# Best bets in the cafe car?



## MARC Rider (Mar 14, 2012)

So last month, I was riding coach on a sold-out Silver Star, and about 5 PM, I was up in the cafe car, getting a drink when I heard the announcement that there were no more reservations in the diner available for coach passengers. Fortunately, I was still in line, so when it was my turn, I ordered a pizza with the bottle of wine. The pizza was perfectly edible, but it was just a basic supermarket style frozen pizza.

This got me thinking about what the cafe car has to offer, as I will be riding the Palmetto next month from Savannah to Baltimore, and will thus be on the train for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and won't be in a position to bring any of my own food aboard. I've never had much more than a drink, or a bagel when I use the cafe car, the few times I've had lunch, I buy the Hebrew National hot dog, which is quite good if you can get the cafe attendant to toast the bun instead of microwaving it. When I was hanging out in the cafe car of the star on the northbound trip waiting for lunch in the diner (I had a sleeper for that segment), I saw a guy eating the Hamburger, and it looked pretty good, actually. Who knows how it tasted.

So I'd like to know what your favorite (or unfavorite) cafe car items are, and what you would eat if you were riding the Palmetto during breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Anyway, it's a shame that they don't have enough diners to put some on the longer day train runs (like the Palmetto, the Carolinian, Vermonter, Pennsylvanian, etc.


----------



## OlympianHiawatha (Mar 14, 2012)

I have always enjoyed the Grilled Cheeseburger that actually goes in the microwave on the _*Heartland Flyer*_ and the Breakfast Sandwich is pretty good too. And when I was on the _*Missouri River Runner*_ I ate the Meatball sub and that kept me held over well into the night. Do stay away from the White Castle Cheeseburgers-those things are just outright *NASTY*-the only place to get proper White Castle is *AT* White Castle.


----------



## benjibear (Mar 14, 2012)

I have never had anything that was exceptional and my opinion is you can get better food at a conveniance store (maybe a hint for Amtrak to copy some local conveniance store for cafe cars). The hot dogs are edible but I would rather a hot dog from the corner conveniance store that sells them 2 for 2.22 and you can choose hot dog, cheeseburger dog, smoked sausage, italian sausage and a few other varieties. I have heard some people rave over the cheese tray but it reminded me of the crappy stuff you get in a gift basket. Would much rather some of the individual cheese sticks you can buy in the grocery store.


----------



## dabrilloman (Mar 14, 2012)

OlympianHiawatha said:


> I have always enjoyed the Grilled Cheeseburger that actually goes in the microwave on the _*Heartland Flyer*_ and the Breakfast Sandwich is pretty good too. And when I was on the _*Missouri River Runner*_ I ate the Meatball sub and that kept me held over well into the night. Do stay away from the White Castle Cheeseburgers-those things are just outright *NASTY*-the only place to get proper White Castle is *AT* White Castle.


Damn straight....nothing like a Whitey fresh from the griddle! Worked for White Castle for about 6 years...I know...I made the best sides of WC's!

Ouch, strained my arm patting myself on the back!


----------



## HeadingNorth (Mar 14, 2012)

I travel mostly on the regionals so these may not be on the Palmetto menu...

While certainly not gourmet (and not everyone's cup of tea) I've had the chicken Caesar salad and it's pretty good, (better with a beer!)... I'd also check for some kind of hot sandwich (might be turkey and cheese or something like that). I still miss the bratwurst... Mornings I've had the Entenmann's Danishes or the bagels (cinnamon raisin is better but you may have to ask). I've had the Breakfast Sandwich a couple times and it's doable but not great. If there's any way you can bring your own sandwich/snack on board you'll be glad. When I took the Maple Leaf years ago I brought big sandwiches each way and it's nice to have something you know you like for one meal.


----------



## Opiatephoto (Mar 14, 2012)

The burger is pretty good, actually. The ham sandwich is pretty tasteless, however. I ate one and got full just in time to hear about some delicious specials in the diner and kick myself.


----------



## SarahZ (Mar 14, 2012)

Burnt loves the Meatball Sub (heated up) and I'm a big fan of the Ham & Cheese sandwich (also heated up). The sandwich is always a lot more filling than I think it's going to be. They put a lot of meat on it, and they use ciabatta bread.


----------



## Acela150 (Mar 14, 2012)

Sorcha said:


> Burnt loves the Meatball Sub (heated up) and I'm a big fan of the Ham & Cheese sandwich (also heated up). The sandwich is always a lot more filling than I think it's going to be. They put a lot of meat on it, and they use ciabatta bread.


