Amtrak Food Overview

[Ashland Train Enthusiast]

After a spate of threads here recently, including one I found very helpful about Amtrak meal photos, I had some free time this holiday season, so decided that for this year, I'm going to start a blog/website to document the meals on each of Amtrak's LD routes.

Dinner in the Diner: Amtrak Meals Overview

It's pretty spartan right now, as I'm in the process of going through my old pictures, as well as combing the forums' here to see about asking other posters' for permission to use their pictures, but I wanted to go ahead and share this, as it is my hope to crowd source a fair bit of this. I am East-coast bound due to several factors, so will need some help to get pictures/reviews/information for many of the western LDs.

I've put as accurate information regarding meal service that I can find based off of the Amtrak timetable and information provided here, but if you do find something that needs to be fixed, feel free to comment there, PM me, or otherwise let me know, as I'm most certainly nowhere near the expert of Amtrak travel that many of you are.

Thanks in advance for any feedback or contributions!

~ DCTE

 

[amamba]

You are welcome to take any pictures or summaries you want from my blog at trainsacrossamerica.blogspot.com. Just please be sure you give me a credit if you use any of my material.

I have pictures of both LD trains and acela meals.

 

[amamba]

I think it would be fun to add acela FC meals to your page, although it isn't technically the diner. Maybe also a section on cafe car fare as well?

 

[amamba]

Oh there is also a thread on flyertalk of amtrak food. You might want to surf over there, people might be willing to share their photos with you, too.

 

[SarahZ]

This is my Angus Steakburger with Kettle Chips on the SWC. Sorry it's blurry. We were rocking quite a bit.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

I like the Speciaty Sandwich for lunch. It's usually what I get.

 

[Ashland Train Enthusiast]

Thanks for the pictures thus far, I'm going to see how much of them I can get updated in the next couple of days! Feel free to also share reviews of meals (but please try to be as objective as possible to help other travelers). I will of course share anything with the caveat that due to different train crews/cooks, meals might not always look/taste as described, but at least having an overview could be good.

I think it would be fun to add acela FC meals to your page, although it isn't technically the diner. Maybe also a section on cafe car fare as well?

I wanted to keep it simple to start out with, but once I get comfortable getting the bulk of the LD diner food documented; that being said I envision expanding it to all food offerings, including Cafe and Acela foods, as well as the Wine/Cheese offerings on the CS, AT, LSL, and EB as well.

Oh there is also a thread on flyertalk of amtrak food. You might want to surf over there, people might be willing to share their photos with you, too.

Thanks for the suggestion! I was thinking about registering with On Track On Line, as I've seen several folks here refer to that forum as another good resource, and as well will check out Flyertalk.

~ DCTE

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Amtrak meals are one of the most perplexing mysteries of the whole system to me (second only to AGR). After dozens or perhaps hundreds of meals on Amtrak I've never once seen anyone speak highly of them while eating in person. Not once. Not ever. And yet here on AU almost everyone speaks extremely highly of Amtrak food. In my experience AmChow is universally bland, they wouldn't know what a fresh sauce or tasty seasoning was if it bit them in the caboose. The precooked meat pucks and frozen veggies are downright disgusting to me. But here on AU it's all excellent, wonderful, and extremely tasty.

 

[Train Rider]

Amtrak meals are one of the most perplexing mysteries of the whole system to me (second only to AGR). After dozens or perhaps hundreds of meals on Amtrak I've never once seen anyone speak highly of them while eating in person. Not once. Not ever. And yet here on AU almost everyone speaks extremely highly of Amtrak food. In my experience AmChow is universally bland, they wouldn't know what a fresh sauce or tasty seasoning was if it bit them in the caboose. The precooked meat pucks and frozen veggies are downright disgusting to me. But here on AU it's all excellent, wonderful, and extremely tasty.

I think the answer lies in the fact that many people here are a bit too nostalgic and/or overly defensive about this pleasant form of transportation. I've always found the food to be comparable to the average family restaurant at about twice the price. The food is average and for most people that is good enough. I eat in the diner for lunch and dinner only when I am in a sleeper, otherwise, I can bring a far better selection and quality of food on my own when I am in coach. I do eat breakfast in the diner when in coach, however.

