La Poutine Week is celebrated from 1 to 7 February each year. La Poutine Week is the largest poutine festival that takes place annually in Canada, with over 700 restaurants making poutines. Poutine is a dish that includes french fries, cheddar cheese curds, and brown gravy. It is very popular throughout Canada and has also traveled to foreign cities. Poutine traces its origins back to the Quebeckers, who were the French-Canadian descendants who were the first to settle in Canada. La Poutine Week was first established by marketing entrepreneur Na’eem Adam and lawyer Thierry Rassam in February 2013 in order to celebrate a public-favorite dish.
History of La Poutine Week
Poutines have been the public’s pick since their conception in the 1900s. In the late 1950s, the first poutine was created using a combination of freshly cut fries, cheese curds, and gravy in rural Quebec snack bars. In Quebec, there was an abundance of fromageries that produced cheese curds. This geographical proximity led to the inclusion of this ingredient in the poutine dish. In Warwick in 1957, Fernand Lachance of Café Ideal claimed that he initially added cheese curds to fries at the request of a regular customer. This combination became popular and in 1963, after getting complaints that the fries became cold very quickly, Lachance poured gravy on the fries and curds to keep it warm.
In 1964, Jean-Paul Roy declared that he invented poutine at his drive-in restaurant called Le Roy Jucep. According to his story, since 1958, he had been serving fries to customers in a special sauce. The dish was called patate-sauce. The customers, he noticed, were adding cheese curds to the fries separately, and he developed that idea into a dish which he called fromage-patate-sauce.
In 1987, Jean-Louis Roy, the owner of a Burger King franchise in Quebec, persuaded the chain to offer poutine on its menu. The dish became a crowd favorite very quickly. Many other Burger King outlets in Quebec also started offering this dish on their menu. McDonald’s, too, jumped on board and added poutine to their menu, making it a hit in 1990. This launched poutine into fast-food fame.
La Poutine Week timeline
The first poutine is created in rural Quebec snack bars using a combination of freshly cut fries, cheese curds, and gravy.
Fernand Lachance, a café worker, claims to have added cheese curds to fries at the request of a customer, which leads to the creation of the poutine dish.
Jean-Paul Roy argues that he invented poutine at his drive-in restaurant by adding cheese curds to an older dish and then adding the new dish to the menu as fromage-patate-sauce.
Jean-Louis Roy, the owner of a Burger King franchise in Quebec, persuades the chain to offer poutine on its menu and launches the dish into fast-food fame.
La Poutine Week FAQs
Why is poutine unhealthy?
Poutine consists of high triglyceride levels, which raise cholesterol levels. It is important to consume it in moderation.
Why is poutine not popular in the U.S.?
Poutine is not as popular in the U.S. because they do not have sufficient cheese curds produce, which is needed to make poutine. In Quebec, the proximal distance to cheese curds was why poutines originated there.
How long is poutine good for?
Leftover poutine can be stored in the fridge for three days. The best way to reheat poutine without making the fries soggy is with an air fryer.
La Poutine Week Activities
Eat, eat, eat
The easiest and most obvious way to celebrate La Poutine Week is to eat poutines to your heart’s content. Find a restaurant nearby to order from or a fast-food joint in Quebec that sells poutines!
Make your own poutine
There’s nothing as delicious as a home-cooked meal. Make your own poutine at home and eat with your family instead of eating out.
Share your poutine recipe
Help others create their own poutine by sharing your recipe on social media. Your followers would love it!
5 Interesting Facts About Poutine
Poutine means “a mess”
The word ‘poutine’ is Quebec slang that means “a mess.”
Poutine contains many calories
In order to burn off the 1,422 calories contained in the average poutine, a man would need to jog for 2.5 hours.
Poutines were called ‘disco fries’
In New York and New Jersey in the 1970s, poutine was served as a late-night side dish at clubs and was called ‘disco fries.’
The largest poutine
The largest poutine in the world was made in Saguenay, in Quebec, and its weight was almost equal to that of a large horse.
The most expensive poutine
The most expensive poutine, called the ‘poutine au foie gras,’ is priced at $23 at the Au Pied de Cochon restaurant in Montreal.
Why We Love La Poutine Week
It’s are delicious
Poutine is simply delicious. They are the public’s favorite for a reason.
It makes people happy
Good food makes people happy! What’s not to love about that?
It brings people closer
Food has the power to bring people together. Poutines taste better when shared.
La Poutine Week dates
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | February 1 | Saturday |
| 2026 | February 1 | Sunday |
| 2027 | February 1 | Monday |
| 2028 | February 1 | Tuesday |
| 2029 | February 1 | Thursday |
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