Traveling as much as I have been recently, I’ve been sometimes lucky, other times unlucky, to sample all manner of restaurants. Last night I was ecstatic to have followed the hotel’s directions to a spot a few blocks away.
Yesterday was a long day of travel to and exploration of Quebec City. Lunch was at a cozy Euro pub and consisted of a couple of lovely local pints and a bowl of French onion soup. I make better onion soup. Later in the day I spent some time shooting the Quebec Auto Salon, followed by covering a party at the Hotel Glace. By the time I got back to the hotel, it was 10:30 and I was starving. According to the front desk, the only thing open within walking distance was this place called Le Cercle.
Le Cercle is a combination boutique restaurant and live music spot. I sat at the bar on the quieter restaurant side, where I was faced with a wall of wine. Quite the spectacular bar. The bartender was an unbelievably nice young lady who recommended the lasagna, so I gave it a go.
While I may not have been impressed with the onion soup at lunch, Le Cercle takes the simplest of comfort food and creates a masterpiece. This is no pan lasagna that is slathered in sauce and topped with cheese. Each serving is individually assembled with several layers of house made pasta. The meaty sauce is deep, rich and dense, rather than soupy like so many lesser kitchens use. In the middle is a thick, creamy layer of cheesy bechamel that oozes out as you cut.
Perhaps I should have had some wine with my dinner, but a couple of pints of Boréale Dorée were just perfect.
Now I have the challenge of trying to duplicate their outta this world sauce!
