve here. We inquired about being able to box up the food we couldn't finish, but apparently you need some sort of takeout permit in order to do that, so we had to do our best to try and make more progress on our meat. Eventually we gave up and moved on to dessert. Vince got the maple syrup pie with cream, and I got maple sugar on toast with milk. These were both very good. We got some ice cider and eau de vie (fine sève) - I really enjoyed the fine sève. As we were drinking our coffee, the waitress also brought by a complimentary drink of cranberry juice and vodka.
Overall, I expected better, especially for the price (despite the huge portions). The "traditional" atmosphere was charming to some extent, but it was almost too over the top to be enjoyable. The food was good, but not the best I had in Québec City. I actually had much better caribou elsewhere, and ate at at least 3 better restaurants in the city. Still, I'm glad we tried it, and it really does have all that you might hope to find of traditional Québécoise cuisine in one place, game meat and maple syrup and all. I give it 3.5 stars.
