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We arrived at LA Union Station early, have to beat the morning traffic here. So I spent some time looking around. The beautiful and unused restaurant was open and they were making a movie there. They were also using the old ticket area, also beautiful and unused. Why can't one of these areas be converted into a first class lounge?
We boarded our sleeper early and greeted our TA, Regina. She was just back from furlough since the CS began traveling the full route two days earlier. We left on time, two sleepers and the transition dorm. No Parlour (Parlor?) car.
Lunch was the burger (basically cold) and the apple crisp (mostly crisp, little apple). Art had an open faced turkey sandwich which was served on a biscuit (?) but he did eat it all.
We met the southbound #11 in SLO. Rails and Trails boarded and gave their commentary which is really pretty brief and identical both ways. In other words, they read their script.
Our SA in the diner, Lisa, said they had trainee staff in the kitchen, that was why the meals were coming out "a little odd". They also had several new staff in other areas working with the more experienced staff. We found Rich Ruiz, the TA on our very first trip two years ago, working in the diner. He too had just come off of furlough.
Regina brought a glass of wine to the room, no cheese, etc. in the diner this time. For dinner I had "risotto" and veges. It was actually rice colored yellow and veges. Not bad but certainly not risotto. Neighbors reported the flat iron steak as good.
After my usual night of not sleeping, checking my GPS whenever I wondered where I was, we arose to a lovely view of Mt. Shasta and breakfast. Scrambled eggs for me, French toast for Art, both OK but not great. June was the TSA in the diner, she is actually from Yorkshire, England and I was pleased to correctly pin down her accent, much to her surprise.
KFS was on time, early morning, 39 degrees out there. The trip through the Cascades was interesting. Our conductor pointed out the slide areas and I hope the few pictures I got give an idea of what it was like. Tried the tuna sandwich for lunch, again just OK. And we actually had hot dogs for dinner. Rich made sure they grilled them rather than nuking the bun into cardboard. Wine was brought to the room again in the afternoon. And we had an ontime arrival in Seattle.
The trip to the Best Western Pioneer Square was short, about $7 taxi fare. I would recommend the hotel, very nicely refurbished. It is not cheap but neither is anything else downtown. And the location is great. The also had a very high caliber continental breakfast included. In the morning we spent $$ at the nearby Mystery Book Store and had lunch at the BBQ place just around the corner. That was excellent. We went to our cruise ship at about 1:00, again a short taxi ride.
The Alaskan Cruise was great. If any of you are interested in those photos, let me know and I will send you the link. But I separated out the rail photos for this report.
Our return trip on #11 went very well because we were surprised to be upgraded to a bedroom! We are now spoiled and may never be able to tolerate a roomette again. The general consensus was that we were just lucky. We had been booked into car 1132 and they were not running three sleepers yet. A social group of seniors, 36 of them, were taking up most of the sleeper space. They were new to trains and enjoying the trip.
The southbound trip got a bit behind during the first night, per the conductor a disabled freight held us up. We maintained that 1 1/2 hour delay the rest of the way. This trip found Regina in the diner (her preferred job), Rich handling two coaches and Cruz was our TA.
We were told by the Red Cap in Seattle that King Street Station was bought by the city a month ago and it was expected that the long planned refurbishments will take place soon. Hope so, it will be grand once it is done. At this time it hasn't changed since we were last there in October of 2007.
There was a heat wave in Seattle and Portland. At arrival in Portland the temp was 88 degrees. There was less snow in the Cascades already, only a week later.
Food tried on this trip - the game hen, pretty good, breakfast omelet so-so, filled with kidney beans and corn. The AC went out in the kitchen on day two so the TSA, Chris, decreed no grilled food for lunch or dinner - there went a decent hotdog. No wine was offered on day one but we did have some on day two. And no PPC, goes without saying. They began running them the day we got home. By dinner Chris decided the flat iron steak could be grilled but nothing else. I had the trout, again just OK. Art had the steak, it wasn't bad. Dinner was slim pickings - no salad, only about four of the entrees, no ice cream (it got melted somehow!).
