The City of New Orleans leaves Chicago southbound at about 8pm. Is the diner open for dinner for sleeping car passengers that evening for a late dinner service, or should passengers plan to eat before boarding? I've had conflicting answers to that question from Amtrak employees at Chicago Union Station.
I think they board the sleeping car people at 7:00 P.M.and Dinner at 7:30 for sleeping car.
My experience last December 2009 was that there was a very short period of dinner meal service in the dining car for sleeping car passengers, after the scheduled 8 pm departure of the City of New Orleans from Chicago. Very short - terminating at 9 pm. This period also gives sleeping car attendants time to set up beds. I checked with Amtrak (800-872-7245) again this morning, and this is still the policy.
However, if there is a late departure of that train, then there would be no meal service whatsoever. (I don't know what would be available, if anything, in the observation car cafe.)
BTW: I know of no Amtrak train that allows boarding as much as an hour before scheduled departure. Usual boarding is about twenty minutes or so ahead of time.
The three times we have taken #59 out of Chicago, we were able to eat a leisurely dinenr eventhough we left late in the evening.
If you are heading east on #48, the Lake Shore Limited, first class passengers, at least, may board early (the timetable does not say how early, but I am sure it is more than twenty minutes; for a while, it was stated that they could board an hour before departure). This is the official statement from the timetable:
"Train 48 offers early boarding at Chicago Although Train 48 is scheduled to depart Chicago at 9:30 p.m., Sleeping car passengers may board earlier and are invited to a Welcome Aboard reception for complimentary snacks and beverages in the Dining car. Please check with the agent in Chicago’s Metropolitan Lounge for additional information."
"Train 48 offers early boarding at Chicago
Although Train 48 is scheduled to depart Chicago at 9:30 p.m., Sleeping car passengers may board earlier and are invited to a Welcome Aboard reception for complimentary snacks and beverages in the Dining car. Please check with the agent in Chicago’s Metropolitan Lounge for additional information."
Johnny
Thank you, "Deggesty," for providing the additional information. I had not known about the Lake Shore Limited early boarding. That sounds really neat.
I wish I could early board on the Capitol Limited there in Chicago, for my Southwest Chief in a few months (en route to Washington) is scheduled to arrive in Chicago at 3:10 pm. But, the Capitol Limited doesn't depart until about 6:40 pm, with no Amtrak published information about early boarding (and dining). (That equipment probably needs to be turned around and cleaned.)
Since you are apparently very familiar with the area, can you recommend a very-near-by restaurant around Union Station? Otherwise, I will once again be stuck with Station fast food and the Metropolitan Lounge snacks. Or, preferably, is there dinner service going to be available (for sleeping car passengers) on that Capitol Limited after its departure? Thanks in advance.
To quote traveling engineer: "Since you are apparently very familiar with the area, can you recommend a very-near-by restaurant around Union Station? Otherwise, I will once again be stuck with Station fast food and the Metropolitan Lounge snacks. Or, preferably, is there dinner service going to be available (for sleeping car passengers) on that Capitol Limited after its departure? Thanks in advance."
There is a at least one fairly decent restaurant on the main floor close to the old waiting room (at the west end of the building). Last year, when my nephew and his wife came in from Bolngbrook to visit with us at the station (we just couldn't work any better arrangement out that trip), we ate there, and found the food much better than what the fast food places offer.
As to restaurants near the station, I do not know the immediate area that well. Perhaps Carl Shaver or Al - in - Chicago, or another of the people who live in/near Chicago can help. I can speak well of a one, the name of which I do not remember, which is just east and about a block south of the Palmer Hotel. Carl and Pat treated us to supper there last year. And, there is a good restaurant, the Main Street Cafe, in Lombard (where Carl and Pat live); we ate lunch there with them this past Memorial Day--but you would have to go up to the Ogilvie Transportation Center (former C&NW station) and take a train to and from Lombard to eat there.
Definitely, dinner is served on the Capitol Limited after it leaves Chicago. It's one year since we went east on this train, but I seriously doubt that dinner policy has been changed since then.
Thanks again, "Deggesty." I guess I'll pass on the restaurants outside of Union Station (and of course the fast foods and vending machine offerings, though your inside recommendation sounds interesting.
Frankly, I get a tad bored with the Amtrak menus. Though the entrees are generally quite good, and the "specials" even better, after several days (5 days cross-country) of the "same ole-same ole," I long for something different. Do you know when the Amtrak dining car menus change each year? Is it during the annual schedule change (i.e. May and October, I believe)?
Quoting travelingengineer: "Frankly, I get a tad bored with the Amtrak menus. Though the entrees are generally quite good, and the "specials" even better, after several days (5 days cross-country) of the "same ole-same ole," I long for something different. Do you when the Amtrak dining car menus change each year? Is it during the annual schedule change (i.e. May and October, I believe)?
Yes, when you spend several days on Amtrak, meals can be boring, though there is some variation on just what the fish, chicken, pork, or beef is. On our last trip, we ate breakfast 13 times, lunch 11 times, and dinner 13 times (we enjoy the train ride). Now on the Canadian (three full days) there is a different menu each day, eastbound and westbound (you can check this on www.viarail.ca). Breakfasts are much the same, from day to day, but you do have a variety to choose from there.
This is sort of a secret, but I get around the "boring" aspect of the same adult meals day after day after day by ordering from the children's menu ! Yes, one can do it. Of course, I always and politely ask permission, and am aware that the dining car staff nonetheless has to save the children's menu items for expected children. But, there sure are some good kid items ! (I always tip accordingly, BTW.)
