27 breakfast SPK-PDX

[yarrow]

no more boxed breakfast spk-pdx. now, we have a continental breakfast that is even worse than the old box meal. jimmy dean rubberized sandwich, yogurt, cereal bar. 3 item limit. if this is what is offered on the eastern trains i see why folks are unhappy

 

[Bob Dylan]

no more boxed breakfast spk-pdx. now, we have a continental breakfast that is even worse than the old box meal. jimmy dean rubberized sandwich, yogurt, cereal bar. 3 item limit. if this is what is offered on the eastern trains i see why folks are unhappy

Perhaps this stuff needs to be served daily to the Suits in Washington that are coming up with this crap!

Do any of them even ride the Trains, or is it dreamed up in Meetings over catered food and drink???

 

[Dakota 400]

Perhaps this stuff needs to be served daily to the Suits in Washington that are coming up with this crap!

Do any of them even ride the Trains, or is it dreamed up in Meetings over catered food and drink???

It has been thought by many long time cruisers that some of the "changes" that are "supposed to be improvements" are "dreamed up" by Executives in a cruise line's office who actually have little or no cruise experience.

 

[F900ElCapitan]

Earlier in Feb my wife and I had the pleasure of riding 28 out of PDX. We were offered mainly a couple of different salads, chicken and smoked salmon (both were very tasty) and a sandwich offering that I don’t remember as neither my wife or I chose it. But the salads were very good and quite healthy.

 

[TinCan782]

Earlier in Feb my wife and I had the pleasure of riding 28 out of PDX. We were offered mainly a couple of different salads, chicken and smoked salmon (both were very tasty) and a sandwich offering that I don’t remember as neither my wife or I chose it. But the salads were very good and quite healthy.

Also my experience on #28 a few years ago. Pretty decent salads.
Not looking forward to this revelation about "breakfast" on an upcoming arrival on #27.

 

[Maglev]

I didn't like the breakfast very much the couple times I had it, and would prefer Jimmy Dean to the cold croissant I was given.

 

[Siegmund]

The cold croissant never did much for me either. Don't really know whether this is better or worse.

I guess I will find out on my next trip to Portland in April. Harder and harder to justify the price of a sleeper for my overnight trips westward from Whitefish.

 

[oregon pioneer]

We took #27 westbound in December. The breakfast offering was "one from each category" as presented. We don't care for over-processed breakfast sandwiches full of sodium and cholesterol (and they were out of those Jimmy Dean things anyway), so we ended up with a Kind bar and a yogurt for each of us. Full of sugar, but we prefer probiotics and whole grains over some of the other alternatives. They did not offer any hot drink at all, just said "you can get coffee and water in your sleeper" (prefer tea over coffee? Too bad). If you need to skip the sugar, I'd recommend taking your own dried fruits, nuts, and cereal bars. That is what I will do the next time.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

The cold croissant never did much for me either. Don't really know whether this is better or worse.

I guess I will find out on my next trip to Portland in April. Harder and harder to justify the price of a sleeper for my overnight trips westward from Whitefish.

The one time I rode the Builder on this segment the Cafe attendant heated the Croissant for me. Naturally amtrak service is extremely inconsistent.

We took #27 westbound in December. The breakfast offering was "one from each category" as presented. We don't care for over-processed breakfast sandwiches full of sodium and cholesterol (and they were out of those Jimmy Dean things anyway), so we ended up with a Kind bar and a yogurt for each of us. Full of sugar, but we prefer probiotics and whole grains over some of the other alternatives. They did not offer any hot drink at all, just said "you can get coffee and water in your sleeper" (prefer tea over coffee? Too bad). If you need to skip the sugar, I'd recommend taking your own dried fruits, nuts, and cereal bars. That is what I will do the next time.

So are you saying that they were out of breakfast sandwiches so you could only get 2 items? Yogurt and a kind bar is not breakfast.

It's crazy to make a sleeping car passenger get coffee from the sleeper.

 

[Bob Dylan]

The one time I rode the Builder on this segment the Cafe attendant heated the Croissant for me. Naturally amtrak service is extremely inconsistent.



So are you saying that they were out of breakfast sandwiches so you could only get 2 items? Yogurt and a kind bar is not breakfast.

It's crazy to make a sleeping car passenger get coffee from the sleeper.

But that's what the Millenials want, and since so many are riding in the Sleepers, this is way to roll!

Cut Amenities, Raise Prices!Voila! Profitability!

What could possibly go wrong?

 

[Rasputin]

Sounds like 27 between Spokane and Portland has gone "Eastern." It is a nice run and it is too bad to see it butchered like this.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

Sounds like 27 between Spokane and Portland has gone "Eastern." It is a nice run and it is too bad to see it butchered like this.

Actually even worse. For one you can get coffee (or any other beverage) from the LSA when you get your breakfast. And there isn't some weird per category limit. I had 2 bowls of cheerios, yogurt, a kind bar, and a piece of fruit for my breakfast on the Meteor.

 

[Dakota 400]

These posts make me think that I would be very unhappy if I booked the Empire Builder from Chicago to Portland.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

These posts make me think that I would be very unhappy if I booked the Empire Builder from Chicago to Portland.

