Chez Boulay - Bistro boréal

Jamal

5.0

The food & service were both excellent. We had the Cheese plate as an appetizer, the selection was excellent. The beef cheek was melt in your mouth, the flat iron steak was excellent & the Halibut was something else the flavours were amazing. We had the crème brûlée & the cheesecake both of which had their own twists & were exceptional. I'd give this 6 stars if I could.

Robyn

2.0

We are visiting Quebec City & so looked forward to our experience at Chez Boulay as we are staying at the Hotel Manoir Victoria. I was treating my travel companion to dinner as a thank you for planning our trip. My pre-dinner gin & tonic was flat, but I opted to not give feedback or ask for a replacement. We asked for the wine list (twice), but the wine wasn't served until after our entrees. My friend ordered the braised beef cheek & I ordered the flat iron steak. The beef cheek was dry, tough & well below warm, & very difficult to cut with a steak knife. My flat iron steak was tough & cold, as was the sauce. We decided to let the server know & my friend was served a bowl of the garlic confit mashed potatoes as a replacement (something she had requested with her beef cheek but was told they couldn't accommodate substitutions), but it was appreciated. We said no thank you to dessert, but they gifted a dessert anyway which was kind.

The service was very slow overall, but after we gave feedback on the meals service completely disappeared. They did remove the beef cheek from from the bill. The wine & fries were the very best part of the meal. Based on previous reviews, I feel we went on a bad night, but unfortunately, we can't try again as we are returning home tomorrow.

Zach

5.0

I had the venison pate en croute & duck breast: both were very good. My wife loved the onion soup & beef cheek. Atmosphere was great, & we were seated right away with a reservation.

Tam

2.0

Clearly overrated.

We were seated at the chef's table, which, in my opinion, is one of the best seats in the restaurant. It set a high expectation for the meal, but unfortunately, what followed did not live up to it. We ordered the pan-seared foie gras, deer plate, & onion soup as appetizers, followed by the duck breast, beef, halibut, & carbonara as mains, with scallops on the side.

To be fair, some of it may come down to personal preference. We did not particularly enjoy the sourdough bread or the deer plate, but I can see how others might feel differently.

The onion soup was the clear highlight of the meal &, honestly, the only dish we genuinely enjoyed.

The pan-seared foie gras was disappointing. It did not feel properly seared & came across as overly oily, leaving a greasy aftertaste.

The carbonara was the biggest letdown. The pasta itself seemed freshly made, which should have been a positive, but a clump of stuck-together dough made its way into the dish & ended up in my mouth. That was very unpleasant.

The duck breast was quite chewy, & the fried cornflower (?) on the side did not leave much of an impression. The beef was acceptable, but nothing memorable. The scallops were also underwhelming & lacked flavour. Halibut was standard.

Surprisingly, the fried potato wedges were probably one of the better items: nicely fried, hot, & well served.

Overall, aside from the onion soup & potato wedges, the meal was disappointing & did not live up to the restaurant's reputation.

Juan

5.0

The restaurant Chez Boulay was a wonderful experience.
During my stay in Quebec, I wasn't specifically looking for restaurants like this, so discovering it was a great surprise. This is not your typical diner - it's a true restaurant where the product is treated with care, & where the knowledge & technique in the kitchen are evident.
I had the onion soup & the beef cheeks. The onion soup is very original, presented like a coffee, with the bread & cheese on the side resembling toast. Beyond the presentation, the flavor is excellent. The beef cheeks, on the other hand, are rich, well-balanced, & full of depth.
What truly completes the experience is the service. I'd especially like to highlight Florian, the waiter who served me, for his attentive, friendly, & highly professional approach. When the food is already outstanding, this level of service elevates everything even further.
A highly recommended restaurant for anyone looking to enjoy a genuine fine dining experience.

Eric

5.0

Really good food, excellent service

The cocktail was delicious & its mocktail version was also very good- a good balance of flavours that extended the Apple

The Duck, Beef cheek, & the flat iron steak were cooked appropriately to allow the flavours & textures to express themselves , the sauces for all three dishes was delicious

Without a doubt I will be back

Thank you for such good food & service

Peter

5.0

Delicious food! The beef cheek was tender & the sauce was so good! Also enjoyed the foie gras & the seal meatloaf. Highly recommend for high quality food at a reasonable price!

C

5.0

Lovely restaurant with excellent menu, I had the special that night, which was a venison dish & my husband had the beef cheeks both were delicious meals

Paul

4.0

Overall, a memorable dining experience but with some flaws. Beginning from the door & host desk: a very friendly greeting & all the more so as I bone-headedly mixed up my own reservation date of March 14 & we were a day early. Given it was a later seating time, they graciously accomodated us with a table for 3, for which I commend them! Service staff are young, energetic, fluently bilingual, & very knowledgeable about the varied menu - a bonus given that exotic boreal dishes benefit from some explanation & help. We ordered two cocktails & a bottle of white wine. An apple cider rum concoction that my 25 year old son loved. My martini was superbly mixed, but the olives were small, pitted, & under-ripe. Get better martini olives & it goes from a'3' to a'5'! The wine took almost 10 minutes to arrive after the cocktails because they were out of the chardonnay we ordered. The wine manager needs to communicate stock-outs to the staff else customers & table servers will be disappointed. We were. On to starters: we spilt two between us - the smoked whitefish & a medly of exotic mushrooms. Both dishes were exceptional. The bold & smoky fish was beautifully balanced by the accompanying puree. The mushrooms mixed textures - some crispy browned, others more gently seared & tender. Amazing! Mains: son planned to go conservative with flat iron steak but our server backed his decision to try braised beef cheek. It was spectacular & a nice experience to try a less-common cut of beef. I ordered the duck breast & was disappointed. The cook was a perfect medium rare but the meat itself was impossibly tough & chewy. I noted raw bits of blubbery, unrendered fat under the skin which tells me they seared the duck in a hot pan vs. starting cold & raising the heat to render the fat before crisping/colouring the skin. This will unavoidably tighten the meat, even more so if the resting period is rushed. Duck breast is wickedly technical to prepare, but I very much looked forward to a Michelin-level treatment & was sadly disappointed. Suggested wine pairings from our server (a different red for each of the mains) were spot-on! Son doesn't care for red wine generally but became a convert on this one. I actually forget the dessert we shared, because it was so delicious, I entered a dessert-dream-state & became foggy on the details! Overall, a very memorable experience, which we'd happily repeat - perhaps ordering differently from the duck.

Grace

5.0

Honestly the best dining experience I've had in Quebec City. Not only were the the atmosphere & service top notch, the food & especially the duck was at the same level as the one I've had in Paris. The taste, presentation, & how everything came together harmoniously really shows the mastery of their duck handling & gastronomy. My husband really liked the slow cooked & dry aged beef cheek. I think they deserve the Michelin Guide! You won't regret this one.