Any Other Routes With EB Style Fried Chicken Dinner Box?

On the Empire Builder last week, our train was catered with the fried chicken dinner at Havre Montana. My family, decided to buy two for pictures, and tasting and have have dinner at the dinner later, around 7:45PM. The Cafe attendant, Miss Molly made the announcement that the the Havre Montana chicken dinner boxes were back for the summer and available for $12.50. I went down to the cafe and returned back to our Portland sleeper with 2 boxes. Even though it was cold, it was VERY GOOD! Any other routes have such food options similar to the chicken dinner boxes?

(I asked Miss Molly if the rumors that the chicken dinner's were catered by Montana State Prison were true, to which she replied absolutely NOT. They are catered by a local restaurant in Havre.)

DSC01137 by Brian H, on Flickr

DSC01139 by Brian H, on Flickr

DSC01142 by Brian H, on Flickr

When I rode the Empire Builder and the announcement the Big Sky Picnic Dinners were available and what they consisted of was made, you could hear the Roomette doors sliding open in unison in our car. Stephanie our SCA quickly got on the car intercom and announced those are intended for Coach pax and our meals in the Diner were included; I believe a few folks still invested anyways.

Actually, doesn't look too bad. Looks better than the breakfast I had on the Westbound EB to PDX after leaving Spokane.

You can buy delicious Green Chile Burritos in El Paso @ the Station from the Burrito Lady when riding the Sunset Ltd.

The Boxed Dinner provided to Sleeper pax on #28 out of PDX is Very Good, but as George said, the Boxed Breakfast on #27 out of SPK isn't so good!

When he's there, the Hot Dog guy @ the FTW Station ( Texas Eagle/Heartland Flyer) has great Brats, Hot Dogs and Cokes, not Pepsi!!!

Forgive my ignorance, but what are these dinners for? This isn't the west of SPK portion of the route where there's no dining car, this is in Montana. Is the dining car inadequately stocked and thus needs to provide an alternate dining option for coach passengers? Or is this just an extra amenity for the coach passenger who wouldn't mind paying $12.50 but not the $20+ dining car meal?

Train2104 said:

Or is this just an extra amenity for the coach passenger who wouldn't mind paying $12.50 but not the $20+ dining car meal?

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This, in my experience.

OlympianHiawatha said:

When I rode the Empire Builder and the announcement the Big Sky Picnic Dinners were available and what they consisted of was made, you could hear the Roomette doors sliding open in unison in our car. Stephanie our SCA quickly got on the car intercom and announced those are intended for Coach pax and our meals in the Diner were included; I believe a few folks still invested anyways.

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On our train, Miss Molly on the intercom said anyone is welcome, and even invited sleeping car passengers who wanted to try something different.

The chicken dinner has nothing to do with the cold dinner boxes served to the PDX sleeping car passengers. This is an option that they have in the cafe car and catered in Havre Montana. I have read written reports on it but detailed pictures have always been scarce. So when given the opportunity, I had to buy one to take pictures. Also, below are the images of the PDX cold dinner boxes served leaving PDX. Quite good actually! We had chicken and beef. None of us wanted the shrimp.

DSC00939 by Brian H, on Flickr

DSC00940 by Brian H, on Flickr

DSC00941 by Brian H, on Flickr

DSC00944 by Brian H, on Flickr

DSC00945 by Brian H, on Flickr

Okay now quit teasing me! These look yummy! :giggle:

Seat 38a how did you manage to get FOUR of those in a Roomette?

OlympianHiawatha said:

Seat 38a how did you manage to get FOUR of those in a Roomette?

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LOL. We had a roomette and a bedroom. This was taken in the bedroom.

What's the bottom one? I can't read the label on the lid. This is throwing my vegetarian eating out the window! lol

Headache said:

What's the bottom one? I can't read the label on the lid. This is throwing my vegetarian eating out the window! lol

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Hoisin tri tip with rice noodles and marinated veggie salad.

