Amtrak dining and cafe service

[Sidney]

They have refrigeration. I am so sick of that brownie. Ice cream,cheesecake. Why won't they expand the dessert offerings? Such a simple thing would make sleeper passengers happy. It has nothing to do with Covid. Guess they just don't care.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

They used to have ice cream cups if I recall. Nothing is particularly hard, you have to want to do it....

They did. Multiple flavors of Haagan Daz. Usually 1 non-dairy sorbet option as well.

Sleeper passengers could order any dessert al a mode and get ice cream in addition to a cake / pie.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

They downgraded from Haagen Dazs to Blue Bunny long before the pandemic. This brownie vs. brownie chapter has little or nothing to do with the pandemic. A phone call to Aramark could fix it, but someone has to make the call first.

 

[20th Century Rider]

Haagen Dazs? Time to think big with the $unday Night Taste Teaser!

At $18,000 to fly from LHR to Dubai on Emirates 1st Class... there are more problems than you can imagine! You are literally paying thousands for each hour of travel.

When you consider that your stomach is only the size of a fist, how will you eat enough to justify the cost? And if you drink and get drunk, you won't be alert to enjoy the flawless caviar service!

If you fall asleep and miss a few hours, then you've wasted additional thousands just to sleep!

I'll bet you'll be wishing you were lulling along on an Amtrak LD train enjoying your flex meal, lettuce and cherry tomato salad... and most importantly, that incredible brownie!

But the best part is that you didn't spend $18,000 for a 6 hour trip!!!

 

[lordsigma]

I got the choice of blonde or brownie last trip. They weren’t awful if I recall - ok for a prepackaged dessert but nothing to write home about.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

At $18,000 to fly from LHR to Dubai on Emirates 1st Class... there are more problems than you can imagine! You are literally paying thousands for each hour of travel.

Emirates does not compete with Amtrak in any manner I can comprehend. By the time you're paying $18,000 for a domestic flight you can probably charter a private aircraft with whatever catering you need (if you live in a larger city).

If you fall asleep and miss a few hours, then you've wasted additional thousands just to sleep!

Half the reason I book a premium cabin is to make sleeping more comfortable. Same on Amtrak as on airlines.

When you consider that your stomach is only the size of a fist, how will you eat enough to justify the cost? And if you drink and get drunk, you won't be alert to enjoy the flawless caviar service!

I'm not a fan of caviar but I can drink a grand or two worth of Krug or Dom.

 

[20th Century Rider]

Emirates does not compete with Amtrak in any manner I can comprehend. By the time you're paying $18,000 for a domestic flight you can probably charter a private aircraft with whatever catering you need (if you live in a larger city).


Half the reason I book a premium cabin is to make sleeping more comfortable. Same on Amtrak as on airlines.


I'm not a fan of caviar but I can drink a grand or two worth of Krug or Dom.

Comparatively speaking... and personally for my own comparatively modest tastes... I'll take whatever Amtrak offers for their roomette accommodation and splurge a little with some little fancy bits and pieces to take on board with me... to make it a truly enhanced $18,000 experience for only a fraction of the cost. "It just doesn't take that much to get that millionaire rush for this retired school teacher!

 

[Qapla]

People keep mentioning cheese cake ... why would they want to stock that for a desert? I see no reason for them to get rid of the brownie in favor of cheese cake. Can't they find something much, much better? After all, I don't like cheese cake.

The thing is, no matter what they do - there will be some who like it and some who don't like it - except for the flex-dining that no one seems to like.

 

[Bob Dylan]

People keep mentioning cheese cake ... why would they want to stock that for a desert? I see no reason for them to get rid of the brownie in favor of cheese cake. Can't they find something much, much better? After all, I don't like cheese cake.

The thing is, no matter what they do - there will be some who like it and some who don't like it - except for the flex-dining that no one seems to like.

Did you ever eat the Chocolate Bundt Cake or the Bourbon Pecan Pie in the Diner?Best Amtrak deserts Ever!( and I liked the New York Style Cheese Cake they served before the So called Cheescake in a Cup was substituted)

 

[pennyk]

Did you ever eat the Chocolate Bundt Cake or the Bourbon Pecan Pie in the Diner?Best Amtrak deserts Ever!( and I like New York Style Cheese Ca)ke!

