La Gaspesiana
Le Ketch
Sainte-Flavie, P.Q.
Sometimes the best experiences catch us
unawares. On the 18th of April we left Drummondville and headed North East towards Quebec City on Highway 20. We stayed on Highway 20 past Quebec City now driving along the South Shore of the St. Lawrence River all the way to Mont Joli, just past Rimouski. That was enough driving for one day and we decided to find a motel for the night.
Looking for a nice place we went North on 234, I think, and ended up in Sainte-Flavie, a very small community on the shore of the St. Lawrence. The one motel in town, the Gaspesiana, looked nice so we took a room.
We had sliding glass doors out onto the shore of the river. There was still some snow on the ground and the day was solid overcast but the room was warm and cosy.
Our room opened out onto the shore of the St. Lawrence River. It was still late winter and there was snow on the ground in places. Down the beach you can see a red building. That’s Le Ketch that we will talk about below.
Once we were settled our thoughts turned to dinner. There seemed to be very few people in the hotel and the dinning room was empty so we got in the car and went off looking for a place to eat with a little more life. It took only a minute to realize that there was nothing open, actually there was nothing period, except for a single pub just down the road from the hotel: Le Ketch. So that is where we chose to eat. Great decision!
Sainte-Flavie was very quiet that evening. It almost appeared deserted. But not the parking lot of La Ketch. It was packed. This was the deciding factor for us: the place was obviously popular. Well …. that and the fact that there was nothing else that appeared open.
As you walk in the door the bar is off to the left. In this image you can see Susan sitting by the window in the red jacket.
The pub is on the banks of the St. Lawrence which you can see out of the window behind Susan. Snow outside the window but the room was warm.
The town utside was very quiet but it was all business in La Ketch. I think we stumbled into the local “watering hole”.
Poutine! Real French Canadian poutine. This was the first time we had eaten this dish and it was fantastic! What a great dish!