With regard to my earlier question, "Deggesty," do you know when Amtrak changes its menus? Thanks in advance, if you know.
travelingengineer This is sort of a secret, but I get around the "boring" aspect of the same adult meals day after day after day by ordering from the children's menu ! Yes, one can do it. Of course, I always and politely ask permission, and am aware that the dining car staff nonetheless has to save the children's menu items for expected children. But, there sure are some good kid items ! (I always tip accordingly, BTW.) With regard to my earlier question, "Deggesty," do you know when Amtrak changes its menus? Thanks in advance, if you know.
Now, as to the question, I really do not know just when Amtrak changes its menus. I do know that last year and the year before it had a fairly decent (except on the City of New Orleans; the chef, without warning, seasoned it with more pepper than I would ever have dreamed of putting on steak) steak for dinner, and it had another beef entree this year. Also, for the same two years, it had a veggie burger that my wife liked; this year she would not even touch what was offered in its place. As I recall, she tried one of the children's meals this year, and found it better than anything on the regular menu that she would have considered. Aside from such variations as we found from one train to another on our last trip, perhaps they have a two year schedule.
I do wish that they would show all of the menus in the printed timetable, instead of just part.
"Deggesty": Glad that your wife found the children's menu with some good variations, as I have.
BTW: On the many Amtrak trains that I have taken, the dining car menu always has some sort of steak item, which they really push as being the "best thing on the menu." But, it ain't worth a darn. Don't get it, even if it is "free" to sleeping car passengers. Not only will I never order it (after my first time), but everyone else at my "community seating" table found it to be awful.
Sadly, for coach passengers who feel that they need to get the "best thing on the menu," they have to pay an extraordinarily high price. Something on the order of upper twenty dollars, as I recall. What a shame.
Another recommendation: If you ever choose to take the Coast Starlight (LA to Seattle), there is also a private Parlour Car for sleeping car passengers. The car itself is set up with about one half for dining (including a bar) and the other half for casual lounge seating. But the neat thing is, this Parlour Car has its own attendant (behind the "bar") with an entirely different (albeit shorter) menu than the dining car. An excellent alternative.
I don't know of any decent, non-chain restaurants "very near by" Union Station as the writer asked, but...
Thank you conrailman for replying to me. We traveled on the City of New Orleans yesterday, and following your advice, we got to the station early. The Metropolitan lounge attendant told us that normally the sleeping car passengers were allowed to board at 7.05 pm every night and gave us a handwritten card with that boarding time on it..
On this particular night, just after 7.05pm, an announcement was made that boarding would be slightly delayed. We actually boarded at about 7.25pm. Our sleeping car attendant said we should wait in the sleeper until dinner service was announced.
No announcement was heard before our on time departure at 8pm. It turned out the dining car staff had tried to make several announcements, but apparently, the announcement system was not working. When the dining car people saw they had no customers, they walked through to the sleeper and asked our sleeper attendant to walk through the sleeper to inform everyone that diner was now open for dinner. That happened shortly after our 8pm on time departure.
The diner was almost full, but we all had plenty of time for a leisurely dinner, including dessert and coffee, served by two very friendly wait staff. Service was in a Cross Country Diner, which offered a full service menu. The consist had a separate lounge car which we did not visit. The diner was close to full, but there was never a waiting line for any of the three meal times and service was reasonably prompt.
It was altogether a most pleasant trip to a vacation in New Orleans
Congratulations on your successful City of New Orleans trip, "Goonhilly" ! Sounds like all went quite well for you in Chicago. As I am learning with Amtrak, what is stated "policy" is often overruled at individual stations and by train conductors.
Your kind treatment, with early boarding, in the Metropolitan Lounge was certainly unique. Perhaps it was that the equipment was thought to be unusually ready ahead of time, but later found not to be. Regardless, in the future, I may see if I can get the same handwritten note that you did.
Regarding on-board announcements: I have found that once a train is departing, everyone seems to want to get on the PA system at the same time to welcome and instruct: the Conductor, the dining car matre de, and the cafe proprietor. Unfortunately, their individual voices override each other, so lots of information gets lost to the passenger. Also, if the sleeping car bedroom hard door is closed, one can hardly hear anything therein from the aisle speakers.
travelingengineer Congratulations on your successful City of New Orleans trip, "Goonhilly" ! Sounds like all went quite well for you in Chicago. As I am learning with Amtrak, what is stated "policy" is often overruled at individual stations and by train conductors. Your kind treatment, with early boarding, in the Metropolitan Lounge was certainly unique. Perhaps it was that the equipment was thought to be unusually ready ahead of time, but later found not to be. Regardless, in the future, I may see if I can get the same handwritten note that you did. Regarding on-board announcements: I have found that once a train is departing, everyone seems to want to get on the PA system at the same time to welcome and instruct: the Conductor, the dining car matre de, and the cafe proprietor. Unfortunately, their individual voices override each other, so lots of information gets lost to the passenger. Also, if the sleeping car bedroom hard door is closed, one can hardly hear anything therein from the aisle speakers.
As to announcements, if the system is working properly, you can hear announcements in your room (barring cacophony from competing announcers)--if the room's controls are set properly (right channel and sufficient volume), but it may take a little experimentation to make sure that you have them set right. As to hearing the aisle speaker, this past spring , as we were approaching San Antonio on our way toNew Orleans we were treated to a long description of what would take place in San Antonio concerning the switching there--and we had gone to sleep some time earlier. Even with the speaker in the room off and the door closed, I could hear quite clearly what everybody, even those passengers who were going to New Orleans, needed to know so that they would not be disturbed by what was done in San Antonio.
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