RE: (erielack) Dining Cars

["Michael Connor" <mjconnor_rr_@_hotmail.com>]

Ed and List
I can't say if the EL Dining Carservice had a specialty but I do know the 
food was always good and the dining car atmosphere was great.  My 
intoduction to club sandwiches was on the Dining Car on DL&W (and later) EL 
10 which carried a diner (buffet lounge) from Buffalo to Binghamton.  Still 
haven't found any which truly match them.  I was fortunate to have been able 
to dine in diners on many Hobo-Bflo and Hobo-Chgo trains -- not a bad apple 
in the lot!
       The Erie and DL&W Dining Car Departments were effectively merged in 
many ways before the EL merger--I believe they had a common Manager, J M 
Collins, and common commisary, etc.  Of further note is that the DL&W (and 
Erie IIRC) each received an "A" Certificate from the United States Health 
Service from its initiation c. 1957 through and into merger.  The 
certificate was awarded annually to qualifying United States railroads in 
recognition of sanitary excellence.  The USPHS rigidly inspected all dining 
and buffet cars of railroads in interstate commerce.  Cars were graded on 
124 separate items from equipment to personal cleanliness of employees.  In 
1958/59 DL&W dining cars and buffet cars received a rating of 95% or better.
       The ELDCPS is preserving what many of its patrons found to be one of 
the EL and the industry's best-kept secrets.
        M J Connor

>From: "Montgomery, Edward T" <Edward.Montgomery_@_fcps.edu>
>Reply-To: "Montgomery, Edward T" <Edward.Montgomery_@_fcps.edu>
>To: <erielack_@_lists.railfan.net>
>Subject: (erielack) Dining Cars
>Date: Fri, 3 Mar 2006 20:33:54 -0500
>
>I was reading about railroad dining cars in the current TRAINS and it 
>brought up a memory.  I was riding Amtrak's "Montrealer" between Newark and 
>DC in February of 1978.  I met an Amtrak public relations guy on the trip.  
>He was handing out questionaires and asking questions of passengers.  When 
>he found out I was a railfan, he suggested we have breakfast in the diner.  
>We go to talking and he told me about trips he had made including a 
>coast-to-coast trip making the across the platform connection at Dearborn 
>between the AT&SF and EL.  He went on to tell me how good the EL food was, 
>that they didn't seem to compromise on quality even though the passenger 
>loads weren't great.  I never had the opportunity to ride an EL through 
>line train but was wondering, how good was the food?  Did EL have some 
>specialties?  Did they continue any of the specialties that DL&W or Erie 
>originated?  As far as I can tell, the ex Erie diners were upgraded and had 
>quite modern kitchens compared to !
>  what some other lines were using such as wood fired stoves.  I know EL 
>won several dining car awards in the early 60s.  So, what was the EL diner 
>experience like?
>
>Ed Montgomery
>
>
>	The Erie Lackawanna Mailing List
>	Sponsored by the ELH&TS
>	http://www.elhts.org



	The Erie Lackawanna Mailing List
	Sponsored by the ELH&TS
	http://www.elhts.org

------------------------------