Best dining bets for Quebec City

Best Spot for a Romantic Dinner: Stars above, tables illuminated by the flicker of candlelight, unobtrusive service, and even the name, Le Saint-Amour, 48 rue Ste-Ursule (tel. 418/694-0667), bespeak romance.

Best View: Revolving rooftop restaurants rarely dish out food as elevated as their lofty venues. L'Astral in the Loews Le Concorde hotel, 1225 cours du Généralde Montcalm (tel. 418/647-2222), is an exception. The food here is above average and the cost is entirely reasonable.

Best Bistro: In a city that specializes in the informal bistro tradition, L'Echaudé, 73 rue Sault-au-Matelot, near rue St-Paul (tel. 418/692-1299), is a star. Classic dishes are all in place, from confit de canard to steak frites. The dining terrace is on a pedestrian-only street.

Best New Restaurant: Amid the cluster of innovative new restaurants that have blessed the city in the past couple of years, Utopie, 226 rue St-Joseph, near rue Caron (tel. 418/523-7878), is a standout, the one most likely to equal the current champs .

Best Restaurant: Laurie Raphaël, 117 rue Dalhousie (tel. 418/692-4555), has been the sole occupier of the apex of the local pyramid, and just completed a total physical overhaul. However, Initiale, 54 rue St-Pierre, at Côte de la Montagne (tel. 418/694-1818), can no longer be denied equal status. Visitors can have the best meals of their lives at these stellar restaurants.

Best Rockin' Hot Spot with Good Food: You don't have to be young, gorgeous, and hip to get into the Voodoo Grill, 575 Grande-Allée est (tel. 418/647-2000), but there seems to be a lot of self-selection going on. As part of a complex that includes two bars and the Maurice disco, the noise level is brutal and the pace frantic, making the surprisingly good food all the more remarkable.

Best Seafood: The owner of Le Marie-Clarisse, 12 rue du Petit-Champlain (tel. 418/692-0857), selects all the just-off-the-boat seafood served at his comfortable bistro at the bottom of Breakneck Stairs. There's a fireplace inside and a terrace outside.

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Best Sugar Pie: Québec's favorite dessert reaches its apogee at Aux Anciens Canadiens, 34 rue St-Louis (tel. 418/692-1627). Think smooth maple sugar with a crust, at the ideal end of a traditional meal.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCBP leaders cut out of Trump ad buy decision

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

Best People-Watching: The few outdoor tables at Le Marie-Clarisse -- perched above the main pedestrian intersection of Quartier du Petit-Champlain -- monopolize an unsurpassed observation point.

Best Place to Take a Teenager: Pizza-sized crepes packed with meats, eggs, peppers, cheese, or, for dessert, jams or fruit are made before your eyes at Le Casse-Crêpe Breton, 1136 rue St-Jean (tel. 418/692-0438), and it's open just about anytime your teenager gets hungry.

For a complete listing of Frommer's-reviewed restaurants, visit our online dining index.

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