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MTRF Off-train meals


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#1 KevinKorell

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Posted 07 May 2017 - 12:57 PM

Analyzing what meals we will need to have during the 8-day MTRF period aside from what we get aboard Amtrak trains.   Breakfast usually is included at respective hotels, so I will only cover lunch & dinner.

 

Saturday, 7/15:   Lunch on our own in Chicago, perhaps sub-groups getting together depending on arrivals in town from other trains.

Sunday, 7/16:  Lunch in Kansas City.  I have been told there are a lot of opportunities in the River Market area, located at the opposite end of the RideKC Streetcar from Union Station. Or alternately there is the Crown Center, located diagonally across Main Street from Union Station, which has a large shopping mall/food court within.

Monday, 7/17:  Lunch and dinner in St. Louis.  Several ideas here.  Lunch would more than likely be someplace in our Metrolink travels.  Right now my itinerary arbitrarily has Union Station. However that location has declined over the years so there may not be ample choices for everyone.  Alternatives include the St. Louis Galleria (large mall about 10 minutes walk each way to/from Richmond Heights station on Metrolink Blue Line), or an area in Belleview, IL at the College Station on the Red Line called Green Mount Commons, which contains most popular national fast food brands (Jimmy John's, Hardee's, Red Burrito, Chick-Fil-A, Burger King, & Wendy's) and a Chinese buffet restaurant in its outparcels, and a Subway within a Walmart.

Tuesday, 7/18:  Lunch and dinner in Dallas.  Last time in Dallas we found quite a few ample places to eat in the West End Historic District complex.  We can look around at other places in the city. West Village is another complex located near CityPlace Station DART light rail and also closer served by the M-Line Streetcar.

Wednesday, 7/19:  Lunch and dinner in Dallas.  Same thing as 7/18.  Opportunities for lunch may exist at Las Colinas, and maybe elsewhere along the DART Green Line for dinner.

Thursday, 7/20:  Lunch in Dallas.  Bishop Arts District, which we are travelling to  & from on the modern Dallas Streetcar, has a diverse choice of places to eat.

Friday, 7/21:  Dinner in Chicago.  Possibilities endless, including eating at chosen hotels.

Saturday 7/22: Lunch in Chicago, last meal together after Metra round trip.  Food court at Ogilvie Transportation Center could suffice since we should arrive back in there 12:35 PM.



Kevin Korell


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#2 KevinKorell

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Posted 21 May 2017 - 09:04 PM

Update for Monday, 7/17/17:

 

Thanks to advice from Misty, for lunch we can circumvent the walks to either St.  Louis Galleria or Green Mount Commons by instead stopping at the Brentwood/I-64 stop.  This area has a Chick-Fil-A, Chipotle, Fit-Flavors, Mai Lee (Thai, Vietnamese), Revel Kitchen, Lion's Choice (mainly roast beef), Panda Express, and Subway.  The restaurants are relatively shorter distance from that station.



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#3 steve4031

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Posted 22 May 2017 - 11:37 PM

This is perfect. Shout out to Misty. Rosalyn and I often go to chipotle and this will meet her needs.

#4 KevinKorell

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Posted 23 May 2017 - 12:56 AM

Now, update for 7/16/17, which is the day in Kansas City.

 

There is the River Market and there is also CIty Market right next to it.  They sort of meld together into one. So I added a listing for River Market & CIty Market together, with the places to eat in both places listed alphabetically.  Most are small private businesses like you would see in a place like Seattle's Pike Place, Philadelphia's Reading Terminal Market, Los Angeles Grand Central Market, and the like around the country.  You won't find well known brand name food places in these venues.  The RideKC Streetcar makes a loop around this area, first stopping on the south side near City Market, and then when it makes 2 more turns around a block, it stops at River Market North.  Then the next station around another corner and the last before the steetcar leaves the area to head south for Union Station is River Market West.

 

River Market/City Market places can be found here in this listing.  I also brought up to date the listing of places to eat within the Crown Center Shops complex, which is near Union Station and thus closer to Amtrak and the southern end of RideKC Streetcar.

 

Obviously next, I will try to ensure that the Dallas lists are current as well.  I smell a full 3-day weekend coming with no planned Amtrak trips, so time should be plentiful for Fest planning activities such as this.



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#5 steve4031

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Posted 24 May 2017 - 07:39 AM

Thank you for your efforts.

#6 KevinKorell

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Posted 29 May 2017 - 11:11 PM

I have now updated the Dallas area restaurant page as promised.   Restaurants at key locations were updated, including a few more near Dallas Union Station.  I also added Mandalay Canal just in case we were to stop for lunch in Las Colinas.  Also I looked at DFW Airport, but it appears that all its eateries are beyond security (as is the on-airport SkyLink).



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#7 saxman

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Posted 31 May 2017 - 01:52 PM

I have now updated the Dallas area restaurant page as promised.   Restaurants at key locations were updated, including a few more near Dallas Union Station.  I also added Mandalay Canal just in case we were to stop for lunch in Las Colinas.  Also I looked at DFW Airport, but it appears that all its eateries are beyond security (as is the on-airport SkyLink).

 

This is correct. Save for a Starbucks and a couple convenience store type places at DFW, all the nicer eating places are past security. There are, however, restrooms that we can use inside should anyone need to.



#8 steve4031

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Posted 16 June 2017 - 03:35 PM

I reviewed my efforts at selecting a restaurant in Portland Last Summer and it seemed like that approach worked and I would not mind doing this for the group in Dallas if that's okay with everybody.

#9 KevinKorell

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Posted 18 June 2017 - 01:04 AM

Updated the Chicago restaurants page over the past week.  It should be handy not only for the official time in Chicago, but also passing through a week earlier on the way to Kansas City.   Union Station and Ogilvie Transportation Center needed huge updates as many eateries have changed.  If anyone is staying out by O'Hare (where hotels are generally cheaper than downtown), I updated what I believe to be pre-Security only as per my protocol. Of course if flying into or out of Chicago O'Hare there are dozens more places to eat post-Security.



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#10 KevinKorell

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Posted 19 June 2017 - 11:17 AM

Just another word about Dallas.   A lot of the downtown eateries, particularly non-brand name fast food, delis, and markets where one might choose to have lunch, have hours that don't include dinnertime.  If you look closely at the hours of some places, they close after the work day lunch rush dies down around 2 or 3 PM.  Of course most sitdown restaurants are open at dinnertime, particularly in the tourist and suburban areas.



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