A Quick Visit to Quebec City

Chateau Frontenac has over 600 rooms

We woke up early for a 6am start to drive from Montreal to Quebec City. It was pretty smooth getting there in just under three hours and we arrived at the Fairmont Chateau Frontenac, the iconic hotel in old Quebec.

Looking for the washroom in the basement, we looked at some great exhibits showing the history of the place.

Remnants of the original fort

The hotel is located on a hill, and in 1620 is was the former site of Fort Saint-Louis, and over the decades expanded as the number of people settling there increased.

And yes the hotel is named after Louis de Buade de Frontenac, who was a governor of Quebec from 1689 to 1698.

In the 19th century, as people began traveling, tourism to eastern Canada ramped up, as tourists could reach Quebec City by transatlantic ships and then train. As a result, in 1882, the Canadian Pacific Railway Company established Chateau Frontenac, a luxury hotel.

By 1919 the hotel was so successful that the Canadian Pacific Railway Co. doubled Chateau Frontenac's capacity so that it had over 600 rooms. 

The hotel still retains its old school charm

There are also other interesting bits of information, like how in the early 17th century, porcelain china from China was highly prized by royalty and the aristocracy for its translucency, but it was very expensive.

As a result, many aristocrats, including Governor de Frontenac, turned to ceramics from Delft the Netherlands, which was cheaper to purchase, though not as refined as Chinese porcelain. 

Another fascinating story is that in 1939, on the eve of World War II, King George VII and Queen Elizabeth had a royal tour of Canada and hosted a banquet at Chateau Frontenac. For the occasion, the hotel ordered a special porcelain design that was produced in Limoges, France.

The interior of the hotel, like the cascading symmetrical staircase continues to command grandeur, and one can only imagine what it was like back in the 19th century!

Our breakfast which took an infuriating long time

Outside the hotel is a panoramic view overlooking the St. Lawrence River.

Afterwards we looked for a place to have a late breakfast and settled on a cafe that operated at a snail's pace -- it took us 40 minutes from the time we sat down to when we finally got our three breakfast orders on the table -- after we complained.

The best the staff could do was offer us more coffee... we couldn't accept because it was pathetic compensation and also our parking meter was almost up (which was why we were in such a rush). We paid our bill as soon as the food finally came.

After driving the car around and around for another spot, we finally parked it at the bottom of the hill in a parkade and wandered around some more. We stumbled on a massive mural in trompe-l'oeil style that shows the history of Quebec.

A fun mural depicting the history of Quebec

There are some historical figures commemorated in the mural, like Jacques Cartier, Samuel de Champlain, Governor de Frontenac, and they are intermingled with kids playing street hockey with large jerseys, and a woman pushing a stroller with a child holding a teddy bear.

We also saw some public art, some cartoonish statues that had names and back stories in French. One seemed to be giving me the side eye.

However, not long after, it started to rain and not carrying umbrellas or rain gear, we decided to head back to the car park. It's a good thing we did because by the time we got to the car, it was pouring rain and hailing!

This guy gave me the side eye!

We decided to cut short our visit to Quebec City and drive back to Montreal! The first hour or so it continued to rain really hard, but then the precipitation stopped and we drove into sunshine as we approached Montreal and snarling traffic...

What an adventure!

Peameal Bacon is an Ontario Thing

Slices of fried peameal back bacon for breakfast today

Yesterday when we were wandering around St Lawrence Market, we were surprised to see in the butcher section something called "peameal bacon". 

I had never heard of it before, but it is basically wet-cured back bacon covered in cornmeal, and is usually done in Ontario.

Peameal bacon with fried eggs and potatoes

Historically in England back in the 1700s, boneless pork loin was trimmed and cured before it was rolled in dried and ground yellow peas to extend the meat's shelf life. Since the end of World War I, the pork loin has been rolled in cornmeal.

We were curious enough to try it this morning for breakfast. I had it with three small eggs over easy with potatoes and rye toast.

The slices of peameal bacon had the cornmeal on the edge and was fried to give it a slight crunch. The back bacon itself is salty, but tender, thanks to the wet brine.

Now we know!

Two Completely Different Breakfasts

The Cairo Classic breakfast features fava beans, egg and falafel

In the past few days I've had two different brunches in Greater Toronto Area (GTA) that reflect the region's diversity.

The other day I visited a family friend in Pickering, about a 40-minute GO Train ride east from Union Station. There we went to Perkins Restaurant and Bakery, which serves all-day breakfasts, sandwiches and for dessert a variety of pies.

