Menu Capitol Limited?

[AutoTrDvr]

They're fine with me sharing a microwave with my coworkers.

It's probably more that some state's health departments don't allow it & since Amtrak rotates cars around, they can't guarantee that the cars with microwaves won't go thru states where it's not allowed.

peter

Well, either that, or they know that more people would use those microwaves than buy those box meals... they'd really lose $$$. Not unless they implement "pay" microwaves and charge $1.00 a minute...

 

[seat38a]

Plenty of not so bright people in this world. How long do you think before some moron puts their food including the foil and causes a fire or damages? Or puts it in for too long and causes a fire and fills the car with smoke.

 

[jis]

They're fine with me sharing a microwave with my coworkers.

It's probably more that some state's health departments don't allow it & since Amtrak rotates cars around, they can't guarantee that the cars with microwaves won't go thru states where it's not allowed.

peter

Well, either that, or they know that more people would use those microwaves than buy those box meals... they'd really lose $$$. Not unless they implement "pay" microwaves and charge $1.00 a minute...

I don’t think the box meals are sold to anyone ... yet. So this is a red herring.

I don’t think FDA has any blanket objection to a publicly shared Microwave as long as it is not also used for preparing meals for a restaurant/cafe operation. If they did a lot of existing automat based food establishments would cease to exist. I am not sure exactly what makes such sharing OK as far as FDA is concerned.

 

[AutoTrDvr]

They're fine with me sharing a microwave with my coworkers.

It's probably more that some state's health departments don't allow it & since Amtrak rotates cars around, they can't guarantee that the cars with microwaves won't go thru states where it's not allowed.

peter

Well, either that, or they know that more people would use those microwaves than buy those box meals... they'd really lose $$$. Not unless they implement "pay" microwaves and charge $1.00 a minute...

I don’t think the box meals are sold to anyone ... yet. So this is a red herring.

I don’t think FDA has any blanket objection to a publicly shared Microwave as long as it is not also used for preparing meals for a restaurant/cafe operation. If they did a lot of existing automat based food establishments would cease to exist. I am not sure exactly what makes such sharing OK as far as FDA is concerned.

Precisely. My question was why the FDA would be involved, as opposed to an agency like OSHA or NTSB. What possible Food/Drug issue could cause the FDA to impose restrictions that would not be imposed elsewhere in businesses, cafeterias, etc.?

 

[tonijustine]

They're fine with me sharing a microwave with my coworkers.

It's probably more that some state's health departments don't allow it & since Amtrak rotates cars around, they can't guarantee that the cars with microwaves won't go thru states where it's not allowed.

peter

Well, either that, or they know that more people would use those microwaves than buy those box meals... they'd really lose $$$. Not unless they implement "pay" microwaves and charge $1.00 a minute...

I don’t think the box meals are sold to anyone ... yet. So this is a red herring.
I don’t think FDA has any blanket objection to a publicly shared Microwave as long as it is not also used for preparing meals for a restaurant/cafe operation. If they did a lot of existing automat based food establishments would cease to exist. I am not sure exactly what makes such sharing OK as far as FDA is concerned.

Precisely. My question was why the FDA would be involved, as opposed to an agency like OSHA or NTSB. What possible Food/Drug issue could cause the FDA to impose restrictions that would not be imposed elsewhere in businesses, cafeterias, etc.?

Amtrak sells food, beverage and alcohol on it’s trains making them a restaurant. Therefore the FDA gets to regulate.

 

[PVD]

It is an interstate carrier as opposed to a local operation. Local restaurants would be inspected by the appropriate AHJ, unless they were processing food for interstate commerce, or in a regulated category like meat or dairy. Federal oversight of food safety and preparation is the job of the FDA. NTSB investigates safety related incidents, it is not a regulatory body, it passes recommendations to relevant agencies such as the FRA or FAA for possible action. OSHA is workplace safety and occupational illnesses.

 

[ceo418]

There's still the actual café car for coach passengers, right? The one with snacks and hot/cold food items? If I'm in a sleeper on the Capitol Limited and don't want the box breakfast, can I go buy something else and bring it back to the sleeper lounge to eat?

