eden - rimrock resort hotel

during a recent spa trip me a couple of friends decided to finish our day with amealfrom eden.

i'm not even going to go on and on with a review because at the end of ourmealthe 4 of us decided that it was one of the best dining experiences we have ever had. not just in calgary or canada as we have all traveled around the world. this was one of the best experiences we have had period.

the only downside was the length of service. we arrived for a 6:00pm reservation. we did the 4 course dinner and finished at 11:30pm

never have i ever. 

well actually yes i have, but i had to go all the way to joel robouchon in las vegas to have a dining experience like this. 

had the tasting menu paired with wine and was blown away, all the details that went into each course was met with incredible  flavors and textures. themealincluded oysters 3 ways that took us on a tour to the kitchen and wine cellar. the sommelier was vibrant and fun, not too stuffy. 

i look forward to having something so special to celebrate at this restaurant again.

so disappointing. my wife and i both love food and have visited the vast majority of the best dining establishments that alberta has to offer - and it has a ton quite frankly. to be clear - best doesn't always mean most expensive; price should be a reflection of quality and creativity - ascribed value. eden is one of these restaurants which is grossly out of touch with how the restaurant industry works, but manage to stay afloat based on the merit of the hotel in which it is located.

ourmealcost 510 dollars. in six years, across the province we have never spent this much on a meal. particularly, we have never spent this much on amealthat lacked both culinary skill (in relative terms - it was still good, but not exceptional) and ingenuity. service was fine but lacked real connection with the food and wine that was being served. the sommelier brought out flat wines - some from eastern canada (sorry - no offense but the quality ones are far and few between) that were so run of the mill it was astounding.

the bottom line - was the food good? - yes it was for all intents and purposes good. was it worth it? - not by the furthest account. with the perspective of half of a four figure number buried into thismeal- take your hard earned and eat somewhere that offers great food, real character and more importantly value. in banff alone there are so many other great restaurants. we had a great experience at restaurant le beaujolais. knowing what i know now i would move on and not bother with eden (which even as a name goes is weak).

i love to be surprised and thismealwas a great one. it was our honeymoon so i went all out and did the 7 course chefs tasting menu with somolliers wine selection. outstanding on all counts. by far the most expensivemealin our lives, this has set the high bar.

expensive and very disappointing. based on the number of overwhelmingly positive and glowing reviews on urbansppon, we reserved a table for our anniversary dinner and were looking forward to a special dining experience. the service was very nice, although somewhat contrived, and overly gratuitous and cloying at times. i image this is something people enjoy. however, we were there for an excellentmealand not just nice service, particularly when you pay $183 per person for the three coursemealwith higher level eden wine pairings. the wine pairings were fine and essentially redeemed themealfor me. the meals, although veritable works of tiny food art, were not overly flavorful or satisfying which was very disappointing. we certainly did not have unrealistic expectations, but we did have expectations. although the staff was very solicitous and gave us three dessert courses as an anniversary treat, in the end, we were rather disappointed by our meals. the sablefish, rabbit souffle, rabbit sausage and lemon ice were very good. however, the foie gras terrine was bitter and not enjoyable, the rabbit rack had no flavor, and the mango soufflé tasted like squash purée with no seasoning. we are sad to say that overall, the eden was very underwhelming and a very costly, disappointing dining experience.

high water mark - eden. there is nothing about eden that was even close to mediocre. the staff were gracious, entertaining, and charming. the food was stimulating, inspired, and original. we went with the wine pairing option, and it was exquisite.

if you are going to eden, go all out, and enjoy.

we spent close to $3000 on amealfor 4 people - far more than you have to spend to enjoy a goodmealhere - and i still consider it to be a phenomenal value given the level of service and overall quality of the experience. i will do it again!

definitely go if you have the opportunity.

out of this world experience. delicious food, great service! get ready to have your senses enlightened. we chose the 2 coursemealwith the eden pairing and everything was divine. the foie gras served with pineapples, prime rib with spring rolls, every dish was well-thought out, very tasty with great texture. i highly recommend eden! make your reservation early so you can be seated with a view!

outstanding. ate at eden tonight... i can safely say this was the bestmeali've ever eaten, and i'm no stranger to fine dining (i've eaten at some famous places including gordon ramsay's). each dish was thoughtfully prepared and perfectly executed. balance of flavor, texture, color, and originality (e.g. carbonated grapes, various vegetable "chips", dehydrated chocolate) blew me away. pricey but worth every penny.

