We stayed in the Saint-Jean-Baptiste neighborhood of Quebec City, which was separated from the Old City by one of the many very steep hills in the city. While we spent our days exploring the tourist destinations, we explored this area at night.  The narrow streets, architectural details, and ornate lampposts spoke to the history of the neighborhood.

Just a few blocks away from our lodging was Rue de Saint-Jean. Of all the main streets that we visited during our stay, this one felt the most local. It offered a good selection of dining options – from cafes where we got our morning coffee to nice restaurants and popular bars. They even have a farmers & artisan market every Saturday.  

At the very end of rue Saint-Jean, the nondescript Chez Victor was a culinary highlight of our trip. The restaurant offers a good selection of interesting sandwiches and poutine (which made up for the really bad poutine I had in the Old City), but an even larger selection of mayonnaise. I also appreciated that I was able to pair a small portion of poutine with a small salad – this way I didn’t feel so bad about ordering two poutines in one day.  

We also enjoyed two of the bars on the street. Le Projet offered a selection of over 30 microbrews and ciders. Our knowledgeable waiter helped us check out some of the local breweries and try some different varieties than we had before.

While Bar le Sacrilege doesn’t have a large selection of beer (though they do offer mostly local beers), their back terrace was a cool space to enjoy on a nice day. The curved built-in benches set amongst the trees and large murals on the stone walls gave it a funky vibe, which fit the crowd as well. 

I had heard of the lampshades along Cartier Ave in the Montcalm neighborhood, so we walked our way there one night. I thought it was also an arts district, but it seemed that the stores were more high end boutiques than affordable artisan shops. Either way, we ended up getting there after the stores closed for the day.  At five feet tall and eight feet across, the lampshades, installed by Lightemotion in 2013, were larger and more impressive than I expected. Each one of the 34 lampshades features its own colorful design from Quebecois artists, and most include animals and plants as subjects.  I can imagine that these would be even more beautiful illuminated in the dark. 

Grande Allee is restaurant central for tourists. The street parallels the Plains of Abraham and is just outside the gates of Old Quebec, The ultra wide sidewalks on either side of the street allow for all the restaurants to create large patios. These create a festival atmosphere to the street come dinner time and after. The street is also closed to automobiles during summer weekends, allowing crowds to freely ramble between the different restaurants and bars.  The three story brick and stone buildings behind the bustling restaurants add to the historic ambiance of the place. The food was solid, the people we met (both wait staff and fellow diners) were friendly, and the weather was perfect for a dinner outdoors. Even if we had to eat indoors, the restaurants seemed to have cool interior vibes as well. 

After dinner we strolled over to the Parliament building. The grand facade was lit up showing off the 26 bronze statues – each highlighted in their own alcove.  The center of the building features a large clock tower with more bronze statues and a Quebec province flag flying at the top. While we didn’t get to venture inside, the architecture of the building was impressive enough for a visit. 

Outside of the Parliament building is also where you’ll find kilometer zero. This small plaque in the ground represents the point where distances are measured from. 

In the circle entrance to the Parliament building, Fontaine de Tourny was lit up in colors. The shifting colors from blue to purple to yellow each highlighted a different aspect of the fountain. Since the water wasn’t running during our visit, the details of the sculpture work throughout the fountain became the focus.  

Nearby the J’adore Quebec sculpture seems to be away from the tourist crowds. In the parking lot between the Hilton and a convention center, the sign stands alone amid the concrete structures. At least this meant it was easy for us to get our pictures without having to wait in line or avoid people in the background.