Traditional dining should be on all long distance trains. Eagle, Crescent and Lake Shore are still on Flex. On Amtrak.com, CONO is shown to be on Flex, but reports here indicate that sleeper passengers just get comped cafe food. Which, personally, I'd prefer.The Crescent and the Eagle are the two longest trains still stuck with flex.?Traditional dining should be on both these trains.
Sorry to bust your bubble, but that is FLEX porqueria. I can't use the usual sobriquet here.Nice ride so far, we are on time as we approach Atlanta. I had dinner last night in my room and it was better than the Flex meals I recall having pre covid. I had the beef dish:
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When I return on Monday the dining car should be back on, so it will be interesting to compare.
The staff so far have all been good. No complaints.
Window in Cafe (it’s not Switzerland, but still not bad):
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"Coating on the glass"... That's rich. It's not glass, it is LEXAN, a plastic developed by GE, IIRC. The coating on the outside is DIRT.Might also be they are concerned about somebody using some non-approved detergent or cleaning fluid that is not permitted and that could damage the coating of the glass or the rubber surrounds or something else.
Alas, railroads had to resort to Lexan and other polycarbonates due to morons who throw things or shoot at trains. It is less abrasion resistant but more resistant to impact damage. FRA glazing regulations also require dual panes for safety.Wash the train, get the windows clean and if the cars need glass to do it then do it. Also, get the dining cars back on the on the overnight trains that still do not have them. We are not talking "haute cuisine" here. A lot of prep, I think, is done "off train" and it is a matter of cooking a steak, plating it and serving it. This isn't rocket science.
This person flogged a recent trip on the entire length of The Crescent in a roomette. The room and most of the car is in such bad shape. I have avoided the train since Covid. I am glad I did. I would have been very unhappy to pay those high prices for are really beat-up coach. By the way, it was filmed before 6/1 so he is showing us flix dining.
This person flogged a recent trip on the entire length of The Crescent in a roomette. The room and most of the car is in such bad shape. I have avoided the train since Covid. I am glad I did. I would have been very unhappy to pay those high prices for are really beat-up coach. By the way, it was filmed before 6/1 so he is showing us flix dining.
That person is a member here and has reviewed several Amtrak trains. He definitely leans positive in his reports, which makes this one more concerning.This person flogged a recent trip on the entire length of The Crescent in a roomette.
As an aside, the Viewliner Is are next in line for refurbishment.That person is a member here and has reviewed several Amtrak trains. He definitely leans positive in his reports, which makes this one more concerning.
This video had more details about the amenities than other videos. His comments about the food were interesting. He seemed to like the taste but not the presentation.It still is flex. Only difference is now it is served in the dining car.
Having just ridden the Cresent round tripThis video had more details about the amenities than other videos. His comments about the food were interesting. He seemed to like the taste but not the presentation.
I wonder if there is some reason they use black plastic dishes. I can't recall seeing black china at anyone's house, or restaurant.
Maybe the flex food would look better if the plastic dishes were more like regular China.
I would like to see what the cost is to Amtrak for the flex meals and what it would cost for what was around 2017 and adjust for inflation.I eat at home, sometimes good healthy food, sometimes not. But I am not paying $600 and up for the home experience.
I don't eat sodium bomb frozen dinners, so there's that...I want to know what everyone does for food when not traveling. Some of you must have a personal chef that cooks every meal. I would so much prefer traditional dining, partly just for the dinner, and partly to have a union label on my meal with a cook/chef making my meal, but to call it crap and lipstick on a pig. That seems harsh. It is not great but it is edible. It would be healthier if it was not full of salt and preservatives but that is in a lot of food sadly.
It’s not the cost of the food that saves them money, it’s the dining car payroll.I would like to see what the cost is to Amtrak for the flex meals and what it would cost for what was around 2017 and adjust for inflation.
I would assume that is true for about any restaurant, including fast food. Maintenance and upkeep of car, labor, supplies, food. Add it all up and what do you get for a number. I am curious.It’s not the cost of the food that saves them money, it’s the dining car payroll.
That’s the crux of it. The Crescent charges quite a bit for their sleepers. To be served flex is an insult. Good cooked to order food(traditional dining) is part of the Amtrak experience.!Not reheated TV dinners.I eat at home, sometimes good healthy food, sometimes not. But I am not paying $600 and up for the home experience.
For years I traveled Coach between the west and east coasts on the SWC. Then one night after boarding back in 2010 I became aware that I could book a roomette on the train at lower price. (I boarded in Kingman Ar.) I had a great time and the food was great considering this was a train. In the ensuing years I pre-booked roomettes and had awesome rides on the SWC. it has been now been years since I traveled Amtrak and after reading posts on this site I am reluctant to get a roomette when i next decide to travel East. I do not fly so I would rather sit in coach and bring my own cache of food. It is a shame that the quality of service has fallen so much.That’s the crux of it. The Crescent charges quite a bit for their sleepers. To be served flex is an insult. Good cooked to order food(traditional dining) is part of the Amtrak experience.!Not reheated TV dinners.
I just began a rail pass. First part is NY to Chicago on the LSL. I did book a roomette on the CONO to New Orleans because I found one for $350. Also it’s cafe car food for sleepers, a step up from flex. Back to the pass from NOL to Washington.on the Crrscent. I was trying to break it up with an overnight from Birmingham to Greensboro, but at $450 I passed.
This person flogged a recent trip on the entire length of The Crescent in a roomette. The room and most of the car is in such bad shape. I have avoided the train since Covid. I am glad I did. I would have been very unhappy to pay those high prices for are really beat-up coach. By the way, it was filmed before 6/1 so he is showing us flix dining.
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