Passenger Trains > Clarification on Empire Builder Portland-Spokane consist needed

Amtrak timetable is a bit vauge, is there snack lounge service Portland to Spokane on the Empire Builder?  The timetable states no dinner service west of Spokane (excpet for cold meals for sleeping car passengers), but does this mean no snacks/drinks  available as well for coach passengers Portland -Spokane?   Need to know how much grub to pack for the 8+ hours after departing Portland in a few months.

thanks

Portland-Spokane gets NEC-style microwave snack car service.
IOW, bring some of your own food.

Eastbound a cold sandwich meal is provided to sleeping car passengers upon departure from PDX. Westbound sleeping car passengers get a cold croissant/ham/turkey with fruit and yogurt for breakfast. Other than that the lounge is staffed like any other train for both coach and sleeper pax.

The box meals for sleeper pax are actually quite good.
the food service car is the lounge that goes to/from chicago. You wont starve but some takeout from your favorite place, if you're in coach, might make you happier.

Just my 2c

Posted from Android

dcautley Wrote:
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> The box meals for sleeper pax are actually quite
> good.
> the food service car is the lounge that goes
> to/from chicago. You wont starve but some takeout
> from your favorite place, if you're in coach,
> might make you happier.
>
> Just my 2c
>
> Posted from Android

I wonder how that would work, though, if one boarded at say Portage, WI?  BTW, I like tunafish salad sandwiches, but I don't think I'd chance that.

There is Havre Box Car lunch. I don't know what months of the year they operate. But the snack car attendant reserves it for you and can refrigerate it until you are ready to eat it.
I think it far better food than anything Amtrak sells.

Yes the Havre box lunches !, the last time I rode it was Fried chicken, but they only put them on at Havre right ? as for the lounge menu its always better to ride east bound, every time I catch 27 they are sold out of everything....

Good know about the Havre offering.  I googled them, but didn't see any fried chicken.  They have tuna salad sandwiches, though!!

The portland-spokane lounge car sells microwaved cheeseburgers, soups, and the other standard stuff in superliner lounge cars.

Posted from iPhone

Of over 20 trips in the past 10 years, the Lounge has ALWAYS run out of food by mid-day we are to arrive into Chicago - usually popular things too. Even with the fried chicken at Havre. THIS is not how Amtrak moves to break even status on its food service. The Empire Builder is a unique train when it comes to food service. I think food cart service - like on Acela - should be embraced by LD trains when they hit the highest point of passenger travel....

They need to set up a network of Havre Box Car lunch type things all over the country.
It also makes a perfectly good dinner.

joemvcnj Wrote:
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> They need to set up a network of Havre Box Car
> lunch type things all over the country.
> It also makes a perfectly good dinner.

I wouldnl't be opposed to that. A modern Harvey House of sorts.

joemvcnj Wrote:
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> They need to set up a network of Havre Box Car
> lunch type things all over the country.
> It also makes a perfectly good dinner.

Amtrak had this on various trains and then they dropped it. You had the Vermonter Box Lunch. Similiar on the Adirondack. The Pennsylvanian tried various dining/food options. 

It was fried chicken when I went through westbound last week. As a vegetarian I was pretty content with options offered in the dinner. However, I was rather puzzled that they had made such great strides to have those vegetarian options... then expect all of us to eat cold ham for breakfast. Aside from cost, is there any reason a diner can't just be put in service making round trips Portland-Spokane so people can have dinner and breakfast like their Seattle brethren?

unseenthings Wrote:
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> It was fried chicken when I went through westbound
> last week. As a vegetarian I was pretty content
> with options offered in the dinner. However, I was
> rather puzzled that they had made such great
> strides to have those vegetarian options... then
> expect all of us to eat cold ham for breakfast.
> Aside from cost, is there any reason a diner can't
> just be put in service making round trips
> Portland-Spokane so people can have dinner and
> breakfast like their Seattle brethren?

It would require staff, which would require cost.

Ideally, the Empire Builder needs a second Portland Sleeper and a Superliner Diner/Lounge (which then could act as a "Parlor Car of sorts" for sleeping car passengers during peak season. I'd still like to see the Sightseer on the Portland portion, but I fear that if a Superliner Diner/Lounge is added - it would go to the Portland section instead. Howeever, one never knows. The "load factor" out of Portland is pretty descent..........The sleeping car space on the Empire Builder sells out pretty quickly!!! 

The answer to the poster's question is simple....the EB runs between Chicago and Seattle/Portland, and carries the usual dining car/sightseer lounge combo in the consist.....both operate between Chicago and Spokane, where the train is split into Portland and Seattle sections....the diner goes with the Seattle section, and the sightseer lounge goes with the Portland section.  If one can handle the offerings in the lounge, then no problem.  If not, and that includes me, then, if starting from Portland, there are many fine food choices available near Union Station, including that served in the station restaurant.  I have found that bringing a nice meal aboard an Amtrak train tends to create a lot of envy from the passengers who witness this.  AA

Stanford White
Carmel Valley, CA

agentatascadero Wrote:
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>   I have found
> that bringing a nice meal aboard an Amtrak train
> tends to create a lot of envy from the passengers
> who witness this.  AA

True.  We had to grab our French dip sandwiches "to go" at Philippe so we could catch the southbound Surfliner.  Lots of envy on that trip.