Amtrak dining and cafe service

[Sidney]

Anything is better than what they currently offer...
I'd be happy with roughly half of the menu they offer on Western LD menus. What I think would be really nice is a real breakfast with the usual three egg omlette offering, and a real dinner. Lunch could be largely scaled back. Most eastern trains are only 1 night, so it doesn't need to be too elaborate.

Just to have traditional dining back on the Eastern trains at even half of what they are serving elsewhere would be most welcome. As has been said many times here,flexible dining is awful and should never have been implemented.

 

[Brian Battuello]

I've been trying to forget that when "Contemporary Dining" was first introduced on the LSL, the only choice was a cold cardboard box. That didn't go over very well. And they had a series of announcements that the box was what they thought people wanted! It was even more criminal when it spread to the entire east coast fleet.

 

[Tlcooper44]

I've been trying to forget that when "Contemporary Dining" was first introduced on the LSL, the only choice was a cold cardboard box. That didn't go over very well. And they had a series of announcements that the box was what they thought people wanted! It was even more criminal when it spread to the entire east coast fleet.

Amtrak seems to always pass off unpopular decisions as "what people want."
If people are riding a train (and paying for a sleeper) in the first place, chances are they want the real deal...

 

[Brian Battuello]

I am more likely to believe in a sekrit "center of inconvenience" than a "center of excellence".

 

[crescent-zephyr]

I've been trying to forget that when "Contemporary Dining" was first introduced on the LSL, the only choice was a cold cardboard box. That didn't go over very well. And they had a series of announcements that the box was what they thought people wanted! It was even more criminal when it spread to the entire east coast fleet.

I never had one of the contemporary dining meals but based on photos and reviews it was a huge step up over what I had as flex dining on the meteor.

 

[Sidney]

I've been trying to forget that when "Contemporary Dining" was first introduced on the LSL, the only choice was a cold cardboard box. That didn't go over very well. And they had a series of announcements that the box was what they thought people wanted! It was even more criminal when it spread to the entire east coast fleet.

With tongue firmly in cheek,flex dining was such a huge hit on the Capitol Limited and Lake Shore,that it was expanded to all the Eastern trains over a year later. Amtrak listened to it's passengers and gave them what they wanted!

It is great traditional dining has returned to all but one of the Western trains. When traditional dining is returned to every other long distance train ,a huge wrong will have been righted.

 

[cocojacoby]

I've been trying to forget that when "Contemporary Dining" was first introduced on the LSL, the only choice was a cold cardboard box.

Actually wasn't it a wooden box?

A also have to admit that I wasn't hip enough to know exactly what a charcuterie was

 

[jis]

Actually wasn't it a wooden box?

Yes. Something like Balsa as I recall.

 

[Bob Dylan]

I've been trying to forget that when "Contemporary Dining" was first introduced on the LSL, the only choice was a cold cardboard box. That didn't go over very well. And they had a series of announcements that the box was what they thought people wanted! It was even more criminal when it spread to the entire east coast fleet.

It was actually a Nice Wooden Box, but what was inside was basically a Big Step Down from Traditional Dining.!( I had them on the Cap and the LSL)

 

[jis]

It was actually a Nice Wooden Box, but what was inside was basically a Big Step Down from Traditional Dining.!( I had them on the Cap and the LSL)

As I seem to recall there was no hot entry when Contemporary Dining was originally introduced on the LSL and the Cap.

https://media.amtrak.com/2018/04/new-contemporary-dining-soon-two-amtrak-routes/
It was all salads, sandwich and chilled meat and stuff. They said that Millennials do not like hot food or some nonsense of that sort.

 

[Bob Dylan]

As I seem to recall there was no hot entry when Contemporary Dining was originally introduced on the LSL and the Cap.

https://media.amtrak.com/2018/04/new-contemporary-dining-soon-two-amtrak-routes/
It was all salads, sandwich and chilled meat and stuff. They said that Millennials do not like hot food or some nonsense of that sort.

You are correct Sir! And the Breakfast was really terrible, a Super Sugar Bomb !!!

 

[Dakota 400]

Does any one remember eating Mush as a kid.

Yes, I do remember that and I liked it. There is restaurant chain called Bob Evans. At one time, Mush was an item on their menu. I ordered in awhile and still liked it. Whether they still offer it, I don't know. Have not been to one of their restaurants recently.

spoonbread

Yes, I do remember that. Didn't have it very often and have no memory of where it was when I did.

 

[Dakota 400]

Speaking strictly for myself I very much enjoyed communal dining and have had many wonderful conversations with strangers.

I enjoy communal dining as well except when my tablemate spends more time playing with his phone instead of engaging with me or any others at our table.

 

[johann]

In no way am I a gourmet or picky eater, but between 4 meals each for my wife and me, I sampled all 5 of the Flex Dining entrees on our Silver Star Roomette trip north on 7 June and south on the Silver Meteor on 28-29 June. All are just barely eatable. If you are hungry.

