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So, has anyone actually eaten (or, attempted to eat) one of these new menu choices?
New flex meal menu (10/06/21)
- Thread starter AmtrakBlue
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There are reports on other sites about experiencing this new menu on the Lake Shore. Mention of the crew delivering food to seated riders vs. standing in line to pick up your own food. Says the food is still microwaved and not cooked to order but Short Ribs were "tender and delicious", French Toast was "hot and tasty" and the Bacon was "awesome".
I hope not necessarily but I find it hard to believe given the plodding operation that is Amtrak that they would put this much effort into refreshing flex dining only to switch to modified traditional within a very few months. But, of course, none of us know what their timeline is, given Amtrak's lack of transparency.
How much effort was put into this switch? Call vendor and ask to swap out some things? Print new menus (yes, they're just on paper right now)? That doesn't sound like much effort.
As to timeline to change to a more traditional meal, assuming they need more staff to support it, maybe they're not getting qualified people applying for those positions. And the ones they do get need to be trained.
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Ziv
Conductor
There is a place called the Italian Store near me that is so popular they pre-make dozens and dozens of Italian Cold Cut sandwiches between 11 am and noon so that if you choose to you can grab a pre-made sandwich without waiting. ( I know this practice is pretty widespread but the Italian Store is the place near me that does it best) These sandwiches are delicious and really well made. Pre-made doesn't have to be a death sentence for good food. If Amtrak chose to staff up a bit, the cook could pre-make sandwiches for lunch that would be served quickly without sacrificing quality.
Sadly, I don't think most east coast Amtrak trains have enough staff to even pre-make a decent sandwich.
Sadly, I don't think most east coast Amtrak trains have enough staff to even pre-make a decent sandwich.
But still possible,
tender and delicious,hot and tasty and awesome are not adjectives normally used to describe flex food,but if this is the case I may actually look forward to meals when I'm on the CONO and Crescent next month.
Ryan
Court Jester
I still wanna know where these mysterious "cooks" are. Trains with the flex meals don't have
There's an implied measure of causation that's missing here. Changing the menu isn't going to delay the re-introduction of "traditional" dining. Perhaps it signals that it's "not soon". Or perhaps these menus will be relatively short lived.
Quite frankly on our 2020 trip to Glacier (Whitefish) we were served that flex food and it was sickening. We haven't been on Amtrak since. We refuse to pay big bucks to travel and be served horrible tasting food.
A few years back, in the Cardinal diner-lite they didn't have the full traditional dining service as on the other CHI trains. The food was pre-prepared, convection oven warmed and served but acceptable for an overnight trip. If the chef/server knew what he was doing even the breakfast omelets were moist and tasty but this flex stuff that is now masquerading as food is enough to keep us away. For the past 18 years we've spent several thousand dollars a year on Amtrak trips but we just couldn't stomach that fodder for 2021. We are not fond of flying but we can put up with first class air. Its far less expensive, you get movies/TV and on longer trips the food is better. Next year its a road trip.
If that's the way the game needs to be played so be it.
A few years back, in the Cardinal diner-lite they didn't have the full traditional dining service as on the other CHI trains. The food was pre-prepared, convection oven warmed and served but acceptable for an overnight trip. If the chef/server knew what he was doing even the breakfast omelets were moist and tasty but this flex stuff that is now masquerading as food is enough to keep us away. For the past 18 years we've spent several thousand dollars a year on Amtrak trips but we just couldn't stomach that fodder for 2021. We are not fond of flying but we can put up with first class air. Its far less expensive, you get movies/TV and on longer trips the food is better. Next year its a road trip.
If that's the way the game needs to be played so be it.
I was looking at the breakfast served to my students at a school in the south side of Chicago in Englewood. The students got a stick of cheese, a container of cereal and a breakfast bar and a container of milk. So kindergarten students are essentially eating the same types of food that were served to first class passengers for flex dining before the French toast and omelettes were added.
20th Century Rider
Engineer
So here's the deal with the 'refreshed' flex menu... after just stepping off the TE at Springfield Ill... traveling since LAX.
