Here's a story about Pullman dining that the GWR PR department won't like
quite as much as the coverage the wedding-on-a-train story did:

From
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/columnists/2024/04/14/save-the-1904-pullman-dining-car-service-its-all-thats-left/

Save the train’s dining carriage. It’s all that’s left of our diminishing
civilisation

British trains should be a symbol of British excellence, progress and
culture. They are currently anything but

by WILLIAM SITWELL

It’s one of the last vestiges of mainstream train culture. The 19.04 GWR
Paddington to Plymouth service with its one, single Pullman dining car, for
which seats are fought for and purchased at vast expense.

And doesn’t it just sound so romantic? The opportunity to dine in splendour
while making haste towards God’s own counties of Somerset, Devon and
Cornwall. It’s the most exquisite use of time.

The body has its necessary nutrition, the mind takes pleasure from the
experience and you make actual progress.

And the 19.04 Thursday service is the key one, because it heralds the
weekend (don’t pretend your office is nothing but a barren desert on a
Friday).

So, among the diners, those successful enough to have got a seat, is a
shared feeling of elation, of de-mob euphoria. Until, of course, you must
curtail the cheese course as Taunton approaches. The bill needs paying and
reality is set to return.

The menu offers the likes of soup, terrine, fillet steak, steamed cod, coq
au vin, sticky toffee pudding and cheese. And there’s a tight wine list to
match. All of which sounds promising.

Except that GWR, presumably in its constant quest to make journeys less
comfortable, slower and more expensive, is considering curtailing the 19.04
service. Indeed their assault on this has already begun, moving the dining
offer an hour earlier to 18.03 for the entirety of April.

Which is both inconvenient and uncivilised. Only wine-timid New Yorkers
dine at six and only those who bunk off work early and eschew a pre-commute
snifter can reach Paddington by 6PM.

So if you wish to dine after 7PM it’s the trolley service, that miserable
cupboard on wheels doling out edible substances – Mini Cheddars, Dairy
Milk, whatever miserable sandwiches remain - and only if the card machine
is working (which it frequently isn’t).

If Greater Anglia trains can offer a café bar why not GWR? Maybe because it
denies the opportunity of squeezing in more customers and rinsing them for
revenue. And while we cling to the Pullman car, enjoy the camaraderie,
relish the sight of the ever-friendly staff balancing soup as the train
hurtles down the track at 125 miles per hour, it’s not exactly the Orient
Express.

There is no design ethos. The Pullman car is just a first-class carriage
with place settings. GWR’s deliberately mean approach, with its over-lit
carriages and two courses for £34.50, offers no succour to the diner. No
one thought to commission an actual dining car, to pretty the carriage up
with some curtains, or wood-panelling effect, or a different seating style,
or indeed anything creative or imaginative that might lend the Pullman
carriage an air of hospitality.

If Lloyd Grossman could be hired to consult on NHS menus (of course, in the
end, they thwarted and ignored his advice…) then is it inconceivable that a
titan of British restaurants, or some bloke who runs a caff, or, (here’s an
idea…) a restaurant critic, could offer some tips on GWR dining?

The travelling public and tourists should be encouraged to use British
trains. They should be a symbol of British excellence, progress and
culture. Foreign visitors should return from this country proselytising
about our railways. Yet what is offered instead is a PR disaster; a joyless
and unreliable utilitarian amenity.

And while some may argue that getting a decent meal in a dining carriage is
hardly a priority in 2024 I would argue that having food and service that
we can be proud of is in fact a vital cornerstone of a decent country.

With the only reliable element being vast expense and delays (as usual both
my train to Paddington and the return to Taunton this week were delayed;
stuck behind three freight trains heading to town and delayed by faulty
signalling on the return), the apologies come thick and fast. We’re steered
to Delay/Repay, a tortuous affair that ingeniously holds back most mere
mortals from applying for refunds.

So GWR makes the deliberate decision to offer no creativity in its dining
offer, eschewing centuries of experience when it comes to eating out, with
not a nod to the glory of dining in trains, a rich and fabulous heritage.
We punters engage with it nevertheless and then they take the rug from
under us by plunging the experience deeper into hideous uncivilization by
turning that early evening meal into high bloody tea.

Now GWR MD Mark Hopwood might think he has enough on his plate and that,
while he runs a logistical battlefield of machines and staff, weather and
the vagaries of the travelling public, he only ever hears the complaints.
But perhaps he might think again. This can be an easy win. I know some
cheffy types who would be happy to help with the menu, to add a little
design flourish to the dining experience. And if dinner was elevated I
promise we’d be prepared to pay the price.

There was a time when a regular commuter, an habitué of the Paddington to
Plymouth Pullman, ruled the roost. Whether you were dining solo or with
pals, at Reading he announced; ‘No laptops!’ Anyone caught in breach had to
buy the entire dining car a glass of port. That’s the spirit.

Let’s dine in the same way GWR advertises its service – as a Famous Five
adventure. Some good grub, pleasant surroundings, a decent wine list and a
proper time to eat and we’ll be cheering on Hopwood before we reach Pewsey.
Screw the delays. We’ll just have another bottle!

On 14/04/2024 16:36, Recliner wrote:
> Save the train’s dining carriage. It’s all that’s left of our diminishing
> civilisation
>
> British trains should be a symbol of British excellence, progress and
> culture. They are currently anything but
>
> by WILLIAM SITWELL

Maybe Mr Sitwell would like to explain whre the money is going to come
from to pay for a wood panelled dining car, also perhaps he can explain
to the treasury why GWR should be spending money on pampering a few
journos on expenses.

--
Graeme Wall
This account not read.