 

[D.P. Roberts]

Amtrak meals are one of the most perplexing mysteries of the whole system to me (second only to AGR). After dozens or perhaps hundreds of meals on Amtrak I've never once seen anyone speak highly of them while eating in person. Not once. Not ever. And yet here on AU almost everyone speaks extremely highly of Amtrak food. In my experience AmChow is universally bland, they wouldn't know what a fresh sauce or tasty seasoning was if it bit them in the caboose. The precooked meat pucks and frozen veggies are downright disgusting to me. But here on AU it's all excellent, wonderful, and extremely tasty.

In one sense, I get what you're saying - Amtrak food could be a lot better. If I had a choice of restaurants to go to, I would never choose the Amtrak dining car. If Amtrak ever does "outsource" its dining cars to some other company (like Subway, Panera Bread, Chipotle, etc.) I'd be all in favor of that.

However, it could be a lot worse. Outsourcing the meals is exactly what the airlines do (or did when they served food), and I always thought that airline meals (at least in coach) were absolutely terrible. Microwaved food from the cafe car is also terrible.

So, there are a number of things that make me think I'm going to get a bad meal on Amtrak. I'm on a train I'm a captive audience, with no dining alternatives and no choice but to eat what's in front of me or go hungry; I have nothing else to look forward to while on a train except the meals; I'm a very picky eater, and the choices are limited. So, all things considered - including the beautiful scenery and the unusual location of a moving restaurant - I'm generally quite satisfied with my meals on the dining car.

On the other hand, I've also spent many vacations in the National Parks. Most of the restaurants in the parks are run by concessioners, in situations that seem similar to what Amtrak faces. However, I usually found the meals and service in the parks to be unacceptable, and much worse than Amtrak.

 

[Nathanael]

Amtrak food is not three-star Michelin, certainly.

I always describe it as "good diner food", and in recent years when I've been eating on Amtrak, that's what it was. (I'm told there was a really bad period during Simplified Dining Service but I wasn't travelling then. Both the fish and the burgers and the steaks have been perfectly typical diner-standard when I've been there.) I've had bad diner food often enough on road trips -- and worse fast food in airports, and in train stations -- that good diner food is "good" by my standards. And it's certainly *several* steps above onboard airline food.

I think it has to do with what you're comparing it to. Amtrak diner food is comparable to roadhouses, and by that standard I think it's very good. It doesn't compare to high-quality restaurants, though admittedly the prices are as high as high-quality restaurants.

Please note that the sauces have to be kept fairly mild for the sake of us supertasters. IMO, really poor diner food is slathered with overly strong sauces.

 

[Nathanael]

On the other hand, I've also spent many vacations in the National Parks. Most of the restaurants in the parks are run by concessioners, in situations that seem similar to what Amtrak faces. However, I usually found the meals and service in the parks to be unacceptable, and much worse than Amtrak.

The Illinois toll roads, for a long time, had given the food concession for all rest stops along the system to McDonalds.

I did not eat at rest stops along the Illinois toll roads. Since many of them have one-way exits, this meant that taking a road trip involving the Northwest Tollway, I knew I had to eat in Chicago or wait until Wisconsin.

I've had similar situations in national parks where I simply had to drive out of the park to get food.

Yeah, Amtrak diner food is far far better than most "concession" food.

 

[SarahZ]

I don't think the dining car food is worth the price they charge for it, but I do like what I've eaten so far. The exception would be the breakfast sandwich I had on the SWC a couple years ago. It wasn't awful, but I certainly wished I'd ordered something else.

If I had to pay for my meals, then I'd certainly be underwhelmed. I really do love the Angus Steakburger, but do I think it's worth $10? Heck no.

I do hear occasional compliments during the meal itself. One of my small talk go-tos is, "How are your Crab Cakes?" (or whatever they're eating). That usually leads to a small discussion about our meals and how they compare to other restaurants.

I wish I had a picture of the Chocolate Caramel Peanut Butter Torte, currently offered on the eastbound SWC. Three of us split it, and even though it was delicious to the point of eyes rolling back in our heads, it was absolutely monstrous and I commend anyone who can eat the entire thing without their pancreas giving up the ghost.

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

The Illinois toll roads, for a long time, had given the food concession for all rest stops along the system to McDonalds.

I did not eat at rest stops along the Illinois toll roads. Since many of them have one-way exits, this meant that taking a road trip involving the Northwest Tollway, I knew I had to eat in Chicago or wait until Wisconsin.

I remember when those were the Fred Harvey Oasis and they slung some pretty decent chow. As a kid I always enjoyed sitting and being able to watch the cars and trucks pass right under you.

 

[Ashland Train Enthusiast]

Thanks for the feedback about dining thus far!

