Originally Posted by
dordal
A 'roomette' comes with 'free meals', according to the Amtrak website. Are these worth it...? Or are Amtrak meals so bad that you want to bring your own food...? :-) How do the free meals work? Do they give you a coupon for the dining car or something?
Well everyone's definition of "worth it" is different, so it's hard to say what you might think. I typically tell people to expect something on the order of Dennies. The food is filling, typically better than what is served in the cafe car, and some meals are actually quite tasty.
If you decide to bring your own food, know that you will have no way to cook anything, nor will you have a way to keep it cold. So you would have to bring things that will keep without refrigeration and that you can basically eat right out of the box.
As for how the free meals work, the crew will ask you to sign your guest check and to put down your car number and room number. Do not fill out your order though, they will do that for you. If they aren't sure if you came from the sleeper, then they might also ask to see your ticket stub just to prove that you are indeed in a sleeper.
Note that tip and alcoholic beverages are not included. Also all meals must be in the dining car, if you go to the cafe car you will be required to pay for anything you buy there.