The Columbia River Gorge makes it worthwhile!

 

[Rasputin]

These posts make me think that I would be very unhappy if I booked the Empire Builder from Chicago to Portland.

On the contrary it is a great trip and the morning run along the Columbia River to Portland is wonderful. But based on the recent posts I would certainly recommend taking a supply of food to get you by for breakfast between Spokane and Portland.

 

[Skyline]

Is this really the best Amtrak can do? Sad.

I'd rather see a fare reduction and let me fend for myself. I can make, or buy, better breakfasts off-train to bring on board for $10 or less. I wonder what Amtrak pro-rates breakfast at to arrive at the fare for the southern leg of the EB?

 

[20th Century Rider]

Er… well…um… Amtrak cutting back again and again. I rode 27 and fortunately the cafe attendant was friendly... and graciously offered me anything I wanted. The diminishing food service seems to be a mix of inconsistencies, cutting back, and the demeanor of the service people. For the high cost of sleeping accommodations one would think breakfast should consist of a fruit juice, coffee or tea, a protein entree of some sort, and a bread or roll. Denied tea and being told to get the coffee back in the sleeping car is just wrong!

 

[Hepcat66]

The Columbia River Gorge makes it worthwhile!

The last time I took it was just a shorty, from Vancouver, WA to White Salmon where my son from the sticks (Appleton) picked me up.Yes, it was beautiful.

 

[Randomtraveler]

I guess I will find out on my next trip to Portland in April. Harder and harder to justify the price of a sleeper for my overnight trips westward from Whitefish.

Me too. Both ways in April and my first trip. Will be interesting to see this all unfold as a new traveler on a train.

 

[Siegmund]

These posts make me think that I would be very unhappy if I booked the Empire Builder from Chicago to Portland.

It's still a pretty trip, and east of Spokane you still have both the lounge and the diner.

... and sometimes you get a really fine crew in the lounge car. On my past trips, it has been easier for me to get hot water for tea on 27 than on 7, and the lounge stays open later than the diner does - the lounge attendant made a "last call" announcement after wishram (730am) and still served stragglers almost until white salmon (8am), whereas the Seattle diner is very strict about closing after passing through the Cascade tunnel just after 630am. Heaven help you if you want to use your sleeper to actually sleep.

I'd rather see a fare reduction and let me fend for myself.

That is a minus of the EB on shortish segments between Montana and the coast - it does provide rather few meals for the distance covered.
As for the fare... the sleeper fare just went up $40 (from 200 to 240) from Whitefish to Portland.

 

[oregon pioneer]

So are you saying that they were out of breakfast sandwiches so you could only get 2 items? Yogurt and a kind bar is not breakfast.
It's crazy to make a sleeping car passenger get coffee from the sleeper.

There were other categories you could choose from, for a total of three. One was cold cereal (also sugar-laden) with milk. We found those two items to be the only ones we would actually eat. I'd rather go hungry than eat yet more sugar.

You were expected to carry your breakfast back to your sleeper if you wanted to have coffee and juice with it.

 

[TC_NYC]

The Columbia River Gorge makes it worthwhile!

This can't be reiterated enough. The ride from Pasco to Portland has to be in the top 5 most scenic train rides in this country. Yeah you don't get a full breakfast, but you get into Portland at 10am and can grab breakfast at a number of places around the train station.

Best part about the PSC-PDX section along the Gorge is there's not a ton of people in the lounge car. The train usually is just 1 sleeper and 2 coaches on this segment with one lounge car.

 

[20th Century Rider]

Agreed… incredible view of the Columbia River far exceeds breakfast concerns. If your sleeper accommodations are on the opposite side there is plenty of space in the lounge car. Access to such views defines the advantage of the passenger train and what better way to enjoy that morning coffee!

 

[JP1822]

In May of 2019 Amtrak switched vendors in who provisioned the "boxed" meals/food for dinner on #28 and breakfast on #27. I noticed a HUGE difference, and not for the better. There used to be a nice cold option for dinner that ranged from cold baked chicken, roast beef, etc. with various sides, and dessert. You could also get a salad and healthy options. I was always pleasantly surprised; and it's hard to compare against the "eastern flexible dining options." After the vendor switch in May 2019, the food was not as good.

Always traveled on #28 eastbound; so dinner only. Many passengers took their dinner to the Sightseer Lounge and it was nice to eat there and watch the Columbia River Gorge scenery pass by. But with the vendor change in May 2019 - food was TERRIBLE, in comparison. The attendant did come around and she wanted our opinions on the food. It hadn't been going over as well, and sounded like she was trying to "voice that back" to someone in at Amtrak......I doubt anything changed......But this employee did care about the car's cleanliness, general upkeep, and the passengers aboard. I also noticed I was paying a LOT more for sleeper accommodations in May of 2019 with worse food. That's pretty common at Amtrak though!

 

[Palmetto]

When I took this train eastbound, we were rounded up and brought to the lower level of the lounge car and we had our boxed meal there. This was back in the early 90s.