The relatively short ferry ride from the picturesque town of Levis across the river took only ten minutes...
It had been a super long day of driving from Ottawa and passing through various cities, stopping by for lunch at Le Belle Province for the de rigeur lunch of smoked meat sandwiches and poutine. We had a brief respite at NM's place in Levis (a blogfriend of C's) where we trekked in 90 degree heat to get the best ice cream we've ever had...
The weather was still quite balmy but not as uncomfortably hot as it would have been in the daytime. We were on the lookout for a restaurant that NM recommended...
We didn't realize there were TWOCochon Dingue restaurants. The first one we saw "Le Petit Cochon Dinue" which was conveniently located on the boulevard Champlain, one of the main roads in Vieux Quebec. So, we saw this store front which didn't seem to be open...
Next to the Le Petit Cochon Dingue (which means "little crazy pig" in French), we saw another outpost of Queue de Castor, aka Beaver Tails!!! We enjoyed those pastries at the Byward Market in Ottawa as well as in Tobermory a few years before.
C remember that her friend told her, "It's the restaurant with the pig on the sign". And what do you know, right next to the Beaver Tail pastry place was the place we were looking for, Le Cochon Dingue (sans the diminutive in the title). Gold pigs everywhere!
Apparently this place is popular not just with tourists like us, but with the locals. The place was busy but not as packed as it was when we left later that evening. We were so hungry after our long day! This would turn out to be one of our best meals during our vacation.
You may see their whole menu here:
Everyone made their selections. I ended up getting a few things a la carte. C noted that their seafood came from local waters. The lobster salad roll I had (which is not listed on the page below) came from Gaspe, a town at the eastern end of Quebec, near the Gaspe peninsula. They are known for their fresh seafood. C's seafood pot pie, which she emphatically declared as her "death meal" came from the Magdalen Islands, a small archipelago in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. The islands, while part of Quebec, are close to Prince Edward Island and Novia Scotia.
TC's mango smoothie and Bert's Boreale Noir...
The beer was brewed by Brasseurs du Nord Inc, from Quebec. The Noire was their English stout.
FarmerJohn didn't care for this too much but Bert and I enjoyed the coffee and chocolate flavors of this stout.
C's daughter's appetizer - bacon wrapped sausages...
Someone's Caesar salad. Ha ha, well I know it wasn't mine. Keep in mind that this dinner was nearly one year go! Yeah, bacon!
Now THIS I remember, because it was mine, the Crab Cakes with Harissa sauce and a side salad.
I really liked the spicy sauce...
C's daughter's spaghetti and C's "death meal", the Seafood Pot Pie...
Her pot pie was so delicious - it was filled with lobster, shrimps, scallops, and diced potatoes in a rich creamy saucewith a flaky puff pastry crust. I was fortunate enough to try a bite of it and wow, if I were a cow and had four stomachs, I would have ordered that too!
LO's spaghetti with meat sauce. I just love the pig plate on which it was served!
Here is part two of my dinner - the Lobster Roll, filled with Gaspe (pronounced 'gass-pay') lobster with coleslaw and fries.
TC's Caesar salad and Maple Smoked Ribs (half rack) with harissa sauce.
FarmerJohn's Steak Frites with house sauce served with shoestring fries and mayo.
Bert's Grilled Pork Tenderloin "Du breton" kebabs with mustard and maple sauce, served with rice and vegetables, which he greatly enjoyed! The sauce was very flavorful.
A closer look at my Lobster Roll which was chock full of succulent pieces of lobster meat, creamy sauce and bits of celery (for a refreshing crunch). I liked that the portion was perfectly sized. It wasn't gluttony-sized huge or super tiny. It was one of the best sandwiches I ever had.
After all that food, you'd think we'd have no room for dessert but we did! This was FarmerJohn's creme brulee. Anytime it is on a menu, according to C, he feels compelled to have it! C and her family shared this dessert.
This was our Sugar Pie with thick vanilla cream...
OMG - I must have this again one day!
Service was really good here considering how busy and crowded it got later on. It was a bit cramped in there, but the folks working here were really nice and accomodating. They also spoke English very well. Way better than my French, that's for sure. I'm sure the workers encounter people from all over the world here since the restaurant is in a prime location. I'm in awe of people who are bi-lingual or even tri-lingual, a very useful skill.
Le Cochon Dingue
24 boul. Champlain
Quebec, QC G1K 4H5
(418) 692-2013
www.cochondingue.com (you can click on a buttom to translate to English)
Plus the yelp reviews and Virtual Tourist
Plus a link to C's post on some of the awesome food we had in Canada (includes Manitoulin Style Poke, beaver tails - the pastry, not the real thing, Montreal style bagels, a preview of our smoked meat sandwich from Schwartz's and the Tourtiere that she and I made for our last dinner on the Island). If the photos seem familiar, it's because they're mine!
We wanted to walk off the calories for a short bit before heading back to the ferry...
2 comments:
My High School class trip! Stayed a few blocks from Chateau Frontenac and I have photos of it- with snow. Le Cochon Dinque was not there yet, but so much of that city holds great memories. Thank you for this.
hi cathy - wow, what a neat trip for you and your classmates! with snow too!!!!
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