Amtrak dining and cafe service

[user 14106]

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.

What day was your trip? There were no “half meal” trains. Your train would either have flexible dining or traditional depending on departure date and direction.

 

[peteypablo]

Thanks very much for your report. And now, the standard breakfast question: Do you know if grits are being offered with all breakfast entries or only with the continental breakfast option? (I can't imagine that many in the continental breakfast crowd would be fans of grits but I have been wrong before.)
Thanks.

Grits are only mentioned on the menu as part of the continental breakfast.

 

[railiner]

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

I haven't heard recently of what 'option's' they are considering, but I sure hope they decide to restore the eastern long haul's the same way they are restoring the western long hauls. It's simply the right thing to do...

 

[crescent-zephyr]

I haven't heard recently of what 'option's' they are considering, but I sure hope they decide to restore the eastern long haul's the same way they are restoring the western long hauls. It's simply the right thing to do...

“
We are continuing to evaluate our offering and looking at some alternatives,” he said of dining options on eastern routes. “But our intention, at least at this time, is not to bring this traditional dining approach to the eastern trains.”
“

https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2021/06/03/amtrak-dining-car-service/

 

[railiner]

“
We are continuing to evaluate our offering and looking at some alternatives,” he said of dining options on eastern routes. “But our intention, at least at this time, is not to bring this traditional dining approach to the eastern trains.”
“

https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2021/06/03/amtrak-dining-car-service/

Let's hope they change their mind, once they hear of how popular the western restoration is with their customer's....

 

[crescent-zephyr]

I think a few of the trains would be fine with the original “cross country cafe” style- a chef is on board to prepare food but it’s more of a casual / counter service style restaurant without the table cloths, table service etc.

But we need real food - that’s for sure!

 

[Ferroequinologist]

When will traditional dining be restored to eastern trains? Has Amtrak announced a date?

 

[TEREB]

We had that, my mom called it Scraple, it wasn't my favorite but was better than Cream of Wheat or Malto-Meal!

I thought that Scrapple was a pork product. My southern grandmother fried it up for us and I loved it.
As far as grits, I can’t remember my southern grandmother making it. My husband and I had it for the first time on Amtrak. I eat it plain. No milk, no butter and no salt. Hubby eats it with everything. It is a favorite.

 

[TEREB]

We had it all the time. It was cheaper, and we were glad to have it. I think the government gave it to us.

I see it in our local Publix. As much as I loved it as a kid, I hesitate buying it now.

 

[AmtrakBlue]

I thought that Scrapple was a pork product. My southern grandmother fried it up for us and I loved it.

Yes, it is a pork product.
From the scrapple capital: www.rapascrapple.com/original-rapa-scrapple

No, never ate it and never will.

 

[Rasputin]

I haven't seen anything from Amtrak itself that gives me any confidence that anything close to traditional dining is going to be restored to the eastern trains. My impression is that all they seem to be talking about as far as the eastern trains is rearranging the deck chairs by selecting different and perhaps better frozen entrees.

I had some great traditional dining meals on the Lake Shore, even when the diner-lite car was operating. I recall on one cross country round trip, the steak dinner on the Lake Shore leaving Albany was the best steak dinner of the whole trip and I sampled several on different trains on that trip. I am not confident that I will be having a steak dinner on the Lake Shore again unless I buy it elsewhere and bring it onboard.

 

[jis]

It is more than likely that the eastern trains will minimally get the sort of food that was served in the Dinette of Cardinal before Contemporary and all that came about. It is also possible that there may be a few cooked things for Breakfast and perhaps a Flat Iron type steak, but don't hold your breath on the latter. My suspicion is that it won't go beyond that, though simple software stuff like better tableware and perhaps even fake flower on each table may come about.

Just my guesses. We'll see how it goes.

 

[joelkfla]

Yes, it is a pork product.
From the scrapple capital: www.rapascrapple.com/original-rapa-scrapple

No, never ate it and never will.

Wikipedia says, "Scrapple, also known by the Pennsylvania Dutch name Pannhaas or "pan rabbit", is traditionally a mush of pork scraps and trimmings combined with cornmeal and wheat flour, often buckwheat flour, and spices."

So I guess it could also be called mush. I've had it, and it actually tastes pretty good when fried up nice and brown. I probably wouldn't have had it if I'd known beforehand what was in it. But that's true of a lot of sausage products.

 

[Larry H.]

We had that, my mom called it Scraple, it wasn't my favorite but was better than Cream of Wheat or Malto-Meal!

My Grandmother made a version of this they called Gatta? It was steel cut oats and had equal amount of Pork ground up and then cooked together, it was also fried with a crispy crust and served with Syrup over it. I have never tired to make it my self, they used to cover it with a layer of lard and kept it in the basement till they wanted to fry some.. Different times I guess.