The "Magnificent Seven" breakfast at Perkins

I tried the "Magnificent Seven", consisting of two eggs over easy, two sausages, and three pancakes (C$10.95), seven items of food! 

One of the eggs was sadly broken when it arrived at the table, the grilled sausages nothing special, though the large round pancakes were fluffy. I could manage to eat two and ate two bites of the third before I felt a food coma coming on.

The breakfast was straightforward and somewhat comforting, though predictable.

Then yesterday I had probably my most exotic brunch yet -- Egyptian -- at Maha's Cafe in Toronto. It was about a 20-minute walk from my friend's place. She told me on the weekends there is a queue that goes down the length of the block and so she assumed there wouldn't be a line on a Monday.

A side of hummus at Maha's Cafe

However, when we got there, there were five groups of people already waiting in the queue around 11.30am. Luckily the line went quickly, and after about a 15-minute wait we were seated inside an eclectic-looking cozy place with simple couches lined with cushions, a wall covered with various currencies from the Middle East, Hong Kong, China, and India, the Egyptian flag on the window, and plants around the dining room.

I ordered the Cairo Classic (C$22), which is a breakfast found on every street corner of the Egyptian capital, according to the menu description. The staple is fava beans that are cooked with different ingredients. The fava beans at Maha's Cafe are stewed with tomatoes and onions, and comes with a boiled egg that is sliced, a sesame covered falafel that was surprisingly soft, and some pillowy warm balady bread, a kind of brown pita, and a small dollop of creamy tomato feta with a squirt of olive oil.

Limonata made with limes

Even though the fava beans aren't something I usually eat, they felt comforting and flavourful, and I mopped every last bit with the balady bread. This breakfast also came with a small cup of pickled onions, cucumbers and tomatoes. 

At the spur of the moment we also ordered some hummus (C$8) that wasn't blended ultra smooth like some places -- here there was a chunky texture and lots of garlic and some small whole chickpeas too. It came with more pita bread.

My friend ordered a honey cardamon latte (C$6.95), while I had a glass of limonata (C$11), a thick concoction limes, water and mint. It could have been diluted a bit, but still very refreshing and not too tart.

How's that for two completely different brunches! 

Not sure Vancouver can top the exoticness of an Egyptian breakfast...

Perkins Restaurant and Bakery

1097 Kingston Road

Pickering, ON

905 492 1745

Maha's Cafe

226 Greenwood Avenue

Toronto, ON

416 462 2703

Palm Springs' Meal Deals

Olive Garden: Americanised Italian cuisine

Palm Springs used to be a fun place for seniors to eat, taking advantage of the early bird specials at various restaurants. But post-Covid those days are long gone... unless you are interested in eating dinner at 3pm and finish by 5pm at Pacifica in El Paseo, one of the glitziest shopping areas.

Nevertheless, we managed to find a few delicious deals. One was lunch at Olive Garden, where on weekdays they have the soup and salad and breadsticks deal for US$11.49 where you get unlimited servings of each. 

Fresh salads were the highlight at Olive Garden

My first bowl of soup was the pasta e fagioli, white and red beans, ground beef, fresh tomatoes and tubetti pasta. But then I made the rookie mistake of ordering the chicken and gnocchi, a creamy soup that filled me up quite quickly. I managed to squeeze in a third bowl of minestrone but was extremely full afterwards.

The unlimited salad is simple but very fresh, featuring chopped cabbage, slices of tomatoes, shredded carrots, black olives, pickled peppers, and chopped red onions in Italian dressing, while the breadsticks are more like pillowy soft wide sticks that are oily and sprinkled with salt.

Another weekday lunch deal is unlimited soup or salad with certain pasta dishes like shrimp scampi, chicken parmigiana, spaghetti or cheese ravioli for between US$12.49 or US$13.49, and the portions are just right.

Minestrone soup was choc full of vegetables

We also went to IHop for breakfast before heading to the airport. The menu looks like it offers a lot of dishes, but many are all combinations of eggs with either bacon or sausage, toast or pancakes. There's a section offering deals for 55+ diners, such as the 1x1x1 -- one egg, one sausage, one bacon and toast or pancakes. 

I had the 2 quick eggs -- two eggs, either sausage or bacon, hash browns and toast for about US$13. The eggs came perfectly cooked over easy, and a rectangular slab of hash browns that was decorated with two skinny (and fatty) slices of bacon, and two slices of wholewheat toast that were further sliced in half and buttered.

While IHop was good value, it was kind of sad to see the sign on the door explaining the hours had changed to Monday to Sunday, 6.30am until 3pm. When we went on a Sunday morning, the place was just over half full; it used to be bustling with customers, and sometimes we had to wait for a table.