WOOOOOOOOOOOAHHHHH!!! There's a meatball sub in the Midwest Sorcha?? There used to be one in the NEC and it was my favorite!!! They took it off the menu during the spring or summer of last year I think...


----------



## PerRock (Mar 14, 2012)

I always enjoyed the Cup of Noodles (Ramen here in the states), as it was quite filling and definitely the cheapest 'meal' there. Sadly I haven't seen it on the menu now for a while.

peter


----------



## Acela150 (Mar 14, 2012)

PerRock said:


> I always enjoyed the Cup of Noodles (Ramen here in the states), as it was quite filling and definitely the cheapest 'meal' there. Sadly I haven't seen it on the menu now for a while.
> 
> peter


Ramen.. Not my fav.. But I'd say my current fav is well.. Nothing.. It changes every time.. I have no steady choice..


----------



## Anthony (Mar 15, 2012)

My favorite sandwich currently found in Northeast cafe cars (not sure if the Palmetto has it) is the honey mustard baguette sandwich, heated. It has a healthy slice of brie which tastes great when slightly melted. The bread is sufficiently crusty to not get all soggy in the microwave.


----------



## TampAGS (Mar 15, 2012)

I've enjoyed the buffalo wings on a couple of occasions. They are quite messy, but that's to be expected. I have to admit, though, their presentation is not too appealing... sauce-covered wings swimming around in a microwavable bag.


----------



## Acela150 (Mar 15, 2012)

TampAGS said:


> I've enjoyed the buffalo wings on a couple of occasions. They are quite messy, but that's to be expected. I have to admit, though, their presentation is not too appealing... sauce-covered wings swimming around in a microwavable bag.


Had them last time on the SS. As an After Dinner snack. I don't really remember much except that. It was way to messy, overheated and had to let them sit for 30 minutes to cool down to be at my "normal" wing temperature, they were about 2 on my spice level. (I'm very very very picky) To a normal person I'd say a 5. But they were the thing I would get if I was desperate for wings.. Which at the time I was.. I'm a diehard wing guy, and at that point I hadn't had wings in about 10 days.. My normal rate is about once a week. Local bar up the street. Where I ironically got a job. So now I eat wings once a week for free!! They get about a 7. 

I'd say currently in the cafe car the one thing that I get one a constant basis is the EggMcAmtrak as I call it. So whatever the Breakfast sandwich is on the Regional trains are. Whether it's ham, sausage, bacon. I'll take it. That a cheese danish and a Apple Juice. That's the one thing that is consistent with my cafe car purchases. If they get Scrapple then we got a DEAL!!!


----------



## TCRT (Mar 15, 2012)

It's a shame that more trains don't adopt the method the _Downeaster_ uses - they outsource the menu items to local companies, and promote "Made in Maine" items (though admittedly this train has a far, far easier time of customizing its product than other trains might). This makes it (in my opinion, at least) a cut above the cafe menu present on the rest of the system. I'm not sure if any other train does anything like this, though I did notice that the _Pacific Surfliner_ stocks Stone.

As for the standard cafe menu, I've had nothing outstanding and nothing terrible (though I will say that Amtrak's coffee is quite good compared to most airline coffee). I've found the pre-packaged sandwiches to be passable, but just ever so slightly below the cold sandwiches one can purchase in a diner. I've certainly gone the ramen route as well.


----------



## SarahZ (Mar 15, 2012)

Acela150 said:


> Sorcha said:
> 
> 
> > Burnt loves the Meatball Sub (heated up) and I'm a big fan of the Ham & Cheese sandwich (also heated up). The sandwich is always a lot more filling than I think it's going to be. They put a lot of meat on it, and they use ciabatta bread.
> ...


It's on the SWC. I'm not sure if it's offered on the Wolverine or Blue Water (we don't buy food on those trains since our trips are always 2-3 hours at most).


----------



## VentureForth (Mar 15, 2012)

For the price, a burger in the diner at lunch is a better value than what you get in the cafe car. Of course, the Palmetto doesn't have a diner, so I dunno... I've enjoyed most everything the cafe car has to offer.


----------



## The Davy Crockett (Mar 15, 2012)

My favorite item in the cafe car is the liquid bread. :blush: Especially the craft brewed ones. :wub:


----------



## Ocala Mike (Mar 15, 2012)

I stick to coffee and Entenmann's prepackaged goodies.

