Issue No 1 February 2004 Welcome Letter from the Editor Coming Up In Our Next Edition Rockies Events Calendar The best Canadian Rockies events calendar highlights so many events in Canmore and Banff that you'll be begging for some down time! Canmore's Native History Ancient pictographs are just one reminder of this area's rich and fascinating Native history. Discover the 11,000-year-old story behind the Canmore area's First Nations people. Adventures on Snowshoes Walk on clouds of powdery snow for miles amidst pristine Rocky Mountain scenery - on a snowshoeing adventure. Snowshoeing is fun, safe and a great way to enjoy the outdoors for all ages. Subscribe Today!     If you haven't already signed up to receive your free subscription to SolaraLife, sign up now by submitting your email address in the space provided above.	HOME   /   LIVE IT Enjoy 5 Diamond dining in Banff's mountain splendour The picturesque mountain town of Banff, nestled inside one of the world's oldest and most spectacular national parks, is home to two of Canada's very finest restaurants. While visitors come for the mountain views, the fresh air, the ski resorts and high mountain trails, more and more are travelling for a taste of two restaurants that have recently achieved the highest restaurant ranking in North America. The Banffshire Club at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel and Eden restaurant at the Rimrock Resort Hotel were awarded last autumn with the coveted Five Diamond designation for excellence by the American Automotive Association (AAA). To put this honourable designation into perspective, the previous year only five restaurants in all of Canada met the stringent criteria required to achieve the rating — three in Quebec, one in Ontario and one in British Columbia. The Banff hotels that are home to the Five Diamond dining establishments are a five-minute drive apart, and are both housed in the most exclusive hotel properties in the national park. The Fairmont Banff Springs is known the world over as "Canada's Castle in the Rockies", while the Rimrock Resort Hotel, perched high above a spectacular forest and river valley, has the status of "One of the Leading Hotels of the World." The evaluation and rating process for restaurants is made up of three parts: food, service, décor and ambience. The AAA evaluates more than 42,000 restaurants and lodging establishments a year. Less than one-third of one per cent attain Five Diamond status, with only a few dozen of them restaurants. back to top The Eden dining room at the Rimrock Resort in Banff offers a view that goes well with the 5 Diamond offerings on the menu. Celebrated Canadian restaurant critic John Gilchrist, broadcasts on CBC Radio One and writes a weekly column for the daily Calgary Herald, included both The Banffshire Club and Eden in his book, My Favourite Restaurants in Calgary and Banff. His visits to dine in the mountains are followed by enthusiastic recommendations. "This is detailed dining that commands the attention," he says of The Banffshire. "It does not hit you over the head or inundate your taste buds with excess. It's food that is conceived with great thought from chef Daniel Buss, one of the brightest lights on the Canadian culinary scene." Eden is equally impressive in Gilchrist's view: "Once ensconced in Eden, it is difficult to leave. We felt so well taken care of on our last visit that we hoped someone would just roll us back to our room and tuck us in." After a description of a divine five-hour dinner, he continues: "No effort, or price, has been spared to collect the finest ingredients for the menus." Shari Bishop Bowes In this week's edition of Solara Life, we also chat with Rimrock Resort Hotel executive chef Yoshi Chubachi.
Privacy Statement | Disclaimer
Copyright © 2004 - All Rights Reserved - Designed by K2 Developments Ltd