Passenger Trains > Amtrak's current flexible dining menu

Here's what one looks like...

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The shrimp in lobster sauce is good.

Posted from Android

There was a breakfast omelet on their in the last menu I saw!

What train was this on?

This is for the western trains - now supplemented with the omelet. More selections out there because a person could be eating for two full days.  Eastern have fewer options because they are shorter runs.
 

RevRandy Wrote:
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> This is for the western trains - now supplemented
> with the omelet. More selections out there because
> a person could be eating for two full days. 
> Eastern have fewer options because they are
> shorter runs.
>  

I was about to say, that's more options than I've had on the LSL before COVID.

The header should read *NOT FOR DIABETICS*  *YOUR ON YOUR OWN*

Sampled all of these on a recent coast to coast trip, except for the shrimp and andouille, which I've had previously and was unavailable on every train for some reason. 

My review:

Beef in wine sauce was flat out awful. 

The enchiladas were edible, but way too soggy. But my attitude toward vegan fare may play a role in my overall negative review. 

Everything else was at least reasonably tasty. Meatballs and pasta were surprisingly good, as was the chicken fettuccine. 

Breakfast omelette was available on every train, and was overheated and dry every time. No salsa available, only ketchup in most cases. Yuck. 

The review by March Harris telling of a company that never reviewed itself. He said they sell crappy enchiladas or burritos or whatever but you can’t even get some cheap ass picante salsa to drown it in, only ketchup. I don’t suppose anyone in the Amtrak commissary has heard that salsa overtook ketchup sales in the USA somewhere around 20 YEARS ago? But then that would be supposing that someone who knew something about the food business was running that department 🤷‍♂️
It’s the little CHEAP things that can be done that go a long way to make a customer experience that much better.

Edit: it was the crappy breakfast omelet. If I couldn’t at least drown that in some Franks Hot sauce I would guess it would be hard to stomach.....
Guess I will just bring my own hot sauce if I ever ride the Govt. Wayfreight again.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/06/21 15:32 by Drknow.

Honestly, this menu could be a "bit" more tolerable if they had a nice market place special sandwich or something. It's a lunch option at least......Used to be offered in the cafe, not sure why it was removed from both the cafe and Diner for that matter. And with one attendant, two on the Western long hauls, could it be that hard to "order ahead" for say ONE meal option on DAY 2 of the journey? Amtrak can still make a profit between the cost of the meal and the retail price they sell it at. Amtrak can coordinate "cold meal service" out of Portland for the Baby Builder (train 27/28), just not sure why they couldn't give it a shot on a couple of other trains.....

march_hare Wrote:
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> Sampled all of these on a recent coast to coast
> trip, except for the shrimp and andouille, which
> I've had previously and was unavailable on every
> train for some reason. 
>
> My review:
>
> Beef in wine sauce was flat out awful. 
>
> The enchiladas were edible, but way too soggy. But
> my attitude toward vegan fare may play a role in
> my overall negative review. 
>
> Everything else was at least reasonably tasty.
> Meatballs and pasta were surprisingly good, as was
> the chicken fettuccine. 
>
> Breakfast omelette was available on every train,
> and was overheated and dry every time. No salsa
> available, only ketchup in most cases. Yuck. 
Thanks indeed for the warning and advice as I have a round trip from east to west coming up before long. The return trip (at least at this point) on the CZ is supposed to be beyond the point of re-inauguration of full-service dining. Sure hope that materializes.

And do we know who's making this processed food?  Low wage, maybe even immigrant labor?  Way less than Amtrak wages I'm sure!
Just like shoppers at Walmart, they have no clue.  Why can;t we provide a living wage job for Amtrak cooks and waiters?
They endure long days away from home.  Short nights with poor sleep!  Very constrained working conditions.
Is it all because of Mica's insecurtities?  I can't stress the importance of having good dining car service on our LD trains.
These are decent people, just like ticket agents, car attnedants, and other workers making the Amtrak experience memorable!
I'm speaking for my union brtothers, why are you piicking on these workers in particular?

Amtrak waiters being underpaid?  Six days on/five days off for LD trains.  $60k a year plus tips that are way under reported. Plus Union protection.

Those poor poor waiters....  And the cooks, they are so destitute.  

 

Damn, $6.50 for a Bud Light. Guess I’ll have to bring my own.

Posted from iPhone

Gin, rum, vodka, whiskey, but no whisky.

Let me see if I have this right.  $6.50 for a can of beer, eh?  That's $39.00 a six pack.  I can buy beer, name brands, for $8.00 a six pack retail, and at this, Amtrak can't turn a profit?

Sheesh!

Norm

Norman Orfall
Helendale, CA
TIOGA PASS, a private railcar

Most airlines in the U.S. charge that much, or more, for a can of beer. 

I remeber seeing the person in checked pants slip through the darkened coaches late at night, unbeknownst to most passengers. He or she is heading for the dorm car, after working a 16 hour day.  A short night of unsettled sleep, and then it's time to do it all over again.  They are railroaders, not short order cooks in some small town greasy spoon.  Think of all the thousands of railroad dining car staff who preceded them.  They have worked in this unique well paying profession, only to be told now, you're not worth the cost.   

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mp51w Wrote:
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> I remeber seeing the person in checked pants slip
> through the darkened coaches late at night,
> unbeknownst to most passengers. He or she is
> heading for the dorm car, after working a 16 hour
> day.  A short night of unsettled sleep, and then
> it's time to do it all over again.  They are
> railroaders, not short order cooks in some small
> town greasy spoon.  Think of all the thousands of
> railroad dining car staff who preceded them. 
> They have worked in this unique well paying
> profession, only to be told now, you're not worth
> the cost.   

This......^

ctillnc Wrote:
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> Most airlines in the U.S. charge that much, or
> more, for a can of beer. 

AIrlines charge more for Beer than liquor for two simple reasons, weight and cubic space.   100 cans of Beer weighs 75 pounds while 100 little bottles fo Gin or  Whiskey would only weigh only about 8 pounds depending on the bottle type.   You also have to deal with the fact that you have to refrigerate beer the whole time and it takes up the cubic space, 2 6 packs is about 1 cubic foot that is under refrigeration.   So 100 cans of Beer would take up approximately 8 cubic feet of space refrigerated.   This is the same on board a train also, except the weight is not the main limiting factor.