posted
Chicken. I've always had excellent chicken on Amtrak. Every time, every train.
The Coast Starlight does salmon very well. I've never had fish on any other train.
With everything else, it is hit and miss. It seems to depend on who is cooking that day. I've had the same meal on different trains with varying results.
As for dessert, even the flavorless cheesecake is better than no dessert at all. But I had a killer apple pie a la mode one time last year that beat the cheesecake by a hundred miles.
Some trains have Coke products. I've seen 'em in the sleeping cars, at least. I imagine you'd see more Coke products if they were the lower bidder.
One more thing, can you remove my name from your signature, please?
------------------ Trust God, love your neighbor, and never mistake opinion for truth. -Mr. Toy
posted
My favorite food on AMTRAK? New York strip steak, New York strip steak, and New York strip steak!!! Especially considering the fact that there really hasn't been much of a choice on the last several trains I have been on...... I am glad to see from various posts here that there is a little more variety on some trains now.
Posts: 2428 | From: Grayling, MI | Registered: Mar 2002
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posted
I'm a dessert fan, so my choice is the Apple Pie ala Mode. The pie is nicely warmed and really good. I've had some mediocre meals, but none that I've really disliked.
Posts: 26 | From: New York | Registered: Aug 2003
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French Toast! The best I've ever had. I also like the NY strip steak, and, actually, the dinner rolls they serve are also very good.
Posts: 553 | From: Flagstaff, AZ USA | Registered: Apr 2001
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I would like to know when Eric last ate Amtrak French Toast and where. I used to love their French toast. It was the best I had eaten anywhere. Then, a few years ago they must have changed their recipe. It is still good, but not any better than what most restaurants serve. I would like to see them bring back the old French toast recipe.
------------------ Elias Valley Railroad (N-scale) www.geocities.com/evrr
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I have never tried Amtrak's french toast; I must admit that I am puzzled to hear of two accounts in a row describing it as having been the best out there, if not in existence. This is certainly the first review of such that I have found. In spite of the accounts, I find it difficult to reconcile the possibility of it competing with freshly-made home-cooked french toast...?
Perhaps a few letters to Mr. Gunn will precipitate the return of this french toast.
posted
I'm always surprised to hear such glowing terms used to describe the french toast. The french toast I've had the last several trips has been nothing to write home about.
I enjoy the experience of meeting new people over dinner in the dining car, however, overall I would rate Amtrak's food on par with eating at your local Denny's.
posted
On a Trip to San Antonio on the Eagle, my Dad got what we guessed was Food Poisioning, and from what we guessed was the French Toast. For Lunch and Dinner we all had the same thing. For Breakfast my Dad was the only one to have the French Toast. So I guess It wasnt too great then. LOL
Posts: 547 | From: St. Louis, MO, USA | Registered: Nov 2002
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Wow! I guess I must get lucky. Last time I had it was on the SW Chief #4 in Sept. of 2002. Maybe I don't eat it often enough, but I've had it homemade and in various restaurants, and it never seems as good as on Amtrak (except for one local restaurant in FLG which uses seven-grain toast and strawberry butter). Anyway, I'll be riding the Chief tomorrow morning thru Tuesday night, so I'll have another chance to sample, and I'll report when I get back. Take care, Eric
Posts: 553 | From: Flagstaff, AZ USA | Registered: Apr 2001
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The French toast I've had on the Coast Starlight was nothing to get excited about.
But I've been told that the French toast on the Southwest Chief is another matter entirely. I wonder if this has any connection with the legendary French Toast served on the original Super Chief. Do Amtrak chefs on that train, and only that train, still use the original Santa Fe recipe?
There was a special on PBS this week about the Super Chief and they interviewed a former chef. He said their recipe was pretty easy, but even some of their own chefs couldn't make it right. He said the trick was to thoroughly saturate the bread then bake it, not fry it, at the right temperature. Made it very fluffy. He said it took time to do right.
