1st class first courses

Train stations are for dining, too

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Scallop-and-oyster tartare. Black soy sauce ramen in fish stock. One-of-a-kind “hot dogs” with a herby rémoulade. Train stations aren’t just for departures and arrivals — they're also for dining. Here are five urban train stations where you can find a fabulous meal, whether it’s a multicourse, two-hour dinner in London or a delicious quick lunch in Copenhagen.

PARIS

GARE ST-LAZARE

The belle epoque magnificence of Le Train Bleu at the Gare de Lyon in Paris has made it one of the most famous restaurants in the world since it opened in 1901. It isn’t the most Parisian of the French capital's train station restaurants, though. That honour goes to Lazare, which chef Eric Frechon opened in 2013 at the Gare St-Lazare, one of the busiest train stations in Europe (trains here serve mostly Normandy and the western suburbs of Paris, including Vernon, the stop for Giverny and Monet’s garden).

“I love the Gare St-Lazare, because as a boy growing up in Normandy, it was my portal to Paris,” Frechon said when Lazare opened. Remembering those empty-pocketed days, he wanted to design a modern brasserie with many different price points. “Everyone should have the right to some good food,” he said, which explains the breakfast prix fixe menu for €12 (about 460 baht); the €8 buttered-baguette-and-ham sandwich or €6 sugared crepe served from 3pm to 7pm; and the €22 daily special at lunch and dinner.

With its copper bar and brass-rail-backed banquettes, Lazare evokes a traditional Parisian brasserie, but registers as modern with its exposed ductwork overhead and wall units filled with stacked white plates, pitchers, vases and other objects. Similarly, the stylish comfort-food menu includes Normandy oysters, onion soup and roasted sausage with buttery potato purée, as well as contemporary dishes like scallop-and-oyster tartare with curry oil, and pineapple carpaccio with lemon-mint sorbet.