The return to life of the spectacular Canfranc International Station adds a new milestone. After the inauguration in January of the luxurious Royal Hideaway Hotel, built in the station building itself under the management of the Barceló group, this weekend two historic railway carriages converted into a restaurant from the 1920s arrived on the nearby tracks. One more step in the formation of a first-rate hotel complex that is destined to become a tourist engine in the Aragón Valley.
The adventure of these carriages, weighing between 40 and 45 tons each, dates back a long way. It is a 3000 series wagon from the 50s, which in the past linked Huesca with Canfranc until it was retired in 1998, and a 9600 series carriage from the 80s, which originally had bunk beds for long journeys. In total, the wagons have spent five intense months in the hands of the company Mare Ingeniería, which is in charge of reconditioning them with the art deco inspiration of the 20s. They are expected to start serving in a few weeks with a gastronomic space and another à la carte with Franco-Aragonese nuances, just as the Barceló group advanced some time ago.
The older of the two is 22 meters long and belongs to the collection of the Zaragozana Association of Friends of the Railway and the Tram, which saved it when it was going to be scrapped. Baptized as ‘Canfranc express’ and ceded to the Barceló group with the mediation of the Government of Aragon, the wagon houses six tables and the kitchen of the future restaurant, which will be run by businesswoman Ana Acín and chef Eduardo Salanova, known for their management of the people of Huesca La Venta del Sotón y Espacio N, a minimalist space that in 2020 won a Michelin star in recognition of its avant-garde Aragonese cuisine.
Chef Salanova, a native of Canfranc, is characterized by creative and avant-garde cuisine in which there is no shortage of references to traditional Aragonese recipes. For its part, Acín offers a special service that allows diners to appreciate the union between kitchen and dining room, as well as offering great treatment and respect for wine, Barceló pointed out.
For its part, the most modern wagon was rescued by the company Mare Ingeniería. It is 26 meters long and, inside, it has the bulk of the squares, with 23 months with capacity for 92 diners. It also returns with a new name: it is called 1928, after the year in which the Canfranc Station was inaugurated.
“We know that this work has been very special due to the repercussion that these wagons will have in the future,” said José Luis Pinilla, manager of Mare Ingeniería, to the Heraldo de Aragón newspaper. “Our company saved one of them, the 9600, which was going to be destroyed. It was Renfe surplus material and had been used as a sleeper car on the Estrella or Shanghai express trains, which covered the line from Madrid to Port Bou or Granada-Barcelona. I think it is a very dignified outcome to have turned it into a luxury restaurant in the middle of the Pyrenees after having rescued it, ”he added.
In these five months of restoration, the wagons were emptied. One’s berths and seats were removed. The Italian decorators from the company Ilmio Design, who have worked for the content of the Royal Hideaway hotel, also took great care with the interior of these wagons and the exterior restoration, where they opted to paint them green.
Although initial plans called for the carriages to be returned ready in mid-December to coincide with the hotel’s first scheduled opening date, plans were delayed and the deadline was extended.
Finally, after a journey of 632 kilometers from Ciudad Real in trucks with gondolas, the wagons were unloaded last Friday with large-tonnage cranes to the applause of the public present. “We are very happy that railway material is recovered at the station, which will also be a gastronomic boost for the territory,” said the mayor of the town, Fernando Sánchez.