After dozens or perhaps hundreds of meals on Amtrak I've never once seen anyone speak highly of them while eating in person. Not once. Not ever.

Texas, let me know the next time you're passing through WAS, and we can pick a train and dine together, because I've never once seen anyone speak so disparagingly of them while eating in person. Complain, yes. Think that they are not gourmet fair, yes. In my experience (not quite hundreds of meals, on all trains, but a decent sample size), they've ranged from mediocre to good, nothing I'd say was truly "gourmet" fair, but conversely nothing I'd say was so absolutely inedible that I'd refuse to even touch any bit of it.

In one sense, I get what you're saying - Amtrak food could be a lot better. If I had a choice of restaurants to go to, I would never choose the Amtrak dining car. If Amtrak ever does "outsource" its dining cars to some other company (like Subway, Panera Bread, Chipotle, etc.) I'd be all in favor of that.

I will politely disagree with this, at least with the companies mentioned. I feel that at least in my experience, Amtrak food has been better than what you'd find at what I'd term a "fast food" restaurant, like the ones your listed or the dreaded McDonalds. I'd more compare it to something like a Chili's or Ruby Tuesday, a sit-down style chain that while many of their entrees are made at a central commissary and provided to the restaurant, some things like steaks for instance are prepared

If I had to pay for my meals, then I'd certainly be underwhelmed. I really do love the Angus Steakburger, but do I think it's worth $10? Heck no.

I guess to me, that seems a fair price, at least in comparison to some of the places around where I live and work (Downtown WAS). And I understand the addition of a buck or two for convenience, no different than you'd get at a restaurant in Disneyland for instance.

I wish I had a picture of the Chocolate Caramel Peanut Butter Torte, currently offered on the eastbound SWC. Three of us split it, and even though it was delicious to the point of eyes rolling back in our heads, it was absolutely monstrous and I commend anyone who can eat the entire thing without their pancreas giving up the ghost.

Me too!

 

[trainman74]

Outsourcing the meals is exactly what the airlines do (or did when they served food), and I always thought that airline meals (at least in coach) were absolutely terrible.

Amtrak food is "outsourced" in exactly the same way that airline food is "outsourced" -- of course, the difference is in the type of food that gets supplied to Amtrak vs. the airlines, as well as how much of the preparation takes place on board.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

After dozens or perhaps hundreds of meals on Amtrak I've never once seen anyone speak highly of them while eating in person. Not once. Not ever.

Texas, let me know the next time you're passing through WAS, and we can pick a train and dine together, because I've never once seen anyone speak so disparagingly of them while eating in person. Complain, yes. Think that they are not gourmet fair, yes. In my experience (not quite hundreds of meals, on all trains, but a decent sample size), they've ranged from mediocre to good, nothing I'd say was truly "gourmet" fair, but conversely nothing I'd say was so absolutely inedible that I'd refuse to even touch any bit of it.

Go back and read my post again. I never said people openly disparaged the food. I never said people refused to touch the food. I simply said nobody had ever said anything resembling the glowing praise that is routinely offered here on the forum. Ever. Most of the time they just eat it and don't remark on the quality one way or the other like dear auntie Edna.

Your defensive straw man retort doesn't make Amtrak's food any fresher or better tasting, but it does call into question your ability to be truly objective in your judgement.

I feel that at least in my experience, Amtrak food has been better than what you'd find at what I'd term a "fast food" restaurant, like the ones your listed or the dreaded McDonalds. I'd more compare it to something like a Chili's or Ruby Tuesday, a sit-down style chain that while many of their entrees are made at a central commissary and provided to the restaurant, some things like steaks for instance are prepared.

Chili's and Ruby Tuesday can still prepare a burger patty to medium done if you ask, or at least they could the last time I was in one. Can Amtrak? Nope. It's already well done before they even take it out of the freezer. Chili's and Tuesday's can also grill or toast the buns, saute some onions or mushrooms and give you a choice of cheeses to choose from. Can Amtrak? Not on any train I've ever ridden. Yes, we know the steaks are cooked to order (sometimes even correctly) but is anything else on your plate? I don't think the frozen vegetable medley or the powdered potatoes seem very fresh. I eat at basic restaurants on a regular basis and have no problem finding something I like. The difference there is that even if only 10% of the menu is any good you still have around ten tasty selections to chose from. On Amtrak if only 10% of the menu is any good then you have at best one or two selections to choose from across the entire menu. Maybe I'm just too demanding of a gourmand for Amtrak's low effort no substitutions and no exceptions convection heating service. Or maybe Amtrak food simply isn't worth crowing about.