service was also amazing. attentive, friendly servers knew a lot about each dish and service was carefully timed (mymealhad a different number of courses than my table-mates). one small problem with my dish (bit of mold on a raspberry) was promptly corrected...l was extremely impressed with the whole evening. props to the servers and management team for a night i'll never forget. i'll definitely be back and be buying some gift vouchers for my friends too!

wow. i've never had a dining experience like this. you've been warned - this is a real treat and a real splurge so just enjoy it! well worth it. the restaurant is laid out in an intimate fashion (long, narrow, and wraps around a bend) so you feel as though you are the only diners in the place. from 6-6:30pm they cater to special requests for a window table/mountain view. setting the tone: you may be tempted to try the champagne cart - $50+ per flute! the food is impeccable (interesting techniques and flavors, little touches like burning pine sprig for aroma on your plate, an imploding white chocolate topped 'apple pie', lovely plating, tasty palate refreshers in between each course), the wine pairings were spot on, and the level of service was ridiculous. and you will be stuffed like never before. we were served by an entire team, all well versed in every detail of yourmealand dining experience. i was even escorted to the washroom...which may have been a bit over the top but contributed to the overall tone of the night!

feasting on foie!. after eating at eden last night, i may have to enter a state of depression, not because the food was bad, in fact it was so good i'm depressed that i cannot feast with such extravagance every night.

the addict that i am, the minute i saw the foie gras tasting menu, i knew that i had to try it. themealbegan with an amuse bouche of a cherry "lollipop". however inside held a fabulous surprise of rich, creamy foie gras mousse. very clever presentation and the taste did not dissappoint either. next came a second amuse bouche, a foie tortellini with ice wine foam. the wine provided a nice sweetness in contrast with the richness of the tortellini and the texture was very unexpected, the filling almost liquified.

finally, the first course. it was a play on the classic waldorf salad, though you definitely had to use your imagination in order to see the resemblance. the dish was a classical torchon with an ice wine syrup, walnut crumble and celery sorbet. the foie itself paired with the sorbet was great. the contrast in temperature and the sweetness of the sorbet with the decadence of the foie gras contrasted nicely. however, i found the wine too bitter for my taste and the textural component of the walnuts was somewhat eliminated because they absorbed most the wine. overall i enjoyed the dish but it wasn't something i would order again.

the second course was by far the most beautiful of all the dishes. the attention to detail in the plating was beyond intricate. it was a foie gras parfait with three preparations; pop rocks, hazelnut and caviar. very creative and each element provided a different "crunch" or "pop" to lighten the silky-ness of the parfait.

third came my favorite of all the dishes. langoustine poached "a la nage" with pickled cucumber and mushrooms in a foie gras, vanilla broth. it is difficult to describe the genius behind the the dish without actually tasting it for yourself. there may not have been an actual portion of foie in the dish however the ingredient still managed to come out the star. it provided body to the broth and paired with the vanilla, so many different flavor notes were brought out. i honestly could have taken a bath in it...just kidding...nope i am definitely serious.

as a palette cleanser, the chef provided a morello cherry sorbet. one can never seem to find true cherry flavor in any mass produced products without it tasting overly simulated but this was definitely the real thing. 1 gallon to go please!

finally, the main course. seared foie gras, boudin noir (for those of you who don't know, that isblood sausage, made with yes, you heard right, pigs blood) and alphonso mango. at first i was a little apprehensive about the boudin but it converted me. combining the sausage, foie gras and mango chutney created the perfect spoonful of sweet and savoury. the mango did its job of cutting the richness, without masking the flavor of the star, the foie gras.

lastly, dessert. and i have to give koodos to the kitchen team because they stayed true to the foie gras theme, even managing to pair it with chocolate cake and bittersweet ganache. yes, it is true...foie gras icecream. not something i could sit down with a whole bowl of and snuggle up to watch a movie with, but all in all, it worked. you didn't get the flavor up front, it snuck up on you afterwards but combined with the dark chocolate and refreshing mint foam and sweet passion fruit, it was a dessert that i would order again anytime.

to cap off themealwe received a selection of petits-fours. no foie gras included, but who can say no to chocolate truffles.

although it was not the focus of my review, the front of house staff were nothing short of amazing. highly trained and very knowledgable about both the food and wine, they helped to provide a flawless evening.

so now as i think back and wipe the tears away from my eyes (you have no idea how serious i am when i say this) i look forward to more dining experiences at eden, although they may not be for a very long time. i would love to eat like that every night but not only would i weigh 500 pounds, it would lose its exotic appeal. what a treat, now its time to hit the gym!