Laurie Raphaël, Quebec City — Restaurant in Quebec

Title: Disappointing Experience with Unacceptable Treatment Rating: ★☆☆☆☆ (1/5) I’ve visited some of the best restaurants in the world, including Michelin-starred ones, but my recent experience at this restaurant left me utterly disappointed. It started with a simple reservation: a table online for 8:45 PM but I called ahead to request a table for my family of five. The manager was kind enough to arrange it for private room at 7:00 pm but things quickly went downhill from there. We were led to what felt more like a dark walk way from closet than walking past the kitchen and down a narrow hallway to a private/conference room. While we booked last Minuit, we accepted it as it was fine for our needs. We even had access to a small restroom near the office. Both the manager and the server were friendly, but that’s where the positive aspects of our experience ended. The truly upsetting part came when I tried to explore the main dining area of the restaurant. I wanted to walk through the space, see the main lounge, and take in the beauty of the surroundings. However, I was stopped by a hostess who, without any explanation, refused to allow me to see the restaurant and access to main toilet. She claimed she needed to ask her boss for permission before letting me see the main area or to walk way from my private room. After a delay, she came back with an answer: we could only visit the kitchen and dining space at a designated time, as if we were on some sort of tour. We arrived at 7:20 PM and didn’t leave until 11:30 PM. Throughout this time, the service was extremely slow, and my kids, as well as the rest of us, were exhausted. The private room we were in had no windows, no views, and absolutely no enjoyment to offer except the foods and drinks. It was a struggle to stay entertained. When my kids, beautifully dressed for the occasion, wanted to step out of the room for a quick look at the restaurant and take a photo, we were told no, and asked to bring our jackets, hats, and gloves when we exit we can look by window outside or we can we pass the main space of restaurant all our winter jackets with a sleeping little kids on arms . This was a firm decision from the management, and it was incredibly insulting. The way we were treated was not just disappointing, but outright discriminatory. This is the first time, in over 100 high-end dining experiences, including Michelin-starred restaurants, where we’ve been treated with such disrespect. The lack of kid-friendly options, while understandable, was just one small part of the issue; the bigger concern was the way we were made to feel unwelcome and unwanted. If this is the treatment you’re offering, then frankly, your restaurant is no better than any other. The food may be good, but the experience left me feeling insulted and belittled. And to make matters worse, I can’t help but feel that my family, as an Asian family, was discriminated against. Thankfully, we speak fluent French, but that should never be necessary in such an environment. We paid $1450 for a meal that ended in disappointment, and I regret ever choosing this place. I will not be returning, and I highly recommend reconsidering whether this is the kind of experience you want to offer...

Over the past few years, I've been avoiding 'tasting menu restaurants' more and more, and Laurie Raphael is Exhibit A as to why...enough to stimulate this unusually (for me) elaborate review. To start with the positives, the staff here is impeccably trained and well-mannered, and the room is quite interesting in its physical set-up. After that, it's all downhill, specifically:

Each course is a riot of ingredients and flavors ('too clever by half' is the phrase that comes to mind), such that your memory and your palate are left in a state of confusion as opposed to rewarding TASTE.

Relatedly, these are all 'microbites', and when the server asks 'how did you like it?', you're tempted to answer, 'Beats the heck out of me...I didn't get enough of any one thing to know!'. I've heard of this before, but never believed it would happen to me: on the way back to my room at the Frontenac, I actually stopped for a burger at that establishment's bistro.

The wine pairing was dismal, full of obscure and 'off-wines' nobody wants to drink...an Italian rose (!), an Alsatian pinot noir (!!), and even a maple-flavored beer as one of the 'wine pairings'. Further, the pours were likewise micro-sized. At these prices and portions (more on that in a moment), one would've thought the occasional 2009/10 Bordeaux Cru Classe, or Brunello, or top-flight CA chardonnay, or ANYTHING typically revered by the average wine drinker, would be appropriate.

For all of this, one will receive a bill in excess of $1,000 CAD for two! The only word that fits is WOW!!!

The previous night, my wife and I dined at a Quebec establishment called Chez Boulay. Here there were three courses, appetizer-entree-dessert, and each offering was substantial and infused with bold, clear and satisfying flavors that stayed with you. The contrast was stunning, and the bill less than $300 CAD for two.

Look, I don't begrudge anyone their tastes, if you're into this kind of thing, but to me, this is not 'dining', but rather 'chefs riffing'. It's like attending that concert you worked so hard to get tickets for, only to encounter a stream of 45-minute drum/guitar solos, without a single song that sticks in your head. If I were Pete Wells (the NY Times restaurant critic), and could influence dining trends, I'd endeavor to make these formats (including omikase parades) a forgotten mistake for the dustbins or dining history.

In summary, a disappointing missed opportunity, with an obviously talented chef who, alas, is either not confident enough in his/her ability to sustain three superb and satisfying courses and/or is a bit more focused on profit margins than...

My wife and I had terrific dinner at Laurie Raphaël. I had reserved a table on the terrace, but asked the host for a table inside, due to the gloomy weather. Thankfully, she was able to accommodate us.

As a gastronomic restaurant, Laurie Raphaël does not disappoint. Every part of the dining experience is very well thought out and executed.

The host led us through the restaurant to our table. Surprisingly, the first part of the restaurant that we entered was the kitchen, where Chef Raphaël Vézina and his Chefs all stopped whatever they were doing and greeted us with a hearty, “Bonsoir!” The entire space is beautiful and modern.

After we were seated and enjoying a cocktail, the complete tasting menu was explained to us. My wife and I wanted to enjoy a lighter dinner on the final night of our first ever trip to Vieux-Québec, so we chose the five-course Menu Personnalisé over the full eight-course Expérience Gastronomique. I also chose to have the wine pairings with my meal.

The food was terrific; inventive and delicious. We really enjoyed the pairing of cucumber with caviar, and the textures and flavors of the lobster course were fantastic. I only wish that I had been offered some bread to soak up every last bit of the sauce. There were no missteps with any of the dishes, which were all delicious. I’ll post photos.

The wines were chosen playfully and from all over the world. I particularly enjoyed the Il Roccolo di Monticelli di Rado, which transported me back to Venice.

At first, I worried that the service would be less convivial than I prefer. The staff appeared to have clearly defined roles; some set the table, others delivered the food and others cleared the table. However, there was one gentleman who came by to introduce each course, and showed great humor when I asked him to do it in both English and then French, and, finally, both English and French at the same time.

As tourists, the only part of our meal that was lacking was a clear connection between the food and wines to the locality. We travel to eat and experiencing the terroir is important to us. I was hoping for a more clearly Québécois meal. For example, the cheese option for the dessert course was a play on carbonara; a flan of egg, Louis d’Or cheese and guanciale. While the cheese is from Québec, I felt like I was in Rome, instead of Québec.

As I said, however, this feeling is particular to us as tourists. As a gastronomic experience, our meal lacked nothing and would stand out anywhere that we have been...