# New Dining Car Menus



## cpamtfan (Jun 4, 2010)

New menus started yesterday, some of the things I noticed were:

Steak is now a New York Strip, which sounds like an improvement.

French toast sticks replace pancakes on the Cardinal.

100th anniversary Glacier National Park artwork on the cover of the EB menu.

New Cardinal artwork on that menu.


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## Rail Freak (Jun 4, 2010)

cpamtfan said:


> New menus started yesterday, some of the things I noticed were:Steak is now a New York Strip, which sounds like an improvement.
> 
> French toast sticks replace pancakes on the Cardinal.
> 
> ...


I forget exactly where but, on one of my recent routes, I had the NY Strip. I liked it more than the Flat Iorn!

RF

PS: I believe it was on the SWC.


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## had8ley (Jun 4, 2010)

IIRC, the NY strip was "the" steak on Amtrak before flat irons became in vogue.


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## MrFSS (Jun 4, 2010)

I had NY Strip Sirloin on the EB two weeks ago. Extremely good!


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## jmbgeg (Jun 4, 2010)

MrFSS said:


> I had NY Strip Sirloin on the EB two weeks ago. Extremely good!



I had the strip both on the EB and CS in May.


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## Green Maned Lion (Jun 4, 2010)

I remember the strips on Amtrak, and not fondly. They were tastless, fatty things.


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## guest (Jun 4, 2010)

cpamtfan said:


> New menus started yesterday, some of the things I noticed were:Steak is now a New York Strip, which sounds like an improvement.
> 
> French toast sticks replace pancakes on the Cardinal.
> 
> ...


On which train, and which direction? The menus rotate, as "cycles", and so the steaks change every few months, and usually you will get one type of steak one way and another on the return (for example, the SWC this past week had the flatiron eastbound, and the NY strip westbound)


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## cpamtfan (Jun 4, 2010)

guest said:


> cpamtfan said:
> 
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> > New menus started yesterday, some of the things I noticed were:Steak is now a New York Strip, which sounds like an improvement.
> ...



I believe they are only serving NYS now, no Flat Iron.


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## Bob Dylan (Jun 4, 2010)

Last summer the infamous trainkill mystery meat became a loooooooooooong thread, hope it's not being served on the trains Ill ride in July (TE/CZ/CS/SWC/TE), I thought it was, well, terrible pot roast!


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## printman2000 (Jun 4, 2010)

Great news! That beef dish they dud last summer was not very good, IMO. I look forward to getting a real steak on the SWC later this month.


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## NorthCoastHiawatha (Jun 5, 2010)

printman2000 said:


> Great news! That beef dish they dud last summer was not very good, IMO. I look forward to getting a real steak on the SWC later this month.


I thought it was pretty good.


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## Donctor (Jun 5, 2010)

NorthCoastHiawatha said:


> printman2000 said:
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> > Great news! That beef dish they dud last summer was not very good, IMO. I look forward to getting a real steak on the SWC later this month.
> ...


I thought it was awful. As did everyone else on 49 who had ordered the "steak".


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## NorthCoastHiawatha (Jun 5, 2010)

Amtking said:


> NorthCoastHiawatha said:
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I must of had something different on the Zephyr then.


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## willyvee (Jun 5, 2010)

NorthCoastHiawatha said:


> Amtking said:
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You did. The LSL did not have a "full service" dining car last summer, so no steak was cooked to order like on the CZ, because there is no grill in a diner-lite car, which would have been used on the LSL last summer. The "steak" you had was probably just a piece of meat thrown in the microwave.


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## RTOlson (Jun 5, 2010)

^^

Not to bring back bad memories for last summer's travelers, but grilled steak was off the menu for nearly all trains with dining service (Empire Builder was a notable exception). Most passengers asking for the premium beef entree were served "flat iron bordelaise" (flat iron refers to the cut of beef and not preparation style).







More pics

Amtrak chefs discussed the 2009 menu changes with Trains magazine, but many posters here were not pleased with the beef offering. It's not grilled steak, but it was a passable dish for me (it reminded me of comfort food from growing up).


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## creddick (Jun 5, 2010)

Amtrak food is cookie cutter institution food. Take it for what it is. Just enjoy the ride.