You are making me hungry Jim. I do recall your encouraging me to try the Bourbon Pecan Pie and I was very happy about it. I like the bundt cake also, but I am not a fan of the cheese cake. I was told that storing the ice cream was not practical since it would often un-freeze, then re-freeze.
I think the brownie is pretty decent for a packaged dessert.
Frankly, very few of us should be eating sugar-laden desserts.

 

[20th Century Rider]

Did you ever eat the Chocolate Bundt Cake or the Bourbon Pecan Pie in the Diner?Best Amtrak deserts Ever!( and I liked the New York Style Cheese Cake they served before the So called Cheescake in a Cup was substituted)

All that stuff was so sweet but very good. I would just let that dessert go but enjoy the steak and fish cake with baked potato and sour cream... mmm... sounds so good right now... hope that will find it's way back. Never appreciated it enough when it was available!

 

[Bob Dylan]

All that stuff was so sweet but very good. I would just let that dessert go but enjoy the steak and fish cake with baked potato and sour cream... mmm... sounds so good right now... hope that will find it's way back. Never appreciated it enough when it was available!

Ditto, and remember when each LD Train had Route Specific entrees like Cajun, BBQ, Mexican, Catfish, Salmon,Crab Cakes etc and Regional Wines and Cheeses on the the Starlight and Builder?

 

[crescent-zephyr]

People keep mentioning cheese cake ... why would they want to stock that for a desert? I see no reason for them to get rid of the brownie in favor of cheese cake. Can't they find something much, much better? After all, I don't like cheese cake.

The thing is, no matter what they do - there will be some who like it and some who don't like it - except for the flex-dining that no one seems to like.

Well... there used to be a menu with multiple options. Cheesecake, ice cream, sorbet (dairy free), vanilla pudding (gluten free), and other specialities.

That way you could order the brownie (or similar chocolate dessert) and I could order the cheesecake and we could both be happy!

 

[Willbridge]

Blonde chocolate?

No Blonde jokes please. Not allowed on this forum.

Blonde? That was the server in the Russian dining car who offered to sit down and split a bottle of wine with me if I would order it. She didn't make the sale.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

Did you ever eat the Chocolate Bundt Cake or the Bourbon Pecan Pie in the Diner?Best Amtrak deserts Ever!( and I liked the New York Style Cheese Cake they served before the So called Cheescake in a Cup was substituted)

My favorite was the chocolate mousse... here’s a photo I found from when one of my trips on the Starlight.. was dated 2013. I remember ordering it many times.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

People keep mentioning cheese cake ... why would they want to stock that for a desert? I see no reason for them to get rid of the brownie in favor of cheese cake. [...] After all, I don't like cheese cake.

I'm picky about food quality and I found Amtrak's cheesecake to range from acceptable to good over the course of many years. The texture and flavor were generally pleasing with unrequested low quality toppings being the most common letdown. In the case of some trips the cheesecake was the best part of the meal (especially toward the end). If we can only have one dessert it is much easier to pack your own vending machine brownie than a refrigerated cheesecake with ice and utensils. If it were up to me I would probably ask them to stock something like (Gateau) Mille Crepe but we all have to make sacrifices and cheesecake is a good middle ground that holds up well.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/9587-gateau-de-crepes

 

[railiner]

I would be happy to get one of those packaged blueberry muffins from the Cafe for dessert....

 

[AFS1970]

One of my train related pastimes is watching Amtrak (and other trains) videos on YouTube. Lately I have noticed several that spoke well of the flex dining. I can't imagine they all had never had anything better. At one point I was beginning to wonder if the videos were being subsidized by Amtrak in return for a favorable review. I am confused, as at least one of the couples featured was old enough to remember real food on the train.

 

[20th Century Rider]

I've never heard of Amtrak subsidizing independent bloggers... although it recently had a program that provided free travel for bloggers it sponsors. Here is where there may be positive statements regarding the blatantly miserable flex mess.

