pre-Amtrak dining

One of the big differences between VIA and Amtrak over the years has been steak. In years of VIA travel I've never had a decent steak, but I'm a big fan of Amtrak's "Signature Steak" - so much so that on my last EB trip a couple of years ago I had it at both dinners. One of my table-mates on the second night was the same as the first and said to me "Are you having the steak again?", to which I replied affirmatively. He said "Good... me too!" My only complaint through the years has been a very few under-cooked ones, but although the shape and cut has changed through the years it has always been a safe bet and my "go to" on Amtrak.

An additional reason for including meals in pricing was travel agent commissions. CN and later Amtrak paid agency commissions. In the 1960's the railroads' refusal to pay agency commissions and refusal to accept most credit cards began to cave in. (Airlines paid agency commissions and typically accepted Bank Americard.) By the late 1960's the GN introduced -- a toll-free reservation number! And by the late 1960's CN introduced computerized reservations (crudely based on Air Canada's system).

As a coach passenger in the 1950's and 1960's, I never ran into discrimination. However, as described above, I was lured into cafe cars on name trains for basic American lunch counter food prepared on board at reasonable prices. On some trips I alternated between the dining car and the cafe.

The winner for me was the cafe-lounge on NP's unpretentious, but friendly and nice, Mainstreeter.

The all-time loser for me was when the SP tried the Automat cars on the Cascade.

I recall when the railroads only accepted their proprietary Rail Travel credit card .
I still have mine (cardboard), in my collection...

Maglev said:

When my family took Canadian National's Super Continental from Montreal to Vancouver in 1975, our sleeper fare did not include meals. We only ate one meal in the dining car, and I remember having a delicious roast beef.

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I believe that the meals included in the sleeping car fares on CN began in the 1960s and I had thought that it lasted until VIA but I may be mistaken. The last time I rode in a sleeping car on a CN train was in 1971 and I believe meals were included then. I had several trips on the Super Continental in the early 1970s but always as a coach passenger.

I thought the meals on Canadian National and Canadian Pacific were quite good as were the meals on the U.S. railroads that I travelled on before Amtrak (Milwaukee Road, Burlington Northern, New Haven, Penn Central, Grand Trunk Western, if I recall correctly.)

I don't recall ever having had a bad meal on those trains. A few exceptional meals from that time period stand out - breakfast on the Penn Central Broadway Limited, a roast beef dinner on the CP Canadian, and a haddock dinner on CN trains in Newfoundland (the latter was included in the sleeping car fare.)

The first poor meal I had on a train was on the VIA Atlantic around 1986 (other meals on that train were much better). The next time I had a poor meal was contemporary dining on the Lake Shore.

In the first Amtrak decade, when I was young and more budget conscious, I traveled extensively on Amtrak. Typically, I'd be on a 14-day, $150 railpass that was limited to coach travel. But if you were clever enough, you could occasionally upgrade to a sleeper which were a LOT cheaper than today even considering inflation. Meals were not included for sleeping car pax. I think that changed in the mid-1980s.

The best possible bargain in those days was the upgrade from coach to a slumbercoach while traveling on a railpass.

jis said:

Surely you meant to say VIA took over? Amtrak did not ever take over that service you mention.

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I may have confused the point. During the trip back from Vancouver on the Empire Builder they put up notices that GN was turning over their passenger service to the new government subsided service.

Larry H. said:

I may have confused the point. During the trip back from Vancouver on the Empire Builder they put up notices that GN was turning over their passenger service to the new government subsided service.

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Just a minor correction...when you rode it, I believe you said the month before Amtrak began, which would have been April of 1971, the GN was already merged into the Burlington Northern (since March of 1970)...

jiml said:

One of the big differences between VIA and Amtrak over the years has been steak. In years of VIA travel I've never had a decent steak, but I'm a big fan of Amtrak's "Signature Steak" - so much so that on my last EB trip a couple of years ago I had it at both dinners. One of my table-mates on the second night was the same as the first and said to me "Are you having the steak again?", to which I replied affirmatively. He said "Good... me too!" My only complaint through the years has been a very few under-cooked ones, but although the shape and cut has changed through the years it has always been a safe bet and my "go to" on Amtrak.

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The 2 best meals I’ve ever had on trains were Amtrak’s Lamb Shank and Amtraks Mahi Mahi. Those both beat anything I’ve had on VIA, Ed Ellis Pullman, private dinner train operations, etc.

The Mahi Mahi was on the menu in the 2010 era? The lamb shank was still on the menu in the parlor car on my last ride at the beginning of 2017.

crescent-zephyr said:

The 2 best meals I’ve ever had on trains were Amtrak’s Lamb Shank and Amtraks Mahi Mahi. Those both beat anything I’ve had on VIA, Ed Ellis Pullman, private dinner train operations, etc.

The Mahi Mahi was on the menu in the 2010 era? The lamb shank was still on the menu in the parlor car on my last ride at the beginning of 2017.

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Ditto on the lamb shank. We both may have commented on it previously in a PPC thread.

jiml said:

Ditto on the lamb shank. We both may have commented on it previously in a PPC thread.

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The steak on the Meteor is the best meal I’ve had on AMTRAK but the best meal on a train was on the Canadian on the last night of a Jasper to Toronto trip - a thick bone in veal chop which rivaled any NYC restaurant!

