Will full service dining ever return to the Western trains?

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I lived on a lot of TV dinners in grad school in the 1970s and they were far superior to what we were served on 48 for breakfast and lunch in May 2019.
Oh, come on now. The 1970s Swanson salisbury steak and turkey tv dinners with powdered mashed potatoes were definitely not "far superior" to what is served on Amtrak today. Mind you, neither are good - but the 1970s tv dinners were downright awful.

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Oh, come on now. The 1970s Swanson salisbury steak and turkey tv dinners with powdered mashed potatoes were definitely not "far superior" to what is served on Amtrak today. Mind you, neither are good - but the 1970s tv dinners were downright awful.

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I will take that Salisbury Steak Dinner over the May 2019 Lake Shore fare any time. I must have had that dinner once a week years ago and I suspect it had less salt than the present Amtrak meals.
 
I will take that Salisbury Steak Dinner over the May 2019 Lake Shore fare any time. I must have had that dinner once a week years ago and I suspect it had less salt than the present Amtrak meals.
Nostalgia can be a strong thing. Those old tv dinners were absolutely loaded with sodium. And I'm surprised that you would prefer chopped meat and powdered mashed potatoes over real cuts of beef and real potatoes. You are certainly in the minority. Although if memory serves me correctly, the chicken I had in the chicken alfredo dish (now gone from Amtrak's menu) was made of compressed chicken.

I'm not saying that Amtrak's meals are good - they aren't. I'm just being honest about what those 1970s tv dinners were.

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Nostalgia can be a strong thing. Those old tv dinners were absolutely loaded with sodium. And I'm surprised that you would prefer chopped meat and powdered mashed potatoes over real cuts of beef and real potatoes. You are certainly in the minority. Although if memory serves me correctly, the chicken I had in the chicken alfredo dish (now gone from Amtrak's menu) was made of compressed chicken.

I'm not saying that Amtrak's meals are good - they aren't. I'm just being honest about what those 1970s tv dinners were.

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I realize that we all have different tastes. I probably had at least 40 or 50 of each of these TV dinners over a period of several years. Since I was a repeat customer many times over, I obviously considered them quite satisfactory in terms of taste, price, time and convenience, nostalgia aside. I would usually make a decent size salad (about 4 times the size of the present Amtrak salad) to accompany the meal as I dined alone in my apartment nostalgically living the ascetic life.
 
I also am one who has consumed many of those Swanson Frozen Dinners over the years. Certainly not haute cuisine, but they served their purpose and were usually tasty. I still buy one or two and keep them in my freezer for those meal times when I need to fix something quickly and/or I don't want to cook something for myself.

Being served such a meal in a "restaurant", be it stationary or "on wheels", is unacceptable and really a type of insult to the patron.
 
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After reading the article I'm still not sure if you're an expert on nutrition or just unfamiliar with the role of hyperbole in casual speech. 🤔
Forgetting the nutritional side, sometimes FRESH iceberg lettuce adds just the right crunch to a hamburger, Even in a salad it's just the right touch. At which time I'll have to find my nutrition elsewhere.
 
...Swanson Frozen Dinners over the years. Certainly not haute cuisine, but they served their purpose...

This hits the nail on the head -- not that the 1950's TV dinners were good or bad, but that they served their purpose for those consumers who bought them. And they were voluntary, a supermarket choice among other available options.

The question about Amtrak flex-dining is, does it serve its purpose? Generally speaking, does it do the job of offering Amtrak's best (highest-paying) customers dining options consistent with their expectations, likes and dislikes, health concerns, and desire for choice and variety, to the extent possible on a moving train?

I think the answer is pretty obvious (for most).
 
With the dining options available in the "dining car" (whatever they call the car now reserved for sleeper passengers) I'm glad they no longer offer it to those in coach. I would not be happy to pay the price they would charge those in coach to eat in the diner - it would be worse than the overcharging that is now done in the café car that coach passengers can buy from.
 
Forgetting the nutritional side, sometimes FRESH iceberg lettuce adds just the right crunch to a hamburger, Even in a salad it's just the right touch. At which time I'll have to find my nutrition elsewhere.
A fresh layer of iceberg can form a convenient separator between the meat and condiments of a burger. It can also work as a wrap for Asian style chicken appetizers or paired with blue cheese and bacon in the form of a wedge. Where it really falls apart for me is when it's used as cheap filler in an entree salad. Where I live restaurants expect us to spend $10-15 on a salad representing maybe fifty cents worth of iceberg filler plus a buck or two worth of toppings and dressing. Back in the era of refer cars iceberg was probably the best they could manage but these days I'm surprised it continues to maintain a stranglehold.
 
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This hits the nail on the head -- not that the 1950's TV dinners were good or bad, but that they served their purpose for those consumers who bought them. And they were voluntary, a supermarket choice among other available options.

The question about Amtrak flex-dining is, does it serve its purpose? Generally speaking, does it do the job of offering Amtrak's best (highest-paying) customers dining options consistent with their expectations, likes and dislikes, health concerns, and desire for choice and variety, to the extent possible on a moving train?

I think the answer is pretty obvious (for most).
That makes a lot of sense. They served their purpose well, at least for the era. And, no, they don’t serve their purpose on Amtrak well. I know I’m beating a dead horse, but it would be very easy for Amtrak to have premade meals that are at much higher quality.

And as far as the iceberg lettuce is concerned, one thing I miss from my days growing up in Connecticut is shaved iceberg lettuce on a submarine sandwich. The lettuce was usually shaved in a deli meat slicer. It added a perfect crunch.
 
That makes a lot of sense. They served their purpose well, at least for the era. And, no, they don’t serve their purpose on Amtrak well. I know I’m beating a dead horse, but it would be very easy for Amtrak to have premade meals that are at much higher quality.

And as far as the iceberg lettuce is concerned, one thing I miss from my days growing up in Connecticut is shaved iceberg lettuce on a submarine sandwich. The lettuce was usually shaved in a deli meat slicer. It added a perfect crunch.
Trust me, the 50s TV Dinners ( mostly Swanson)were terrible, just like the swill being slung in Amtrak "Sleeper Lounges " right now!
 
OK, that appears to be written by qualified authors, and though I've never heard of those Australian universities, they seem to be well respected and unbiased.

But the risks cited are to the safety of human test subjects, and the possibility of reduced public acceptance due to the accelerated process. I didn't see any concerns expressed about the safety of the vaccine to the public after completion of the human trials.

I trust Dr. Anthony Fauci implicitly. I've seen him praised by numerous other doctors, and he was addressed with great respect by other prominent doctors in a televised forum. Dr. Fauci says no vaccine will be approved in the U.S. unless it is safe (unlike Russia.)

Fauci is not the only expert in the world. Not everyone agrees with his pronouncements. There is always risk with vaccines but the risk is going to be greater when the vaccine has not been tested over a period of time. There is tremendous pressure to restart the world economy. That is why they are skipping over normal protocols. By the way, Fauci says that a vacccin e may only be 50% effective and various vaccines may be needed for different strains. He also said that it will take some time to get a significant number vaccinted. And a few months ago he said NOT to wear masks. He is not God. I put implicit faith only in the real God.
 
What airline are you flying first class thats serving food? Ive been on two major airlines first class and no food.

Swiss Air is very good. I had some delicious meals on Saudi Arabian Airlines also, in coach class. Even AA in first was good. The presentation was done well. Delta first class was fabulous a few years ago. The cabin attendant couldn't have been more enthusiastic. He really liked his job. Food was very good and they served several very good wines. Amtrak, by comparison, treats first class paeengers like Greyhound passengers or worse.
 
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