 

[D.P. Roberts]

Outsourcing the meals is exactly what the airlines do (or did when they served food), and I always thought that airline meals (at least in coach) were absolutely terrible.

Amtrak food is "outsourced" in exactly the same way that airline food is "outsourced" -- of course, the difference is in the type of food that gets supplied to Amtrak vs. the airlines, as well as how much of the preparation takes place on board.

That's a good point, in that the old airline meals were prepared ahead of time & kept warm in the back, which is literally a recipe for disaster. However, when you hear our congresscritters talking, they make it sound like only a quasi-governmental body like Amtrak could do food service badly. I'm not sure if privatizing the dining (or Amtrak) would make money or not (probably not), but it's demonstrably true that privatized food in a similar environment isn't automatically "better".

 

[D.P. Roberts]

After dozens or perhaps hundreds of meals on Amtrak I've never once seen anyone speak highly of them while eating in person. Not once. Not ever.

Texas, let me know the next time you're passing through WAS, and we can pick a train and dine together, because I've never once seen anyone speak so disparagingly of them while eating in person. Complain, yes. Think that they are not gourmet fair, yes. In my experience (not quite hundreds of meals, on all trains, but a decent sample size), they've ranged from mediocre to good, nothing I'd say was truly "gourmet" fair, but conversely nothing I'd say was so absolutely inedible that I'd refuse to even touch any bit of it.

Go back and read my post again. I never said people openly disparaged the food. I never said people refused to touch the food. I simply said nobody had ever said anything resembling the glowing praise that is routinely offered here on the forum. Ever. Most of the time they just eat it and don't remark on the quality one way or the other like dear auntie Edna.

Your defensive straw man retort doesn't make Amtrak's food any fresher or better tasting, but it does call into question your ability to be truly objective in your judgement.

I feel that at least in my experience, Amtrak food has been better than what you'd find at what I'd term a "fast food" restaurant, like the ones your listed or the dreaded McDonalds. I'd more compare it to something like a Chili's or Ruby Tuesday, a sit-down style chain that while many of their entrees are made at a central commissary and provided to the restaurant, some things like steaks for instance are prepared.

Chili's and Ruby Tuesday can still prepare a burger patty to medium done if you ask, or at least they could the last time I was in one. Can Amtrak? Nope. It's already well done before they even take it out of the freezer. Chili's and Tuesday's can also grill or toast the buns, saute some onions or mushrooms and give you a choice of cheeses to choose from. Can Amtrak? Not on any train I've ever ridden. Yes, we know the steaks are cooked to order (sometimes even correctly) but is anything else on your plate? I don't think the frozen vegetable medley or the powdered potatoes seem very fresh. I eat at basic restaurants on a regular basis and have no problem finding something I like. The difference there is that even if only 10% of the menu is any good you still have around ten tasty selections to chose from. On Amtrak if only 10% of the menu is any good then you have at best one or two selections to choose from across the entire menu. Maybe I'm just too demanding of a gourmand for Amtrak's low effort no substitutions and no exceptions convection heating service. Or maybe Amtrak food simply isn't worth crowing about.

I'd say that Amtrak can' do a lot of these things - at least under their current configuration. Take the "powdered" mashed potatoes, for example. Making mashed potatoes usually involves boiling them. In a food service setting, that's a really big pot of boiling water. If it was on a train, it might slosh out and severely burn a crew member. I really don't see how to serve mashed potatoes without using powdered flakes.

In my opinion, Amtrak should serve a different type of food. Steamed veggies and mashed potatoes just don't do well in a kitchen situation where (as far as I know) all you have is a plancha and a convection oven. Instead, why not look at the equipment you actually have, and figure out what types of food you can prepare really well using just that?

 

[ScottC4746]

I guess it all depends on who you speak to. I went to National Train Day in Los Angeles two years ago and the head of Amtrak Food Service was there. I told him my first experiance with train food was Sunset Limited in 1990 and then I took it again in 2009 and thought it was a complete 720 turn around from what it was in 1990. A huge improvement. It is not what is was in the early days with privitized railroads but it is not as bad as many people talk about. Having seen the kitchen they work in on board, I am impressed they are able to pump the high quality they can and do. It will never be Orient Express cuisine, but it isn't Lubby's cafeteria either.

