5 nights in December 2011 @ $99 per night per romm, plus taxes of 17.3%.
The room rate was good for the location; an old building rejunevenated.
The bed was a permanently folded down murphy bed, not sure why. The room was heated by electric baseboard heaters, which were slow to react to weather/thermostat changes. The bed was low to the floor, no box spring quite firm. A duvet would have suited us better than sheet and stubborn blankets.
Upon arrival we noticed there were no drawers of any kind for storing underwear, etc. We mentioned this to reception, who told us all the rooms were like that, so we couldn't switch rooms. Their design theme is trying to be esoteric but winds up short on practicality; there is a stand, no less, for the phone book, but nowhere to put socks away. So we kept these items in our suitcases which had to stay out in the room, which was already starting to look cluttered.
Lots of hot water on demand; a good, if repetitive, buffet breakfast (try the "Creton").
We used a bus pass on the local transit which was excellent, with a terminal just around the corner.
There is no elevator; we were not offered help with our bags upon arrival or departure. Reception seems to be little more than one person sitting in a seat, doing nothing most of the time.
Upon arrival, we noticed a cluster of human hair on the floor in the bathroom, behind the door and wondered how long it would stay there. It was still there when we left, five days later, which suggests poor supervision of housekeeping services, which seemed to be little more than make the bed and, some days, take out the garbage.
There are no facilities such as microwave or fridge; only a cheap coffee (no tea) maker. The TV was ancient and small and the clock radio is the type you get at Walmart for $9.99.
They were clearly working on a shoestring, which seemed to trump any customer service-based enterprise. Compared with the number of available rooms, there seemed to be precious few occupants; we took this hotel because a major event in town was making hotel space generally scarce and expensive. If we return to Quebec City (lovely city but take away the public sector and tourism and it would quickly become a ghost town) we would not be surprised to see that Auberge L'autre Jardin had closed. It's management needs a good kick in the pants and a better focus on customers' needs.
Lastly, when checking out, the receptionists (one trainer and one college trainee) swiped my credit card without first giving me an invoice or stating the amount on the bill. When I asked for an invoice, before swiping the card, the trainer became rather defensive and told me bruskly that the bill was exactly per the reservation. Fine, but I wanted to see that before paying. Again, focus on the customer was lacking.
By the way, the hotel management play up the eco-friendly coffee and such, with African-themed knick-knacks on the walls, but it somehow does not work, given the general malaise of the business.