Ispolkom said:

Train2104 said:

Or is this just an extra amenity for the coach passenger who wouldn't mind paying $12.50 but not the $20+ dining car meal?

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This, in my experience.

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I see this new addition, and just sigh. Amtrak just doesn't get it.

Here is what you get from KFC for just $5. Why can't Amtrak contract for these, and even sell them for a 50% premium at $7.50?

Yeah, but you're not sitting in a fluorescently-lit, cold be-tiled KFC somewhere. You're riding in a comfortable, stylish (by 1970s standards) moving community rambling past countless lovely views.

When I go to a Husker game, I know my $4 slice of pizza could be purchased in a Valentino's outside the stadium for a fraction of the price, but I don't squawk about it because I'm at a football game. And unlike football stadiums, Amtrak lets you bring your own food in.

As long as it's cheaper than food at an MLB stadium, I'm eating it.

KFC also isn't including fresh fruits and vegetables. I paid just over $8 for a KFC meal without a drink or cookie. You can just see why there is such a price difference between the two pics from the recipes used. Considering how much food costs at fast food joints and restaurants paying $12.50 for a box meal on the train isn't that "expensive", especially a meal that has to travel well, be stored in a fridge, jostled around, etc. as well as looking like what the pics in this thread do.

I'm still bringing my cooler because I can't afford it for the entire trip but I have budgeted for a meal each way and it looks like I won't be disappointed even eating from a plastic container.

Cho Cho Charlie said:

I see this new addition, and just sigh. Amtrak just doesn't get it.

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This isn't a "new addition." It's been offered to EB passengers for many years and is quite popular. The EB, especially during the summer, often runs out of seating in the diner, so coach passengers frequently can't eat in the diner regardless. So they are left with the ho-hum cafe car choices, or the Havre chicken dinner.

The Havre chicken dinner beats the pants off of anything that KFC offers.

And for the record, there are no KFC locations in ANY of the towns that the EB serves in Montana.

So yes, I agree that Amtrak "doesn't get it." But what they don't get is the fact that passengers would jump at offerings like this along ALL of their long-haul routes.

fairviewroad said:

Cho Cho Charlie said:

I see this new addition, and just sigh. Amtrak just doesn't get it.

Click to expand...

This isn't a "new addition." It's been offered to EB passengers for many years and is quite popular. The EB, especially during the summer, often runs out of seating in the diner, so coach passengers frequently can't eat in the diner regardless. So they are left with the ho-hum cafe car choices, or the Havre chicken dinner.

The Havre chicken dinner beats the pants off of anything that KFC offers.

And for the record, there are no KFC locations in ANY of the towns that the EB serves in Montana.

So yes, I agree that Amtrak "doesn't get it." But what they don't get is the fact that passengers would jump at offerings like this along ALL of their long-haul routes.

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Totally agree. I would love to see options like this or even the PDX sleeper box meals offered more on Amtrak trains. If they can find a restaurant in Havre Montana willing to cater, I'm sure they can find plenty of other restaurants along their routes, eager for a chance at a contract to supply.

Yeah, this is provided by a local restaurant/caterer in Havre, and the food looks to be a bit more fresh anyways. That alone would explain it being $12.50, especially if Amtrak is taking part of it (I'd expect they're paying about $10/plate for this.)

Not to mention KFC charges much more if they deliver it to you, and there wouldn't be enough time to waltz over to KFC at a normal station stop.

Headache said:

KFC also isn't including fresh fruits and vegetables.

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OK, let's compare:

Two pieces of chicken: Havre Montana, check. KFC, check.

Side: Havre Montana, mixed vegs. KFC, mash potatoes (green beans, corn, cole slaw, mac&cheese available too).

Desert: Havre Montana, cobbler (?). KFC, chocolate chip cookie.

Bread: Havre Montana, roll. KFC, biscuit (or corn bread).

Drink: Havre Montana, NONE. KFC, soda, ice tea (free refills).

Headache said:

I paid just over $8 for a KFC meal without a drink or cookie.