First though, the highlight of the entire trip was to meet Jim Hudson [Bob Dylan] in Austin... what a cool train guy... and ump, and AU supporter! Also took a few pics of Jim's hometown Alpine TX. My first time to actually meet another AU'er. And thank you Jim for tracking the train with all those tips and info. Do c'mon up to my place on the Oregon Coast when you find time... I have a guest cottage. Meanwhile I'll try to get the the 2022 AU gathering.
Now for the 'changed' flex menu. This is what changed...
The contents of the heated dishes has a good taste, with higher quality ingredients. The Salmon with jasmine rice, mushrooms and other oriental veggies tasted authentic... and the piece of salmon was top quality.
The hot breakfast dish was also tasty and higher quality. I also tried the chicken and the beef... an upgrade from before.
IMHO that brings FLEX dining from an 'F' to a 'D-' Below... the breakfast omelet and the chicken dish...
Keeping with the shortlist of positives... the food tasted better than it looked... even better with a little tabasco! To sum up the positives... was as good as a small hot casserole dish on a business class flight. I believe the beef and the salmon are also served on Acela 1st... but on a ceramic dish. Airlines also serve their business class customers with a starter course, substantial salad, and a premium dessert.
Now to evaluate the salad... I don't consider this to be a 'course' as the amount is barely enough for a bite. The little plastic cup fits into the palm of one's hand. There is a small speck of red cabbage and one or two small cherry tomatoes. It's an insult. 'Try not to eat the salad bite and think of the cost of your ticket at the same time!'
I am also disregarding the desserts... the brownies, because while they are good the first, second, and third time... that's all you get between San Antonio and Chicago! [With more brownies if you're moving on to the East Coast.]
Technical notes: the plastic dishes are heated in a convection oven with aluminum lids kept in place so the food comes to the traveler without possibility of covid contamination... and it does arrive hot. There is only one cafe attendant for the entire TE train who must heat up all the meals for sleepers and tend the cafe for coach customers. Apparently management is running the staff into the ground.
Biggest issue with flex concept is small [as in small] - I repeat... small small portions. Actually there is just one small hot item for the meal... plus the roll, salad bite, and brownie if you aren't sick of eating them.
As I sat in the cafe car there was a chorus of discontent amongst the sleeper car passengers... poor service and not enough to eat. Repeat... not enough to eat. Yet the TE has some of the highest bucket fares on the entire Amtrak system.
So that is why... IMHO... the flex meal program has been upgraded from an 'F' to a D minus.
More comments coming regarding the many problems being incurred with the full service dining program. Stay posted.
First though, the highlight of the entire trip was to meet Jim Hudson [Bob Dylan] in Austin... what a cool train guy... and ump, and AU supporter! Also took a few pics of Jim's hometown Alpine TX. My first time to actually meet another AU'er. And thank you Jim for tracking the train with all those tips and info. Do c'mon up to my place on the Oregon Coast when you find time... I have a guest cottage. Meanwhile I'll try to get the the 2022 AU gathering.
Now for the 'changed' flex menu. This is what changed...
The contents of the heated dishes has a good taste, with higher quality ingredients. The Salmon with jasmine rice, mushrooms and other oriental veggies tasted authentic... and the piece of salmon was top quality.
The hot breakfast dish was also tasty and higher quality. I also tried the chicken and the beef... an upgrade from before.
IMHO that brings FLEX dining from an 'F' to a 'D-' Below... the breakfast omelet and the chicken dish...
Keeping with the shortlist of positives... the food tasted better than it looked... even better with a little tabasco! To sum up the positives... was as good as a small hot casserole dish on a business class flight. I believe the beef and the salmon are also served on Acela 1st... but on a ceramic dish. Airlines also serve their business class customers with a starter course, substantial salad, and a premium dessert.
Now to evaluate the salad... I don't consider this to be a 'course' as the amount is barely enough for a bite. The little plastic cup fits into the palm of one's hand. There is a small speck of red cabbage and one or two small cherry tomatoes. It's an insult. 'Try not to eat the salad bite and think of the cost of your ticket at the same time!'
I am also disregarding the desserts... the brownies, because while they are good the first, second, and third time... that's all you get between San Antonio and Chicago! [With more brownies if you're moving on to the East Coast.]
