Dressing For Dinner

Shop deals on ebay
shop deals on amazon
Advertise with us
Amtrak Unlimited Discussion Forum

Help Support Amtrak Unlimited Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Status
Not open for further replies.
Two things.If you were to look at old advertisng brochures, early Amtrak or, for sure, pre Amtrak, you would find the models all dressed in suits, not just in the dining car but throughout the train.

Also GG1 mentioned the dinner train, with people dressed all ways. We usd to have a dinner train in Atlanta, late 80's I think.On it almost everybody dressed up. But of course they dressed up before they left their homes and I am sure their homes did not rock and roll like the train. :p :)
 
Bill Haithcoat said:
Two things.If you were to look at old advertisng brochures, early Amtrak or, for sure, pre Amtrak, you would find the models all dressed in suits, not just in the dining car but throughout the train.
Click to expand...
Look at some older PanAm or TWA advertising. Everyone boarding their planes were wearing either suits or gowns. Even kids were all dressed in their Sunday best.

Travel ain't what it use to be.
 
Tony said:
Bill Haithcoat said:
Two things.If you were to look at old advertisng brochures, early Amtrak or, for sure, pre Amtrak, you would find the models all dressed in suits, not just in the dining car but throughout the train.
Click to expand...
Look at some older PanAm or TWA advertising. Everyone boarding their planes were wearing either suits or gowns. Even kids were all dressed in their Sunday best.

Travel ain't what it use to be.
Click to expand...
Good point there... I can recall flying as a child in the '80s and my parents insisting that I wear Church Clothes for the flight. That all seemed to end with deregulation and the rise of the no frills budget airlines (IE Southwest and the original Midway airlines) In my opinion, that was the beginning of the end for "luxury" air travel, although there are a few holdouts that still offer great service, such as Midwest Airlines.
 
chertling said:
Tony said:
Bill Haithcoat said:
Two things.If you were to look at old advertisng brochures, early Amtrak or, for sure, pre Amtrak, you would find the models all dressed in suits, not just in the dining car but throughout the train.
Click to expand...
Look at some older PanAm or TWA advertising. Everyone boarding their planes were wearing either suits or gowns. Even kids were all dressed in their Sunday best.

Travel ain't what it use to be.
Click to expand...
Good point there... I can recall flying as a child in the '80s and my parents insisting that I wear Church Clothes for the flight. That all seemed to end with deregulation and the rise of the no frills budget airlines (IE Southwest and the original Midway airlines) In my opinion, that was the beginning of the end for "luxury" air travel, although there are a few holdouts that still offer great service, such as Midwest Airlines.
Click to expand...
Could be that these types of travel were for the more wealthy, especially train and plane travel. I still think travel is a very special thing and not something one does every day. And especially with rail travel, you are meeting new people. It's more of a social travel and in those situations I would want to look my best (not church clothes or tie necessarily). I love the (nostalgic) conversation this has stirred!
 
Andy said:
Way back it seemed people took travel more seriously and dressed up to travel.
Click to expand...
I travel seriously. Seriously with my scanner, Canon XSi, camcorder, and timetable. ;)

Oh, and I almost forgot, my netbook and accessories for all my other gadgets above.

I barley have room left for even my casual clothing. :p

(FWIW - Hardcore railfan)
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Shorts, tee shirt, and my Amtrak cap are the norm for meals in the diner for me.
 
ns4eva said:
Andy said:
Way back it seemed people took travel more seriously and dressed up to travel.
Click to expand...
I travel seriously. Seriously with my scanner, Canon XSi, camcorder, and timetable. ;)

Oh, and I almost forgot, my netbook and accessories for all my other gadgets above.

I barley have room left for even my casual clothing. :p

(FWIW - Hardcore railfan)
Click to expand...
I substituted a Sony digital camera (that also takes videos) and my iPhone for the Canon and camcorder. (Don't what to take too much! :lol: )

(FWIW - AU resident hardcore travel idiot :p I deserve a title - I strived long and hard to reach idiot-dom :D !)
 
For my trip to the US i had first the Idea to do 30 days of rail travel and 15 days of transatlantic crossing (avoiding every travel by car and plane!)

Then I realised that I would have to carry a tuxedo AND hiking boots (for Glacier NP) with me.

This was the point when I decided to make it 45 days of train travel instead, so pardon me if i show up at dinner in a T-Shirt.
 
Sam31452 said:
For my trip to the US i had first the Idea to do 30 days of rail travel and 15 days of transatlantic crossing (avoiding every travel by car and plane!)Then I realised that I would have to carry a tuxedo AND hiking boots (for Glacier NP) with me.

This was the point when I decided to make it 45 days of train travel instead, so pardon me if i show up at dinner in a T-Shirt.
Click to expand...
Get one of these.

a55101b3c7347de19a1a369c3b2401df.jpg
 
Guest said:
ALC_Rail_Writer said:
And the AT last time I checked.
Click to expand...
Steven B said:
The menu is unique, and isn't posted anywhere online. Food is served on plastic or styrofoam plates. The last time I was on the Auto Train, the drink options were iced tea, water, or wine -- no soft drinks. Coach has its own dining and lounge cars that are not shared with sleeper passengers.
Click to expand...
:unsure:
Click to expand...
I rode the AT in January. Sleeper dining car menu:

Surf and Turf

Seasoned 6oz. Strip Steak grilled to your preference, topped w/ demi-glace accompanied by three large shrimps. Served with baked potato and vegetable.

Wild Salmon w/ Crabmeat Sauce

Seasoned two 4oz. Wild Salmon, over poached, topped with King Crab Sauce. Served with rice and vegetable.

Roast Chicken

Seasoned rotisserie-style half chicken. Served with rice and vegetable.

