Restaurant on wheels awaits hill tourists.. DARJEELING RAILWAY TO OFFER LOCAL CUISINE ON CHARTERED TOY TRAINS

BIRESWAR BANERJEE, TT, 21 Nov 2018, Siliguri: This Christmas, sip Darjeeling Tea and tuck into the local cuisine while you soak in the beauty of the hills on a toy train.

The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway that runs chartered toy trains will have a bistro from this winter. One of the two compartments of the trains will be a 12-seater restaurant on wheels, while the other will accommodate 18 tourists.

The DHR authorities be- lieve the on-board bistro will attract more tourists to the heritage service.

Now, chartered toy trains have two compartments, each accommodating 18 passengers. Food is not served on the trains.

The chartered trains -- not the ones where seats can be booked individually by tourists -- with the on-board restaurant will run between New Jalpaiguri or Siliguri Junction and Rongtong.

Rongtong, 15km from Siliguri, is the first DHR sta- TASTE CHURNER tion in the Darjeeling hills. The DHR authorities said the restaurant would be launched during Christmas. They are yet to fix the rates. Now, the DHR charges around Rs 20,000 for every chartered toy train ride.

"We are planning to introduce a dining coach in the chartered toy trains. This will be the first time in the history of this heritage railway that passengers will enjoy the journey amidst panoramic natural beauty and taste the local cuisine along with the world famous Darjeeling Tea," said M.K. Narzary, the DHR director.

He said the chartered tour would be a daylong affair. "Once the train reaches Rongtong, passengers can get off and enjoy the tranquillity of the tiny hilly hamlet. After spending some time there, they can return by the same train," Narzary added. The food served on the on-board bistro would be lunch or dinner, depending on the itinerary of the travellers. "During Christmas and New Year, we receive many queries for chartered rides, with people asking for (restaurant) facilities. We feel once it is introduced, the number of rides will go up," a source said.

"The food and beverages will be served by our own catering service," the source added.