An interesting issue.

[BOS-T-Time]

Hi,

I am not sure where to post this one but here you go. I had to take the Downeaster last month a couple of times and on the way back to BON I treated myself to beers from Shipyard in the cafe car. (Shipyard Export to be exact... YUM!!!).

At any rate, I used my Amtrak Chase card to pay for the beers and get the points. Here is where the issue came up, the charges on both trips showed as pending on the Chase website but when I received the bill they were no where to be found. I contacted Chase and they stated they have no record of charges on said dates from said trains for said amounts, even though I have the receipts. It seems that Amtrak may have lost the charges in their batch.

My conscious is playing with me now that I received the latest bill from Chase and still no charges. I am wondering how much Amtrak is not being paid for products in their cafe car? I am not sure what to do because I basically received free beer and want to pay for it, yet it is not on my bill from Chase! Does anyone know of a department I should contact at Amtrak to alert them to this issue?

BOS-T-Time

 

[Acela150]

That is truly odd. I can't think of a department off the top of my head. But I agree about alerting them of this issue.

 

[AG1]

Congratulations on your honesty in this day and age of people bragging about how they got away without paying for a service they actually used .

The Downeaster is managed by the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority(NNEPRA). They collect the funds and contract with Amtrak to run the trains. I believe the Cafe car is a separate concession from Amtrak. Please contact the NNEPRA. I am sure this smaller organization would like to know about an apparent glitch in funds collected. I believe contacting Amtrak would be a waste of time.

Rick

 

[OBS]

Congratulations on your honesty in this day and age of people bragging about how they got away without paying for a service they actually used .

The Downeaster is managed by the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority(NNEPRA). They collect the funds and contract with Amtrak to run the trains. I believe the Cafe car is a separate concession from Amtrak. Please contact the NNEPRA. I am sure this smaller organization would like to know about an apparent glitch in funds collected. I believe contacting Amtrak would be a waste of time.

Rick

Agreed. Amtrak F&B has nothing to do with Downeaster service.

 

[The Davy Crockett]

According to the February 2013 issue of Trains magazine, Downeaster's cafe car is run by Epicurean Feast.

 

[BOS-T-Time]

Hi,

I emailed NNEPRA and advised them of the issue and gave them all the information from the latest receipt, I will post when I get a response. I also asked where I could send payment for my "beverages". Thankfully I left the tip in cash and I am curious to see what the outcome is. The receipt is stamped with Epic Feast Amtrak at the top but the address and phone number are the same as the NNEPRA. Thank you all for your help, as you can see by the timestamp for the original post the issue was on my mind.

BOS-T-Time.

 

[the_traveler]

Yes, the Downeaster cafe is not operated by or contracted to Amtrak. The contract with Amtrak specifies that only Pepsi products are sold on Amtrak trains. Because the Downeaster's cafe is run by another company, the Downeaster is the only Amtrak train to offer Coke products.

 

[Anthony]

the Downeaster is the only Amtrak train to offer Coke products.

... and the Maple Leaf between Niagara Falls and Toronto

 

[the_traveler]

the Downeaster is the only Amtrak train to offer Coke products.

... and the Maple Leaf between Niagara Falls and Toronto

Technically, it's a VIA Rail train at that point, not an Amtrak train. But I won't question the boss.

 

[Anthony]

the Downeaster is the only Amtrak train to offer Coke products.

... and the Maple Leaf between Niagara Falls and Toronto

Technically, it's a VIA Rail train at that point, not an Amtrak train. But I won't question the boss.

I figured someone would say that. I say, "close enough!" Coke is sold behind the Amtrak cafe counter to Amtrak customers, even if not by an Amtrak employee.