Passenger Trains > dinner on #4?

I'll be riding #4 for the first time at the end of October (to Lamy). What are the typical dinner seating times on this train and will my sleeping car attendant have already made reservations for me? (Dinner IS served the first evening, I hope?)

Also, I notice that on the Amtrak website, half bottles of wine are listed at $8 -- did they drop the prices or have the menus not been updated? In April they were charging $10 for a half bottle.

I'll be trying coach on my return trip on #3. Is there any problem getting breakfast early before getting into L.A. ? I haven't tried #3 before except in a sleeper.

Sandra in Davis

I assume you'll be boarding #4 at Los Angeles. If so, dinner is served that night on a first come first served basis, so make sure to get into the diner right away after the train completes its mail coupling routine and an announcement is made that the diner is open. Last call will usually be made around 7:45pm immediately after departure from the Fullerton station.

On the return, breakfast will be available beginning at 6:30am prior to arriving into Union Station.

While I have not had any meals on 3 or 4, I will say that in my many Amtrak trips you never have the same experience twice. While the food itself is almost always good to excellent, the crew serving it and the times of the seatings varys wildly from train to train and even trip to trip. Try to get in early if you can, the first and second seatings almost always still have all food in stock. I've been a latecomer at the last call and many food selections were gone.

My most recent trip on the Lake Shore Limited from NYP to Toledo a month ago, the highlight of the trip (and only good part) was the exceptionally good crew and great food in the diner. I had never been treated so well by Amtrak diner crews anywhere. (yes I did mention this to Amtrak in a letter about the otherwise horrible trip)

Try to enjoy the trip and just throw your watch or other timepiece out the window. Eating in the dining car is one of the great things about train travel many miss out on nowadays. Nothing could be finer than dinner in the diner...

bridge22-0196 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I'll be riding #4 for the first time at the end of
> October (to Lamy). What are the typical dinner
> seating times on this train and will my sleeping
> car attendant have already made reservations for
> me? (Dinner IS served the first evening, I
> hope?)
>
> Also, I notice that on the Amtrak website, half
> bottles of wine are listed at $8 -- did they drop
> the prices or have the menus not been updated?
> In April they were charging $10 for a half
> bottle.
>
> I'll be trying coach on my return trip on #3. Is
> there any problem getting breakfast early before
> getting into L.A. ? I haven't tried #3 before
> except in a sleeper.
>
> Sandra in Davis
>

I would do the sleeper on the return trip. Tough out the first night in coach out of LAX and then, from daybreak on, enjoy the scenery and narrative from the lounge car. Sleeper is always better on the way home and with the schedule and frequent lateness of the WB train, you may get to spend more time in the car.

Buy a $4 dollar full bottle of your favorite wine on your own and bring it on board. Ask your sleeping car attendant for an empty wine glass. Take a glass of wine with you to the diner.

BTW, what does a can of beer go for these days on Amtrak? $3.75? M&E may not be profitable but liquor sales has gotta be a moneymaker.

I think that breakfast on No. 3 into LAX is a waste unless you have a voucher to use up.

Bob

erlangerhill Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Try to enjoy the trip and just throw your watch or
> other timepiece out the window. Eating in the
> dining car is one of the great things about train
> travel many miss out on nowadays. Nothing could
> be finer than dinner in the diner...

Bravo, brother (or sister). "Dinner in the diner, nothing could be finer, see you 'round in North Caroliner, yeahhay....."

Someone complained about paying $3.50 for a beer. Consider that a bargain; in NYC, a beer in one of the bars will go for $4 and up, and a tip is expected. Atmospher is dark, whereas on Amtrak, you've got the world in your hands. Dig in those pockets, pay, and you'll have memories to write poems about millions of years from now.

bridge22-0196 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I'll be riding #4 for the first time at the end of
> October (to Lamy). What are the typical dinner
> seating times on this train and will my sleeping
> car attendant have already made reservations for
> me? (Dinner IS served the first evening, I
> hope?)
>
> Also, I notice that on the Amtrak website, half
> bottles of wine are listed at $8 -- did they drop
> the prices or have the menus not been updated?
> In April they were charging $10 for a half
> bottle.
>
> I'll be trying coach on my return trip on #3. Is
> there any problem getting breakfast early before
> getting into L.A. ? I haven't tried #3 before
> except in a sleeper.

Sandra,
Yes, Dinner will be served the first night.
Half bottles of wine are now $10 (from what I've heard).
It'll be no problem getting breakfast before L.A.
My wife and I traveled back from Albuquerque on August 28/29. We tried coach this time instead of the sleeping car we had last year (in July). The train was running 3 hours late due to an unexplained delay leaving Chicago, but that gave us a chance to enjoy Breakfast down Cajon pass before detraining at Riverside.
There was absolutely no problem getting into the dining car on this trip. There was no waiting list and there were always empty tables available. This surprised us, since last year we had to wait from a sleeper!
We suspected that the sleepers were not very full. Coach was about 70% full, but most people picked up something from the snack bar on the first floor of the lounge.

Agreed, the best restaraunt experience of all time, but 3s running into LA BNSFBob has been a lot better compared to 1s? 3 still keeps a consistent rail-rail connection with 14 while 1, most of the time, will require a bus!