Amtrak Dining and Cafe Service discussion 2024 H2

MARC Rider said:

On the other hand, I find most of the other flex entrees to be far superior to the omelet. I guess there's no accounting for individual taste.

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I confess to somewhat picky tastes, I am a meat bread and taters kind of guy. Broccoli, strong green vegetables, smelly cheese, Brussels Sprouts and the like are a no go for me. And PLEASE, don't leave cucumbers on the greens. then wrap them up to perfuse the good stuff with that horrid stench. But I digress.

My primary beef (!) with this slop is that it is just that - frozen, all slopped together in one unappetizing mess when nuked. Even when slow heated as some enterprising FSAs attempt.
It is hard to screw up the omelette and potatoes.

My secondary beef is that we pay First Class fares, and expect dining with SOME amount of dignity, presentation and service. Imagine going in to Ruth's, Sparks, Delmonico's, or even a good Diner, ordering, and then be served in a metal takeout pan with plastic utensils and drinking vessels.

True, we will never again see the Fine Dining and service we got in the 70s and before, but before this FLEX abomination was sprung on us, including the horrid frozen dinner I got on the Cardinal before FLEX, service (Wait in your room until called, then sit down to the single table (reserved) in the Cafe car to a nuked bowl of glop, and OBTW please slurp it up and get out... I got up, bought a couple of hot dogs and chips, then sat down and ate them in place, resulting in the Conductor being called and a mini incident), food and the meal experience was pretty darn good. Even when I commuted weekly on The Eagle from FTW to AUS, I looked forward to Dinner and Breakfast. Sigh. I miss joking with "Chef DuJour", who would sometimes take his break at my table.
Our trip this weekend, I might try the chicken but I will have my SPAM singles and trimmings at the ready.

I think the gods that oversee this site did not look at the context of your c-word. In fact i will wager no one of the overseers read it all. There is just a pre-fab list of "words" set to be censored whenever they come up, no matter the context. Facebook does this as well. Saves money on having live readers read every single post.

Before the COVID Pandemic and the " New and Improved" Menus served up by the Airline Suits, the Texas Eagle had several Excellent Diner Crews ( and other OBS and T&E Staff) including the Chefs.

I would book an affordable Roomette( as Low as $40!!!) for trips between Austin and Ft. Worth going North on 22,which included Breakfast and Lunch ,and 21 going South, which featured Lunch and an early Dinner .

I no longer ride the Eaglete due to the Short 4 Car Consists( No Sightseer Lounge, 1 Sleeper) and the Flex Menus served @ Unaffordable, Mostly High Bucket Fares.

railiner said:

I think they should replace the traditional urns in the sleepers with modern Keurig type pre-measured pod machines. They offer a fairly good and consistent fresh brew for each cup, and are easy to maintain. No more old, burnt coffee, sitting too long, or improperly measured.

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I completely agree. Pod coffee makers would be a great replacement for the percolators between the sleepers. I think, however, if you have a little bin of coffee pods, the pods would be completely pilfered by the end of the day. Possibly you could have a coffee pod dispenser, accessed by a credit card, next to the pod machine. My favorite coffee pods are Peet's and Green Mountain. I bought some Crockett coffee pods but I haven't tried them, as yet.

Northwestern said:

My favorite coffee pods are Peet's and Green Mountain. I bought some Crockett coffee pods but I haven't tried them, as yet.

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Peet's Rules. I use it in bulk ground packages for drip machine rather than pods, but two strong cups have been the highlight of my mornings for the past 15 years.

Northwestern said:

I completely agree. Pod coffee makers would be a great replacement for the percolators between the sleepers. I think, however, if you have a little bin of coffee pods, the pods would be completely pilfered by the end of the day. Possibly you could have a coffee pod dispenser, accessed by a credit card, next to the pod machine. My favorite coffee pods are Peet's and Green Mountain. I bought some Crockett coffee pods but I haven't tried them, as yet.

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As inexpensively as AMTRAK could get pods in bulk (how about an AMTRAK SELECT custom K-Cup?) they could leave them in the rooms as theu used to leave bottles of water. However, comma, unless Keurig came up with a bulletproof MilSpec design, the offeemakers would be trashed within a couple of trips. Thus I carry my SingleCup in my suitcase. Also makes JimDandy Iced tea and hot cocoa.
Wednesday afternoon can't get here soon enough. We love what is left of the Eagle, looking for better days in the best Pollyanna tradition...

Last September, a series of postings under the “Amtrak Dining Car and Café Service” thread discussed using personal heating devices in the coaches and sleepers. According to zephyr17, a sleeping car’s room outlets are on a 15A circuit that is shared with at least some other rooms. The use of high draw devices could result in a block of rooms losing their power if a breaker trips and is not reset. Someone specifically asked about the Norpro immersion coil which only draws 2.5A or 300W. zephry17 opined that 2.5A, while not a small draw, wouldn't be as much of a concern as, let’s say, an electric kettle with an 8A-12.5A draw. We now travel with Norpro immersion coil.

Eric in East County said:

Last September, a series of postings under the “Amtrak Dining Car and Café Service” thread discussed using personal heating devices in the coaches and sleepers. According to zephyr17, a sleeping car’s room outlets are on a 15A circuit that is shared with at least some other rooms. The use of high draw devices could result in a block of rooms losing their power if a breaker trips and is not reset. Someone specifically asked about the Norpro immersion coil which only draws 2.5A or 300W. zephry17 opined that 2.5A, while not a small draw, wouldn't be as much of a concern as, let’s say, an electric kettle with an 8A-12.5A draw. We now travel with Norpro immersion coil.

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As the food service on the SAS-CHI portion of The Eagle, the Cardinal and the CONO began its increasing death spiral, I looked into alternatives to suffering that slop. Yes, the Snack Bar has some edible viands, and I am partial to the hot dogs, we came up with the alternative of carrying snacks in a cooler and a coffeemaker. But before committing, I did a little research into just how much power was available in the sleepers.

In the Superliners, the Bedrooms, the Handicapped Room and the Family Bedrooms each have their very own 15A breakers. The downstairs showers and Rest Facilities share breakers, I believe in the power vault in the Vestibule.
IIRC, the Roomettes also share breakers from a central panel. I'll do some research this week. I do know my Keurig and the Peltier Cooler Bag ran just fine simultaneously as a test. but my Sporting Blood turned to urine and I shut off the cooler when brewing in a roomette.
The AC outlets in the rooms date to the days when about the only thing people carried which needed plugging in were them newfangled electrical razors - essentially buzzers which wiped out nearby AM radios. The AC in the Heritage equipment had a horrible waveshape, almost a triangle, but inductive loads didn't much care.
Nowadays the cars fed from Head End Power derive their AC from a relatively clean 480VAC 3 Phase system, stepped down to 120/208 and lower voltages for signals etc. Never checked to see if the general lighting is 277. The blower motors and stuff are likely 480 3phase so there might not be a need for a Delta connection..