JRR said:

The steak on the Meteor is the best meal I’ve had on AMTRAK but the best meal on a train was on the Canadian on the last night of a Jasper to Toronto trip - a thick bone in veal chop which rivaled any NYC restaurant!

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For me, it was the broiled red snapper served aboard the Broadway Limited as we were rounding Horseshoe Curve in June 1985. Melt-in-your-mouth and perfectly seasoned.

Mod team, you might consider moving these posts to a "Your most memorable Amtrak meal" thread. Suggestion only.

I remember dad and I taking a day ride from MIA-JAX on the Silver Meteor in '58-'59. We were in coach but I remember eating in the dining car watching the swampgrass and an occassional Florida pine go by. Coolest thing I ever did as a 6-7 year old! Also, remember sitting in the "Hollywood Beach" Sun Lounge while dad did a rum & Coke (or two...). Then we rode a Greyhound Scenicruiser back to Miami. Dad was an air traffic controller but an avid fan of rail travel. I spent my career in aviation also but I think that dining car experience triggered my love of rail travel.

Generally before Amtrak, I could not afford to eat in the dining car on the few trips that I took. However, in the mid 1960's our 8th grade spring trip took us by train from Miami to DC, and back (in coach of course). I recall that we were served breakfast in the dining car and it may have been the worst meal I had. I seem to remember thinking the eggs may have been powdered eggs.

My favorite pre Amtrak dining experience was part of our annual trip to our grandparents house that involved an overnight trip on the B&O then the L&N’s Pan American to Tennessee.

Leaving Louisville we always had the best ever turkey sandwich, coke, and apple pie. Everything was made on board and the turkey was sliced from a freshly roasted turkey, not some deli thing. The waiters were all slightly amused but so friendly with their two young customers. It was helped that it was in an old heavyweight diner but impeccably maintained with lots of silver and china rattling as we raced out of the yards headed for the steep grade ahead (Mulldraugh’s hill) with horns blasting at many grade crossings outside of town.

Well I obviously came way too late for the private railroad era. However I’ve experienced bits and pieces of classic dining car meals in my career on PVs. My favorite has to be Santa Fe’s French Toast though.

I just made that for Christmas morning breakfast for my family actually.

For those like me who are too young to have experienced it, or just want to relive it there are a lot of good cookbooks out there from the railroads.


http://railroaddiningcar.org/


https://m.alibris.com/search/books/...tm_source=Google&utm_term=NMPi_Smart_Shopping

Seaboard92 said:

Well I obviously came way too late for the private railroad era. However I’ve experienced bits and pieces of classic dining car meals in my career on PVs. My favorite has to be Santa Fe’s French Toast though.

I just made that for Christmas morning breakfast for my family actually.

For those like me who are too young to have experienced it, or just want to relive it there are a lot of good cookbooks out there from the railroads.


http://railroaddiningcar.org/


https://m.alibris.com/search/books/...tm_source=Google&utm_term=NMPi_Smart_Shopping

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The dining car or dinner lounge was the best part of the trip. Every railroad had specialities. Even at the end, you could get a good meal on the Penn central Broadway limited out if penn station or 61/62 out of Cleveland. Amtrak is just destroying the rail experience.

I had quite a few dinners pre Amtrak but one railroad that held on to great service and food was the GMO that ran a wonderful parlor car and full diner back and forth between ST. Louis and Chicago. The early train left around 6am or maybe earlier its been a long time. But the diner had all the normal things of a great diner, the oatmeal, pancakes, egges made to order, bacon, juices ect. All done very nicely. I don't recall the evening meal when we came back but no doubt it was good as well. We rode the Union Pacific City Of St. Louis now and then and it too had pretty good food till they stopped. The worst was on the Train from New York to St. Louis one Christmas and it had a very tiny menu and what they did have wasn't worth paying for. I wish I could recall the company who's train it was but I can't. And I guess I best add that the Empire Builder that last month the private railroad ran it still have high class dining and staff. The fresh Salmon from Seattle was probably the best thing on that trip.

MARC Rider said:

In the summer of 1975 I rode the Merchants Limited a few times between Philadelphia and New York. I would get a diner meal between Trenton and Newark. The menu was pretty simple (fish, chicken, or steak), the food was good, but plain, and the service was fast and efficient. They served on fresh linens and used the old PRR silver and china. Pricing was for a complete meal. ($2 for fish, $3 for chicken, and $8 for steak) I think beverages and dessert may have been extra.

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I am fairly certain that The Merchants Limited, a New Haven Railroad train ran only between Grand Central Terminal and Boston. Rode it many times. But what you describe is what I experienced on the train in the late 60s.

Palmetto said:

I am fairly certain that The Merchants Limited, a New Haven Railroad train ran only between Grand Central Terminal and Boston. Rode it many times. But what you describe is what I experienced on the train in the late 60s.

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In late August 1971 I rode the Amtrak Merchants Limited from GCT to New Haven. There were about a dozen passengers in the lone parlor car, on what once was an all-First Class train. The name was carried on by Amtrak onto a Washington, DC -- NYP -- Boston train.

https://history.amtrak.com/archives/i-merchants-limited-i-route-guide-1973

Just posting a link to some old menus from the SP. If you poke around the site you'll find the same from other railroads, among other things.

http://streamlinermemories.info/?page_id=10533