Ocala Mike


----------



## Acela150 (Mar 16, 2012)

Sorcha said:


> Acela150 said:
> 
> 
> > Sorcha said:
> ...


Well... That's a bummer.. I love that sandwich.. Was veryyyyyyy upset when I found out they took it off the menu.


----------



## TCRT (Mar 16, 2012)

The Davy Crockett said:


> My favorite item in the cafe car is the liquid bread. :blush: Especially the craft brewed ones. :wub:


Mine too. For whatever reason, the corridor trains seem to have a better selection here versus the long distance trains.


----------



## zepherdude (Mar 16, 2012)

A few years ago, I had a Chicken Sandwich on the Pacific Surfliner to LAX from SLO. I had been on a bus all night and was about to eat my luggage. This sandwich was To DIE FOR!

It was just regular airline rubber chicken, but the cafe attendant had heated it just right and the Swiss Cheese was melted perfect. Wanna know something else, the second one was just as good! That was a great trip along the Coast, we do not discuss that service often, I did enjoy that trip and the cool passenger cars.


----------



## terry (Mar 16, 2012)

I've enjoyed the teriyaki rice bowl several times and the snack pack w/tuna, crackers, cheese and cookies was pretty good. Ham and cheese sandwich was OK, but stay away from the veggie burger.

Terry


----------



## rrdude (Mar 16, 2012)

While the menu has improved GREATLY over the years, it's still just "heat-n-serve".

The key is the preparation. If the attendant puts the sandwich, INCLUDING THE BREAD, in the nuke, then your sandwich is gonna suck, or at least not be as good as it could be. Some LSA's just don't care, it's much FASTER to throw the whole things in there. But if you can get them to take the meat out, and heat it first, then put the meat (hot dog, burger, ham, etc.) back with the bread, and finish it up for 10-20 seconds, you'll get a better sandwich. Some LSA's will claim, "can't do that against FDA rules". BS. They have sanitary gloves, tongs, and plates to work with.

Mind you, you cannot get a "write home about it" sandwich, but if you are hungry, have the LSA prepare correctly, and then you doctor it up with mayo, mustard, salt, pepper, etc., etc., you can at least get an edible sandwich.


----------



## The Davy Crockett (Mar 16, 2012)

terry said:


> ...but stay away from the veggie burger.
> 
> Terry


I agree, the one in the cafe car is a major disappointment compared to the one in ths diners. I ordered once, but nevermore.


----------



## Reno89502 (Mar 16, 2012)

On the Capitol Corridor they used to (and may still) serve a Pot Roast Sandwich that was to die for!


----------



## smurfmom (Mar 16, 2012)

I ordered the chicken strips. They were microwaved and awful. But both the hotdog and cheese burger were very good.


----------



## Devil's Advocate (Mar 16, 2012)

Acela150 said:


> I'd say my current fav is well.. Nothing.. It changes every time..


Wow, my favorite is Nothing as well. Except mine never changes. _Ever._ :lol:


----------



## ScottC4746 (Apr 24, 2012)

MARC Rider said:


> So last month, I was riding coach on a sold-out Silver Star, and about 5 PM, I was up in the cafe car, getting a drink when I heard the announcement that there were no more reservations in the diner available for coach passengers. Fortunately, I was still in line, so when it was my turn, I ordered a pizza with the bottle of wine. The pizza was perfectly edible, but it was just a basic supermarket style frozen pizza.
> 
> This got me thinking about what the cafe car has to offer, as I will be riding the Palmetto next month from Savannah to Baltimore, and will thus be on the train for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and won't be in a position to bring any of my own food aboard. I've never had much more than a drink, or a bagel when I use the cafe car, the few times I've had lunch, I buy the Hebrew National hot dog, which is quite good if you can get the cafe attendant to toast the bun instead of microwaving it. When I was hanging out in the cafe car of the star on the northbound trip waiting for lunch in the diner (I had a sleeper for that segment), I saw a guy eating the Hamburger, and it looked pretty good, actually. Who knows how it tasted.
> 
> So I'd like to know what your favorite (or unfavorite) cafe car items are, and what you would eat if you were riding the Palmetto during breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Anyway, it's a shame that they don't have enough diners to put some on the longer day train runs (like the Palmetto, the Carolinian, Vermonter, Pennsylvanian, etc.


