The Acela FC attendant just told me that now FC passengers can go to the Cafe Car and request a complimentary cheeseburger, hot dog, or breakfast sandwich. Thumbs-up for this interim step to restoring hot food to Acela First Class.

Thanks for the heads up on this. I am traveling FC in a few weeks (Needed some extra points and the price differential was not as wide as it normally was so I decided to splurge). I will ask the attendant this as soon as I get aboard and settled in.

This is good. I would even be in favor of making this as a permanent change. I've always found the food in the cafe to be marginally better than the FC "hot" food.

Before the pandemic, it was an open secret that you could, sort of.

FC was usually stocked with cheeseburgers and hot dogs as "kids meals," that most FC attendants would gladly serve to Big Kids.

The boxes now include a printed menu for the Cafe Car and the FC attendant will bring your selection. While not the same as the prepared meals of pre-pandemic, it's a very welcome addition. The cheeseburger and hot dogs are not bad at all.

Good for Amtrak for making this official.

Any updates to Acela FC catering? Looks like still a snack box only per Amtrak.com, with full beverage service. No mention there that I saw of free items from the cafe car.
Fares for an upcoming trip to WAS are only marginally more than Acela Business, so we might "splurge."

I'm hearing the hot meais will come back to Acela First Class on or about March 1.

Are mixed drinks in Acela FC pre-bottled/pre-made, or are they mixed on board?

The drinks menu seemed really good- that alone makes it worth the upgrade, in my view.

Done like on airplanes, with minis and mixers served separately. I usually order a mimosa, and am given a split of prosecco and bottle of OJ -- makes two :)

https://www.amtrak.com/content/dam/p...erage-Menu.pdf

Just saw this on Amtrak's website. Not sure when it was posted, but it appears hot options are available again, in addition to the breakfast/lunch/dinner boxes. Nothing fancy but the offerings sure beat the boxes. Would be interested to know when the hot meals become available again. I have some upgrades I will need to use before the end of the year, although I plan on saving them, hoping to use them on the Avelia Liberty entering service before the end of the year. Also, the ticket price difference between First and Business, at least booking more than three weeks in advance, has decreased drastically in the past month to the point where its worth while to purchase First Class tickets. During the pandemic, I have only purchased a First Class ticket once, WAS-STM one-way. I thought it was nowhere near worth it without the option of hot meal choices and I do not plan on considering purchasing a First Class ticket or using an upgrade with the status quo until the Avelia Liberty enters service this year. Hot meals coming back, plus a smaller difference in price between First and Business, I will consider it, especially for trips longer than WAS-NYP. Last month I did get an email from Amtrak saying that later this year the Avelia Liberty would enter service in 2021 but no date was given.

Riding this past week the only offer was the breakfast box as indicated on the sheet. The drink menu was included inside the box.

The enchiladas sound the same (or at least very similar) to the Flexible Dining version on long distance trains. Similar to a TV Dinner but tasted alright in my opinion. Might be different but ingredients sound similar.

I have another trip coming up to use up more coupons so if anything has changed ill update.

Thanks for the update. I have a WAS-BOS roundtrip after March 1 so I will either hold on to my upgrade if its still box meal service or will use an upgrade if hot meals are indeed back.

My source (an Acela FC attendant) told me he saw a memo this would be available on or about March 1. The Jimmy Dean / cheeseburger / hot dog option has been available for the past two months, but this is a nice improvement on selection.

Pre-Covid they are mixed on board, well made, and quite generous. Post-Covid I can't say but hope it's the same!

The hot meal menu is being offered in Acela First now.

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.fly...799faff53d.jpg