Comments on: Fine dining, on the train

By: Old Geezer

Old Geezer — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 17:20:31 +0000

The good: a martini for $0.40! A glass of beer for $0.30!

The bad and the ugly: a wine list with mostly sweet, dessert wines suitable for Grandma’s tastes. Were we really that unsophisticated back then?

By: Stephen Karlson

Stephen Karlson — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 01:31:09 +0000

That’s probably a generic dining service menu, not specific to the Century (which offered, among other exotic items, watermelon rind pickles). There’s one other clue, the alcoholic beverages listed in the center column as for sale in the States only. Not an issue on the Century, which stayed in the USA, but the Montreal, Toronto, and Detroit via St. Thomas, Ontario, services passed into Canada, where the Central probably wasn’t fully licensed under provincial authority. Interesting, though, to see a half grapefruit as a dessert.

In those days, all the railroads bragged on their custom coffee blends. The Erie used to offer it by mail order to loyal passengers. Alas, NJ Transit probably doesn’t brew it on the Port Jervis trains.

By: Brian

Brian — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 15:51:21 +0000

Great find. Its always interesting to see how many menu items are long gone. And I wonder what makes NYC Special Coffee so special…