My experiance has been on Pacific Surfliner: Avoid anything hot with cheese including pizza. After they heat it up, it all turns into a gooey mess. Don't get me wrong, I love gooey cheese, but it sticks to the wrapper and either peels a layer of paper off and stays on the food or pulls all the cheese off sticking to the wrapper leaving no cheese on the food. What a mess.


----------



## Michigan Mom (Apr 24, 2012)

My kids love the train burgers and hot dogs...personally I don't get the appeal and they are both picky eaters normally. It's just the magic of it being train food


----------



## Henry Kisor (Apr 25, 2012)

Take a look at the sell-by dates on the sandwich wrappers. They may astonish you. On an Illinois Lincoln Service train in March I had a sandwich whose wrapper was stamped with a date in September. Some Amfood is a triumph of the embalmer's art.


----------



## OBS (Apr 25, 2012)

Henry Kisor said:


> Take a look at the sell-by dates on the sandwich wrappers. They may astonish you. On an Illinois Lincoln Service train in March I had a sandwich whose wrapper was stamped with a date in September. Some Amfood is a triumph of the embalmer's art.



Henry, I did some looking around at work...some food products, including sandwiches, are bought frozen. These dates you saw are expiration dates for the frozen products. Once they are thawed and issued to train, they are marked with second expiration date which is used for freshness and stock rotation purposes...


----------



## Peter KG6LSE (Apr 25, 2012)

I rather enjoy the burgers in the bar car ( SSL )

If you are on a LD . and tend to eat from the bar car often .. get the pizza ASAP . its often gone by the end of the trip .

most of my LD trips are darn near the full route . so I often get a pizza for lunch the first day on the train .

Peter


----------



## fillyjonk (Apr 25, 2012)

More of a snack than a full meal, but the cheese-and-crackers combination (I don't know if it's still offered, or if it's on every train) is pretty good. Especially if you plan ahead and carry an apple from home to eat with your cheese and crackers.

The cup of oatmeal - from the morning choices - is pretty good too.


----------



## Devil's Advocate (Apr 25, 2012)

OBS said:


> Henry Kisor said:
> 
> 
> > Take a look at the sell-by dates on the sandwich wrappers. They may astonish you. On an Illinois Lincoln Service train in March I had a sandwich whose wrapper was stamped with a date in September. Some Amfood is a triumph of the embalmer's art.
> ...


Nothing sounds fresher or more delicious to my ear than a "frozen sandwich." :wacko:


----------



## OBS (Apr 25, 2012)

fillyjonk said:


> More of a snack than a full meal, but the cheese-and-crackers combination (I don't know if it's still offered, or if it's on every train) is pretty good. Especially if you plan ahead and carry an apple from home to eat with your cheese and crackers.
> 
> The cup of oatmeal - from the morning choices - is pretty good too.



The cheese and cracker combo, at least in the NEC, has changed drastically in both offering and price. And not for the better in either category.


----------



## VentureForth (Apr 25, 2012)

As I have already mentioned in this thread, my favorite thing in the cafe car is the door leading to the diner!



zepherdude said:


> ...It was just regular airline rubber chicken, but the cafe attendant had heated it just right and the Swiss Cheese was melted perfect. Wanna know something else, the second one was just as good!


This is precisely why the cafe car attendant is a union worker making $20+/hr plus tips.


----------



## oregon pioneer (Apr 25, 2012)

Locally-funded trains (like the Cascades, the Surfliner, and possibly also the Downeaster) may have local items because they are not run by Amtrak. The Cascades is funded by the Oregon and Washington DOTs, and it has Ivar's clam chowder, and very good salads. I plan on taking the Palmetto in a couple of years, and I appreciate the tip about its not having a dining car: we will stock up on deli food in Baltimore before boarding.


----------



## MARC Rider (Apr 25, 2012)

I'm back from my Palmetto trek, and here's my report:

For lunch, I bought carryout at Papillote, a French carryout place in downtown Savannah. The recommended their tartine, and open face sandwich, which worked OK, but but maybe they should have put the special sauce in a container and let me put it on when I ate it, as the bread was a bit soggy after an overnight in my hotel roof fridge and a morning sitting on the overhead rack. The air conditioning in the train was blasting pretty well, so things kept fairly well, although, as it turned out, Maybe I should have saved the tartine for dinner.

I got the cheese and cracker tray for a snack. Bad news, as it now consists of only 3 small pieces of cheese, a few crackers and some dried fruit. And the cheeses weren't anything special.

