Restaurant Champlain (Château Frontenac)

Daniel

4.0

We visited with a group of 11 to celebrate a special 80th birthday as well as other joint 50th birthdays. The whole experience was incredible with an amazing location & the staff & waiters were very friendly, charming & welcoming.
We mostly ordered the 4 course taster menu with some ordering individual dishes.
The food was incredible as you would expect from this level of restaurant. The wine pairing was also perfect with great wines from unexpected countries like Greece & Croatia.
The reason for my rating of 3 for the service is due to a few mistakes in our order. We were offered great flexibility with the choices of the taster menu, which was great as some of our group were not keen on some of the standard dishes like the Veal Tartare. When the first course arrived, three of the dishes that should have been the alternative to the Veal were served the Veal, which meant they had to be replaced straight away.
One of our group was also served the dishes from the 6 course vegetarian taster menu, when the order was also the 4 course.
The overall timing of the service was also extremely slow. Altogether, the service took 3 & a half hours, with breaks of around 30-40 minutes between each course, which is extremely long for taster dishes that are relatively small.
I only later found out that this is a Michelin star restaurant, which is mainly the reason for my review, as I would not expect various mistakes in the order & the long waiting from a Michelin star restaurant.

Melissa

3.0

In summary: Waitstaff & atmosphere is excellent, Food & food timing was disappointing..especially for the price paid.

The hostess was not incredibly welcoming & when we asked for the cellar experience she completely dismissed us. Upon being shown to our table we asked again about the cellar experience & the other girl explained they no longer offer that service (which is fine, just that we saw it on their website). We were sat in a window seat which was a beautiful view of the river. The atmosphere was so intricate & beautiful. Our waiter was very prompt & cheerful as he spoke with us. He offered suggestions when asked & was knowledgeable about the wine & food. We opted for the 6 course tasting menu. I do not eat pork & the waiter noted that for the kitchen. Unfortunately my lamb course did come with bacon still which is one of the reasons I am marking food as a three star. The first three dishes came out in a timely manner, however, the final three took 30 minutes each to come out. From beginning to end 6 courses took 2.5 hours to come out which seems incredibly long.

Ariane

5.0

Le Champlain offers an elegant dining experience that beautifully combines fine cuisine with impeccable service & a stunning atmosphere. Located in the iconic Château Frontenac, the ambiance is nothing short of magical-perfect for a special occasion or a memorable evening. The staff are outstanding: attentive, knowledgeable, & genuinely committed to making your meal unforgettable. The atmosphere is warm & sophisticated, earning a perfect 5 stars for its charm & attention to detail. As for the food, it's a solid 4 stars. While the dishes are beautifully presented & made with high-quality ingredients, some lacked the "wow" factor you might expect at this level. Still, everything was very enjoyable, & the overall experience more than makes up for any minor shortcomings. Le Champlain is definitely worth a visit if you're in Québec City. The setting & service alone make it a standout destination!

Cake

2.0

My overall rating for my experience at this establishment is a 6/10 for the following reasons. Despite very friendly & enthusiastic staff the food was terribly underwhelming (except for the cheese which was amazing) My family & I have dined in the bar (which was superb) & the poolside terrace (which was great) but after a 4 hour long "discovery" tasting menu we left feeling more confused than accomplished. Your server will ask if you have any food allergies & offer to substitute between the meat experience (halibut, elk & veal) & the vegetarian experience (asparagus, bok choy in heavy vegetable sauce,& veggie pasta) however none of us were aware all entrees would be served room temperate or COLDER, with the fish arriving ice cold, the veal ruby red on the inside & the elk refrigerator cold. I know Canadian restaurants don't usually serve piping hot meals like in the states but other restaurants let you know in advance & let you have some choice in how your food is cooked. I feel like options were limited for the price & we didn't get our value for the price of 134 per person for four courses. Perhaps this is the norm for a tasting experience where you get what you are server eat & don't complain unless you really hate it but sadly we didn't like ANYTHING except the cheese & its too rude to return 4 dishes especially when you know everyone worked hard but we failed to see the big picture.

Stephanie

4.0

Came here for our 5th anniversary. We got the expanded tasting menu that had a mix of seafood, berries, meat, & of course maple syrup. We got to try interesting wines alongside the dishes. Staff was very friendly & understanding of my broken French. We had a lovely view of the St. Lawrence River. Great ambience. If only we had rooms at the Frontenac where the restaurant is located so we could just walk up after. Not sure if valet parking is mandatory but that was our only option. It is an expensive experience so highly recommend going here for a special occasion.

M

5.0

Great environment for a dinner. We had a seat overlooking the st Lawrence river. Our waiter was very friendly & informative. The set menu contained dishes we would have never ordered but enjoyed. The wine pairing is a must. 4/5 wines that I had were fantastic. This is an expensive dinner. We spent $700 as a couple. Not something we could do on a regular basis but the experience was worth every penny.

Christopher

2.0

We had a group dinner here -- the tasting menu -- & everyone left hungry. While the room is quite charming, the wine list is grossly overpriced & the expectation seems to be that patrons will fill up on bread & dessert & not on proteins or the featured dishes. Hugely expensive & not worth it.

Alisha

5.0

We chose to head to this restaurant knowing it would be pricey & wanting to enjoy our anniversary in a special location. Other than being challenging to find within this historic hotel, this restaurant offered outstanding service, a unique, memorable & tasty set menu, & a unique & delicate atmosphere. Here you are truly treated to unique cuisine & innovative dishes designed to ignite ideas - we enjoyed the set menu though the crème brûlée dessert was not to our tastes