IHop's 2 Quick Eggs breakfast

It seems Covid hit Palm Springs hard, and tourism is its biggest industry, other than healthcare services. Fewer tourists are coming, resulting in restaurants closing or downsizing, and the same with shops. Golf courses have noticeably fewer visiting golfers, which has resulted in fewer staff catering to them at the reception desk. Tee times need to be booked online instead of on the phone or in person.

Hard to say if the city will be bustling again... the people are still friendly, but out-of-town visitors are few and far between.

Vancouver Eats: Northern Cafe

My brunch pancake combo with over easy eggs and avocado

Northern Cafe is a hidden gem that I've been meaning to visit for over a year, but never made it out there, partly because I didn't have anyone to go with me, and also I wasn't sure how to get there.

This morning a new friend I met took me there, which is actually upstairs from a hardware store in an industrial area of Vancouver's south side.

You have to park just outside Gate 1, where there are signs leading to the nondescript cafe.

The entrance to the Northern Cafe upstairs

In early 2023 Northern Cafe had the distinction of being named the best place to dine in Canada according to restaurant review site Yelp. I have had other friends rave about the place so it's been a place I've been wanting to visit and I was not disappointed.

Walk up the rickety stairs and open the door into a small room with a condensed-looking diner, as booth seats are crammed together with very little space in between tables that seat between two to four people.

This morning we arrived at 11am and there were one or two tables free. Phew! Otherwise we'd have to stand and wait.

Northern Cafe opened in 1949 and mostly served people working in the area. In 2008, the Mah family took over the cafe; father Jimmy retired for two or three years after running restaurants around Vancouver and was bored so he bought the cafe 16 years ago. His sons help out, Raymond is the chef, and his brother Richard quit his corporate job in Japan to work at Northern Cafe.

The family is personable, as former Hongkonger Jimmy came by to chat with us in a mixture of Cantonese and English. It's no wonder that half the clientele are Cantonese-speaking. 

Old school diner vibe and friendly service

The menu is also very price-friendly with breakfast dishes starting at around C$14. My friend says the coffee's good too. I ordered the pancake combo, with two eggs over easy, instead of sausage or bacon I got half an avocado, and two fluffy buttermilk pancakes. My friend had two eggs over easy too, sausage, hash browns and wholewheat toast.

Her only complaint was the hash browns weren't crispy enough and the staff told her to request extra crispy next time. 

There are even some Chinese items on the menu like wonton soup and potstickers, both of which are homemade. I'll have to try that next time.

It's not really a place to linger, as there was a constant stream of customers coming in, but it's definitely a dining destination for those looking for a quirky place to eat.

Northern Cafe

1640 East Kent Avenue South

Vancouver, BC

+1 778 532 6240

Not-So-Greasy-Spoon Argo Cafe

Argo Cafe is a relaxed, friendly diner serving gourmet dishes

A good friend I hadn't seen in years took me to a hole-in-the-wall diner and the food was delicious!

It's called Argo Cafe, and it was started in 1954, and the current owners took over it in 2004. Chef Denis Larouche and his brother in law Kirby Wong are running it along with Larouche's wife Linda. Larouche and Linda Wong previously worked at the Four Seasons so they know a few things about cooking.

A hearty portion for the basic breakfast

Argo Cafe is only open for breakfast and lunch six days a week, and for a small place it offers a lot of dishes everyday. The menu changes daily, a dilemma that can keep Linda up late at night.

Nevertheless we came for breakfast and I had the Basic Breakfast, with two eggs, sausage or bacon, and white or brown toast. What really stood out for me was for a greasy spoon, it wasn't at all.

The eggs were over easy and hardly any excess oil. The same could be said for the hash browns, the diced potatoes were perfectly cooked with a slight crunch. Each piece was delicious and not over seasoned either.

I chose to have bacon and it was a bit on the dry side, but definitely crunchy and fatty. The dish also came with two slice of toast and a small cup of mixed fruit that included the sweetest wedges of peaches, blueberries, pomelo and watermelon.

Linda is a pastry chef and she prides herself on sourcing organic fruits for her pies so that the natural fruit flavours come through. After breakfast my friend and I lingered and eventually shared a slice of peach pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.

The pie filling is choc full of peaches!

The crust was topped with coarse sugar, but the peach filling wasn't cloying at all -- just choc full of sliced layers of peaches. So good.

Lunch items include duck confit, grilled ling cod, flat iron steak with fries, and sockeye salmon almandine. Gourmet food at very reasonable prices. Will be back!

Argo Cafe

1836 Ontario Street

Vancouver, BC

604 876 3620