Pacific Parlor Car Meals vs Dining Car Meals

[Dovecote]

I will be on the Coast Starlight tomorrow in a roomette for a short ride from LAX to SBA. Prior threads indicate that there is an option of having meals in the Pacific Parlor Car in lieu of the Dining Car. Are the meals the same in both cars or does one outshine the other? In my case I will be having lunch.

 

[CHamilton]

They have separate menus. The PPC generally has only one or two items, whereas the diner has a full menu. Check with the attendant in the PPC to see what they're offering that day, and make your selection accordingly. Both are good, it's just a matter of what you like.

 

[Cristobal]

I will be on the Coast Starlight tomorrow in a roomette for a short ride from LAX to SBA. Prior threads indicate that there is an option of having meals in the Pacific Parlor Car in lieu of the Dining Car. Are the meals the same in both cars or does one outshine the other? In my case I will be having lunch.

Full menu in the dining car vs limited (completely different) options in the PPC. I usually enjoy the lunch options in the PPC but I'm not a big fan of the dinner options (mostly due to the rice pilaf as the starch).

 

[Notelvis]

I'm guessing that you are a rail afficionado and have had a number of meals in Amtrak Dining cars on other trains - otherwise you likely would have selected another train or another mode of travel altogether for the relatively short trip LAX-SBA.

Given this - having a meal in the PPC would be a unique travel experience available on no other train in the United States. If what the PPC attendant tells you is on the menu for lunch that day appeals to you, I'd say go for lunch in the PPC.

 

[AlanB]

Dovecote,

Know that seating in the PPC for meals is very limited, usually around 15 to 20 reservations are all that is taken per meal.

In theory, if Amtrak.com is up to date, you can find the northbound PPC menu here.

 

[TimePeace]

I had lunch in the PPC once, and it was a lovely Greek salad with good fresh leaf lettuce (not iceberg!), black olives (not the crummy canned ones!) and feta cheese, and I had a bottle of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale with it. An altogether satisfying meal with great scenery on the side.

That said, I was not particularly taken with the lounge aspects of the car, I prefer the regular cafe car tables for hanging out. I am aware that I am in the minority there.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[amamba]

When I rode the CS, I took almost all my meals in the PPC just because I had done the LSL and the SWC the three nights prior and was bored of the dining car!

Plus in the PPC I got to sit alone. I love the dining car, but after three nights on the train, it was nice to sit by myself for a few meals.

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

Generally if you are in the PPC when the LSA begins his or her tour to take meals reservations, they will get you before they go into the Sleepers knowing you already come from there. I've enjoyed several meals in the PPC and when on a long multi-meal trip, it is a nice change from the regular Big Diner chow. On my last Starlight run, they had quit serving from the steam table in the PPC and instead were plating the meals in the Diner and bringing them in; the attendent said they had too many "grazers" nipping food off the steam table.

 

[pebbleworm]

I've had some nice meals in the parlor car, but on my last trip southbound there was only one pretty ghastly option for lunch and another just as bad for dinner. There were few takers.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

I had lunch in the PPC once, and it was a lovely Greek salad with good fresh leaf lettuce (not iceberg!), black olives (not the crummy canned ones!) and feta cheese, and I had a bottle of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale with it. An altogether satisfying meal with great scenery on the side.

The salads are on a whole other level when dining on the PPC. Much improved over the tasteless cellulose you get in the regular salads. The evening PPC meals aim higher than the conventional diner menu, but they also suffer from being kept in a warmer instead of being freshly prepared before serving. Apparently that might be changing if I understand correctly?

That said, I was not particularly taken with the lounge aspects of the car, I prefer the regular cafe car tables for hanging out. I am aware that I am in the minority there.

I can see why some folks may not be all that impressed with the PPC, and it's true that it can't quite live up to a dome or park car on The Canadian, but compared to the plastic McDonald's furniture in the SSL I'd take the PPC any day of the week. The atmosphere is more inviting and the conversations seem more interesting and lively. Wait. Scratch that. The more folks we can convince to avoid the PPC the more seats there will be for me. In the PPC the food is terrible, the view is awful, the ride is bumpy, and the staff is horrible. Whatever you do don't ever go into the PPC. You'll totally regret it. ^_^

 

[pebbleworm]

The downstairs movie theater is great if there are kids in the sleepers, if not it is the biggest space you can have all to yourself on a train. And there are only two movies a day.

 

[gswager]

The downstairs movie theater is great if there are kids in the sleepers, if not it is the biggest space you can have all to yourself on a train. And there are only two movies a day.

Plus, it has a strongest signal of Wi-Fi or you can do your homework on college style desk!

 

[Dovecote]

Thanks one and all for the input to my question.

 

[Dovecote]

Dovecote,

Know that seating in the PPC for meals is very limited, usually around 15 to 20 reservations are all that is taken per meal.

In theory, if Amtrak.com is up to date, you can find the northbound PPC menu here.

Alan you were dead on with the menu. My wife and I shared both menu selections. They were a change of pace to say the least from the dining car menu and both entrees did not disappoint. With luck not on our side, our PPC was bad ordered and we had the make believe PPC aka Diner-Lounge. What a bummer for my first time on the CS while in a sleeping car. Several services were not available including the specialty coffees, movie showings, and library. Well maybe next time.

 

[Old man vagabond]

Out of curiosity, I Googled the Pacific Parlor Car menus. There's a PDF for each, the north bound and south bound,

but neither link worked. I got this message on both links :

"Oops! We're having a problem with the page you requested."

 

[TimePeace]

Dovecote,

Know that seating in the PPC for meals is very limited, usually around 15 to 20 reservations are all that is taken per meal.

In theory, if Amtrak.com is up to date, you can find the northbound PPC menu here.

Alan you were dead on with the menu. My wife and I shared both menu selections. They were a change of pace to say the least from the dining car menu and both entrees did not disappoint. With luck not on our side, our PPC was bad ordered and we had the make believe PPC aka Diner-Lounge. What a bummer for my first time on the CS while in a sleeping car. Several services were not available including the specialty coffees, movie showings, and library. Well maybe next time.

The one time I rode it, there were no movies, the wifi did not work, and the 'library" consisted of 10 or 12 dog-eared paperback thrillers & romances.

 

[AlanB]

Out of curiosity, I Googled the Pacific Parlor Car menus. There's a PDF for each, the north bound and south bound,

but neither link worked. I got this message on both links :

"Oops! We're having a problem with the page you requested."

Well without the links you found, unfortunately there isn't much that I can say as to what's wrong. However, the link that I provided does indeed work. I'll repeat that one here and clicking here should take you to the southbound menu.

 

[Old man vagabond]

Well without the links you found, unfortunately there isn't much that I can say as to what's wrong. However, the link that I provided does indeed work. I'll repeat that one here and clicking here should take you to the southbound menu.

Reading those links, I recall having read them yesterday, somewhere.

For what it's worth (not much, I suspect) these are the two links I had found:

north bound

south bound

 

[AlanB]

Well without the links you found, unfortunately there isn't much that I can say as to what's wrong. However, the link that I provided does indeed work. I'll repeat that one here and clicking here should take you to the southbound menu.

Reading those links, I recall having read them yesterday, somewhere.

For what it's worth (not much, I suspect) these are the two links I had found:

north bound

south bound

Those were the links to last year's menu's. I can tell by the 2011 in the link.

Then Amtrak reorganized its website and broke many of those links found via search engines.