We did have the pleasure of meeting Frank in SBA for about one minute. No time to be wasted there when we were behind schedule.
Coming into the home stretch we had an emergency stop, after Van Nuys, on the bridge over the Hollywood Freeway. Turned out a hydraulic hose had become uncoupled and it was a quick fix. We came into Union Station a little over an hour late.
Conclusions - I still find the food poor; edible but definitely not something to look forward to. I have yet to be on a LD train that did not run out of food. There must be some way to better plan the food needs. All the staff we met were great - friendly, seemed glad to be there (probably because they just came off furlough and were really happy to be there) and worked very hard. The delivery of wine to the rooms was a bit shabby but I presume that will all change on June 10th with the relaunch. And the alternate food being talked about can't be bad. I think it is Amtrak's weakest area at this time. But then, VIA Rail spoiled me there.
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Great job, Vicki! We really should have taken a picture to commemorate the meet and greet to validate my existence. Both Norm and I had our cell phones with cameras but forgot about it in the excitement and trying to offer you and Art one of the two burritos we'd just bought and get you back on board.
The burritos were good, BTW, and big. Watch out for the hot sauce. Those of you who do the day trip might want to try this place. It's called Arturo's and is a hole in the wall (literally) at the Batting Cages about 75 feet down Milpas from the Hamburger Habit. The have a surprisingly large menu and all of the tortas sounded interesting.
I'm looking forward to the link to the cruise pics.
Frank in chilly, overcast SBA
Posts: 2160 | From: Santa Barbara, CA, USA | Registered: Oct 2003
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Thanks for the trip report, Vicki. I've had Cruz many times over the years as my attendant. It's too bad you didn't have a PPC, because when he does the wine tastings, he has some funny jokes up his sleeve!
I agree with your assessment of the food. This is what I encounter on pretty much every trip. I'll let everyone know if the food is different for the relaunch trip on June 10th. They're going to offer lobster------LOBSTER?? Okay, I hate to sound negative here.....but Amtrak can barely figure out how to nuke a frickin' cheeseburger. How in the world are they going to do lobster? I'll believe it when I see it. Oh how I would love to be proven wrong!
Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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Smitty, the seafood option on one meal was "lobster claws" on rice. I could not bring myself to try that nor did I see it. All rice dishes were yellow by the way. What the heck is that? I await your food report with great interest.
-------------------- Vicki in usually sunny Southern California Posts: 951 | From: Redondo Beach, CA | Registered: Aug 2006
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The yellow is probably tumeric. As to the lobster, Smitty maybe they will train them to jump into the pot.
Posts: 1577 | From: virginia | Registered: Jun 2005
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Vicki, the other spice that could make the rice yellow would be saffron. However I really doubt that they use that as it comes from the crocus plant and is the most expensive spice in the world. It is used in Spanish cooking and I think mostly sea food.
Posts: 1577 | From: virginia | Registered: Jun 2005
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Vicki --great trip report, as usual!!! We look forward to our trip on the CS in July (as well as the rest of our trip on both AMTRAK and VIA, and visiting people on the west coast!!)
--Railroad Rich
Posts: 2428 | From: Grayling, MI | Registered: Mar 2002
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I will remain optimistic about the dining car until I hear that Country Fried Steak has returned.
-------------------- David Pressley
Advocating for passenger trains since 1973!
Climbing toward 5,000 posts like the Southwest Chief ascending Raton Pass. Cautiously, not nearly as fast as in the old days, and hoping to avoid premature reroutes. Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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Three cheers for bringing back Country Fried Steak!!! CFS with some mash potatos and gravy and green beans. Hmmm. I would totally buy it if Amtrak offered it!! Pardon the country bumpkin humor David. I grew up on that kind of food.
-------------------- Patrick Posts: 387 | From: Bakersfield, CA | Registered: Jan 2003
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Patrick, did you ever taste Amtrak's Chicken Fried Steak? If so, you might not be cheering to bring it back. I happen to love chicken fried steak (and Applebee's Chicken Fried Chicken too!)---but Amtrak's version of this dish was rotten. Absolutely disgusting.
