Entourage sur-le-Lac a leisure hot spot, corporate retreat on Lac Beauport
Entourage sur-le-Lac, a sparkling new resort in a Quebec City suburb, mixes business and pleasure in one dynamic package.
Entourage is a contemporary beauty on the shore of Lac Beauport, a model of modern, airy design in harmony with its splendid setting of woods and water.
This resort multi-tasks with style. During the week, it is a classy corporate retreat and clubby executive getaway. On weekends, it’s an upscale leisure destination for families who appreciate the handy condohotel facilities, kids’ menus, the large playroom and free babysitting at dinnertime on Fridays and Saturdays. And if you’re interested in refined, innovative cuisine with local ingredients and lots of flair, Entourage’s restaurant is an excellent new hot spot.
The hotel also is offering guests two bonuses for the annual extravaganza, Carnaval de Québec, on until Feb 11: a Bonhomme Carnaval Effigie pass, with discounts and free entry to many sites (an approximately $15 value); and shuttle service for the 20-minute ride to and from Quebec City (on availability).
Top-drawer: Entourage is formally rated four stars by Quebec Tourism, but it warrants five stars in my book for its progressive cuisine, deluxe accommodations and stunning, natureinspired decor.
Standards are high because Entourage is managed by Alain and Julien April, a father-andson team who own the five-star Hôtel Le Bonne Entente in the Quebec City suburb of Ste-Foy.
“Entourage’s primary mission is wellness,” said Julien April, “and we want our guests to do everything well — move, eat, drink and sleep well.”
The look: Pierre Martin & Associés Architectes (PMA) has built a glorious getaway that plays on the serenity and beauty of the setting with huge windows, high ceilings and open spaces.
The interiors by Camdi Design of Montreal bring the outdoors inside with colours like moss, bark and stone in an ultra-modern design. There’s eye candy, too, in such ravishing accents as dramatic ceiling fixtures, lustrous fabrics and effective retro photographs.
It’s easy to feel spoiled in the spacious, deluxe accommodations, with fabulous pastoral views, flat screens in all the rooms and designer kitchens and broad terraces in the larger units. The bathrooms offer white piqué bathrobes and toiletries by Bogner of Germany, to continue the sporty theme.
The cuisine: L’Îlot Repère Gourmand at Entourage sur-le-Lac is a delightful surprise — indeed, it’s a wow factor that blends a healthy style with gourmet ingredients and privately imported wines (ilotrestaurant.com).
Executive chef Fanny Lehouiller, a star of TV’s Les Chefs!, has cooked in Nunavik, Cambodia and at the Relais & Chateaux Auberge Saint-Antoine in Quebec City. At Entourage, she orchestrates three outstanding meals daily (and room service) in simply gorgeous surroundings and an open kitchen garnished with pots of fresh herbs.
Here is a sampling of dinner: Mushroom agnolotti, filet mignon, wapiti, maple-lacquered mackerel or roast duck, plus casual fare like fancy burgers and pizza with braised beef or chorizo.
Breakfast is a tour de force by chef Doris Dumont. Try smoothie bowls with yogurt and cherry purée, crepes with berries and crème fraîche, honey-spiked granola, or eggs Benedict with ham or smoked salmon.
Wellness: The exercise calendar includes outdoor boot camp, cardio-busting spinning and therapeutic yogalates. Corporate groups also can arrange energizing breaks with teambuilding activities and competitive sports.
The resort has an exceptionally large and well-equipped gym, and instead of mini-bars, the guest rooms are equipped with “wellness bags,” each containing a balance board, stretch bands, stress balls and a foam roller.
Fat bikes, hiking poles and snowshoes are available for winter adventures, and guests can skate on the charming three-kilometre oval on frozen Lac Beauport. Entourage has an outdoor hot tub for après-sports recovery, and a three-season swimming pool.
Spa life: Sibéria Spa rounds out the wellness experience with hot and cold baths (sauna, infra-red sauna, eucalyptus-orange steam and eight hot tubs) in the bracing outdoors and relaxation lounges indoors. The thermotherapy reduces stress and relaxes muscles, and is said to strengthen the body’s immune system. Sibéria also has a café tucked into the woods and 12 types of massages.
Downhill ski: Le Relais was founded in 1936, so it is part of Quebec ski history. Today Le Relais, (somewhat broader and higher than Mont SaintSauveur, without Avila), has an extensive slide school, night skiing, a racing program and first-rate snow-making and grooming. The tri-peak Stoneham Mountain Resort, another treasure, is a 15-minute drive from Entourage.