I have 5 nights coming up in July (CS, EB and CZ) and I'm trying to plan ahead and work out what I can eat and what I should bring. "Gluten free' means I can't eat anything with wheat, barley or rye... not even a crumb. I have celiac - it's an autoimmune disease.
I know that Amtrak don't specifically offer gluten free options, so I have to do my best with the options available. I do always bring my own food but I'm a sleeper passenger so the meals are included and I like eating in the dining car. The last few years since I had to go gluten free have spoiled that aspect of my amtrak travels. Besides, I miss having proper meals, snacks for two days straight is pretty depressing.
I did ok on my last trip, but I got sick a few times and ended up supplmenting the snacks I had with hagen daaz icecream since it was the only thing I knew was safe. I didn't feel like I could sit in the dining car and only order dessert but when I said so on one trip my car attendant kindly picked up my icecream for me and I ate in my room. However, another time when I declined a reservation for dinner, the LSA told me off for not calling up customer service an ordering a gluten free meal in advance, she insisted that they could've provided one for me. She's obviously never seen the website which clearly states that they can't. Sigh. It's bad enough not being able to eat, I didn't need an argument about it too!
The breakfast menu says fresh eggs cooked to order, that wouldn't include hard boiled eggs would it? I'm loathe to try an omelette again, I think they eggs were being mixed in the same bowl as the french toast, which sounds perfectly reasonable except dipping the bread in the egg would be enough to contaminate my omelette. The continental breakfast option says it includes an "Activia" yoghurt, but there seems to be a few brands with that name. Does anyone remember which one it is? How is the fruit served - is it whole pieces or bulk prepared fruit salad? Or little snack packs of fruit salad?
I noticed the steak is now served with a sauce and that's likely to be a no-go. Could I order a steak with no sauce? The menu indicated that there are alternative sauces so presumably, they aren't cooked with the sauce. Steak and a jacket potato seems to be my best bet, that seemed to be ok last time.
Is the half chicken served on the LD trains the same as the one served on the Cardinal? I think I was ok with that too.
If you're reading this and thinking, sheesh, just suck it up and eat it - believe me, I would if I could. I had no complaints about Amtrak meals. But unfortunately, it makes me very sick
I know that Amtrak don't specifically offer gluten free options, so I have to do my best with the options available. I do always bring my own food but I'm a sleeper passenger so the meals are included and I like eating in the dining car. The last few years since I had to go gluten free have spoiled that aspect of my amtrak travels. Besides, I miss having proper meals, snacks for two days straight is pretty depressing.
I did ok on my last trip, but I got sick a few times and ended up supplmenting the snacks I had with hagen daaz icecream since it was the only thing I knew was safe. I didn't feel like I could sit in the dining car and only order dessert but when I said so on one trip my car attendant kindly picked up my icecream for me and I ate in my room. However, another time when I declined a reservation for dinner, the LSA told me off for not calling up customer service an ordering a gluten free meal in advance, she insisted that they could've provided one for me. She's obviously never seen the website which clearly states that they can't. Sigh. It's bad enough not being able to eat, I didn't need an argument about it too!
The breakfast menu says fresh eggs cooked to order, that wouldn't include hard boiled eggs would it? I'm loathe to try an omelette again, I think they eggs were being mixed in the same bowl as the french toast, which sounds perfectly reasonable except dipping the bread in the egg would be enough to contaminate my omelette. The continental breakfast option says it includes an "Activia" yoghurt, but there seems to be a few brands with that name. Does anyone remember which one it is? How is the fruit served - is it whole pieces or bulk prepared fruit salad? Or little snack packs of fruit salad?
I noticed the steak is now served with a sauce and that's likely to be a no-go. Could I order a steak with no sauce? The menu indicated that there are alternative sauces so presumably, they aren't cooked with the sauce. Steak and a jacket potato seems to be my best bet, that seemed to be ok last time.
Is the half chicken served on the LD trains the same as the one served on the Cardinal? I think I was ok with that too.
If you're reading this and thinking, sheesh, just suck it up and eat it - believe me, I would if I could. I had no complaints about Amtrak meals. But unfortunately, it makes me very sick