What kind of eating facilities were on trains in the 40's & 50's

[Paradise275]

OK,
Trains that I remember riding in the 40's and early 50's had a dining car and someone going through the coaches with a basket selling sandwiches etc.
How many dining cars were used on a single train? Were there other cars that provided food like the parlor car or chair car etc. Trains were pretty full back then especially during the Korean war.

Rick

[jmlaboda]

Only a few trains actually carried two dining cars with most of these high-demand operations having twin-unit diner car sets (a kitchen - dorm or kitchen - lounge car and a full length table car), or in the case of the Southern Pacific, triple unit dining cars.

In addition to full dining cars a variety of other car types also provided food service, sometimes being a coach - dinette (like on the Southern Railway) or a coach - buffet lounge, which would have a small kitchen and serving area and would provide drinks, snacks (candy and chips) and sandwiches.  Other roads had lunch counter - lounge cars, cafeteria cars, coach - snack bar cars (same as a coach - buffet lounge).  Then you have some of the Pullman variations such as restaurant - parlor cars, sleeper - lounge and sleeper - lounge observation cars, which also sold light meals and sandwiches.  Two of my favorite cars in regards to the restaurant - parlor cars were two cars purchased from Pullman by Atlantic Coast Line, two cars that the Gulf Mobile & Ohio (turned into Instruction cars in full passenger maroon and red with gold trim) and Aberdeen Carolina & Western's ex-PRR Defender, which was recently repainted in ACWR's new burgundy paint and renamed Pinehurst for the golf enthusiast landmark town which the line runs through...

ACL Augusta nee-PULL Ashland
ACL Augusta as Tennessee Southern's Miss Judy
GM&O 400 Azalea nee-PULL Cuba)
GM&O 66658 (ex-106, exx-401 Camellia nee-PULL Matanzas) as Instruction car
GM&O 66658
ACWR 7014 Defender nee-PULL
ACWR Pinehurst

[Paradise275]

Thanks Jerry.
That's a detailed answer. Apart from Kato's Southern Daylight, I don't think any other supplier has done anything other than a form of dining car. A kitchen dormatoy car would be great for the trans continental trains.
Do you know of any production cars that could possibly be used in that capacity?
As you may have gathered I like to run passenger trains.
Rick

[CBQ Fan]

Kato did a two unit diner if I recal.

[Paradise275]

Brian, do you remeber for which line?


Rick

[eric220]

Kato's twin unit diner was part of the PRR Broadway Limited set. Table car and kitchen/dorm.

[John]

what about the Jim Crow laws?  How did they affect diners?

[CBQ Fan]

Kato's twin unit diner was part of the PRR Broadway Limited set. Table car and kitchen/dorm.

Thanks, I left out one minor piece of information.

[Bob Bufkin]

A little later than the 40s and 50s, some railroads started using vending machine cars (believe SP was one) which from everything I've read were disliked by everyone except the railroads.

[CBQ Fan]

A little later than the 40s and 50s, some railroads started using vending machine cars (believe SP was one) which from everything I've read were disliked by everyone except the railroads.

The CB&Q did the same thing on a trial basis.

[rsn48]

On the Canadian trans-continental run, the early 50's saw two dinners on the Super Continental (summer) that evolved into one dinner and a snack area for the, not first class crowd.

I think the same was true on the Canadian (summer) as well.

I ate many times in the first class dinner on the Super Continental and it was said the best roast beef (Alberta beef) was to be found on that train rather than in a restaurant. I crossed Canada there and back for many summers.

Generally speaking, true in Canada and the States, the longer the run, generally the more and better the facilities.  And today, I have heard many times the Coast Starlight from San Fran to Seattle is still one of the best eating experiences on Amtrak.

[C855B]

... And today, I have heard many times the Coast Starlight from San Fran to Seattle is still one of the best eating experiences on Amtrak.

Sadly, not currently true. One of the outstanding things about the Starlight was the ex-Santa Fe parlor cars, which are now not being run due to budget cuts this year. We had the good fortune of experiencing them a couple of times, the most recent this past March, just before the cutbacks. The parlor cars would serve a subset of the regular diner menu, but with different garnishes. It was highly enjoyable, and definitely a great dining experience.

Our last year's parlor car trip was a hoot - not only was it one of the rare re-routes through the Tehachapis, the parlor car attendant was having a fun time plying us with champagne to see just how goofy we would get. We were pretty goofy when we arrived in L.A.

I hope Amtrak sees fit to reinstate the cars and the great travel experience that went with them.

[eric220]

Sadly, not currently true. One of the outstanding things about the Starlight was the ex-Santa Fe parlor cars, which are now not being run due to budget cuts this year. We had the good fortune of experiencing them a couple of times, the most recent this past March, just before the cutbacks. The parlor cars would serve a subset of the regular diner menu, but with different garnishes. It was highly enjoyable, and definitely a great dining experience.

Our last year's parlor car trip was a hoot - not only was it one of the rare re-routes through the Tehachapis, the parlor car attendant was having a fun time plying us with champagne to see just how goofy we would get. We were pretty goofy when we arrived in L.A.

I hope Amtrak sees fit to reinstate the cars and the great travel experience that went with them.

Um, I took both the northbound and southbound back in September, and both trains, as well as all of the opposing trains had pacific parlor cars.

[C855B]

Thanks, Eric, that's really good to know. I had received a bulletin from NARP that the parlor cars were off the train. Funny how they didn't bother to tell us they were reinstated.

[JMaurer1]

On the Southern Pacific, they weren't called 'vending machine cars' but originally they were called Automat Buffet cars, later called Automat Cafe and finally it was just shortened to 'Automat' cars. Southern Pacific claimed that the dining cars operated at a loss in 1954 (which needed up to 16 people to operate) and wanted to do away with them (actually they wanted to completely do away with passenger service). The first step was the introduction of the Hamburger Grill cars shortly thereafter. In 1960 or 1961 SP introduced the Automat cars to replace the Hamburger Grill cars with the 'advantage' that the Automat cars didn't need ANY people to operate. As stated the railroad loved this but the passengers certainly DID NOT. Not only were the vending machines usually empty before the end of the trip, SP refused to stock the machines with beer or other alcohol (since the automat cars replaced bar service as well). Of course, by this time the railroads were trying to get out of the passenger service altogether so they really didn't care what the passengers thought.