The food and wine train

One of Peter’s brainstorms was that we should go on the food and wine train.  In his research of what to do in Napa, he came across the Napa Valley Wine Train.  It sounded right up our alley and we booked tickets on it for the evening of the first full day we were in Napa.  We showed up before our appointed boarding time and were impressed with the nice look of the train and the quality of the folks employed there.

We had a glass of wine to start before we boarded and examined the other patrons, who were of all backgrounds and ages.  The train had several different cars with different themes.  Ours was the observation car, where we sat upstairs and the chefs were below.  There was a car with a mystery theatre play, one with a western theme and one with comedic performers.

When we boarded, we were shown to our table, which we were fortunate enough not to have to share with anyone else, not that there’s anything wrong with that.  In fact, we did speak with some of the other patrons around and a table one over from us was full of Canadians from B.C.

Our meal started with an hors d’oeuvre and went on to several courses.  Each one had the possibility of being paired with a particular wine to complement the flavours.

We were usually offered a choice for each course and we chose different things, so we could taste as many different flavours as possible.  I started with the scallop seviche with salmon roe and Peter had the foie gras on raisin toast.  After that, Peter had the lentil soup and I had the beet salad.  And all the while, the scenery rolled past us.

 

For entrees, I decided on the lamb chops with caramelized onions and Peter had the duck breast with squash latkes and roasted beets.  Everything was cooked very nicely and tasted great.  We were allowed to go below and see the chefs and as typical with train fare, the kitchen was tiny and the chefs multi-tasked.  It’s amazing how they can get anything done there.

After dinner, we wandered through the cars, seeing what the other folks were enjoying.  We ran into two of the performers from the comedic car and suddenly, I found myself embroiled in a discussion of health care in America.  People are really getting interested in discussing this topic and so I gave them my opinion, which everyone is, after all, entitled to.

She surely looks like Sandra Oh but I don’t think that’s who she was.  Stupidly, I neglected to ask.  She gave me a big hug so all was well.

It got dark as we were on the train and by the time we had gone up the track and then got back to Napa, it was fully dark and we just wandered our way back to the Travelodge, satisfied and full and ready for the next day.