Finally, about the time we were pulling into Richmond (about 5PM), I started to get hungry again, so I went back to the cafe to get something. Well, they were out of everything except for the veggie burger and the "wings" were were more like "better living through chemistry" vaguely "Buffalo" flavored chicken nuggets. I made the mistake of getting the "wings" becuase I was under the mistaken impression that they were actual chicken wings, such as I've eaten before in the cafe car. Messy, but edible. I also got the little Sabra Hummus with pretzel chips, which is actually pretty good.

I'm a little concerned about this, as this isn't the first time I've been to a cafe car when they've run out of food. I would think that Amtrak is missing a chance to make some money by letting things run out long before the end of a run, and about meal time. The same thing also happens with the southbound Vermonter about the time you get to New Haven, which is also dinner time. Given that this stuff is prefab food, surely there should be a way that Amtrak could have some in storage in strategically located intermediate stops for restocking. The other idea would be to outcsource food service to a national chain that has facilities along the way, and where strategic restocking could take place.


----------



## VentureForth (Apr 25, 2012)

...Like at a huge stop such as RVR!

Send a letter to Amtrak & call their customer service.


----------



## NorthCoastHiawatha (Apr 26, 2012)

Most of my riding tends to be in the Cascades corridor and as someone mentioned it has a menu that is completely different (a few things carry over) than the "national cafe menu". So I usually get the clam chowder, tim's potato chips and drink for lunch or dinner and the breakfast sandwich and coffee for breakfast.

Sometimes I change it up and get the teriyaki bowl. I tend to get stuck in a rut so I really haven't tried the other stuff the bistro offers.

As for the national cafe car menu there isn't anything that really stands out as being bad in my taste. The only bad experience I had was on the Maple Leaf out of Toronto while still on the Canadian, since its technically a VIA train, the cafe was stocked with VIA food items with what seemed to be an abbreviated menu. In short they didn't have much but I was hungry so I settled for coffee and a veggie pack thing.


----------



## Shawn Ryu (Apr 26, 2012)

I always enjoy Amtrak hot dog. I dunno why its probably a generic brand hot dog but I do enjoy it.


----------



## Henry Kisor (Apr 26, 2012)

OBS said:


> Henry Kisor said:
> 
> 
> > Take a look at the sell-by dates on the sandwich wrappers. They may astonish you. On an Illinois Lincoln Service train in March I had a sandwich whose wrapper was stamped with a date in September. Some Amfood is a triumph of the embalmer's art.
> ...


Thank you! I was right: those sandwiches ARE a triumph of the embalmer's art! (Funeral directors often keep the dear departed on ice while waiting for the ground to thaw.)


----------



## dlagrua (Apr 26, 2012)

On the short trips to DC I use the cafe car. On LD trips we are always in the sleeper cars so we eat in the dining cars. On the Acela I go for the Starbuck's Cafe Mocha but it may be available on the Regionals as well. I try to avoid the cafe car food preferring to bring aboard a sandwich or a boxed dinner when I board.


----------



## Pat Harper (May 22, 2012)

MARC Rider said:


> Finally, about the time we were pulling into Richmond (about 5PM), I started to get hungry again, so I went back to the cafe to get something. Well, they were out of everything except for the veggie burger and the "wings" were were more like "better living through chemistry" vaguely "Buffalo" flavored chicken nuggets.


We got on the NE Regional at RVR headed for WAS, went to the snack bar, and they were out of bagels! Now RVR is the starting point for this NE Regional train. How could they have been out of bagels? I wonder if it was an oversight on the part of the operator.


----------



## AlanB (May 22, 2012)

Pat Harper said:


> MARC Rider said:
> 
> 
> > Finally, about the time we were pulling into Richmond (about 5PM), I started to get hungry again, so I went back to the cafe to get something. Well, they were out of everything except for the veggie burger and the "wings" were were more like "better living through chemistry" vaguely "Buffalo" flavored chicken nuggets.
> ...


I'm not positive about this, but I don't believe that Richmond has a commissary to restock the train. Therefore it had to carry all the food from DC the day before. So it is possible that either they had a run on bagels on the trip down, someone underestimated how many would be needed, or perhaps the commissary in DC simply ran out at the time that consist came through going south.


----------



## OBS (May 23, 2012)

AlanB said:


> Pat Harper said:
> 
> 
> > MARC Rider said:
> ...


Because the bagels are a "perishable" item that is discarded at end of day/trip, Only enough are purchased/issued to cover the starting supply of each train from originating commissary. Thus none are available to be ordered "down the road" and when they are gone, they are gone.


----------

