Restaurant review: Chez Victor

Restaurant: Chez Victor

For this first blog post on gluten-free restaurants in Quebec City, I felt like presenting a simple place that can only be found in this city. I chose a classic, the restaurant Chez Victor. This restaurant offers the best hamburger in the city and maybe even in the province (or the world?). A hamburger?? in a blog about gluten free living? Yes, because these are special hamburgers, based on original recipes that include local produces and because said hamburgers are served with the best french fries in town. Chez Victor started with a restaurant on St-Jean Street. This is the one with the most charm and character. If you can, visit this one. It's also the tiniest. There are now several Chez Victor restaurants in modern settings, sprinkled around town. 

A typical and a gluten free hamburger

The Burger

Yes, I eat a bun-less hamburger when I go to Chez Victor, but it's one special hamburger. My favourite? The Mergez and goat cheese burger. I have not yet tasted any of the vegetarian burgers, but 3 of the ones offered seem gluten free, including the 'magrebhin" with lentils, cheddar, dates and charmoula sauce. I am definitely trying this one next time! Of course, I always warn the waiter of my particular needs. Up to now, all the ones I have talked to knew about gluten intolerance, as did the cooks in the kitchen.

The "frites"

Did you know that in most restaurants, french fries are frozen and coated in a mixture that prevents them from sticking to one another while frozen, but that contains gluten? This is important and gluten intolerant people should only eat fresh french fries prepared on site. Furthermore, for people that react to the slightest quantity of gluten, if french fries are cooked in the same oil as other food items such as breaded fish, chicken nuggets or (yikes!) pogo, there is a risk of contamination. One needs to act as a detective and grill the waiter to be able to eat French fries in a restaurant. At the restaurant Chez Victor, french fries are home made and in all the Chez Victor franchises that I visited, I was assured that that there would be no trace of gluten in my deliciously crispy fries.

 

For the wise and for the rest of us

It is possible to trade french fries for a salad if you are wise and reasonable. Salad dressing served in restaurants can be the enemy of gluten intolerant people, when commercial and suspicious dressing is served, but this is not a problem at Chez Victor, as all their dressings are home made. Both choices of dressing are delicious. You could try a poutine by trading it for you fries, but then the sauce is not gluten free and this should be reserved for your "glutenivore" friends.

Drinks

The homemade limonade is delicious. There is a great choice of beer, but none are gluten free.

Web links

You will find these different addresses, maps to find your way and the menu of this web site:

http://www.chezvictorburger.com/

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