For the Love of...: ...Eden at the Rimrock Resort Hotel (Banff)

Overall - 9.5/10
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Food - 9.5/10
Service - 9.5/10
Ambiance - 9.5/10

Over the past few years there seems to have been a trend in the Calgary dining scene towards more rustic and homestyle fair. Some of the most popular places like Model Milk, Cibo and Briggs all focus on simple flavours, generous portions and a casual atmosphere.  These are the places we gravitate to most often when we're looking for a great meal, but there comes a time every so often when you just want to get dressed up and try something different. When it comes to a complete dining experience, Eden at the Rimrock Resort Hotel is a close as it gets, being the only AMA 5 diamond restaurant in 2015.  The food is unique, exciting and inventive while the dining room is as stunning as the food.

Although you pay a premium for the food and the view, we have never walked away regretting our time at Eden. They offer both an a la carte menu as well as a chef's tasing menu. This evening we both went with the tasting menu.

The evening was started with an amuse bouche of house made bresaola (dry aged cured beef) with mustard and herbs. This little bite was savoury and really whet our appetites for the meal to come.

The bread seemed to be a course in itself and included sourdough, crusty baguette and a whole wheat loaf served with three types of luxurious butter; a goat milk butter, olive oil whipped butter with balsamic and a hay-smoked butter.

Our soup course was a rich and deeply aromatic elk consume.

Our fish courses started with a generous serving of three large freshly shucked oysters in a herbacious parsely sauce. Granted I'm not usually the biggest fan of parsely but in this dish it did compliment the briny flavour of the oysters.

Our next dish was like a deconstructed sushi roll- a half seared tuna served with a smoked tuna mousse and sweet avocado sorbet.

The foie gras course I felt was the most creative and was actually a rich and savoury soup made from the foie gras. The usual accompaniments like toasted bread and fruit where present but in the form of a spiced crouton and plum pureé.  The dish was unique but familiar at the same time.

A refreshing red currant sorbet was provided as a palate cleanser.

As we were dining just after the Christmas season, the main course for the night was an homage to the traditional holiday dinner.  Instead of the usual turkey, we were served a perfectly roasted deboned quail stuffed with a delicious dressing and served with cranberry pureé a crispy brussel sprout croquette.

The cheese course was a nice segue between the savoury and sweet courses. The Brillat Savarin if you've never had it before is a triple cream brie that is soft, runny and quite salty. Paired with the carefully prepared 'encapsulated honey' and berries it was a great match.

Our desserts started with a warm spice cake which again was a nice reminder of the recent holiday season.

The petit fours were served on the edge of a large glass bowl full of boiling dry ice in very theatrical presentation.  Included was a chocolate truffle, chocolate cake and what we believe was an almond cake. 

We still have very fond memories of our dinner at Eden and hope to return for our next special occasion.