France's legendary Paris-Riviera trains, especially between the wars, were celebrated in names of cocktails, fashion designs, perfume, all sorts of things. Glamor by association. Most of the mystique and exuberance of the era is long gone, but happily a living monument to it exists: the Train Bleu restaurant in Paris' Gare de Lyon. A few days ago I had my first meal there in over 35 years.
France's legendary Paris-Riviera trains, especially between the wars, were celebrated in names of cocktails, fashion designs, perfume, all sorts of things. Glamor by association. After winning at Le Mans a couple times, Bentley even sponsored a race between the train and one of Bentley's sportiest models. Riviera to Calais. The Bentley won.
Food is first-class, very much in the tradition of a classical French menu: a few starters, a few meat, a few fish dishes. This is not the place for salads or sandwiches. The lamb and Mediterranean fish were superb, perfectly - that is, lightly - cooked, no cumbersome sauces to mask first-class raw materials. A broad wine selection too fits the rather old-fashioned overall approach: brilliant and elegant surroundings, and a fine meal, just the sort of thing to enjoy before getting on a train to one of the most beautiful and historic parts of the world.
[I will add a personal confession: my first trip to the South of France was not onTrain Bleu. It was on the overnight Riviera train, called Mistral. You did not eat before getting on the Mistral, because it had one of the most renowned dining cars ever - when you bought your ticket, you were handed a menu, so you could immediately begin to dream of the magnificent meal you were about to have. Service began almost immediately after the train cleared Paris; by the time coffee and cognac were served it was more than three hours later, south of Lyon.
But meals on the Mistral, elegant and delicious as they were, were thought to be not quite so elevated as those on the "Blue Train". So I don't know personally whether Le Train Bleu is up to its namesake's standards; but it's certainly in the Mistral class, quite sufficient for ordinary mortals in 2016!]