 

[Cal]

I haven't seen anything from Amtrak itself that gives me any confidence that anything close to traditional dining is going to be restored to the eastern trains. My impression is that all they seem to be talking about as far as the eastern trains is rearranging the deck chairs by selecting different and perhaps better frozen entrees.

I had some great traditional dining meals on the Lake Shore, even when the diner-lite car was operating. I recall on one cross country round trip, the steak dinner on the Lake Shore leaving Albany was the best steak dinner of the whole trip and I sampled several on different trains on that trip. I am not confident that I will be having a steak dinner on the Lake Shore again unless I buy it elsewhere and bring it onboard.

I'm semi-confident. In an article that was posted somewhere in this thread someone from Amtrak said they were looking into having a smaller menu of traditional dining on Eastern trains, along with several reports from OBS across the network. Additionally, a member said the RPA was also stating that it would be coming back (can someone confirm?).

 

[Bob Dylan]

I'm semi-confident. In an article that was posted somewhere in this thread someone from Amtrak said they were looking into having a smaller menu of traditional dining on Eastern trains, along with several reports from OBS across the network. Additionally, a member said the RPA was also stating that it would be coming back (can someone confirm?).

That's the problem with Amtrak, they've lost their Creditbility with their Press Releases full of Nonsense and Smoke and Mirror BS about the various Meal Service Systems they've tried since the Millenial Meals in a Box( aka Fresh and Contemperary), Flexible Dinning and the Reasons given for the Shortened Consists during the ever increasing SummerPassenger Spike!

I'm from Missouri on this one, Don't tell me Amtrak, Show Me! YMMV

 

[Dustyroad]

I see it in our local Publix. As much as I loved it as a kid, I hesitate buying it now.

I haven't seen it for years. But, when we were kids, we were taught to eat what was put in front of us. That or go hungry. I choose not to go hungry .

 

[user 14106]

one thing I noticed coming home is that even with traditional dining back for sleeping car passengers they have not yet revised the national cafe car menu yet which is currently rather lacking - all of the “fresh selections” like salads and sandwiches were cut out for the pandemic - they should bring those back soonest. Auto train of course was the one exception which has not had any F&B cuts for Covid. It does sound like refreshing the national cafe menu is next on the agenda (before they look at eastern sleeper dining.) NEC cafe cars hopefully will also get revised as they are lacking even more.

 

[jis]

one thing I noticed coming home is that even with traditional dining back for sleeping car passengers they have not yet revised the national cafe car menu yet which is currently rather lacking - all of the “fresh selections” like salads and sandwiches were cut out for the pandemic - they should bring those back soonest. Auto train of course was the one exception which has not had any F&B cuts for Covid. It does sound like refreshing the cafe menu is next on the agenda (before they look at eastern sleeper dining.)

They did remove the complementary dinner for Coach passengers, but arguably that was independent of COVID possibly.

 

[user 14106]

They did remove the complementary dinner for Coach passengers, but arguably that was independent of COVID possibly.

That was in January of ‘19 I think around the same time “flexible dining” got extended to other trains. The funny thing about the revised auto train cafe menu they did when they axed the coach diner is they sell two of the flex dining items for $16 so we know how much Amtrak thinks they are worth.

 

[Bob Dylan]

That was in January of ‘19 I think around the same time “flexible dining” got extended to other trains. The funny thing about the revised auto train cafe menu they did when they axed the coach diner is they sell two of the flex dining items for $16 so we know how much Amtrak thinks they are worth.

For $16, that's $14 more than they would cost @ any Grocery Store, so Flex Meals could actually be a Revenue Source if/when Coach Passengers are allowed to once again eat in the Diners!

 

[jis]

For $16, that's $14 more than they would cost @ any Grocery Store, so Flex Meals could actually be a Revenue Source if/when Coach Passengers are allowed to once again eat in the Diners!

Then again, how many Coach passengers are actually going to pay $16 for that slop? How are sales doing on the Auto Train, which admittedly has a somewhat more financially capable clientele possibly than your run of the mill LD train in Coach?

 

[daybeers]

Then again, how many Coach passengers are actually going to pay $16 for that slop? How are sales doing on the Auto Train, which admittedly has a somewhat more financially capable clientele possibly than your run of the mill LD train in Coach?

I certainly won't.

 

[jis]

What day was your trip? There were no “half meal” trains. Your train would either have flexible dining or traditional depending on departure date and direction.

Isn't the TE CHI to LAX sort of a half meal train? It is Flex upto San Antonio and then Traditional as part of the Sunset, no?

 

[Bob Dylan]

Isn't the TE CHI to LAX sort of a half meal train? It is Flex upto San Antonio and then Traditional as part of the Sunset, no?

YEP!( same thing with the Sightseer Lounge)

And while not a Direct Connection, the same would be True re Meals for any Eastern Train if you were continuing to/from Florida on the Auto Train in a Sleeper.