Dinner tonight on SW Chief

[PaTrainFan]

Amtrak Food Facts

How about the spelling of "California Zepher" on that page.

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

Update : We had pizza delivered to the train. Veggie, sausage, cheese, pepperoni. And all the booze was free. Beer wine or mixed drinks that you made at the table. Some people seemed to enjoy it while a few skipped it altogether. Felt bad for the car crew who had to put up with the disgruntled ones.

You cannot argue with that! Sure beats the you-know-where out of Dinty Moore Stew!

 

[mcropod]

By coincidence, I had a friend travelling on the same train. She and I were in sporadic touch with each other on the run east as I was keen to know how current conditions were - she's a seasoned Amtrakker. She mentioned the kitchen issue and the workaround. She really liked her pizza and cab sav, and also thought the diner crew did very well.

She'd earlier enjoyed the menu fare when the kitchen was working, and heeded the staff recommendation of the crabcakes first up, and had a great first leg of her most recent cross-country adventure.

 

[drdumont]

On the whole, the food service appears to be improving. ANY progress would be an improvement. My 7/15 trip DAL-PHL got postponed so we will see on 8/18.
My traveling chuckwagon will still go with me tho...

 

[Cal]

How about the spelling of "California Zepher" on that page.

Oh my. Amtrak in a nutshell

 

[zephyr17]

Oh my. Amtrak in a nutshell

Center of Excellence!

 

[me_little_me]

Real problem for my family member. Cross contamination will cause problems for them. That said the other problem child will get by with some cross contamination.

I am ok with most of the above, except food allergies like peanuts. Open a jar of peanut butter near one of my family members and I swing into full life saving mode. Benadryl and Epi-Pens required, just from the smell. Yeah traveling with that one is a major source of stress.

However just traveling with anyone like my GF who is Vegan is a bit challenging to begin with. Should not be so hard to list ingredients for your meals. So we can make good decisions before getting on board.

There are two separate issues
1) Those with allergies or physical problems caused by certain foods. I am not a believer that no peanuts should be aboard a train because one person is allergic or no sugar should be in products because I, for one, are a diabetic. However, Amtrak does have a responsibility to properly inform people of things that are known to cause problems even if they don't consume it. So Amtrak needs to make clear on each menu if that meal is a problem to certain groups by having nutrition info on the menu, presence of gluten and nuts, etc. and that should be posted on their web site. That hasn't always been done but I now see that even some of the flex meals have at least put nutrition (or lack thereof) on the site. Amtrak should also make an attempt with pre-prepared meals to be able to provide some alternatives for certain issues since it's just a matter of preloading such meals ala kosher/halal which they do but others which they do not. They also have a responsibility to provide some semblance of nutritious meals (not like the original flex breakfasts which were just sugar bombs or the present flex beef meal with 102% of the DAILY salt allowance).

As to those with meal PREFERENCES - vegan, vegetarian, no-carb, non-fat, carnivor, which involve lifestyle rather than safety (I won't die if I have dessert one night), Amtrak, for business reasons, should consider it an opportunity to attract more people by being able to customize among ingredients at traditional meals, separating ingredients where possible so they can be avoided (e.g. high salt), and possibly providing a pre-packaged special meal in lieu of a standard one when requested in advance even if the pre-packaged one is not as well prepared as the general meals.

In these days of computer-tracked everything, providing some alternatives for those that must eat or must not eat the usual, properly marked for a specific passenger on a specific train isn't rocket science - except for Amtrak which thinks anything is beyond their ability.

So in spite of drdurmont's comment about Amtrak not being a hospital kitchen, lots of restaurants have posted nutrition and allergy information in menus, offered some semblance of special meals for people and are flexible. Amtrak may not HAVE to do it but neither does Amtrak HAVE to aspire to the LOWEST MINIMUM STANDARD. They just don't want to be bothered even if it might mean greater use and justification for their dining facilities so dining doesn't become the loss leader of the century.

 

[Bob Dylan]

I beg to differ, REAL pizza would have to be flown in from Naples.

New Yorkers would say: From My Favorite Pizzareia!

 

[Bluejet]

There is certainly no way for Amtrak to track recurring problems. Airlines are required to carry 2 log books on planes. One is present problems that have to be signed off and the first past log book. A second sheet for each log page is removed and entered into the computer. The old log books are then warehoused. That way past problems are searchable by crew and maintenance. IMO the same needs to be applied to each piece of rolling stock on Amtrak.