------------------ Trust God, love your neighbor, and never mistake opinion for truth. -Mr. Toy
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Okay, you guys are right! The French Toast used to be better. I remember it being thicker, and now it's made using thinner pieces of bread, although it's still pretty good. The steak was very good, as well as the grilled chicken sandwich, which I had for both my lunches on-board. Apple pie, as well as the chocolate cake, were good desserts, and fellow passengers said they really enjoyed the lemon [something] salmon (I don't remember how it was prepared with the lemon). Amtrak rotates three menus, and I had 1 and 3, with different options for lunch and dinner, although breakfast looked the same. All in all, I had a good dining experience! PS- I'm so glad they have Pepsi(!), and yes, the prices are "fairly" high. Posts: 553 | From: Flagstaff, AZ USA | Registered: Apr 2001
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Maybe I'll take some advice from one of my last post and toss some of the food I've tasted on Amtrak out the window at 80 mph! Most of the food on Amtrak Ive tasted was weak, disflavored, discolored and I didnt like it.
Best on Amtrak: hot dogs
Best overall: AM PMs burgers!
------------------ JONATHON D. ORTIZ
[This message has been edited by JONATHON (edited 12-01-2003).]
Posts: 989 | From: DIAMOND BAR CA. U.S. | Registered: Nov 2003
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posted
By the way, I like I agree with several posts,the french toast used to be better.they used to have really thick french toast ,now it is thin as regular toast.I was told that the old recipe was Santa Fe's recipe.It used to be excellent,but it is still very good.my favorite for dinner is New York strip steak.I had the salmon once on the Coast Starlight,and it sucked.It must have been microwaved,because it came 5 minutes after I ordered it.I had thought all diner food was cooked to order,but someone must have been in a hurry.By the way,I like Amtrak's cheesecake!
------------------ Trust Jesus,Ride Amtrak.
[This message has been edited by espeefoamer (edited 12-02-2003).]
posted
Hmmm. I've had salmon on the Starlight on my last two trips, and both times it was excellent.
But Amtrak's cheesecake is flavorless. Before the standardized menus, the Starlight had a really first class key lime cheesecake that was among the best I've ever had anywhere.
------------------ Trust God, love your neighbor, and never mistake opinion for truth. -Mr. Toy
posted
Liked: Pancakes Hamburger Apple Pie Pasta Disliked: all meat/chicken entrees rock-hard hamburger buns Posts: 33 | From: Fair Oaks, CA US | Registered: Jul 2003
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I'm surprised nobody said anything about the barbeque ribs one can get (sometimes) on the the Southwest Chief. Cooked to perfection, these ribs are a real homerun. Unfortunately, I have not seen them on the menu lately.
I agree with those who said that the apple pie a'la mode is a heavenly treat but I disagree with the young man who raved about the Reuben sandwich. The sandwich that posed as a Reuben in the dining car neither looked nor tasted like anything I have ever seen before.
For those on a budget and need a quick, hot pick-me-up, you might try the microwave cheese pizza in the cafe car. If you closely study the ingredients, you will notice that it contains no preservatives or chemicals that will later come back to haunt you.
By the way, in a couple weeks I will be climbing aboard Amtrak for my annual tour of the country. This time around I will be visiting Milwaukee, Brooklyn, New York City and Ottawa, Canada. If any of you kind souls know of any railroad museums or attractions I can visit during my stay in these cities, I would be extremely grateful for such information.
Happy Holidays to All, Chuck Reuben
[This message has been edited by Chucky (edited 12-03-2003).]
Posts: 324 | From: Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA | Registered: Jan 2003
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posted
One food item I want to put in a good word for is the prepackaged turkey-focaccia sandwich that's available in the Pacific Surfliner cafe car (I don't know about its availability on other trains). I've had it both room temperature and microwaved, and I think it's pretty good either way.
Chucky: I highly recommend the New York Transit Museum in Brooklyn, assuming you're into subway trains as well as long-distance ones.
[This message has been edited by trainman1 (edited 12-03-2003).]
Posts: 112 | From: North Hollywood, California | Registered: Mar 2002
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posted
Thanks for the tip, trainman. I will definitely check out the museum. I love subways trains and even like city buses and cabs.
I am totally into mass transit and delight in all the strange people I meet. I keep my '84 Volvo in the driveway during most of the weekdays and cover it with a car cover as a symbolic gesture.
I second your vote about the focaccia. I managed to grab the very last one in the cafe car on a recent trip. They must be very popular if they can't stock enough for the duration. That was one fine, hearty sandwich.
Posts: 324 | From: Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA | Registered: Jan 2003
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Last time I had it was on the SW Chief #4 in Sept. of 2002. Maybe I don't eat it often enough, but I've had it homemade and in various restaurants, and it never seems as good as on Amtrak (except for one local restaurant in FLG which uses seven-grain toast and strawberry butter).