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## Ryan (Jun 5, 2010)

RTOlson said:


> ^^Not to bring back bad memories for last summer's travelers, but grilled steak was off the menu for nearly all trains with dining service (Empire Builder was a notable exception). Most passengers asking for the premium beef entree were served "flat iron bordelaise" (flat iron refers to the cut of beef and not preparation style).
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It's still available on the Cardinal, Amy had it last month and it was rather tasty.


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## ThayerATM (Jun 5, 2010)

creddick said:


> Amtrak food is cookie cutter institution food. Take it for what it is. Just enjoy the ride.


I agree with part of this. ENJOY THE RIDE.

While the food on Amtrak is certainly several cut's above McD's, it's certainly cookie cutter, with some notable exceptions, like lunch on the Coast Starlight.

You can call it "Flat Iron" steak, or New York Strip," or whatever you like... it's still the same old steak.

I'm certainly not complaining about the food on an Amtrak train. I've always been well fed, and have never turned it down.

However, I'd never call it "fine dining" in any respect. Amtrak can't be expected to turn out "fine dining" given that the cooks are working in a pitching, small kitchens.

Let's get real --- Appreciate what Amtrak is able to turn out in a diner, a CCC, or a Diner Lite.

I'll continue riding Amtrak, and enjoy the food as it's served. If my French Toast, or Angus Burger isn't served EXACTLY the way I'd like it, I'll just eat it and go back to my room.


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## creddick (Jun 5, 2010)

ThayerATM said:


> creddick said:
> 
> 
> > Amtrak food is cookie cutter institution food. Take it for what it is. Just enjoy the ride.
> ...


Agree totally. Well put!


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## OlympianHiawatha (Jun 5, 2010)

Meal and "treat time" on board is always an enjoyable part of the trip and my standards are very forgiving. Just to be able to eat in a Dining Car or Lounge rolling along at 70 MPH is worth the price of admission, no matter how mundane the chow.


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## NorthCoastHiawatha (Jun 5, 2010)

RTOlson said:


> ^^Not to bring back bad memories for last summer's travelers, but grilled steak was off the menu for nearly all trains with dining service (Empire Builder was a notable exception). Most passengers asking for the premium beef entree were served "flat iron bordelaise" (flat iron refers to the cut of beef and not preparation style).
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I actually ordered it twice on my trip, for some reason I really liked it. Of course I've never really had a bad meal on Amtrak, my only complainant has been the potato chips served with the burgers. How hard would it be to serve french fires?


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## Ryan (Jun 5, 2010)

Pretty hard - I'd imagine that a deep fat dryer in a dining car bouncing around at 79 MPH is not fun to stand next to.


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## NorthCoastHiawatha (Jun 5, 2010)

Ryan said:


> Pretty hard - I'd imagine that a deep fat dryer in a dining car bouncing around at 79 MPH is not fun to stand next to.


You could always do baked french fries.


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## zephyr17 (Jun 5, 2010)

NorthCoastHiawatha said:


> Ryan said:
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> > Pretty hard - I'd imagine that a deep fat dryer in a dining car bouncing around at 79 MPH is not fun to stand next to.
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French bakeds?


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## jmbgeg (Jun 5, 2010)

zephyr17 said:


> NorthCoastHiawatha said:
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The San Joquins has microwaved french fries. I guess they could be baked.


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## NorthCoastHiawatha (Jun 5, 2010)

zephyr17 said:


> NorthCoastHiawatha said:
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haha ya, I make them all the time, and they are pretty good and are best be served with Johnny's Seasoning Salt. While not exactly true french fries in the sense of the word, it would be a major step above the chips.

Here is an example, that I found on photobucket http://media.photobucket.com/image/steak%2...Fries020407.jpg


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## rtabern (Jun 5, 2010)

My favorite new menu items are the mac & cheese they have for lunch (atleast on the Empire Builder) -- and also some sorta of sandwitch they had for lunch which was basically a grilled cheese with carmalized onions in it (on the Southwest Chief). Both were very, very tasty!! :^D


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## jmbgeg (Jun 5, 2010)

rtabern said:


> My favorite new menu items are the mac & cheese they have for lunch (atleast on the Empire Builder) -- and also some sorta of sandwitch they had for lunch which was basically a grilled cheese with carmalized onions in it (on the Southwest Chief). Both were very, very tasty!! :^D


My favorite item is in the lounge car, the Sbarro meatball sandwich. Second favorite is when they have Bison meatloaf in the diner or PPC.


