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New Amtrak Dining Car Menus: Yum!

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As we reported in last week’s Hotline, Amtrak has improved the experience for long-distance train passengers with new, expanded, and varied dining car menus. Last Thursday, the day after they were launched, I had the opportunity to taste the improvements for myself while I rode Silver Star train 91 from Washington, DC to Miami. Other observers online have posted information about the menu offerings and their own experiences. Now, enjoy the photos I took of some of the new selections (dinner, breakfast, and lunch, respectively):

Though Cornish Game Hen has replaced Roast Chicken at dinner, on day two of the new menu chicken was still being served (presumably to use up commissary supplies). The chicken was perfectly seasoned. The short-grain saffron rice was a welcome departure from the usual rice pilaf. The beans, while fresh, were bland and could have used seasoning.
The Tilapia was served with a tomato sauce that my companion said made all the difference with the already-tender fish. The garlic mashed potatoes were also rich and creamy. Notably, she was not charged for a second can of soda.
The vegetable omelette with olives and red peppers was satisfactory (especially as pre-prepared egg dishes go), and the new chicken apple sausage was extremely tender and juicy. While grits are now available again, I still enjoy the shredded potatoes.
Belgian waffle with powdered sugar was the breakfast special on this trip. Alas, table syrup remains the only available topping, with no fruit toppings as one might expect.
The Greek salad with warm grilled chicken was fresh and flavorful. Amtrak has really improved its salad offerings; even the side salads are now based in spinach and dark lettuces, not wilted pieces of iceberg lettuce.
The Key Lime Pie with graham cracker crust has not changed much, but is still a fine product.
The new Red Velvet Cake by Sweet Street is of very high quality, especially with the richness of the cream cheese frosting, the moistness of the cake, and the apparent lack of chemical additives. This is probably one of the best desserts Amtrak has offered, and I understand it is one of many in rotation right now.

Clearly, Amtrak has listened to its passengers’ demands for better dining options (even while reduced staffing means plastic plates and cups continue to prevail on most routes). If Amtrak’s critics are so concerned about the company operating in a business-like manner, they should praise Amtrak for being market-responsive and instituting new service offerings that can drive revenue increases and win favor with the traveling public.

—Matthew Melzer