Icefields Parkway - Good place for lunch?
 

We will be driving from Banff to Jasper - is there any good place for lunch on the parkway or should we bring our own?

I think it's better to bring your own lunch. I'm sure there are places in Banff from which you can buy take-away meals, but I don't know of one off-hand. In Lake Louise village you can buy a nice take-away meal from Laggan's Bakery and Deli.

There is a restaurant / cafeteria at the Columbia Icefields, but I haven't found it to be very good.

The restaurant at Sunwapta Falls is respectable, but if you stop at enough scenic lookout points on the way up to Jasper, you'll reach Sunwapta Falls a bit too late for lunch.

If you haven't brought a lunch, hunger probably will induce you to consume calories, any calories, at the Icefields Centre.

There is a restaurant at The Crossing. It is not quite half way up, however. You will probably be there before lunch time.
It is one of the few places where you can buy gasoline between Lake Louise and Jasper.

At lunchtime the self service restaurant at The Crossings is open. You can get sandwiches, cakes and hot meals. There is also a petrol station, gift shop and restroom facilities.

In the evening they also have a more upmarket dining room where the food is pretty good. They have a decent menu plus a help yourself hot and cold buffet for 19.95. I don't think the dining room opens at lunchtime.

Laggan's Bakery and Deli is a real find. We were pleasantly surprised at the excellent quality.

Ummm - this is my opinion only - the cafeteria at The Crossing serves dreadful food and atrocious coffee. Give it a miss. The cafeteria at the Columbia Icefields interpretive centre is only a little bit better.

My advice - go to Laggans in Lake Louise (Samson Mall) and buy a lunch to pack away, and fill your thermos with coffee at any of the coffee shops in Banff or Lake Louise.

I disagree with the previous poster.
Sometimes it doesn't matter what you're eating (within reason!) if the food isn't the purpose of the trip.
(which it totally isn't in this case)
And:
1) there is a magnificent view or
2) you're with the right *company* (i.e. people)
We enjoyed a meal (snacks) at both places and because of the above, we were quite satisfied.
JMHO.

The quality of food available between Lake Louise and Jasper is pretty poor - I have to agree with Borealis about the place at the crossing. So long as the weather is good, I would picnic. Buy your picnic before hand. Lagans is a great choice -I assume you will be stopping in Lake Louise anyway? If not, there is a small sandwich place in Banff across the street for the Banff park Museum (not across Banff Ave, but the other way). They serve all sorts of goodies to make a picnic out of. Or even stop at Safeway (the grocery store in Banff), and assemble your own picnic.

The best part about picnicing is the choice of locations you get. There are all sorts of spots along the way with picnic tables, outhouses and a view.