That procedure prevents too much pencil whipping and holds maintenance personnel accountable.

Kinda. Theres a single logbook with primary (white) pages and secondary (yellow) pages that attach to the white pages. The second copy (yellow) is held at a station in case there is an issue once airborne. Any discrepancy gets immediately entered into a computer. Most airlines have software that track faults in real time, and most newer jets even have predictive maintenance. The “yellow” copies are held at stations, the white copies are archived for a certain amount of time when the logbook gets filled. We will have MX come up and take white pages if there is a significant amount of them. Most airlines are now starting the process of eliminating logbooks all together and going to e-logbooks. When you initialize your ACARs you’ll get a computer printout of a couple days of discrepancies that come through the aircraft printer, usually to the weekly inspection. Every airline is different though.

 

[daybeers]

Frankly, if you are gluten intolerant, lactose intolerant, diabetic, have peanut or other allergies, don't like brussels sprouts or net caught tuna, or if you suffer from any of the other modern day afflictions, I opine that it is YOUR responsibility to ensure you won't end up flopping around on the floor.
AMTRAK operates a transportation service, not a hospital dietary kitchen.

While the responsibility falls on the person with the dietary restriction to have snacks, medicine, and other sorts of things to get through short times without more substantial food they can eat, I strongly denounce your post. There are many people who have restrictions for conditions other than the latest fad or trend. Yes, Amtrak is a transportation service, but they are also expected to provide food that passengers have paid for. It's really disrespectful that you are lumping in fad diets with life-and-death conditions and joking about someone convulsing on the floor. Next time, put yourself in someone else's shoes before making a generalized statement about conditions you know nothing about living with.

 

[AmtrakBlue]

How about the spelling of "California Zepher" on that page.

Oh my. Amtrak in a nutshell

Center of Excellence!

So, did any of you bother to contact Amtrak to let them know the spelling was wrong?


I just did. I'll leave it to y'all to do a daily check on the webpage to see how long it takes them to fix the spelling.

 

[PaTrainFan]

So, did any of you bother to contact Amtrak to let them know the spelling was wrong?


I just did. I'll leave it to y'all to do a daily check on the webpage to see how long it takes them to fix the spelling.

Yes, I did. I have pointed out other errors that have never been corrected.

 

[drdumont]

I beg to differ, REAL pizza would have to be flown in from Naples.

There is Domino's in Naples? <running for cover>

 

[zephyr17]

So, did any of you bother to contact Amtrak to let them know the spelling was wrong?


I just did. I'll leave it to y'all to do a daily check on the webpage to see how long it takes them to fix the spelling.

Not my circus, not my monkeys.

Letting that be published in that state is highly unprofessional, and is a reflection of their corporate culture.

I am not their proofreader.

 

[AmtrakBlue]

Not my circus, not my monkeys.

Letting that be published in that state is highly unprofessional, and is a reflection of their corporate culture.

I am not their proofreader.

You've never made a typo, I suppose.

Whenever I see typos on the internet I will sometimes notify the webmaster, or whoever I can find contact info for. It's a NICE thing to do. Nobody's perfect.

 

[Ziv]

Pizza is an acquired taste that is frequently tied to what you ate while you were young. I have had pizza in NY and in Chicago that locals swore were the best in the world. They were decent pizzas to me, no more.
I have arrived late to the Neapolitan pizza scene but that is frequently a VERY good pizza! But some Neapolitan pizzas that are highly touted left me cold.
Pizza is like love. You KNOW when you find the right one but sometimes your friends are positive you are crazy. And sometimes, they were right.

I beg to differ, REAL pizza would have to be flown in from Naples.

 

[zephyr17]

You've never made a typo, I suppose.

Whenever I see typos on the internet I will sometimes notify the webmaster, or whoever I can find contact info for. It's a NICE thing to do. Nobody's perfect.

A typo on the name of one of their own company's products in an official webpage? It should have been caught before publication. They don't proof read?

On an informal post, sure, stuff happens and people make mistakes. On their organization's own product on a company website, it is a reflection on the company, and a poor one, and most companies know this. As I said, it is a demonstration of their corporate culture. Yet another example of Amtrak, where even mediocrity is aspirational.

 

[Eric in East County]

A typo on a the name of one of their own company's products in an official webpage? It should have been caught before publication. They don't proof read?

On an informal post, sure, stuff happens and people make mistakes. On their organization's own product on a company website, it is a reflection on the company, and a poor one, and most companies know this. As I said, it is a demonstration of their corporate culture. Yet another example of Amtrak, where even mediocrity is aspirational.