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## Ryan (Jun 5, 2010)

NorthCoastHiawatha said:


> Ryan said:
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> > Pretty hard - I'd imagine that a deep fat dryer in a dining car bouncing around at 79 MPH is not fun to stand next to.
> ...


Duh, I don't know why I didn't think of that - I make those at home from time to time...


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## Sam31452 (Jun 5, 2010)

> Not to bring back bad memories for last summer's travelers, but grilled steak was off the menu for nearly all trains with dining service (Empire Builder was a notable exception). Most passengers asking for the premium beef entree were served "flat iron bordelaise" (flat iron refers to the cut of beef and not preparation style).


Yup, not all memories of last summer are positive. I hope they fixed one of the showers I encountered in the SWC (don't remember the number of the sleeper). In General (except for the EB) I think food quality is still below the level of 1998 when I first dined in an Amtrak diner.

EDIT: Some day I'll learn to quote, I'm sorry. I quoted: (RTOlson @ Sat, Jun 5, 2010, 03:24 AM)


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## GAT (Jun 5, 2010)

The duck breast in the PPC is great!


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## Green Maned Lion (Jun 5, 2010)

I don't know about fine dining not being possible. First, I have had it on a few trains in my life. But more importantly, I remember back a number of years ago, (like 50-60) it used to be joked that by dinner time, the two best restaurants in New York had left town. Naturally, the _Broadway Limited_ and _Twentieth Century Limited_. Hyperbole, most likely, but clearly if you could even make the joke with a straight face, I assume the fair on there was clearly fine dining.


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## alanh (Jun 6, 2010)

There are gourmet food trucks -- I don't think operating on a train would be much different.


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## RTOlson (Jun 6, 2010)

alanh said:


> There are gourmet food trucks -- I don't think operating on a train would be much different.


The gourmet trucks are interesting -- is someone cooking while the vehicle is in motion? That would probably a significant difference between cooking a la train versus a truck.


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## AAARGH! (Jun 6, 2010)

Last month on my 12 day / 11 train journey, I had 4 different steaks.

1. Marinated Flat Iron

2. New York Strip (very little fat and very good)

3. Sirloin - similar to the Flat Iron

4. Roast - On the Cardinal as mentioned above.

All are good in my opinion, but I like the Flat Iron the best.


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## creddick (Jun 6, 2010)

My father was a ship's doctor on a passenger liner back in the 30's sailing out of Seattle to the Orient. He also rode the rails most of his life. He knew fine dining. He often told me some of the best meals he ever ate were on a train. No reason they can't do it today.


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## Sam31452 (Jun 6, 2010)

Just in case you don't know it:

James D. Porterfield, Dining by Rail, New York 1993.

An ecxellent cookbook containing reciepes from many railways.


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## 3rd Cook (Jun 6, 2010)

Ryan said:


> Pretty hard - I'd imagine that a deep fat dryer in a dining car bouncing around at 79 MPH is not fun to stand next to.


I cooked on the Great Northern Empire Builder and Western Star for two summers (1967 and 68 ) . I had a deep fat fryer which I used to cook the french fries and also chicken . It was standard equipment . Never had a problem .


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## jay woody (Jul 25, 2010)

there has to be a little pride involving the chefs manning the amtrak trains. i rode trains in the 50s and 60s and you could always tell the diners that produced the great meals.

i think amtrak should capitalize on this long, lost fantasy of"dinner in the diner" where a decent clientele shows up to ride the trains on a regular basis. begining this now, on firm ground, will reap good will when the rails inevitably return.

i will be amtraking from north carolina to LA via DC and Chicago with an overnight in emeryville this august. hopefully, the diner crews will be inspired.