Luckily we had a 90-minute train change from the 93 to 97 in NYP and loaded up on food as well as comfort in the wonderful new Moynihan Amtrak Lounge. I even carried a salad and sandwich back for the best meal I had on the train. Attached is a photo of my Beef Flex, which I mostly ate except for the potatoes [Or was that rice?], my wife's Meatball Flex AFTER she was finished, and a place setting from 1947 I saw at the Tampa station.

If the Burger King offered Flex meals for the price of an Amtrak tip, I'd get the Whopper.

As others have said on this forum, STOP BY THE NYP LOUNGE. The $50 non-ticked fee alone is almost worth it. It certainly is better than what $35 gets a non-ticketed person in BOS!

Just to have traditional dining back on the Eastern trains at even half of what they are serving elsewhere would be most welcome. As has been said many times here,flexible dining is awful and should never have been implemented.

 

[PaTrainFan]

I spoke with the SCA on the Silver Meteor, and he said that traditional diner is indeed returning to eastern LD trains (forgive me, I didn't read all 80 pages of this topic, so I'm sure this is somewhere). Its nice to know that eventually it will happen.

He said that hiring all of the people necesary to make traditional dining happen, along with planning all of this is the reason for the likely year long delay.

Given the return to Western trains, they have a template so there is no reason it should take a year to implement on Eastern trains, even if it looks somewhat different. That is, unless they are waiting for FY 2022 appropriations.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

It was all salads, sandwich and chilled meat and stuff. They said that Millennials do not like hot food or some nonsense of that sort.

Well sometimes we do like salads and sandwiches. The idea of having a high quality entree salad and a high quality sandwich on the menu is excellent. But they shouldn’t be the only options available. I would still rather have only cold items that were of decent quality than the flex meals that were of poor quality.

I enjoy communal dining as well except when my tablemate spends more time playing with his phone instead of engaging with me or any others at our table.

I told you I was just watching the speed and our distance from the big 10 curves!!!

Given the return to Western trains, they have a template so there is no reason it should take a year to implement on Eastern trains, even if it looks somewhat different. That is, unless they are waiting for FY 2022 appropriations.

I think the issue is that when traditional dining went away from the eastern trains in 2019, they never planned to bring it back.

 

[jis]

I think the issue is that when traditional dining went away from the eastern trains in 2019, they never planned to bring it back.

Right. They dismantled the infrastructure. Now they have to rebuild Humpty-Dumpty.

 

[Sidney]

As I seem to recall there was no hot entry when Contemporary Dining was originally introduced on the LSL and the Cap.

https://media.amtrak.com/2018/04/new-contemporary-dining-soon-two-amtrak-routes/
It was all salads, sandwich and chilled meat and stuff. They said that Millennials do not like hot food or some nonsense of that sort.

I think Anderson's words were something like millennials do not enjoy being seated with other people in the diner. That one statement brought on one of the biggest bombs in Amtrak history

 

[user 14106]

on my trip home on the lake shore there seemed to be two OBS employees working in the VL2 diner (only one on the way out) and they now seem to be using all tables in the VL2 diner and they are doing table service with the flex meals - no need to go up to the LSA. Not sure if this is a new standard for the lake shore and silvers will be interesting to see or if this was a once off

 

[Cal]

From all reports we've gotten, traditional dining does seem to have a planned return on most, if not all Eastern routes.

Although this is very unlikely to happen, I hope that the menu has some things not on the Western one (such as pancakes).

Either way, great news. Hopefully it can be implemented by the end of the year.

 

[Brian Battuello]

Well maybe Anderson was right. I don't think I would've enjoyed sitting with him either.

 

[user 14106]

By the way there is clearly now a convection oven In the VL2 diners they are using for the flex meals I spotted the LSA using it and they are using metal tops. I will say the flex meals came out better and less nuked on this trip than previous.

 

[railiner]

Right. They dismantled the infrastructure. Now they have to rebuild Humpty-Dumpty.

Fortunately, they didn't get around to 'dismantling' the diner galley's and convert them to some sort of snack bar, which at one point was their intention....

 

[bestcee]

They say they're going to open up eventually - next trip try for an upgrade to a sleeper. You never know you may get it.

I didn't for 2 reasons:
1) All the information available was that dining food wasn't starting until the second day of my trip. Why pay the extra if it's going to be the crappy meals posted about here for 1/2 the meals?
2) Money. I didn't have an extra $250 for the 'low' bid for a sleeper. I definitely didn't have the $450 for the good bid. Sure, I could justify it by saying I'd get more than $250 value out of the food options, but I don't think I would have, plus you have to have the money to spend. We spent $13 in the café car instead.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

Fortunately, they didn't get around to 'dismantling' the diner galley's and convert them to some sort of snack bar, which at one point was their intention....

Not yet. It sounds like they are still considering lots of options for the single level trains.