Vegetarian Chili Stuffed Potato

Baked Potato Stuffed With Southwest style Chili, topped with cheddar cheese. Served with vegetable.

Choo Choo Chewies

(For our guests under 12)

Baked breaded chicken tenderloins. Served w/ Macaroni & Cheese and vegetable.

Penne Pasta & Meatballs (For our guests under 12)

Pasta and meatballs with Bolognese sauce.

Desserts

Specialty Dessert

Sugar Free Jell-O

New York Style Cheesecake

Vanilla Ice Cream

Choice of Chocolate or Fruit Topping

Drinks were soft drinks, wine, milk, water, tea... pretty much whatever you wanted. As it has always been in my experiences on the AT. Served on real china, a real tablecloth, and real glasses for the wine. I've never been into the coach diner at meal time, so I'm not sure what it's like. The coach menu didn't look as good.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I don't think folks need to dress up for meals on the train. I've seen folks wearing everything from sweats and tired looking t-shirts to really nice looking dress clothes. Granted, I would not want to deal with someone who has offensive B.O. or wears offensive looking clothes. I think folks need to be mindful of how they act and present themselves.
 
deimos said:
I don't think folks need to dress up for meals on the train. I've seen folks wearing everything from sweats and tired looking t-shirts to really nice looking dress clothes. Granted, I would not want to deal with someone who has offensive B.O. or wears offensive looking clothes. I think folks need to be mindful of how they act and present themselves.
Click to expand...
I guess I am old fashioned. Business casual to fly in. Business casual in the diner...at least for dinner. I won't even wear a t-shirt to Beverly Hills or Disney.
 
All good answers!

I want to make an observation to the folks who carry all that hi-tech stuff. I mean, I have a cell phone with me - but as far as all kinds of cameras, GPS's, scanners - do you ever have time to look out the window???

I was sitting next to a guy on the Meteor a couple of weeks ago,m he had a gps and was staring at it for a long time. Being nosy, I peeked over his shoulder and saw a small map of a train track, and then there was a body of water and a bridge. I looked out the window and saw the river we were going over - DUHHHH.

Paul Theroux (great travel writer and train traveler) makes the point that early on he started leaving his camera at home when he went off, and only then did he begin to actually SEE stuff. I've been an avid photographer for years and feel much the same way when I am going someplace new.

So yeah I'll keep a clean shirt to wear in the dining car and leave the equipment at home.

David
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I have a collection of about 100 Life Magazines from the 1940's that show travel in that era. People did typically dress up more. Men wore suits and women wore hats, and not just when traveling.

They also have full page passenger rail ads in every issue.

Cigarette ads too, back when smoking was considered health and good for the throat.

My intention was to sell them for a charity I was working on. People really enjoyed looking at them but not many wanted to pay $5 for their own copy.
 
radsboy said:
I want to make an observation to the folks who carry all that hi-tech stuff. I mean, I have a cell phone with me - but as far as all kinds of cameras, GPS's, scanners - do you ever have time to look out the window???
I was sitting next to a guy on the Meteor a couple of weeks ago,m he had a gps and was staring at it for a long time. Being nosy, I peeked over his shoulder and saw a small map of a train track, and then there was a body of water and a bridge. I looked out the window and saw the river we were going over - DUHHHH.
Click to expand...
I can't speak for everyone else, but myself personally - here's my story:

On my trip last month, for the first time, I had a netbook with an installed GPS. At the beginning of the trip (such as just after boarding in CHI while the train was still at the platform at CUS) I set it up in my roomette. Once it was set up, it remained on and set up on the table in my room. Then I proceeded to look out the window at the passing scenery.

Every so often, I took a quick glance at the netbook/GPS. If I saw in the route guide that "... just after _____, you will see _____" or "... as you approach Lake _____ ..." or "... on the right you can see _____ on Mount ____" or "... in the town of ____" - the GPS will tell me that the train is getting near _____! I can then have a camera handy, if it is photo worthy! If I didn't have it, like many times before, I'm sure I would have missed it. (And no, I don't keep my eye on the screen for 48 hours straight! :rolleyes: )

Without the GPS, I wouldn't know that the river that the CL followed for a long time was Wills Creek or the name of a small town I went through. Also, because I kept it running all night, if I woke up in the middle of the night I could tell where we were. Also, even now that it is 2 weeks past my return, I can relieve my trip, and discover that the SWC was going 90 MPH through Kansas and never higher than 79 MPH through Arizona!

That's my story and I'm sticking to it! <_<
 
rogers55 said:
I have a collection of about 100 Life Magazines from the 1940's that show travel in that era. People did typically dress up more. Men wore suits and women wore hats, and not just when traveling.They also have full page passenger rail ads in every issue.

Cigarette ads too, back when smoking was considered health and good for the throat.

My intention was to sell them for a charity I was working on. People really enjoyed looking at them but not many wanted to pay $5 for their own copy.
Click to expand...

Rogers55 Without spending hours and hours of tedious research, could you just spot check 3 or 4 magazines at random and let us know which of the railroads was advertising? Thanks.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Andy said:
I still think travel is a very special thing and not something one does every day.
Click to expand...
I prefer to think of travel as a very special thing that is something one does every day! :lol:
 
I've found the GPS receiver to be really helpful, entertaining and interesting. I'm one of those individuals who will set up their laptop and GPS receiver to monitor the train's progress (mainly on LD trips), but I try to do this discretely and in a manner that doesn't cause folks to wonder what I'm doing. That is, I try not to have wires and cables running everywhere or in anyway shape or form that would interfere with another passenger. I've had a few folks ask what I was doing and I am all too happy to show them the map and train's progress. Its a good conversation piece:)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Latest posts

Back
Top