Best OBS - Bar/Cafe Attendant

[Everydaymatters]

As the other topic stated, Herman is really terrific. I was happy to see a bar/cafe attendant finally get kudos. We never hear about them. We've had many conversations about sleeper attendants and diner attendants.

So here are my questions: What do you call them: bar attendant, lounge attendant, or what? I'm talking about the person who sells the cards and sandwiches and chips.

My second question is, Herman is one of the best. Are there others that stand out? Maybe they don't have the party atmosphere, but just fun and nice to be with????

 

[Joe F]

Henry is a lounge car/Business Class attendant on the Michigan Wolverine trains. I've seen him many times, usually on 351. He is very personable, has a subtle, dry sense of humor and is a lot of fun to talk to. On my most recent trip last October, he said he is planning to retire this spring after 30+ years with Amtrak. He will be missed.

 

[TVRM610]

The best I've seen on Amtrak is " A. Livuiandis" who was on the Crescent last November (but he said he doesn't normally work the Crescent... so maybe you can normally find him on the City? ) - there was a long line in the cafe car and yet as I got closer to the counter all I heard was A. cheerfully chatting with people as if they were a guest in his house and he was happy to see them. No joke this is how my order went...

A. "What can I get for you?"

me: "I'll have a cheese and cracker tray"

A: "Great choice, what else?"

me: "chocolate chip cookies"

A: "Love them! what else?"

etc. etc.

and the next morning I walked in after breakfast in the diner and he said "Good morning how was your breakfast?"

and then while I was hanging out in the lounge during a slow time for A. he came through the table area cleaning tables, leaving out napkins, and asking people sitting at the tables if he could get them anything. The guy was super professional, and had such a warm natural personality.

 

[Shortline]

Her name escapes me now, maybe I'll be lucky and have her tomorrow from OKC-FTW on the first leg, but one of the regular attendants on the Heartland Flyer is just as sweet as can be. Even her announcements are good, very pleasant person. Can't say enough about her.

The other regular, Ms. Lila, is 180 degrees out from her-she can be grating, annoying, sarcastic, snarky, borderline mean, but in a fun way. I actually enjoy riding with her too, but if one wasn't a regular, and understood she was half joking and trying to be entertaining in her own way, could be a negative. Both are fun, though for wildly different reasons.

 

[SarahZ]

Henry is a lounge car/Business Class attendant on the Michigan Wolverine trains. I've seen him many times, usually on 351. He is very personable, has a subtle, dry sense of humor and is a lot of fun to talk to. On my most recent trip last October, he said he is planning to retire this spring after 30+ years with Amtrak. He will be missed.

I love that guy. I've bought coffee from him many, many times.

 

[SarahZ]

I always say "cafe attendant". I'm not sure what the official title is.

 

[TVRM610]

I always say "cafe attendant". I'm not sure what the official title is.

I think the official title is LSA... but I've heard Cafe Car Attendant many times.

As a side note.. when I think of the words "Cafe Car" my mind automatically pictures the orange paint with the white "cafe" lettering that Amtrak had for so many years.

 

[Joe F]

Henry is a lounge car/Business Class attendant on the Michigan Wolverine trains. I've seen him many times, usually on 351. He is very personable, has a subtle, dry sense of humor and is a lot of fun to talk to. On my most recent trip last October, he said he is planning to retire this spring after 30+ years with Amtrak. He will be missed.

I love that guy. I've bought coffee from him many, many times.

I had a feeling you might know who he is!

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

Her name escapes me now, maybe I'll be lucky and have her tomorrow from OKC-FTW on the first leg, but one of the regular attendants on the Heartland Flyer is just as sweet as can be. Even her announcements are good, very pleasant person. Can't say enough about her.

The other regular, Ms. Lila, is 180 degrees out from her-she can be grating, annoying, sarcastic, snarky, borderline mean, but in a fun way. I actually enjoy riding with her too, but if one wasn't a regular, and understood she was half joking and trying to be entertaining in her own way, could be a negative. Both are fun, though for wildly different reasons.