 

[cpotisch]

There's still the actual café car for coach passengers, right? The one with snacks and hot/cold food items? If I'm in a sleeper on the Capitol Limited and don't want the box breakfast, can I go buy something else and bring it back to the sleeper lounge to eat?

Correct. However it frustrates me a bit that if you've payed for a sleeper and the boxed meals don't work for you, you have to spend even more money in the cafe car on food that is significantly worse than what was originally offered. I personally would be pretty satisfied if they did have some kind of voucher option to get to get something from the cafe car instead of a boxed meal, though.

 

[tommylicious]

Will I wholly concur with you.

I boarded the capital limited in Connellsville and went to the cafe for breakfast. Surprised by the empty car. The attendant offering a box for breakfast only after I inquired where was the cafe. I find that totally unacceptable given the premium we pay for sleeping accommodations. I travel by train several times a year, but may need to rethink my options if this is to be the new norm. It’s also wasteful, I threw most of it away. The level of service had steadily declined over the twenty years I’ve been taking long distance trains.

 

[benale]

Lets hope the box lunches dont spread to the other one overnight trains like the Meteor,CONO The Texas Eagle The Cardinal The Crescent and The Coast Starlight. Why cant there be a voucher for the Cafe Car if you dont want the boxed meals,?

 

[tonijustine]

Lets hope the box lunches dont spread to the other one overnight trains like the Meteor,CONO The Texas Eagle The Cardinal The Crescent and The Coast Starlight. Why cant there be a voucher for the Cafe Car if you dont want the boxed meals,?

I think the CONO would benefit from this change. That food is...near unpalatable.

 

[cpotisch]

Lets hope the box lunches dont spread to the other one overnight trains like the Meteor,CONO The Texas Eagle The Cardinal The Crescent and The Coast Starlight. Why cant there be a voucher for the Cafe Car if you dont want the boxed meals,?

I think the CONO would benefit from this change. That food is...near unpalatable.

Agreed. The CONO is I think the only train currently with food service as unfriendly to vegetarians as the "contemporary" CL and LSL. With the CONO, there's pretty much nowhere else to go but up.

 

[benale]

Yes. I took the CONO earlier this year. The worst food on Amtrak. My dinner was Dinty moore beef stew and a McDonalds or Burger King breakfast sandwich was better than what I had for breakfast.

 

[dlagrua]

If Amtrak is so hard up to save money on the dining cars, I've always said that the answer is pre-prepared meals as reheated and served on the Cardinal. There only one FSA, takes orders, and serves the meals. While they may not be up to par with the full meal service on other LD trains, they are certainly superior to boxed cold meals. We've had Cardinal food on four trips and it was "middle of the road" quality but at least not a chemically laced boxed meal.

 

[pennyk]

If Amtrak is so hard up to save money on the dining cars, I've always said that the answer is pre-prepared meals as reheated and served on the Cardinal. There only one FSA, takes orders, and serves the meals. While they may not be up to par with the full meal service on other LD trains, they are certainly superior to boxed cold meals. We've had Cardinal food on four trips and it was "middle of the road" quality but at least not a chemically laced boxed meal.

In my opinion, the quality of the food in the boxed meals is better than the pre-prepared "chemically laced" meals on the Cardinal.

 

[jis]

If Amtrak is so hard up to save money on the dining cars, I've always said that the answer is pre-prepared meals as reheated and served on the Cardinal. There only one FSA, takes orders, and serves the meals. While they may not be up to par with the full meal service on other LD trains, they are certainly superior to boxed cold meals. We've had Cardinal food on four trips and it was "middle of the road" quality but at least not a chemically laced boxed meal.

AFAICT the boxed meals are no more chemically laced than the pre-plated reheated frozen meals that you had on the Cardinal. Certainly the fruits and yogurt and the rest in the brekfast box is relatively less chemically laced,  though arguably the entire box is carbohydrate heavy. But then no one is holding a gun to your head force feeding you everything in the box. The Short Ribs in the dinner box together with the accompanying veggies and salad are no more chemically laced than the best you had on the Cardinal or anything served in the Diner.

