The Agrarian Kitchen Is Serving a Moving Feast on Tasmania’s West Coast Wilderness Railway

A gourmet moving picnic through the wilderness is one thing; a train journey that arrives with Delamere sparkling, La Cántara cheese, wallaby terrine and Leatherwood honey ice cream as old rainforest slips past the glass is another entirely. The Agrarian Kitchen has taken to the tracks with a new dining experience aboard the West Coast Wilderness Railway, turning one of Tasmania’s great heritage journeys into a moving feast through the wild west.

Led by Agrarian Kitchen co-founder and Executive Chef Rodney Dunn, the premium carriage menu draws from the restaurant’s deep relationships with Tasmanian growers, makers and producers. Part picnic, part tasting journey, part love letter to the west coast, it is a slow, low-impact way to trace the King River, move through cool-temperate rainforest, and taste the island as you travel.

The West Coast Wilderness Railway opened for tourism in 2002, nearly 40 years after the transport railway closed. Its 35-kilometre track and heritage trains have since become a gateway into history, drawing visitors to Strahan and Queenstown for a journey through rainforest, river country and old mining terrain. Trains may not yet run the full line from Strahan to Queenstown, but the railway connects these two towns in spirit, story and now dining.

From Strahan: The Cryptic Express

From Strahan, guests embark at the charming Regatta Point Station on the 1 hour and 45 minute Cryptic Express. For A Moving Feast, you’ll be seated at the booth tables of the premium carriage, where 1950s diesel train carriages have all the vintage charm you want, with wood panelling, brass fixtures and soft lamp lighting.

Rumbling gently through the trees, shadows dapple across your amuse bouche of paprika-roasted walnuts and your choice of Delamere NV méthode champenoise-style sparkling from Piper’s River, or Oxbow Lab’s rhubarb, native lemon myrtle and kunzea non-alcoholic drink.

As the train follows the King River and slips into cool temperate rainforest, stories of the people who made this land home unfold, beginning with the Traditional Owners, the palawa people, before moving through the eras of copper mines, farming and railway life.

Then comes The Agrarian Plate, a graze across the island’s best: La Cántara cheese from Smithton, pork and wallaby terrine from Fork It Farm in Lebrina, Hill Farm horseradish mustard from the northwest, pickled onions, pepperberry quince paste and house-made crackers.

On the return, switch tables and keep watch for Cryptic Falls, pausing over hazelnut and hempseed praline from Richmond’s Federation Chocolate before the final flourish: a mini Pure Pop of Tasmanian Leatherwood honey ice cream, enrobed in chocolate and sprinkled with Tasman sea salt.

From Queenstown: Rinadeena, Rack and Rainforest

Those starting from Queenstown board the Rinadeena, Rack and Rainforest journey for a deeper dive into the wilds, including a stop to pan for gold.

The grand, vaulted station ceiling catches swirling locomotive steam, while the carriage features beautiful inlaid wood depicting native fauna. The menu shifts here too. Here, the Agrarian Plate swaps terrine for Lenah Valley wallaby pastrami, and, as befits a three-hour return adventure, guests receive an extra course: cream tea with freshly baked scones, thick La Cántara cultured cream and Christmas Hills blackberry jam, an ode to the brambles that once lined the tracks.

While in Strahan

Stay at Risby Cove, a boutique stay on Macquarie Harbour with twelve character-filled suites, generous west coast views and an award-winning restaurant on site. It’s a refined base with plenty of Tasmanian soul, close enough to the railway, harbour and town to make the whole escape feel beautifully easy.

For deeper wilderness immersion, book the Wild Wild Rest package, which pairs accommodation and dinner at Stillwater in Launceston with Tiny Escapes in Cradle Valley, before continuing on to Risby Cove with tickets for Queenstown’s Rinadeena, Rack and Rainforest journey. With EV charging at Stillwater, Cradle Mountain Visitor Centre, Strahan and Queenstown, the route can be shaped into a lower-impact journey through one of Tasmania’s most remarkable landscapes.

Taste the famous west coast catches at Westerly Seafoods, Strahan’s beloved fish and chip van on the Esplanade. Whole crayfish? Yes, please. Pick up Tasmanian sparkling to accompany it from The Mill bar at Risby Cove, stop in at Charlotte’s at Franklin Manor for elegant French hospitality and an excellent martini, then find your morning pick-me-up at Tracks on Point or The Coffee Shack.

Go deeper into local history in the Museum Rooms at the Strahan and Queenstown railway stations, pick up a handcrafted keepsake at the Huon Pine Shop and Gallery, or catch Australia’s longest-running play. For more west coast nature, book a Gordon River Cruise, walk to Hogarth Falls or watch the sunset from Ocean Beach lookout.

West Coast Wilderness Railway also has bespoke stay and activity packages available via the Cultural Attractions of Australia website.

Need to Know

What: The Agrarian Kitchen’s new premium carriage menu aboard the West Coast Wilderness Railway
Where: Departures from Strahan and Queenstown, Tasmania
Journeys: Cryptic Express from Strahan and Rinadeena, Rack and Rainforest from Queenstown
Best for: Slow travel, Tasmanian produce, railway history and west coast wilderness
Book: Via West Coast Wilderness Railway

For all its polish, this is still the west coast at its most elemental: rainforest at the window, old railway stories in the carriage, river country slipping by and Tasmania’s best producers gathered at the table. Build a Strahan stay around it, leave room for the Gordon River, Hogarth Falls and a sunset at Ocean Beach, and let the railway set the pace.