Technical notes: the plastic dishes are heated in a convection oven with aluminum lids kept in place so the food comes to the traveler without possibility of covid contamination... and it does arrive hot. There is only one cafe attendant for the entire TE train who must heat up all the meals for sleepers and tend the cafe for coach customers. Apparently management is running the staff into the ground.
Biggest issue with flex concept is small [as in small] - I repeat... small small portions. Actually there is just one small hot item for the meal... plus the roll, salad bite, and brownie if you aren't sick of eating them.
As I sat in the cafe car there was a chorus of discontent amongst the sleeper car passengers... poor service and not enough to eat. Repeat... not enough to eat. Yet the TE has some of the highest bucket fares on the entire Amtrak system.
So that is why... IMHO... the flex meal program has been upgraded from an 'F' to a D minus.
More comments coming regarding the many problems being incurred with the full service dining program. Stay posted.
Thanks for your feedback. Good to know it's better.
On a different note, I have also met Jim on the TE. Total coincidence we had booked on the same train.
20th Century Rider
Engineer
Rambling Robert
Lead Service Attendant
20th Century; That was a great report (above) about the “temp flex” (haha) on the TE.
in December 2017 on the TE I was travelling in Coach but had traditional dining for the first time. Pasta, white sauce and plenty of veggies. $13. Filling. B+
The TE LA to Chi is Amtrak’s longest route. Two days! Not a few hour hour flight! I think former Amtrak CEO Anderson’s airline thinking is still onboard! A palm of the hand sized salad isn’t gonna cut it for train travelers - especially for those spending big bucks for their trip.
in December 2017 on the TE I was travelling in Coach but had traditional dining for the first time. Pasta, white sauce and plenty of veggies. $13. Filling. B+
The TE LA to Chi is Amtrak’s longest route. Two days! Not a few hour hour flight! I think former Amtrak CEO Anderson’s airline thinking is still onboard! A palm of the hand sized salad isn’t gonna cut it for train travelers - especially for those spending big bucks for their trip.
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So, your point? The kids get cheated out of nutritious breakfasts so it's okay to cheat train riders? At least the cheese, possibly the cereal and definitely the milk are nutritious. The breakfast bar is probably full of sugar and often the cereal is also as bad.
The schools get money and food to provide nutritious breakfasts and should be offering that on most days. If they are not, it is up to the parents and teachers to make that known to the same people Amtrak customers complain to - upper level management and congress critters and to make a stink on forums, social media, emails, blogs, etc. Are they? Also remember that the reason the schools are tagged with this requirement is that the parents or guardians are either too poor or just want to dump their kids off on the school to avoid responsibility. In the old school days of "traditional dining", the parents provided breakfasts, boxed lunches and cooked dinners for their children. Hopefully, with better paying low end jobs and with the (temporary?) child care credit, they will go back to that "traditional dining" or be able to afford the time to attend PTA and school board meetings to ask where the government money for nutritious meals is going.
I intend to go to the 2022 gathering.
20th Century Rider
Engineer
20th Century Rider
Engineer
The belt tightening has effected staff morale who need to contend with unhappy passengers paying premium prices for diminished services... while at the same time confronted with a bigger work load due to staff shortages.
Rambling Robert
Lead Service Attendant
It’s also the sign of the times that hiring is difficult. The June 2021westbound LSL was sold out for weeks yet only one person working the hybrid cafe for Coach and Flex dining - needless to say the line was well into the next Coach.
Running fully booked is good for Amtrak unless they can’t staff it properly.
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Right on! Do you see the executives riding the LD trains to show they are willing to "help out"? Even politicians have the brains to show up at a disaster, tour the place to "show the flag" and thank the workers then help out for a few hours. It may be just to look good but the Amtrak execs aren't interested in their staff, their customers or anyone. They sit happily in their offices and inadvertently admit their incompetence while others justify it.
fdaley
OBS Chief
I was able to sample the revised flex menu when we took the accessible bedroom on the Lake Shore from Albany to Boston last week. As often seems to happen when we take that trip, the train arrived into the Rensselaer station more than four hours late and finally headed east after 8 p.m., arriving in Boston just after 1 a.m. (due 8 p.m.). So I am not sure to what extent the meal service might have differed from normal because of the train's tardiness.