 

[NETrainfan]

We have been fortunate in that our Amtrak meals have been "surprisingly" good most of the time. For instance, on our recent cross-country trip,

we had 6 days of Amtrak meals and had several very good meals including the Chicken Marsalla and the Crab Cakes. One night the baked potato

was especially good. Our expectations are for a good, warm meal and the meals usually exceed our expectations.

Food preferences are so subjective. And expectations are so variable.

 

[Nathanael]

Can Amtrak? Not on any train I've ever ridden. Yes, we know the steaks are cooked to order (sometimes even correctly) but is anything else on your plate?

The omelettes, I believe.

I don't think the frozen vegetable medley or the powdered potatoes seem very fresh.

Maybe it's just the train you ride on; the veggies I've gotten have been up to "fresh steamed" quality in taste. I don't get the potatoes so I can't speak to that.

I eat at basic restaurants on a regular basis and have no problem finding something I like. The difference there is that even if only 10% of the menu is any good you still have around ten tasty selections to chose from.

As we all know, Amtrak simply cannot afford to have as many selections as a non-moving restaurant, due to storage space. Airlines have the same problem, but they provide really terrible results.

On Amtrak if only 10% of the menu is any good then you have at best one or two selections to choose from across the entire menu. Maybe I'm just too demanding of a gourmand for Amtrak's low effort no substitutions and no exceptions convection heating service.

Honestly, I think you're asking for too many options. There's usually two good selections for every meal, and that's better than I can find at many restaurants these days (thanks to the new trend to dump chili peppers into EVERYTHING). More impressively, my fiancee who can't have dairy products can find something satisfactory at every meal except breakfast, and do you know how hard that is to do?

Or maybe Amtrak food simply isn't worth crowing about.

Seriously, who was crowing? I've seen a lot of people saying that it was decent, but I've never heard "crowing". Now, it's twice the price I'd pay for similar food off-board, but that is another matter.

Whenever I've been on the train, my dinner companions have remarked on the "surprisingly good" quality of the food. This is either because they're comparing it to airline food (yuck), or to airport food (not reliable), or to fast food (Amtrak is definitely better than McDonalds). What is your point of comparison?

My personal point of comparison is that on Amtrak it's fairly straightforward for my fiancee to get a dairy free meal. Last time I tried to do that at Chili's or Ruby Tuesday's, it was a nightmare.

 

[SarahZ]

I guess to me, that seems a fair price, at least in comparison to some of the places around where I live and work (Downtown WAS). And I understand the addition of a buck or two for convenience, no different than you'd get at a restaurant in Disneyland for instance.

That's a good point. A steakburger would cost around $5 here, but it would be $10 in larger cities.

 

[haolerider]

I don't recall anyone raving about food on-board, in fact I seem to recall plenty of constructive criticism regarding the food. Quality is difficult given the size of the kitchen and the menus produced by Aramark; however in my opinion the food quality has gotten better and the menu selections have improved. Yes, you generally cannot get your burger cooked to your specific request, nor can you get grilled onions or toasted buns, but I don't see many complaints about those limitations. Let's face it, food is an issue on the trains and it can be better and as I have said above, I believe it has improved. Next time you are on the train, take a look at the kitchen and imagine trying to do all that is required without a sous chef, prep person or expediter.......it is a tough job and one I would not like to have.

 

[JayPea]

In my opinion, the quality of Amtrak's food is just that: an opinion. We each have our own tastes. I know, for instance, that I have heard many great things about the lamb shank, roast duck, and ribs that are served in Amtrak's diners. As far as I'm concerned, rat poison or starvation is a more attractive alternative than having to gag any of those items down. But that's just the way my taste buds are wired. I don't think, in my own experiences, that Amfood is that bad. The only two meals I can recall that I didn't care for at all was a seafood gumbo on the CONO and a hot turkey sandwich on the EB that only met two of the three criteria: it was a sandwich and it was turkey. And it was stone cold. Other than that, it's been in my estimation fine. The one and only time I've ever encountered anyone offer a solid opinion on the food was a man on the Crescent at breakfast one time who started bitching about the food long before it ever arrived and, sure enough, took one bite of his biscuit, loudly proclaimed it was unedible, and practically threw it back in the server's face. Absolutely uncalled for. :angry:

Bottom line: again, in my opinion and ONLY my opinion, Amfood is better than fast food, comparable (but not quite equal to) a Denny's or something of that nature. And is more expensive tnan what I'd pay for a comparable meal in a restaurant. As long as it's edible, I'm good! :lol: