Passenger Trains > Texas eagle dining

Anyone have any thoughts on the food on the eagle? I hear it’s delicious, and the service is phenomenal.

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Well, it's not bad, some really hate it and it's definitely no where near the traditional dining quality. The flex meal menu is basically a tv dinner. I rode the other day from Fort Worth to Chicago and was on the train that was stuck in Arkansas and Missouri due to tornado warnings, storm damage (trees over the tracks), and a crew change. I had the beef dish and my wife the chicken Alfredo, both were acceptable but not great. For breakfast we both had the omelette. Eggs and cheese were ok, potatoes soggy, and sausage pretty good. For lunch they also had chicken enchiladas, again, they were just ok. For dinner, after the delay, they loaded up Papa John's pizza and salads for us. 

G600DRVR

This means you were on the train that was 12 hours late.

Tell us what this was really like.

Especially--what did your fellow passengers (non-railfans) have to say about it.

 

I rode from Dallas to STL back in November. Compared to the California Zephyr, the service was a definite downgrade. I had a bedroom, so all our meals were paid for. Food was okay (TV dinner/leftover quality), but there was quite a lot of it. Didn't go hungry, but it certainly didn't compare to the steak on trains 5/6.

If food is of "TVdinner/leftover" quality -- maybe it's a good thing
coach passenger are banned from the dining car.

If they were allowed in--they would have to pay the set price of $45 for it.

Just imagine someone not pre-disposed to ride trains who decides to give Amtrak a try.   The TV dinner food would be enough to sour many such people on Amtrak permanently.  If the dining experience weren't bad enough,  imagine that same person trying to enjoy the scenery and realizing Amtrak can't be bothered to wash the windows.  I want to be upbeat,  but that silver lining is getting ever harder to find.   

ronald321 Wrote:
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> G600DRVR
>
> This means you were on the train that was 12 hours
> late.
>
> Tell us what this was really like.
>
> Especially--what did your fellow passengers
> (non-railfans) have to say about it.
>
>  
We were on that train. I have to say that for the most part, everybody had a very good attitude. There were a couple of people that were more out spoken, but otherwise both my wife and I were very impressed. Many people did change plans and had people pick them up early, a few even had friends drive to Poplar Bluff. The worst part was a consistent theme of Amtrak's and a lack of communication through train announcements, even if to say the track workers are still working or the track is clear but the crew was out of time. The crew was very good if you hung out near them and/or directly asked but otherwise the folks who hung out on the train had a lot of questions. As always, I was very glad I had my scanner with me. 

My opinion on flex dining is this...

One dinner and breakfast is it for me.  First night out dinner is ok.  Breakfast in the AM is ok.  Beyond that no...the entrees are too much the same...everything in one container... runs togethor...hopefully warmed up ok (recent trip on the WB LSL I had the salmon of which the center was cold).  The salad is a disapointment although the roll is good. 

Get a burger, hot dog or pizza for lunch on the second day, and eat dinner when you arrive at your destination. This pertains to the Cardinal EB...had flex dinner out of Chicago, but told my SCA I would get cafe fare the rest of the trip (had to pay for my burger for lunch).   Arrived Washington on-time so ate dinner off the train, although was offered the flex dinner prior to arrival in DC.  We did arrive DC only about 45 minutes late.