Le Roy Jucep, a founding name in poutine since the 1950s

No hallmark of Quebecois cuisine is more identifiable than poutine, but its origin story—like its essential trifecta of crispy fries, squeaky cheese curds, and savoury gravy—is layered and messy.

One of the most compelling claims comes from Drummondville’s Le Roy Jucep, an easy drive to make as the halfway point between Montreal and Quebec City. This restaurant’s history of the dish has grown from legend to a local source of pride and international attention since its humble beginnings in the province’s post-war snack bars.

A trained professional & a local staple

Before Jean-Paul Roy returned to his hometown of Drummondville to open his restaurant in the late 1950s, he had honed his craft in the kitchen of Montreal’s Mont-Royal Hotel as a trained saucier. His casse-croûte (a snack bar), Le Roi de la Patate, specialized in fries served with a unique gravy. 

Cheese curds, a local staple, soon became a customer favourite. The story goes that regulars began requesting their curds be mixed directly with the fries and sauce, transforming a simple order into something closer to what we know as poutine today, only without the name—back then, it was simply known as fromage-patate-sauce or ‘cheese-fries-sauce’.

In 1964, Roy purchased the Orange Jucep drive-in on Drummondville’s Saint-Joseph Boulevard, renaming it Le Roy Jucep. The reimagined diner became a hit for both its food and drive-in service and it’s during this time poutine got its nickname: To simplify orders, staff began using the term “poutine,” inspired by Quebecois slang for a messy mix. That stuck, cementing its place in the province’s culinary lexicon.

A little friendly competition never hurt anyone

“There are two stories about how it started. Some say customers would bring bags of cheese curds and mix them with fries and sauce. Others say a cook named Ti-Pout started mixing it together for them. Either way, we believe it began here,” says Le Roy Jucep’s head chef, Mathieu Lemire.

While the history books also cite other establishments like Fernand Lachance’s Café Ideal (later renamed Le Lutin qui Rit) in Warwick as a source of poutine’s creation, Le Roy Jucep holds a unique distinction of creating the modern-day poutine (let alone one of the best poutines in Quebec). For Roy, the sauce was crucial, leading him to source sturdy containers suited for the dish to better accommodate the mix. 

Then, in 1998, the restaurant trademarked the title of “Inventor of Poutine,” cementing its legacy. “There’s always been some rivalry—Warwick or Drummondville, but we know it’s us,” Lemire says. “Even La Banquise told a French TV crew covering the dish, ‘If you’re doing a story on poutine, you have to go to Le Roy Jucep.’ We’ve had French TV crews visit multiple times. It’s incredible to see how far the story of Le Roy Jucep has travelled.”

Side note: If you ask for “The Warwick” listed on the menu at Le Roy Jucep, it’s described as “fries and sauce in a brown paper bag”—a small rivalrous joke to poke fun.

“They’d do fries and sauce in a brown bag, and you’d mix it yourself. They think they invented poutine that way,” Lemire says. “But for us, it’s about mixing everything together. Sure, they invented part of it, but the finishing touch—that happened here.”

Whichever story about poutine’s origin is believed, Le Roy Jucep’s place in culinary history is no secret.

An immutable part of Quebec history

“Knowing you manage the restaurant that invented poutine—it sounds good,” Lemire says. “It’s fun. You go somewhere, and people ask where you’re from, and I get to say, ‘I’m the chef at Le Roy Jucep.’”

Born in Drummondville and having been working in kitchens his whole life, Lemire’s pride in his work extends to staff. “I tell new employees, ‘You need to be proud of what you’re doing here. Poutine is part of Quebec’s DNA, and you’re standing where it was invented,’” Lemire adds.

Le Roy Jucep stands out as both a living piece of history, and a place that makes Drummondville as a quintessential road trip stop in Quebec. Its retro diner decked in neon signs harkens back to its mid-century roots, while its menu pays homage to tradition. 

The classic “L’Originale” poutine remains its flagship dish, prepared just as it was in 1964. For those looking to experiment, the menu regularly features a Poutine of the Month variation.

“Poutine is a very simple dish, but we’re always trying to take it to another level. Always adding something that makes people go, “Oh yeah, that’s good with that. It’s always a bit weird,” Lemire laughs.

“Sometimes it’s inspired by trends I see on TikTok, other times it’s something the staff suggests. Once, we did a Jucep Burger-style poutine—it had a burger, salad, everything on top. And it was really good.”

But Le Roy Jucep still maintains poutine’s foundations. The legacy of the restaurant’s recipe for an essential Quebecois dish is a closely guarded secret.

“What we use is the original. It’s the same one we’ve had since it started. The recipe is written on a piece of paper that’s hidden somewhere—only three people know it,” Lemire says. 

“It’s like the Coca-Cola recipe. Maybe two sheets of paper, hidden in two separate places, just to be sure. Even I don’t know where it is.”

No time spent is complete without it

Over time, Le Roy Jucep’s influence has gone far beyond its menu. In the 1960s, its drive-in created a community hub where locals gathered to eat, socialize, and celebrate. 

Under current owner Laurent Proulx, the restaurant continues to honour its heritage. Events like vintage car weekends and celebrations marking poutine’s 60th anniversary have only reinforced its enduring place—and all of Drummondville by extension—as part of the province’s cultural landscape and one of Quebec’s best destinations.  

“In this city, it’s all about Le Roy Jucep. Drummondville wouldn’t be the same without it,” Lemire admits. 

“We make poutine, and we’re proud of it. It’s a little treasure, honestly. It’s what represents Quebec. If you talk about Quebec anywhere else, poutine is going to be one the first things people think of, if not the first.”