Bedroom A was empty for the duration of the trip, but Bedroom B and most of the roomettes were occupied. It appeared everyone was served in their rooms. The sleeper attendant took our orders about 8:45 and delivered our meals about 9 p.m. as we were approaching Pittsfield. There was no printed menu; the SCA just recited the options. The chicken/pasta entree was not available. I had the salmon, and my wife had the enchiladas, which she said were OK.
I agree with 20th Century Rider that the salmon entree seemed of better quality than some of the earlier flex offerings. It certainly seemed less salty than the previous shrimp-and-sausage meal. Although the entrees are still presented in their plastic microwave tubs, the appearance was less off-putting than that of the much-photographed beef and polenta.
The side salads were larger than they'd been in my last experience with flex dinners (Dec. 2019). But given that the salads consisted almost entirely of iceberg lettuce with a couple of cherry tomatoes, the added quantity didn't seem much of a reward. On the plus side, the dinner rolls were warm, and the toffee blondie seems really quite good for a packaged dessert. The half-bottle of cabernet -- the label was Line 39, not Barefoot -- likely improved my attitude, and overall we were happy to have the meal after several hours of sitting around at Rensselaer waiting for the train.
Juggling the entrees, rolls, salads and drinks on a little Viewliner sleeper table is a bit of a feat, and a couple of times I feared we were headed for a disastrous spill. So I wouldn't want to repeat the flex-meal experience through several meal periods on a long-distance train, but it was a lot better than nothing -- and better than the prior offerings (a low bar) -- for a single meal on a trip of a few hours.
Bedroom A was empty for the duration of the trip, but Bedroom B and most of the roomettes were occupied. It appeared everyone was served in their rooms. The sleeper attendant took our orders about 8:45 and delivered our meals about 9 p.m. as we were approaching Pittsfield. There was no printed menu; the SCA just recited the options. The chicken/pasta entree was not available. I had the salmon, and my wife had the enchiladas, which she said were OK.
I agree with 20th Century Rider that the salmon entree seemed of better quality than some of the earlier flex offerings. It certainly seemed less salty than the previous shrimp-and-sausage meal. Although the entrees are still presented in their plastic microwave tubs, the appearance was less off-putting than that of the much-photographed beef and polenta.
The side salads were larger than they'd been in my last experience with flex dinners (Dec. 2019). But given that the salads consisted almost entirely of iceberg lettuce with a couple of cherry tomatoes, the added quantity didn't seem much of a reward. On the plus side, the dinner rolls were warm, and the toffee blondie seems really quite good for a packaged dessert. The half-bottle of cabernet -- the label was Line 39, not Barefoot -- likely improved my attitude, and overall we were happy to have the meal after several hours of sitting around at Rensselaer waiting for the train.
Juggling the entrees, rolls, salads and drinks on a little Viewliner sleeper table is a bit of a feat, and a couple of times I feared we were headed for a disastrous spill. So I wouldn't want to repeat the flex-meal experience through several meal periods on a long-distance train, but it was a lot better than nothing -- and better than the prior offerings (a low bar) -- for a single meal on a trip of a few hours.
20th Century Rider
Engineer
Well written account... and I agree with everything you said. Flex meals remain generally poor and inadequate. I've been talking around during my present itinerary and all are pretty much disenchanted with the flex idea... not enough to eat with a tapas sized dish... the deserts are too repetitious and the salad is a joke. On the route between ALB and BOS they used to have a large delicious chef salad choice... or sandwiches... all prepackaged. Hoping the 'flex folly' will eventually be replaced with more traditional full meal items.
Am presently in ALB at the Fairfield... taking Empire Service to NYC where I'll board the Crescent... important bucket list goal... for NOL. Have been pleased with the kosher option choices as it is more of an actual full meal... better than flex but not as good as full service dining.
Well when you get to NOL eat, eat, eat to make up for having those meals on the Crescent lol
20th Century Rider
Engineer
I’m hungry already for some good creole cooking
