Quebec City Eats: Chez Ashton
A tale of two poutines. My first experience was the $23 foie gras laden version at Au Pied de Cochon (review here). My next experience was the $4.50 version that came in a foil tin at Chez Ashton, said by some to be the originator of poutine.
Chez Ashton is decorated like an unabashedly fast food chain, although my poutine and hamburger were made to order. Wait at the counter with your tray until they bring out your food.
I ordered an "Ashton" single burger (can also get double), and a mini sized poutine. Yes, believe it or not, this is the mini size. You can also order bibi size (even smaller), or regular which is larger and comes in a circular foil container. The Ashton burger ($3.40) improves on the regular hamburger by adding a slice of yellow processed cheese and the house sauce (like Big Mac sauce). Iceberg lettuce, tomato slice, and thinly sliced onions are standard.
My mini poutine usually costs $5.65, however Chez Ashton has a special discount on poutine for January: the colder it is, the bigger the discount. Today the discount was 20%!
I quite enjoyed the burger as it was well seasoned, the cheese was thick, and the vegetables fresh. The poutine... Well, I think poutine just might not be for me. The fries in this poutine got a little more crisp than Au Pied de Cochon's and Big Smoke Burger's (I read in Lonely Planet that poutine fries are supposed to be soggy). The cheese curds were decidedly cheesy, but the gravy wasn't richly flavored though it was served at a nice, hot temperature. I think poutine is not for me because I like my fries crispy on the outside. When they're soggy, and then further swimming in gravy so they become even more soggy, I just don't see the point of why they are fries anymore.
