Q & A: Eating and drinking on Amtrak
Posted on June 29th, 2009 – 1:01 AMBy Elizabeth Larsen
Q: I’m planning a train trip west to Montana aboard the Empire builder and I’m wondering if there are any restrictions on bringing food/alcohol on the train.Â
A: I contacted Amtrak and the answer is It Depends. Passengers with tickets for sleeper car travel are allowed to bring food and alcohol on board as long as they eat and drink in their compartment.  Coach and sleeper car passengers can bring their own food and non-alcoholic beverages in the upper level of the Sightseer Lounge Car. But if you want to eat or drink in the dining car or the lower level of the lounge car, you’re limited to what’s on Amtrak’s menu.Â
3 Responses to "Q & A: Eating and drinking on Amtrak"
Your answer is woefully incomplete. Since sleeper passengers are provided all meals as part of their ticket, there is certainly no reason for them to bring food onto the train. And most restaurants limit patrons to what is on the menu; Amtrak’s dining cars are no different.
It should also be noted that Amtrak will not heat any personal food brought on board, nor will they refrigerate any personal food.
It’s a little presumptuous of Mr. Roller to declare that there is no reason for any sleeper passenger to bring their own food on board. Many people have medical issues that require special diets that cannot be accommodated by Amtrak. Others choose to bring their own snacks with them. Whatever the reason, it’s no business of Mr. Roller.
As to “AlanB”’s comment–FDA regulations prevent Amtrak from heating or refrigerating passengers’ own food. Don’t make it look like Amtrak is the “bad guy” here…
Kerri Westenberg has globe-trotted for National Geographic and other magazines. Now she zips around the region, on the lookout for travel news you can use.
Elizabeth Larsen lived in Salzburg, Austria, and has traveled throughout Europe and the Americas. She can say "diaper," "bottle" and "crib" in four languages.
Troy Melhus has heli-skied on glaciers, dived alongside Monk seals and raced for 24 hours on a mountain bike. All this, and he rarely spends more than $500 on a trip.
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