On the other hand, their beef special under SDS was not too bad. Their half-chicken was good as well. But the CFS and the veggie stir fry were blah! The stir fry was way too salty.
Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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Patrick, we are NOT talking about your mama's CFS.
We are talking about that old aunt that smokes like a chimney and cannot cook water. That's the aunt that makes Amtrak's Chicken Fried Steaks.
Posts: 1418 | From: Houston, Republic of Texas | Registered: Jan 2001
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Dang! I want that Applebee's version! Evidently I was assuming 'had one CFS, had them all'. Guess I was wrong. FIE ON THEM! FIE ON THEM, FOR THEY HAVE BASTARDIZED A KITCHEN CLASSIC!!!! ....ok..exiting melodrama mode.....
-------------------- Patrick Posts: 387 | From: Bakersfield, CA | Registered: Jan 2003
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Good report and while not exactly a glowing account of AmFood, it still makes me want to ride the CS again - especially after the upgrade.
Posts: 2397 | From: Camden, SC | Registered: Mar 2006
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Yeah......Amtrak's Country Fried Steak was kind of the school cafeteria version. The old Bob Evans Breakfast Scramble left me kind of clammy too.
Mike Smith, maybe my ultimate demise will come about as a result of something inside an Amtrak CFS that I once ingested!
-------------------- David Pressley
Advocating for passenger trains since 1973!
Climbing toward 5,000 posts like the Southwest Chief ascending Raton Pass. Cautiously, not nearly as fast as in the old days, and hoping to avoid premature reroutes. Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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quote:Originally posted by notelvis: Yeah......Amtrak's Country Fried Steak was kind of the school cafeteria version.
Ah---that's the best description I've heard of yet! Yes, that's exactly what is was like. Very good comparison.
Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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I'm something of a devotee of CFS and am happy to say that I've found a very good one here in Santa Barbara at Jake's Country Corner Cafe on de la Vina Street. A runner up would be Potlikker's in Homestead, FL but that was before Andrew. I'll be in Nashville starting on Thursday and plan to do some taste testing.
Frank in cool, dark SBA
To keep this on track, so to speak, I had the Amtrak version once and it was, uh, unfortunate.
Posts: 2160 | From: Santa Barbara, CA, USA | Registered: Oct 2003
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quote:Originally posted by notelvis: Mike Smith, maybe my ultimate demise will come about as a result of something inside an Amtrak CFS that I once ingested!
Yep, remnants of several of those CFS are probably slowly eating their way through your small intestine wall, right now....
Or Not. Posts: 1418 | From: Houston, Republic of Texas | Registered: Jan 2001
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quote:Originally posted by amtraxmaniac: Three cheers for bringing back Country Fried Steak!!! CFS with some mash potatos and gravy and green beans. Hmmm. I would totally buy it if Amtrak offered it!! Pardon the country bumpkin humor David. I grew up on that kind of food.
Offense not taken!
I had the school cafeteria version of CFS for lunch just yesterday! The school year is winding down to the last 7 or 8 days and the offerings are getting stranger everyday.
BBQ Meatloaf Sandwich anyone?
-------------------- David Pressley
Advocating for passenger trains since 1973!
Climbing toward 5,000 posts like the Southwest Chief ascending Raton Pass. Cautiously, not nearly as fast as in the old days, and hoping to avoid premature reroutes. Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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Mr. Presley, it appears that your school district is experimenting with substitute ingredients. Since meat loaf is often more bread crumbs than ground beef, the sliced beef i.e. the previously offered BBQ Beef sandwich, is likely a casualty of a lower cost "substitute".
Not sure how many here watch NBC News (and I realize the young are far less inclined to have network news part of their evening than are folk of my age and demographic), but here is a clip aired last evening suggesting "times are tough":
The ticket office area of LAUPT is actually in fair demand as I recall as a movie set. I suspect whoever owns LAUPT these days gets more money from running it as a set than any other use.
The restaurant out on the portico was the Harvey House when LAUPT opened in 1939. Again, I believe it gets best use as a movie set. Even when my Dad worked at the 300 N Los Angeles St Federal Building, there wasn't much demand for a 300 seat restaurant in downtown. Everyone seemed to want trendy 50-100 seat places.
