Fast Food: Railroad Dining

Fast Food: Railroad Dining. . Dining cars did not become standard equipment on railroads until after the Civil War. Before food was served on trains, meal options for passengers were less than appetizing. Roadhouses near regular train water-stops offered a limited selection of bad food and even worse coffee., By the 1880s, most railroads served meals in the manner of a full-service sit-down restaurant. The kitchen galley took up about one third of the dining car. It was fitted with a large stove, ovens, ice box (refrigerator), a food pantry, and storage for linens, china, cutlery, and glasses., The dining car staff included a steward who was in charge, a chef and his assistants, and two or three waiters. The dining car usually offered two or three sittings for each meal. Passengers had to book a particular time with e steward., There were three universal dining car customs: , . Passengers were seated on a first come first serve basis as they arrived for their scheduled seating. Passengers who were late missed their seating and were out of luck! , . The steward seated passengers at his own discretion and filled tables entirely to ensure everyone got fed. That meant people often sat with strangers during meals. , . Passengers always filled out their own meal card so that there was no mistakes in the galley., Other kinds of food service were available on trains, including a take-away counter where food was purchased and eaten at the passenger’s seat., Many of the larger railroads had china printed with their company logo. Railroad china is a popular collector’s item today., By the 1880s, meals, even cakes and pies, were prepared entirely on board the train from fresh ingredients., (captions) , Interior of a Palace Hotel Car used on the Pacific Railroad (Harper’s Weekly, May 1869). , A dining car on the Canadian National Railroad. , A typical dining car galley.