sierra railroad dinner train

Bad acting, food not very good chicken Dry and salmon Dry. Too expensive for what you get. Have to be mostly drunk before there is any comedy in it.

As our granddaughter loves train rides, our family of six took her on the Christmas Train Ride. The staff was very friendly but we were crammed into a booth in a very warm train car. The two of us sitting on the end seats had one cheek hanging off the entire ride. The train car was very warm and with the cramped corners, it made for an uncomfortable ride. They served watered-down cocoa and cookies. You could order coffee and adult beverages for an extra charge. The entertainment was so-so. We enjoyed Fred who played guitar while we all sang Christmas songs. Santa was a very sweet man and so good with the kids. This is one of those do once only kind of activities. It is kind of expensive so we were glad we got our tickets through Groupon. The train is kind of run down too. The Christmas lights inside didn't work and valances on the windows were either broken or missing. The carpet was in sad shape as well. But our granddaughter enjoyed it and asked to go back. Next year we'll try the Sacramento Christmas Train instead.

We went on the Christmas train it was cute there were characters and Santa ( he was really good and great with the kids) but they had the heat cranked up to 80 it was really warm on the train. You drive a total of 8 miles which is perfect for kids the cookies and hot coco was good. The staff was nice! I wouldn't mind trying another themed train ride. The car of the train we where in had a full bar. Overall wasn't bad but the car we where in was a little rundown.

There were ten of us total. We all had a good time with drinks and food. We had not seen each other in about eight years, that to was why we enjoyed the trip so much.

It's really fun eating on a train, and the food was OK the day I was on it. The waiters were nice, but like Alex K said, what a horrible train trip. The name is misleading. You might see the Sierras from Oakdale on a clear day, but you won't get anywhere near them on this trip. There is nothing pretty to look at because the train goes Incredibly Slowly through the WORST parts of Oakdale (believe me - I know - I live here). If the train went much faster and into the hills just a little ways, there would be beautiful views from the rail car windows, but this trip is so slow it's ridiculous. I don't know why it's run this way, but you would have a much better time on just about any other scenic railroad in Northern California.

My husband and I drove over 100 miles to participate in this dinner train ride this past Saturday. We were stuck in traffic and I had contacted their office to alert them of such. Their representative was really nice and said they'd wait for us. We got there at 4:56 pm. 4 minutes before departure and she was nice enough to allow me to get a mascot bear from the gift shop before the train started.We were promptly seated and the car was air conditioned, bread and butter and water were already on the table. The waitress then came to ask if we wanted other drinks as well. Fresh strawberry and watermelon with greens and feta cheese was served. It was decent. The dinner entrees we had were the Mediterrean Chicken and grilled Salmon, both were nice. Dessert was a cherry cream cheese puree in a flaky turnover shell. We had no complaints about the food. + One Dot for food and 2+ dot for service.The scenery was not exactly the best as it consisted old train junkyard, barns, cattles, horse stables, more like stalls (unpleasant to see), turkey farm, and some prairie as we went toward Warnerdale, of which the train turned around at that location. WE witness a young cattle being used as rodeo practice on the way back and IT REALLY DISGUISED me!Of course, when I eat and drink, I have to used the restroom and that's where I have a major problem!!!! We bought the "silver" ticket and our restroom had no lights and the commode was very dirty. I went into the next car where the "gold" ticket holders were and checked out their restroom and it was just as bad exactly it had lights! WTH? They need to renovate those restroom, no joke!If it was not for the dirty restrooms and lack of pleasant scenery, I would have given them a 4 dots because of the friendly staff/service/food. Would we go all the way to Oakdale to do this again, mostly like not. It is a one time deal for sure!

My husband and I have the same birthday. We were looking for something different to do this year. So we choose the Sierra Dinner Train, for a lunch time trip. We very much enjoyed our time on the train. Service was good food was tasty and presented well. Our train car was not even half full of people given this we felt the service could have been a little better. We had indicated it was our birthdays on our reservation and our dessert came with candle, which was nice. But no happy birthday song. We noticed several others on the train had birthday as well. So maybe a shout out and everyone invited to sing along would have been fun. We found the main car to be clean but not the lounge car or open air car. On the open air car the benches were dusty before the trip even started. In the lounge car the table were dusty and they were cobwebs. Cleaning those would not take much time.

Not sure what Eric B from San Francisco is used to eating, but the word "stellar" does not come to mind when I think about my Sierra Railroad experience.... The words that do come to mind are "waste of time and money."Let's begin with the scenic ride.... the first and last 50 minutes of the train ride pass through the nastiest parts of Oakdale. The junk yard, rusted out factories, dilapidated / abandoned homes and run down farms... the scenic beauty must be reserved for the folks who take this train at night... at least you won't be able to see the economic devastation & squalor in the dark.Let's move on to food.... My wife ordered "beef medallions" and got served two tiny pieces of dried out, grey pot roast-like substance. It was covered in canned gravy that tasted, well, brown. My fish was dry, but at least edible. The coffee tasted like it came out of a sewer. The portions were tiny.And let's not forget; after charging me $55 per meal, and a mandatory 18% gratuity, they still charge your $2 for coffee and or soda. God only knows what the mark-up on the wine was like.Let's finish with the service... with the 18% mandatory gratuity paid up front, the wait staff is not motivated to actually wait. Our food arrived cold, 1.5 hours into the trip, and not much could be done about that... the train has no food prep or warming technology. Granted, all staff were really nice and polite, but I guess they would need to be, hoping their pleasant dispositions could convince you there was something positive about this trip.

so fun and so interesting, its really a fun thing to do with the kids at Christmas time.

This Dinner Train is something I always treat my friends and guests who come and visit my family especially those coming from other countries. The Dinner Train not only offers great Chef-cooked meals but also features adventures you and your guests will surely enjoy and remember for the rest of your life. They have the Train Robbery adventure where your train will be chased by gun-toting and shooting bandidos on horsebacks. A mardi Gras Party and the Clue-Do, Guess Who Killed Miss Lou? I was Hercule Poirot (my fave Belgian detective) on this ride and one of the passengers played Miss Marple. It was a real test of who was who. Of course, at the end of the day, it was Mr. Poirot who solved the mystery! Dah!

My husband, myself and his parents were pleased with the great food, conversation from the employees aboard and the entertainment.

Not very good food, the entertainment was awful and we were basically stuck there for 3 hrs. OK this was a nice gift to us but they total experience was awful. How they stay in business, I don't know. Are they federally funded?

Did this and it was a waste. Boring, sights were of people's farmland. Don't waste your money.

We treated ourselves to a day on the Sierra Railroad last year and had a very enjoyable trip. It is expensive, so not something we would do often.

The Sierra Railroad Dinner Train was a fun experience, and made us feel as if we were back in the gold rush days. Atmosphere was very nice...food was good...scenery great. A very relaxing trip. Spring is the best time to enjoy green, lush foothill scenery; summer and fall reflect why California is called the "golden State!"