Breakfast

Bright and early (5:15am pickup, 6am departure from North Vancouver), we were equipped with cowboy hats and fresh juice. We also received the menu of our Breakfast and Dinner. The dining quarters fill up the first floor of the 6 car train while the passenger seats are up on the second floor.

Since there was two of us from YouCook, we could sample two dishes from breakfast: the All Aboard Omelette (mild Italian omelette with Gouda cheese and roasted potatoes)

and the Mountain Pass Pancakes (hot pancakes made with aprikat beer with wild boar bacon and maple syrup.

Breakfast set the tone for an amazing day aboard the Alberta Train. Wild boar bacon has this lean and sweet taste to it unlike regular bacon. I’m going to miss it (or go on a hunt for it in the city).

Afternoon Snacks

At 4:30pm, we made our way to the Golf Club where buses were waiting to take us back to the train, there were more food and drinks! Chips, Toffee and Popcorn awaited us.

Back on the train, the Men’s Hockey Canada – Germany game was being streamed from a laptop to a few TVs! We were able to watch the entire game with a few delicious Whiskeys from the open bar and Japanese rice snacks.

Dinner

Most passengers retired to their seats to enjoy the train ride home and dinner. A group of us took over the entire dining room closest to the Kitchen to get first dibs on food (and left overs as the servers returned to the kitchen!)

Menu

• Prairie Chowder – My favourite dish at the Alberta House
• Braised Elk on a Ciabatta Bun – Slow braised elk on a Portuguese bun with horseradish chives creme fraiche
• Skewered Beef – AAA Alberta beef striploin satay lightly marinated in aprikat beer and finished with old fashioned mustard
• Grilled Goat Cheese Sandwich – Mini grilled goat cheese sandwiches with onion compote on a crispy golden focaccia
• Cured Pork Loin on Polenta with Onion Jam – Roasted pork tenderloin with Gouda cheese, Polenta Crouton and Onion Compote
• Mini Lamb Burgers with Mint Aioli – Lamb burger, Portuguese bun, mint puree mixed in garlic mayonnaise.
• Rocky Mountain Mousse Cup – Preserved Saskatoon berries accented with Alberta Rye served over a dark chocolate mousse.

The selection was a hearty representation of Alberta with a good selection of different meats in Alberta. The soup was just as delicious as I had it the day before so that wasn’t a surprise. The surprise for me was Grilled Cheese sandwiches using Goat Cheese. It was delicious and will be part of my snacking repertoire. My only complaint was that each dish came with some kind of bread/carbs which was more filling than tasty on an already full stomach.

The kitchen was very accommodating to dietary concerns when a passenger listed out all her allergies: gluten, corn, wheat, lactose – and the list goes on. She had a delicious protein filled meal:

I was also quite impressed with the Rocky Mountain Mousse dessert.

I assumed that the desserts were premade and just served on the train, but I was wrong. Everything, including the desserts are made on the train’s fully stocked 6 kitchens.

Rocky Mountaineer Kitchen

Ah, the kitchen. I asked Steve Buzak, Executive Chef and Christos Chaldeos, Sous Chef of the Rocky Moutaineer for a tour after dinner service when the kitchen was all clean and polished! Each kitchen can handle the full food service of 70 guests. I have not visited a moving kitchen that pushes out gourmet food and was delighted to take a tour!

The kitchen is very spacious, with plenty of room for prep, cooking, cleaning and storage. To be honest, it looks bigger and better than some restaurant kitchens we’ve visited. The stoves are not gas but still heat up quickly. There is also a Hobart Combi Oven inside the kitchen.

They cook with pots half full to prevent splashing and spilling. Every door to every piece of equipment or storage has a latch on it. Actually there are no windows in the kitchen, so when the train turns corners, it often comes as a surprise so they have to be careful.

Each train car only has 2 chefs executing the menu with the Sous Chef and Executive Chef moving from car to car. Each chef of the car takes ownership of all the food coming out of the kitchen. Sometimes because of bumps and turns, dishes do get destroyed when they hit the floor. However, they do their best and try to recover as quick as possible.

Rocky Mountaineer does an apprenticeship program with VCC so I met some chefs there in training. The atmosphere of the kitchen, as well as the entire train is relaxed and full of camaraderie, after a long but successful day. Yes, the day started at 6am and ended at 9pm. They do a rotating 1 day on, 1 day off during the Olympics. During other Rocky Mountaineer trips to Alberta, they are working for 4 days. I found it interesting that although the Rocky Mountaineer is fully stocked with all amenities imaginable, there are no sleeping quarters on the this train. They always stop over at hotels overnight.