Among the various “Great Restaurants of the World” lists that appear every year, none of them, so far as I know, are on rails. This seems like a great oversight, as preparing any meal, let alone one worthy of Michelin recognition, on a rocking, leaning, turning, and braking train car is surely one of the greatest feats in gastronomy aerobatics.

I learned this first-hand on the Danube Express, the flagship of Golden Eagle Luxury Trains, on its new itinerary from Paris to Istanbul. Somewhere in the Austrian Tyrol, guests were invited to the dining car to experience a pastry decorating course, overseen by Golden Eagle’s resident pastry chef, Rebeka Krupa (who in 2022 placed 2nd in her native Hungary’s popular baking competition, Mestercukrász).

Working with piping bags full of pistachio crème, raspberry compote, and chocolate ganache as the train swerved around mountain passes and slipped through darkening tunnels, was an exercise in patience and precision. The chaotically decorated tarts we produced only served to underscore the incredible dainties that left the galley twice a day for up to sixty guests.

That was the only culinary challenge for us guests. The rest of the journey, we simply sat while each wave of service brought forth another carnelian hunk of meat, curled digits of shrimps, asparagus spears like wind-stripped trees, and chunks of flaking potato galette. “We can manage anything,” said Krisztian Szöke, the dining manager on-board. “Just tell us what you want.”

The Glamour of the Rails

Golden Eagle has operated for over twenty years in Europe, Central Asia and India (new itineraries will soon begin in China, Tibet and Vietnam). Their fresh Paris to Istanbul journey touches on many of the locations taken by previous iterations of the multifarious Orient Express trains—Switzerland, Austria, Serbia, Bulgaria.  Though it is an original route tracking a slower course across the continent, this itinerary fills out seven days with significant stops:  in France to visit a champagne house; in Slovenia to tour Postojna Cave; an orchestral concert in Vienna; spirit-tasting in Belgrade; and a city tour of old Sofia. The route is offered in both spring and autumn, offering the best views of agricultural Europe at work, either tending the young soft green crops, or in the full swing of harvest.

Guests spend five nights aboard, in spacious en-suite roomettes attended by friendly stewards. During breakfast, my bed (whether single or double depends on the cabin) would be turned into a couch. I would return from supper to find a card with the next day’s activities and weather forecast waiting on my turned-down bed. It became my habit to fall asleep with the window shades up, letting the rising sun enter the cabin, and fill it with radiant light that glinted off the mirror, and the complimentary bottle of champagne.