FGW Catering

[whole diary]

[thetrout]

These are the timings of trains with Travelling Chef From London - Penzance

Monday - Friday

0730 London Padd - Penzance Via Bristol Temple Meads
1000 London Padd - Paignton
1006 London Padd - Penzance
1106 London Padd - Plymouth
1306 London Padd - Plymouth
1406 London Padd - Penzance
1506 London Padd - Penzance

Saturday's

0730 London Padd - Penzance Via Bristol Temple Meads
1000 London Padd - Paignton
1006 London Padd - Penzance
1206 London Padd - Penzance
1306 London Padd - Plymouth

Sunday's No Travelling Chef Service

These are the timings of trains with Travelling Chef From Penzance - London

Monday - Friday

0541 Penzance - London Padd
0548 Exeter St Davids - London Padd
0600 Plymouth - London Padd
0643 Penzance - London Padd
0737 Penzance - London Padd Via Bristol Temple Meads
1600 Penzance - London Padd

Saturday's

0540 Plymouth - London Paddington
0647 Penzance - London Paddington
0747 Plymouth - London Paddington
1000 Penzance - London Paddington

Sunday's No Travelling Chef Service

Timings of Pullman Restaurant From London - Penzance (Mondays - Friday Except Bank Holidays)

1206 London Padd - Penzance
1803 London Padd - Penzance
1903 London Padd - Penzance

Timings of Pullman Restaurant From Penzance - London (Mondays - Friday Except Bank Holidays)

0505 Penzance - London Padd
1000 Penzance - London Padd
1500 Plymouth - London Padd

Some Services May Not be provided between Plymouth & Penzance

I'll add the timings for the other HST^▸ (High Speed Train) routes later on

[devon_metro]

Penzance - Plymouth will only ever be a standard buffet service.

[thetrout]

Probably for the same reason they don't provide an At Seat Trolley Service in First Class.

XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) are even worse, they've withdrawn catering completely from Plymouth - Penzance

[DevonTrains2008]

Probably for the same reason they don't provide an At Seat Trolley Service in First Class.

XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) are even worse, they've withdrawn catering completely from Plymouth - Penzance

That's really bad. Plymouth to Penzance takes 2 hours! I will ensure I am always on FGW^▸ (First Great Western) HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) if going in this direction!

[broadgage]

Of what does the travelling chef service actually consist in practice?
Whenever I have tried it, its been a counter service of toasted sandwiches only, nothing else and no table service in first class, as was promised.
Have I been unlucky or is this the norm?

Whenever possible I use trains with a proper pullman restaurant, and very good it is too, when available.

Not that many years ago there were 7 trains daily from paddington to the West with a pullman, now its 3, hows that for progress!
When the most of the pullmans were withdrawn, FGW^▸ (First Great Western) promised that the wretched travelling chef would be a similar service to a pullman, with proper hot meals, china plates, table service in first etc.
What we get is a toasted sandwich in a cardboard carton! did not this used to be called a hot buffet?

[inspector_blakey]

The travelling chef seems to be very "hit and miss". I have often been told that they cannot provide a full menu because the set has the "wrong sort of oven" so only toasted sandwiches are available.

However, when there is a travelling chef on board during the week at-seat service is supposed to be available in first class. The first class host will tend to leave menus on tables and will happily take orders if asked, although they often do little else to advertise the presence of the travelling chef. Further, I have no experience of services to the west country but on Swansea services the customer hosts seem to clear away all menus and stop taking orders at Cardiff. When everything's working as is should, meals are served at your seat with proper crockery and cutlery.

In my experience the travelling chef service, when it's working well, serves pretty good food at very fair prices: I particularly like the breakfast platters! It certainly beats a microwaved cheeseburger or breakfast bap hands down. Unfortunately though you don't seem to be able to rely on there being a chef on the advertised services or there being a full menu when there is a chef on board.

One thing that has puzzled me recently about the travelling chef (and the short-lived Pullman Brasserie) is the almost wilful lack of promotion it receives. It's a long time since I have seen "a travelling chef is on board" displayed on a station departure screen and some train crews almost treat it as an official secret! I sometimes wonder if FGW^▸ (First Great Western) are deliberately not promoting it so that, in the fullness of time it can be deemed uneconomic and removed.

So, like I said, great service when it's up and running correctly. Unfortunately that doesn't happen often enough!

[John R]

I had a bacon bloomer this morning with the order taken from and served to my seat on a proper plate. The cardboard boxes have always been for standard passengers to take back to their seats. 

So maybe you've been unlucky.

[r james]

Wht happened to the Pullman Brasserie services then?  Where they so unpopuilar

[devon_metro]

Pullman still operates on the
Breakfast
0629 Swansea - Paddington
0655 Plymouth - Paddington
Day Time
1145 Paddington - Swansea
1200 Plymouth - Paddington
1206 Paddington - Plymouth
1500 Plymouth - Paddington
1803 Paddington - Plymouth
1903 Paddington - Plymouth

[inspector_blakey]

Wht happened to the Pullman Brasserie services then?  Where they so unpopuilar

The Pullman Brasserie service (as opposed to the full Pullman restaurant service) was a fairly short-lived rebranding of the travelling chef product. As D_M says, the full Pullman restaurant service is still offered on a limited number of west of England and Swansea services.

[Phil]

What happened to the Pullman Brasserie services? 

*is very tempted to suggest it went tits up*

*decides he'd better not...*

[Btline]

I predict that the Pullman (and probably the travelling chef) will be axed soon.

I can't see FGW^▸ (First Great Western) putting passenger service over profits!

[devon_metro]

I predict that the Pullman (and probably the travelling chef) will be axed soon.

I can't see FGW^▸ (First Great Western) putting passenger service over profits!

What makes you say that it will be scraped :?

[Btline]

As I said in my last post - I can't see FGW^▸ (First Great Western) putting customer service before profit.

Take a look at all TOCs^▸ (Train Operating Company). How many have reduced catering? Many (NXEA^▸ (National Express East Anglia), EMT^» (East Midlands Trains - about), XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise))....)!

Even FGW are trying/ have tried to get rid of buffet cars!

It is just the trend of declining service which goes when private, profit making companies run the railway!

[Timmer]

If there isn't enough demand for it then the TOCs^▸ (Train Operating Company) will scrap it. They won't keep running the pullman restaurant, brasserie, travelling chef or whatever its called now if no one uses them as running services like this at a loss is not an option when you start owing the government big premiums in order to run the franchise.

It is sad though to see catering services like these become less and less across the board as having a freshly cooked meal on the train is a great experience especially whilst the train is travelling through the highlands of Scotland. How I miss those GNER^▸ (Great North Eastern Railways) days!