Posts: 1404 | Registered: Oct 2001
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Hey, please do not cast aspersions on meatloaf. Properly prepared, it is second to none, and for that reason it is my favorite comfort food. I wish Amtrak had a good meatloaf on its dining car menu.
Posts: 2236 | From: Evanston, Ill. and Ontonagon, Mich. | Registered: Feb 2007
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Pullman - it seems to me that restaurant could be converted to a lovely first class lounge. The CS relaunch states there will be some type of amenity for the sleeper passengers. Can't wait for Smitty to tell us what he sees.
Meanwhile, in reference to this hijacked thread, I actually had the CFS once and thought it not too bad. But it is indeed not being offered now.
-------------------- Vicki in usually sunny Southern California Posts: 951 | From: Redondo Beach, CA | Registered: Aug 2006
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quote:Originally posted by PullmanCo: I suspect whoever owns LAUPT these days gets more money from running it as a set than any other use.
It appears that LAUPT (or LAUS in newspeak) is still owned by Catellus Corp. This concern once was owned by Santa Fe Industries, but apparently has now been "spun off" - likely as part of the railroad's "back to basics" initiative.
Posts: 9977 | From: Clarendon Hills, IL USA (BNSF Chicago Sub MP 18.71) | Registered: Apr 2002
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As our mutual friend Mr Norman notes, Amtrak is a tenant, not the property holder. If they want to convert the restaurant or the main ticket office (pre-Amtrak, I got tickets there twice and post Amtrak at least once) to lounge use, well, money talks.
BTW, Mr Norman, Castellus is a subsidiary of ProLogis, which is headquartered in Denver. Looks like a multinational REIT to me...
-------------------- The City of Saint Louis (UP, 1967) is still my standard for passenger operations Posts: 1404 | Registered: Oct 2001
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A friend recently contacted Catellus about attempting to open up a mini McDonald's or Taco Bell inside Union Station. They were fairly straightforward in stating that they have no interest whatsoever in doing any such thing, or changing the way things are right now. They don't care about WiFi, they don't care about a first class lounge, they don't care about offering fast/cheap food.....they basically don't care. They think things are just fine the way they are. That's probably why Amtrak and Catellus are such a nice match.
Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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Olvera Street is across the street. There is pretty darn good food over there, pretty darn cheap.
There is not a need in the world for fast food inside LAUPT. Trust me, I've taken my son from the station complex across the street, had a late lunch, and returned in time to board the EB SW Chief (only back in 2002 it was the "mixto diario" Fast Mail).
-------------------- The City of Saint Louis (UP, 1967) is still my standard for passenger operations Posts: 1404 | Registered: Oct 2001
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But how many train passengers know (or have the desire) to walk across the street for a quick bite? How many daily commuters have the desire to do that? In my opinion, not many. Look at the constant parade of people in and out of the mini-7-11 (I forget the name of that little store) inside Union Station. Why are all of those people buying stuff there, when they can just walk across the street to do it? Simple---it's quick and convenient.
Not all people are into "the experience", etc, and just want a hamburger and fries. They would do a booming business if allowed.
Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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All involved need to realize that the current usage of LAUPT is much different than it was 50 years ago. It is now primarily a commuter station with lots of short time stayers going through every day. There are probably more bodies going through the station today than at anytime in its history. Yes, the makeup of the crowds and their destinations are quite different, but the body count is there. Therefore, it would make very good sense to have fast food places, convenience stores, etc. inside the buliding.
Posts: 2808 | From: Olive Branch MS | Registered: Nov 2002
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Bottom line is sell the corporate owners of the building. - Until they see the $$$ signs to their bottom line - and until... -- they don't see any hassle from the City of Los Angeles or -- the $$$ signs to the bottom line overcome the hassle...