 

[cpotisch]

If Amtrak is so hard up to save money on the dining cars, I've always said that the answer is pre-prepared meals as reheated and served on the Cardinal. There only one FSA, takes orders, and serves the meals. While they may not be up to par with the full meal service on other LD trains, they are certainly superior to boxed cold meals. We've had Cardinal food on four trips and it was "middle of the road" quality but at least not a chemically laced boxed meal.

I'd appreciate if we could try to talk about the facts and peoples' experiences of these meals and not spout unsubstantiated crap about this food being laced with chemicals. If you don't like the new system (and I don't either), that's fine, just don't come up with objectively fake reasons to justify your opinion.

 

[benale]

Just finished the "new and improved" breakfast on the Capitol Limited. A crunchy granola bar I cant eat a blueberry muffin, yogurt and "fresh fruit". Honeydew and canteloupe slices that are hard and tasteless. Pineapple slices and grapes were fine. What a waste of a diner.

 

[Philly Amtrak Fan]

 But then no one is holding a gun to your head force feeding you everything in the box. 

On the other hand, you can't eat anything else (unless you pay for cafe food or bring it from outside).

Lets hope the box lunches dont spread to the other one overnight trains like the Meteor,CONO The Texas Eagle The Cardinal The Crescent and The Coast Starlight. Why cant there be a voucher for the Cafe Car if you dont want the boxed meals,?

That would be great but I'm guessing in practice it would be difficult because just like other trains need to "charge" passengers to eat in the diner cars the CL and LSL need to "charge" passengers for these meals to make them worthwhile distributing. If enough people opted out and only a few people took them, what's the point of having this service? Amtrak can only do two things, keep it the way it is or go to the Silver Starvation plan where the trains come with just a Cafe Car for food service. If they are going to have "meal service" provided, they have to make all the sleeper passengers pay for it to make it worthwhile just like on other trains where they have to make all the sleeper passengers pay for meals in the diner car. If that wasn't the case, why don't they offer Slumbercoaches or the option of a room without meals anymore and you can buy your meals from the Cafe Car (or a single person isn't paying for two people's meals?)

 

[jis]

On the other hand, you can't eat anything else (unless you pay for cafe food or bring it from outside).

But that has absolutely no bearing on whether the food is chemical laced or not, which was the original point of the comment.

 

[Mystic River Dragon]

Honestly, I think I would prefer the Silver Starvation, and I never thought I would stick up for that system in a million years. But at least on the Star, you have your choice of what junk food you want to buy in the cafe, as opposed to having junk food that you have not chosen thrown at you in a picnic box.

I am even partial to the meals on the Cardinal (reminds me of home and what I put in the microwave , plus there is the gorgeous scenery to go with whatever you are eating ).

I looked up the CONO menu and am glad there is nowhere on that train I wish to go and will never take it. A sandwich or salad for dinner? Seriously--that's it?

I don't think anyone  has brought this up yet: If you are a sleeping car passenger on a train with the new boxed meals, could you buy something in the cafe instead and bring it into whatever name they've given what would have been the dining car? On the one hand, you are not sitting there eating what was provided; on the other hand, what you have bought is Amtrak food and you are in a sleeper.

 

[benale]

Sleeper passengers still have to pay for stuff in the cafe car. As I posted the breakfast box is very average and is a poor substitute for a hot meal in the diner. No matter how fly boy Anderson spins the new menu on the CL and LSL it is a major downgrade. For the price people are paying for sleepers its a downright insult

 

[Mystic River Dragon]

Yes, I know sleeping car passengers would have to pay for cafe food. I was just curious as to whether you would be allowed to bring it into the "dining" car and eat it there instead of the boxed meal if you were a sleeping car passenger.

 

[jis]

No problem in purchasing food in the Cafe and then consuming them in the Sleeper lounge.

 

[AmtrakBlue]

Yes, I know sleeping car passengers would have to pay for cafe food. I was just curious as to whether you would be allowed to bring it into the "dining" car and eat it there instead of the boxed meal if you were a sleeping car passenger.

It’s the sleeper lounge - open 24/7 supposedly - so I don’t think there’d be a problem.