Connie and Carol are the 2 main Cafe Attendants on the Flyer, though at the moment I cannot remember which is which. They are both very nice and enthusiastic and always ask where I am headed to and what I have been up to lately. One always reminds us, in the legend of one of her 5 year old passengers, to pay close heed for Dinosaurs as we pass by the Washita River.

 

[Shortline]

Connie is who I was thinking of. Just a great person to be around. I seem to always get her, or Lila. Wonder who is working tomorrow??

 

[iggy]

My favorite Cafe car attendants from recent memory would be - Julie from Indianapolis - who is on an Amtrak committee - rarely see her working Lincoln Service - but when she does I know my ride will be pleasant and drama free. Only seen her once - who I call Red Bull Rachel is on the same service level as Julie. I'll refrain from dropping a rant into this thread. I'll just say from what I have seen over the years this level of service - caring about the customer experience is rare - no matter how many others might try to claim otherwise.

 

[tim49424]

On the Hiawatha they have discontinued the cafe services. I've been on that train three times from MKE-CHI and back before they suspended the services, my first time riding that particular train, there was a guy who walked the length of the train with a cart. He was quite flamboyant and really interacted with the children well, stopping to talk to each and every one of them, giving them a small Amtrak related gift. I hope he found a job on another route, but fear he didn't. He seemed alot like what Herman seems to be like and I perceived he truly enjoyed what he was doing.

 

[fredevad]

On the Hiawatha they have discontinued the cafe services. I've been on that train three times from MKE-CHI and back before they suspended the services, my first time riding that particular train, there was a guy who walked the length of the train with a cart. He was quite flamboyant and really interacted with the children well, stopping to talk to each and every one of them, giving them a small Amtrak related gift. I hope he found a job on another route, but fear he didn't. He seemed alot like what Herman seems to be like and I perceived he truly enjoyed what he was doing.

Yes, I remember him - seen him many times, but his name escapes me. The local Milwaukee paper had a write up on him at one point. On one trip, he had a cut out character of Winnie-the-pooh and as he walked by me he walked it down my arm and said "Excuse me sir, you have pooh on your shirt!". He also like to wear crazy glasses, what a hoot.

 

[Eric S]

On the Hiawatha they have discontinued the cafe services. I've been on that train three times from MKE-CHI and back before they suspended the services, my first time riding that particular train, there was a guy who walked the length of the train with a cart. He was quite flamboyant and really interacted with the children well, stopping to talk to each and every one of them, giving them a small Amtrak related gift. I hope he found a job on another route, but fear he didn't. He seemed alot like what Herman seems to be like and I perceived he truly enjoyed what he was doing.

Marty. I think he was mentioned in a TRAINS magazine story a few years ago.

 

[tim49424]

I read an article on him just before they eliminated his job, and yes, his name was Marty. Actually, that article was how I'd discovered they were discontinuing the service on the Hiawatha. My next two trips on that train were quiet and a little less interesting knowing that this very nice and quite fun man wasn't coming down the aisle.

 

[Joe F]

When I rode the Southwest Chief LAX-CHI in September 2005, the lounge car attendant was a guy named Paddy. Along with interesting commentary about the passing scenery, he was on the PA promoting his "World-famous thermonuclear Bloody Marys." ("Guaranteed to put a glow in your cheeks and a mushroom cloud over your head"). Does anybody know if he still works on the SWC?

 

[June the Coach Rider]

As I travel it every time I go anywhere, I try to schedule my trip out and back so that I am on the Boston section of LSL when Spiro is working the cafe car. He is great and makes you feel at home.

 

[bobnjulie]

Merrill gets my vote! He was on our Sunset Limited nightmare trip. He'd done a back to back or a back to back to back... He sounded amazing over the intercom... kept me smiling but I'd see him in the dining car and he would be nodding off just sitting there.... I ached for him. I know that kind of tired and I would never have displayed that sense of humor had I been him.