Amtrak Diner and Food Service Discussion

Just another attempt by Amtrak management to sabotage Amtrak. If I were a conspiracy theorist I might think that Anderson is still secretly on Delta's payroll, the better to destroy Amtrak. But this would be a waste of money on Delta's part; Amtrak management is perfectly capable of doing in Amtrak without extra help from outside.

Is it possible that some businesses are fatally uneconomical?

Were Intercity passenger boat, horse-drawn freight, & Pony Express, killed by bad management, or were there other forces at work?

lordsigma12345 wrote: ↑Thu Oct 10, 2019 9:32 am I have to confess I do like the Jimmy Dean breakfast sandwiches.

me too! throw a little gochujang sauce on top and that's a tasty treat.

So I need to self-report a collosal f-up on my part, total rookie on-train-eating mistake. Last week I'm in NOLA for a week. Of course I'm not going to eat the gas station samwiches on the ride to Memphis, and I've only booked coach (terrible idea given the hangover I was enduring) for the 8 hour ride, so no diner-lite or whatever.

Remembering my own advice of "bring carryout on board" that I figured out around 2012 in NOLA, I head for Domilises and order two large shrimp/oyster po-boys with all the fixins. So good. I throw them in a bag with the knowledge that I'm going to eat well later that day.

See the hole in my idea here? Oysters. My favorite food. They're cantankerous at best and known for going bad quickly.

Guess who threw out $20 of sandwiches and then ate a stupid gas station cheeseburger on Amtrak that night? I'm not as smart as I look some times...

Was it better or worse than 7-11? I ask because 7-11 cheeseburgers have gotten rather decent lately.

Tadman wrote: ↑Fri Oct 11, 2019 8:41 am So I need to self-report a collosal f-up on my part, total rookie on-train-eating mistake. Last week I'm in NOLA for a week. Of course I'm not going to eat the gas station samwiches on the ride to Memphis, and I've only booked coach (terrible idea given the hangover I was enduring) for the 8 hour ride, so no diner-lite or whatever.

Remembering my own advice of "bring carryout on board" that I figured out around 2012 in NOLA, I head for Domilises and order two large shrimp/oyster po-boys with all the fixins. So good. I throw them in a bag with the knowledge that I'm going to eat well later that day.

See the hole in my idea here? Oysters. My favorite food. They're cantankerous at best and known for going bad quickly.

Guess who threw out $20 of sandwiches and then ate a stupid gas station cheeseburger on Amtrak that night? I'm not as smart as I look some times...

That's funny.

The art is to get something that will still be good after a while. I used to pick up middle eastern food before catching the Lakeshore out of NYC at 3:40. When dinner time rolled around and I pulled out my pita, hummus, falafel, and salads, I felt like the smartest guy on the train.

For sure, when I'm on the Wolverine out of Detroit, I head for La Pita at Wayne State U, about a mile from the station. For $20 you can eat like a king. Some really good kebabs (Detroit is heavily middle eastern, a restaurant with bad kebabs would go out of biz real quick).

In NOLA, a roast beef po boy is a far better idea, maybe with some chicken rice gumbo. At NYP, there is a turkish spot right across the road.

Tadman,try this the next time,order a subway sandwich, but hold the Mayo or dressings,then snag some Mayo,Mustard packets to put on the bread when onboard.
Mayo goes south at room temp fairly quick.

Backshophoss wrote: ↑Sat Oct 12, 2019 2:20 am Mayo goes south at room temp fairly quick.

We used that to our advantage as kids. Have a few beers, have a few too many, tell your parents the Mayo was bad at the picnic. I’m lucky they didn’t go after Hellman’s after the third picnic epidemic.

Tadman wrote: ↑Fri Oct 11, 2019 11:16 am At NYP, there is a turkish spot right across the road.

Not any longer, which is for the best; easily the worst gyros I've ever had in NYC.

Are there any reasonable and practical ideas here that can be applied to the latest incarnation of "Contemporary Dining"?

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/11/us/a ... waste.html

Fair Use:

From disposable headphones and plastic cutlery to food scraps and toilet waste, the average airline passenger leaves behind over three pounds of garbage, according to one estimate. To get travelers and airlines thinking — and talking — about that rather large pile of trash, a British design firm has refashioned the economy meal tray, replacing plastic with renewable materials such as coffee grounds, banana leaves and coconut wood.

Jo Rowan is the associate strategy director of the firm, PriestmanGoode, which has spent more than two decades applying design thinking to the air travel experience, including airport lounges and cabin seating.

Now, she said, the firm is turning its attention to the less “glamorous” side of things.

“Onboard waste is a big issue,” she said. “Knowing that you have four billion passengers per year, it all adds up very quickly.”..

Interesting solutions, but Amtrak is also not set up for industrial composting (though it could add the appropriate trash cans and contract with an industrial composting company at each major terminal.)

Perhaps Amtrak should return to steam power so the F&B waste could be directly burned for fuel

Gilbert B Norman wrote: ↑Wed Oct 16, 2019 6:32 am

From disposable headphones and plastic cutlery to food scraps and toilet waste, the average airline passenger leaves behind over three pounds of garbage, according to one estimate. To get travelers and airlines thinking — and talking — about that rather large pile of trash, a British design firm has refashioned the economy meal tray, replacing plastic with renewable materials such as coffee grounds, banana leaves and coconut wood.

Jo Rowan is the associate strategy director of the firm, PriestmanGoode, which has spent more than two decades applying design thinking to the air travel experience, including airport lounges and cabin seating.

Now, she said, the firm is turning its attention to the less “glamorous” side of things.

“Onboard waste is a big issue,” she said. “Knowing that you have four billion passengers per year, it all adds up very quickly.”..

Big problem with adding in the organics for air travel... they're organic, which will present a threat on using these in international service and to/from places like Hawaii and Puerto Rico where there are strict controls on agricultural products. Typically, the food waste in these locations has to be incinerated.

Shouldn't be a problem for Amtrak, although I know California also had agriculture inspections for the same reasons as Hawaii...

mtuandrew wrote: ↑Wed Oct 16, 2019 8:12 am Interesting solutions, but Amtrak is also not set up for industrial composting (though it could add the appropriate trash cans and contract with an industrial composting company at each major terminal.)

Perhaps Amtrak should return to steam power so the F&B waste could be directly burned for fuel

Nah. Put it into a digester and turn it into biodiesel for the trains. Let the trains run on grass.

STrRedWolf wrote: ↑Thu Oct 17, 2019 5:40 pmNah. Put it into a digester and turn it into biodiesel for the trains. Let the trains run on grass.

“Please note, all items left by travelers in cars, including but not limited to paper products, beverage containers, tickets either used or unused, bathroom waste, out-of-style suit coats, Microsoft mobile devices, plastic containers, strollers and wheelchairs, pet waste, pets, infants, food waste, and utensils, will be recycled into biofuel immediately. Thank you for riding Amtrak, and enjoy your trip.”