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## emmy (Jul 25, 2010)

I have the Dining By Rail cookbook and it has a lot of very tasty receipes in it, including a full Christmas Dinner

Menu Bev.-Desert each course from a different train.I have tried some of the receipes and the family really liked them


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## greatcats (Jul 25, 2010)

Didn't trains at one time have excellent quality, upscale food? Prepared in narrow, pitchinh kitchens? But I am not complaining for the most part about Amtrak food that I have been served recently. I realize it comes from a central commissary and is " cookie cutter " but the breakfasts and dishes like pasta and ribs have been quite satisfying. Lunch on the Cardinal of the " bistro sandwich " did not have much to say for it.


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## Rail Freak (Jul 25, 2010)

I don't remember a meal that I thought about sending back !


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## OlympianHiawatha (Jul 25, 2010)

Look at Dining Car Menus on eBay and you'll be amazed how wide the selection was for each meal; there are many "brick and mortar" restaurants that cannot come close to the variety offered on a typical long distance train from the 40s, 50s or even 60s.


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## ALC Rail Writer (Jul 25, 2010)

Part of the reason Amtrak exists is because of those old menus and master chefs-- food service has ALWAYS been at a loss. They never made money on food service and they had even worse loss margins back then.

Trains go bankrupt, enter Amtrak, think: "How can we save money?"


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## Montanan (Jul 28, 2010)

ALC_Rail_Writer said:


> Part of the reason Amtrak exists is because of those old menus and master chefs-- food service has ALWAYS been at a loss. They never made money on food service and they had even worse loss margins back then.
> 
> Trains go bankrupt, enter Amtrak, think: "How can we save money?"


Yep. Those high-end dining cars were significant money-losers back in the day ... and it would be even worse now, thanks to increased labor costs. There's no way in the world that Amtrak's nitpicking Congressional overseers would tolerate something like that. Given the financial constraints, Amtrak does pretty well.

Another thing to remember, too: those famous old dining cars were usually only on the primary trains. Most long-distance routes also included secondary and tertiary trains that either had minimal on-board service, or even no food service at all. The first train I ever rode was Union Pacific #5, back in 1968 -- coach-only, and at mealtimes the conductor would take passenger orders and wire ahead for sandwiches from a small-town greasy-spoon. Compared to that, today's Amtrak passengers have it made.


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## spacecadet (Jul 28, 2010)

Montanan said:


> Another thing to remember, too: those famous old dining cars were usually only on the primary trains. Most long-distance routes also included secondary and tertiary trains that either had minimal on-board service, or even no food service at all. The first train I ever rode was Union Pacific #5, back in 1968 -- coach-only, and at mealtimes the conductor would take passenger orders and wire ahead for sandwiches from a small-town greasy-spoon. Compared to that, today's Amtrak passengers have it made.


That's true, but I think the fact that Amtrak has cut those routes down to one train means it will always be compared to the "best" train on that route from the past. It also doesn't help that Amtrak has named a lot of their trains the same as the premier trains from the railroad that operated them previously (though they haven't done this in every case). So somebody on the California Zephyr of today has more reason to compare his/her food to the California Zephyr of 1950, just because the trains have the same name.

Of course, I doubt that a lot of people riding Amtrak today are old enough to really remember those days anyway... though I personally remember when Amtrak themselves still did most things the "old fashioned way" and made food from scratch in the dining cars, with large menus and really good restaurant quality food. Amtrak's early days really weren't much different from the private railroads' last days.


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## GAT (Jul 28, 2010)

ThayerATM said:


> I'll continue riding Amtrak, and enjoy the food as it's served. If my French Toast, or Angus Burger isn't served EXACTLY the way I'd like it, I'll just eat it and go back to my room.


Agreed, and all I have to do to make it EXACTLY the way I like it is to bring along some real (i.e. Canadian) maple syrup for my French toast and some of my home made bittersweet chocolate sauce for the vanilla ice cream. Pig Heaven!


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## Ispolkom (Jul 28, 2010)

George said:


> some real (i.e. Canadian) maple syrup


Them's fightin' words. The best maple syrup is made by the students of Northfield Mt. Hermon School in western Massachusetts. Not that I turn down your Canadian maple syrup, of course...


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