Graeme Wall <rail@greywall.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> On 14/04/2024 16:36, Recliner wrote:
>> Save the train’s dining carriage. It’s all that’s left of our diminishing
>> civilisation
>>
>> British trains should be a symbol of British excellence, progress and
>> culture. They are currently anything but
>>
>> by WILLIAM SITWELL
>
> Maybe Mr Sitwell would like to explain whre the money is going to come
> from to pay for a wood panelled dining car, also perhaps he can explain
> to the treasury why GWR should be spending money on pampering a few
> journos on expenses.
>

I don't know the situation with the few GWR Pullman services, but in the
past, dining cars always lost money. With shorter journey times and more
food available in stations, it's probably even more true today. It's why
all the others have disappeared. So he should probably just be grateful
that GWR still runs a few residual dining car trains,

Recliner <recliner.usenet@gmail.com> wrote:
> Graeme Wall <rail@greywall.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>> On 14/04/2024 16:36, Recliner wrote:
>>> Save the train’s dining carriage. It’s all that’s left of our diminishing
>>> civilisation
>>>
>>> British trains should be a symbol of British excellence, progress and
>>> culture. They are currently anything but
>>>
>>> by WILLIAM SITWELL
>>
>> Maybe Mr Sitwell would like to explain whre the money is going to come
>> from to pay for a wood panelled dining car, also perhaps he can explain
>> to the treasury why GWR should be spending money on pampering a few
>> journos on expenses.
>>
>
> I don't know the situation with the few GWR Pullman services, but in the
> past, dining cars always lost money. With shorter journey times and more
> food available in stations, it's probably even more true today. It's why
> all the others have disappeared. So he should probably just be grateful
> that GWR still runs a few residual dining car trains,
>
>

Just under £35 for two courses on a train doesn’t seem enough for a long
term profitable service. Dining out anywhere isn’t cheap these days.

Tweed <usenet.tweed@gmail.com> wrote:
> Recliner <recliner.usenet@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Graeme Wall <rail@greywall.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>>> On 14/04/2024 16:36, Recliner wrote:
>>>> Save the train’s dining carriage. It’s all that’s left of our diminishing
>>>> civilisation
>>>>
>>>> British trains should be a symbol of British excellence, progress and
>>>> culture. They are currently anything but
>>>>
>>>> by WILLIAM SITWELL
>>>
>>> Maybe Mr Sitwell would like to explain whre the money is going to come
>>> from to pay for a wood panelled dining car, also perhaps he can explain
>>> to the treasury why GWR should be spending money on pampering a few
>>> journos on expenses.
>>>
>>
>> I don't know the situation with the few GWR Pullman services, but in the
>> past, dining cars always lost money. With shorter journey times and more
>> food available in stations, it's probably even more true today. It's why
>> all the others have disappeared. So he should probably just be grateful
>> that GWR still runs a few residual dining car trains,
>>
>>
>
> Just under £35 for two courses on a train doesn’t seem enough for a long
> term profitable service. Dining out anywhere isn’t cheap these days.

Yes, I was surprised how cheap it is. But I guess they'd get fewer diners
if they raised the prices.

In message <5KSSN.60763$lu2.27479@fx15.ams1>, at 15:36:33 on Sun, 14 Apr
2024, Recliner <recliner.usenet@gmail.com> remarked:

>So, among the diners, those successful enough to have got a seat, is a
>shared feeling of elation, of de-mob euphoria. Until, of course, you must
>curtail the cheese course as Taunton approaches. The bill needs paying and
>reality is set to return.

I used to dine on the train to Westbury (which they allowed you to do on
a Standard ticket, if they had a spare seat which they always did), and
rarely was there time to even start the second course.

....

>There was a time when a regular commuter, an habitué of the Paddington to
>Plymouth Pullman, ruled the roost. Whether you were dining solo or with
>pals, at Reading he announced; ‘No laptops!’ Anyone caught in breach had to
>buy the entire dining car a glass of port. That’s the spirit.

I had an early mobile phone and the stewards demanded I turn it off.
There wasn't enough coverage for voice calls, anyway, but sometimes an
SMS might succeed in being sent or received, when there was a whiff of a
signal from some distant cellsite.
--
Roland Perry

In message <uvh2o0$3o8nl$1@dont-email.me>, at 17:11:28 on Sun, 14 Apr
2024, Tweed <usenet.tweed@gmail.com> remarked:
>Recliner <recliner.usenet@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Graeme Wall <rail@greywall.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>>> On 14/04/2024 16:36, Recliner wrote:
>>>> Save the train’s dining carriage. It’s all that’s left of our
>>>>diminishing
>>>> civilisation
>>>>
>>>> British trains should be a symbol of British excellence, progress and
>>>> culture. They are currently anything but
>>>>
>>>> by WILLIAM SITWELL
>>>
>>> Maybe Mr Sitwell would like to explain whre the money is going to come
>>> from to pay for a wood panelled dining car, also perhaps he can explain
>>> to the treasury why GWR should be spending money on pampering a few
>>> journos on expenses.
>>
>> I don't know the situation with the few GWR Pullman services, but in the
>> past, dining cars always lost money. With shorter journey times and more
>> food available in stations, it's probably even more true today. It's why
>> all the others have disappeared. So he should probably just be grateful
>> that GWR still runs a few residual dining car trains,
>
>Just under £35 for two courses on a train doesn’t seem enough for a long
>term profitable service. Dining out anywhere isn’t cheap these days.

I agree. I bought lunch for four, which only included one bottle of wine
and two desserts, in a not especially posh restaurant in Covent Garden
(there was a screaming baby at the next table) last weekend. The bill
came to a tad over £170.
--
Roland Perry