It would be an interesting challenge to come up with the names of those who are specifically responsible for the many SNAFUs that seem to plague Amtrak (software programs that don’t work, “flex” meals that no one wants to eat, gross spelling errors on websites, etc.) and then look to see if any of them have some sort of relationship or connection to prominent Washington politicians who oversee the funding awarded to Amtrak. Are they family members or major campaign contributors who were awarded high-paying jobs as board members, “consultants,” software “writers,” public relations “advisors,” etc.? It’s happened before in other areas that are funded by the Government, so why not Amtrak?

 

[me_little_me]

You've never made a typo, I suppose.

Whenever I see typos on the internet I will sometimes notify the webmaster, or whoever I can find contact info for. It's a NICE thing to do. Nobody's perfect.

You are right. Nobody is perfect. That's why companies that really care about excellence have proofreaders, editors, and others who check and double check things. One may ask the question "If they don't get something that simple right, who's watching the maintenance people?". In Amtrak's case, they have real problems both with their web pages and their maintenance.

Companies have been practicing the "Dump it out on the net and let the customers find the bugs" attitude for too long with Microsoft leading the way (even back in the '80s) with the attitude that quality is NOT anywhere near JOB ONE. I for one feel no responsibility to be their QC department because I want to see their incompetence in full display in the hopes that there is a cleanout at the top where it all starts.

 

[Bob Dylan]

It would be an interesting challenge to come up with the names of those who are specifically responsible for the many SNAFUs that seem to plague Amtrak (software programs that don’t work, “flex” meals that no one wants to eat, gross spelling errors on websites, etc.) and then look to see if any of them have some sort of relationship or connection to prominent Washington politicians who oversee the funding awarded to Amtrak. Are they family members or major campaign contributors who were awarded high-paying jobs as board members, “consultants,” software “writers,” public relations “advisors,” etc.? It’s happened before in other areas that are funded by the Government, so why not Amtrak?

Redacted.

 

[zephyr17]

Just so everyone understands just how stupid and unprofessional this looks, with an image directly above the caption with "Zephyr" spelled correctly. I think it would be pretty noticeable if anyone at the Center of Excellence could be excellent enough to proof it.

 

[TheVig]

On a positive note, whatever was served HAD to be better than the slop we have been getting for over a year. Although I am not happy there was a failure, I applaud the effort that was made to make as many people happy as possible.
Frankly, if you are gluten intolerant, lactose intolerant, diabetic, have peanut or other allergies, don't like brussels sprouts or net caught tuna, or if you suffer from any of the other modern day afflictions, I opine that it is YOUR responsibility to ensure you won't end up flopping around on the floor.
AMTRAK operates a transportation service, not a hospital dietary kitchen.

While the responsibility falls on the person with the dietary restriction to have snacks, medicine, and other sorts of things to get through short times without more substantial food they can eat, I strongly denounce your post. There are many people who have restrictions for conditions other than the latest fad or trend. Yes, Amtrak is a transportation service, but they are also expected to provide food that passengers have paid for. It's really disrespectful that you are lumping in fad diets with life-and-death conditions and joking about someone convulsing on the floor. Next time, put yourself in someone else's shoes before making a generalized statement about conditions you know nothing about living with.

I'm a diabetic and found drdumont's comment funny.

 

[hlcteacher]

in the grand universe of stuff...spelling is sooooo unimportant.....

 

[MARC Rider]

I beg to differ, REAL pizza would have to be flown in from Naples.

You know, by the time "real pizza" is flown in from New York, Chicago, Naples, or wherever place the particular pizza enthusiast believes is the only one that makes "real" pizza, it would be stale and need to be reheated, and, in the end, the fresh pie provided by the local supplier would probably be far better than any of the "authentic" stuff form the legendary pizza centers of excellence. I generally find that all pizza is pretty good if you just remember to order extra sauce and extra cheese.

 

[Bob Dylan]

You know, by the time "real pizza" is flown in from New York, Chicago, Naples, or wherever place the particular pizza enthusiast believes is the only one that makes "real" pizza, it would be stale and need to be reheated, and, in the end, the fresh pie provided by the local supplier would probably be far better than any of the "authentic" stuff form the legendary pizza centers of excellence. I generally find that all pizza is pretty good if you just remember to order extra sauce and extra cheese.

Only thing that rivals the Competition about who makes the Best Pizza, is who has the Best Bar-B-Q.!!!