(as I recall, the station is part of the historic district)
there isn't going to be change.Posts: 1404 | Registered: Oct 2001
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Come on now. Who needs Mickie D's when we have Union Bagelry and Traxx (SArcasm inteneded). These two outlets are more high end and Castellus knows people will buy buy buy. Personally, I prefer the charm of the Bagelry, but often my wallet doth protest. I'm sure objections from these two outlets have A LOT to do with Castellus' objection. If management wanted to serve the commuters better, they can put fast food in somewhere on the Gateway Plaza side of the tunnel. That way Metrolink passengers don't have to walk ALL THE WAY into the station and THEN TO THE OPPOSITE FAR WEST END of the station to get food. Then Union bagelry and Traxx can be at one end and, say, TACO BELL or McDonalds could be at the other end of the property. It makes sense to me. The patrons waiting in the waiting room end of the station are NOT typically Metrolink passengers. Putting something in at the Gateway Plaza end would provide easier access for those Metrolink passenger who might only have 20 or 30 minutes to spare. BTW-does Castellus also manage Gateway Center and the Bus Terminal?
On a side note, for those who know the area, I prefer to cross Vignes and eating at Denney's. The service is usually pretty good, and it's a shorter street to cross.
-------------------- Patrick Posts: 387 | From: Bakersfield, CA | Registered: Jan 2003
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Somehow I remember there being some sort of food outlet at the Gateway Plaza side. It's been a year since I went out that way but I'd swear there was something there. And there has to bee some sort of food service in the RTD building.
Ah, Denny's. I've got to share this story. My partner was working a flight to Costa Rica and put the nice breakfast that Continental still serves in front of two ladies from Alabama. They looked at it and said, "My, this is better than Denny's!". True story. They confessed that they usually flew "the Delta" but were on "points".
Frank in dark and cool SBA.
Posts: 2160 | From: Santa Barbara, CA, USA | Registered: Oct 2003
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Frank, we come through the Gateway Plaza side all the time because we are parked in the structure. Haven't seen any food there. By the RTD building do you mean the MTA building? They may have food for employees somewhere in there.
I think the Bagel place is OK for a snack and coffee although not cheap. But it does seem that some type of more extensive food would be nice for travelers, rather like Chicago.
As for Trax, we plan to check out the bar next Tuesday when we pick up our friends coming in on the CS. That place is "better than Denny's".
-------------------- Vicki in usually sunny Southern California Posts: 951 | From: Redondo Beach, CA | Registered: Aug 2006
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Is Gateway Plaza a part of LAUS? Must be new since the last time I went through LAX on AMTRAK (2002). Do Metrolink passengers board through the same building and tunnel complex as AMTRAK passengers, or is this "Gateway Plaza" some kind of subsidiary station for Metrolink passengers?
We will be AMTRAKing to LAUPT on our trip in a few weeks, but my wife's son and his family are going to be picking us up at LAUPT (we come in on the SWC) and we will then check our baggage somewhere for an hour or so while we trounce up to Phillipes's for breakfast.
Posts: 2428 | From: Grayling, MI | Registered: Mar 2002
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Once upon a time (1963 and 1967), the tunnel ended at the last upramp.
From what I observed on my 2002 trip home to LA, when Gateway Plaza was built, LAUS property owners demolished the old Santa Fe Commissary on the North end of the complex, and punched the passenger tunnel to daylight.
Posts: 1404 | Registered: Oct 2001
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Thanks for an excellent trip report, Vicki. I am glad to hear they are moving on plans to fix up King St Station in Seattle; it's very much needed. I don't mind LA Union Station as much as some of you guys--it's still a pretty nice building--but I think it's silly that there is not first-class lounge for sleeper passengers.
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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While I have not set foot on LAUPT property since 1991, I have not had occasion to experience its metamorphosis from a LD "gateway" into a mass transit hub. Neither LA Metro nor Metrolink were there at that time.
As Mr. Pullman notes, the main waiting room and ticket office (in which BTW, all three RR's maintained their own windows) is largely used fro special events and as a stage for one TV commercial or the other. In short, for anything other than a Waiting Room for LD passengers. I can remember the oversized leather easy chairs in that room as well as about the station. However, I'm sure those have long since been "casualties".
Posts: 9977 | From: Clarendon Hills, IL USA (BNSF Chicago Sub MP 18.71) | Registered: Apr 2002
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