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If you paid over $8 for their "$5 Fill ups" meal, and didn't even get your drink nor cookie, you've been ripped off.

Cost

1) Rather than comparing prices with generic fast food, it might be better to compare with fast food served in turnpike rest areas. There's a certain upcharge for captive audiences. Anyway I suspect there's a difference in quality -- I used to occasionally eat from the McD's dollar menu, until, in recent years, the quality has totally gone south.

2) I wonder whether it would be possible for the cafe cars to serve these sort of boxed meals as a general practice. I'd love to have one for my rides on the Palmetto and Vermonter. They might also make the pricing experiment on the Silver Star work better. Generally, it's pretty hard to put together a decent meal from the cafe car menu -- I get sick of sandwiches, and the bread in pre-packed sandwiches is usually of inferior quality anyway (I now shudder at the memory of some airport sandwiches I had to buy for a recent cross-country flight, sandwiches that were just as overpriced as anything in the cafe car.) A sandwich and a veggie plate comes out to $12, and the veggie plate is only sold on the northeast regionals and acelas. In fact, they also ought to serve the Northeast/Acela menu on the "national" (i.r. LD) cafe cars, as the national cafe car menu is really sparse in terms of variety, especially if you're trying to find things to eat for a 2-3 day trip. Anyway meal boxes from the cafe car would be a good addition, especially for trains with a cafe,but no diner.

Cho Cho Charlie said:

Headache said:

KFC also isn't including fresh fruits and vegetables.

Click to expand...

OK, let's compare:

Two pieces of chicken: Havre Montana, check. KFC, check.

Side: Havre Montana, mixed vegs. KFC, mash potatoes (green beans, corn, cole slaw, mac&cheese available too).

Desert: Havre Montana, cobbler (?). KFC, chocolate chip cookie.

Bread: Havre Montana, roll. KFC, biscuit (or corn bread).

Drink: Havre Montana, NONE. KFC, soda, ice tea (free refills).

Headache said:

I paid just over $8 for a KFC meal without a drink or cookie.

Click to expand...

If you paid over $8 for their "$5 Fill ups" meal, and didn't even get your drink nor cookie, you've been ripped off.

Cost

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I'm no foodie, but are you referring to whatever that yellow thing KFC gives you as "corn?" They should be paying me to take the KFC RubberCorn.

The food is also almost certainly at least a bit higher quality. Just because McDonald's sells a double cheeseburger for $1.79 (or whatever they raised it to now) doesn't mean that the pub selling a burger for $7-$8 is ripping me off, or "doesn't get it." The pub is almost always selling me a much better burger.

Cho Cho Charlie said:

Headache said:

KFC also isn't including fresh fruits and vegetables.

Click to expand...

OK, let's compare:

Two pieces of chicken: Havre Montana, check. KFC, check.

Side: Havre Montana, mixed vegs. KFC, mash potatoes (green beans, corn, cole slaw, mac&cheese available too).

Desert: Havre Montana, cobbler (?). KFC, chocolate chip cookie.

Bread: Havre Montana, roll. KFC, biscuit (or corn bread).

Drink: Havre Montana, NONE. KFC, soda, ice tea (free refills).

Headache said:

I paid just over $8 for a KFC meal without a drink or cookie.

Click to expand...

If you paid over $8 for their "$5 Fill ups" meal, and didn't even get your drink nor cookie, you've been ripped off.

Cost

Click to expand...

I'd stay out of any of the Disney parks.

I don't buy KFC in real life, why should or would I wish to buy it on a train? Do not eat fried chicken or drink soft drinks. I am happy with the food on Amtrak. The box lunch is good looking and is great for what it is boarded for. I would not pay any amount of money for KFC at anytime. If I am on a train, I would like a meal. There is nothing I enjoy more than breakfast on the train in the morning. Lunch and dinner are pretty good too. I would not wish to give that up for a leg n thigh and a cookie.

The bix lunch is good for the reason that there is no dining car, I would hate to have to have it all the time. It looks like and airline meal, which is OK, but not all the time and never KFC.