Listed below are independently sponsored blog reviews... clearly registering discontent with the present Amtrak service [some reviews pre-date COVID]:

https://www.consumeraffairs.com/travel/amtrak.html
https://www.trustpilot.com/review/www.amtrak.com
https://writingfromnowhere.com/honest-amtrak-review-4-things-you-should-expect/
Here is information on the Amtrak sponsored 'Amtrak Residency Program'

https://www.amtrak.com/about-amtrak/residency.html

 

[Dakota 400]

When you consider that your stomach is only the size of a fist, how will you eat enough to justify the cost?

Your post reminded me of my experience in Business Class on a Singapore Airlines flight from Singapore-Hong Kong-San Francisco. (Didn't cost anywhere near $18,000.) Dinner after leaving Singapore, Supper after leaving Hong Kong (well after Midnight when I was ready to sleep), then breakfast prior to arrival in San Francisco (which was early evening there). Ate my pre-ordered dinner; delicious. Supper time arrived: I remained "full" from dinner and told my flight attendant that all I wanted was a couple of items on their alternate menu and cancelled my pre-ordered Supper.

Because I was so "full", that did not help me to have a restful sleep.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

One of my train related pastimes is watching Amtrak (and other trains) videos on YouTube. Lately I have noticed several that spoke well of the flex dining. I can't imagine they all had never had anything better. At one point I was beginning to wonder if the videos were being subsidized by Amtrak in return for a favorable review. I am confused, as at least one of the couples featured was old enough to remember real food on the train.

I've noticed that the pro-flex people often focus on factors other than food quality and gloss over their meals with vague euphemisms that say little and could apply to almost anything. Meanwhile the anti-flex folks typically have little problem spending their time telling and showing us precisely what was wrong with their food in plenty of detail. Although not perfectly correlated these distinctions are strongly associated with honest and dishonest behavior.

 

[TrackWalker]

The best pizza I every ate on Amtrak was whilest on the Westbound Empire Builder. (of course I had phoned ahead to the Domino's in Havre, MT (fueling stop) and it was waiting at the platform for me when we arrived.)

 

[cirdan]

Emirates does not compete with Amtrak in any manner I can comprehend. By the time you're paying $18,000 for a domestic flight you can probably charter a private aircraft with whatever catering you need (if you live in a larger city).

You can travel in private varnish for a lot less than that.

And that I think is the most civilized and exquisite way of travelling that I can imagine.

 

[20th Century Rider]

Your post reminded me of my experience in Business Class on a Singapore Airlines flight from Singapore-Hong Kong-San Francisco. (Didn't cost anywhere near $18,000.) Dinner after leaving Singapore, Supper after leaving Hong Kong (well after Midnight when I was ready to sleep), then breakfast prior to arrival in San Francisco (which was early evening there). Ate my pre-ordered dinner; delicious. Supper time arrived: I remained "full" from dinner and told my flight attendant that all I wanted was a couple of items on their alternate menu and cancelled my pre-ordered Supper.

Because I was so "full", that did not help me to have a restful sleep.

They certainly feed you high quality food in large amounts on SQ... one of the problems is that your crossing so many time zones so you have jet lag complicating meal times / snacks / within a relatively short amount of time. On the train, you have much more time.

All that said, the original dining that came with sleeper accommodations also provided too much food... who can sit all day and eat three large meals... for three days in a row?

With the flex concept... now that's food extremism at its worst.

Food... when traveling 1st class on the train... should be of a high quality with enough so one doesn't get hungry... and can enjoy it.

Some of us in advancing age wish there were better options for food choices; and that you paid for what you wanted... as in... lowering the cost of the fare and include a nice breakfast [only] as in the B and B concept; after that pay for what best suites you at other times of the day.

But don't be quick to start criticizing the B & B idea as it probably won't happen.

Let's concentrate comments / efforts / hopes / on getting past the pandemic... and 'getting back on track' with passenger rail in America!

 

[Sidney]

It's called "flexible dining" which is supposed to mean you can eat at your leisure. I ve been on several trains in the last year and I've had to make a specific reservation every time. The "dining" part is hardly what we had when full service dining existed.