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Essex Steam Train
- Price Range:
-
$$$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Dressy
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
3 reviews for Essex Steam Train
I didn't quite get it. We rode out to the middle of the woods just to stop and go in reverse. We couldn't hear the narration which was mindless banter once we could hear it. I didn't understand why we didn't stop at the Marina and turn around there or why we couldn't have been given a few minutes to get off there and take pictures.
We thought $17 for that ride was stupid expensive.
I get the charm of the train and the children enjoyed waving to everybody they passed by.
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Classic. I have gone on the steam train several times over the years but this past July went on fot the first time since moving to Essex. I met a girlfirend of mine and her two adorable kids to ride the daytime steam train and river boat.
When riding the train you really get a feel for old times. It is nothing like riding the Metro-North to NYC. The train rambles along the river and the kids really seemed to enjoy it. They even gave them a free toy train whistle at the end of the ride.The riverboat is relaxing and interesting. I found thr tour guide to be very knowledgeable about the history of the area and entertaining at the same time.
I would recommend this as a nice outing for people of all ages.
My boyfriend and I went on the Essex Clipper Dinner Train last Saturday. Now, with tickets at $70/person, this is not normally something we'd do on an average night, but a couple years ago someone gave me a gift certificate (good for 2 people), so I finally got around to using it. We were really excited. I called to make reservations and made sure the lady knew we wanted two vegetarian meals. She said that wouldn't be a problem, and that they were serving Pasta Primavera. Reservation was set. I was happy.
We arrived donned in lovely attire and they had our reservation -- so far, so good. Now, our first course (of the "4 course meal") was a few carrot sticks, celery sticks, and dip. It was tasty, sure, but for a $70 meal, I somehow expected something more lavish. Maybe that's just me. I happily ate them, we ordered some champagne (not included in fare -- nor are any drinks other than ice water), and we got on our way. Salad came out, which was decent. We noticed the wait staff was almost inappropriately lax in their service. They all seemed like they had never waited on people before and were somewhat unprofessional, but we're easygoing people, so it didn't bother us tooooo much. It just threw us off, because it was such a lovely atmosphere. You almost expected to be "taken back in time" to the days when dinner trains for a regular thing, but instead we had some guy saying, "Aight guys, here's your salads."
Then came our entrees. Everyone else in the car got their (meat) meals about 5-10 minutes before we got ours. I was salivating and looking forward to my meal, and when it was finally plopped down in front of me, I was a bit confused. This was not pasta primavera at all, but a vegetable lasagna! And not just any vegetable lasagna, but what looked and tasted like (and most likely WAS) Stouffer's Vegetable Lasagna. That's right... they served us something I could have purchased for $3 at Stop & Shop and microwaved for my eating pleasure. On the side of the plate were also a few red-skinned potatoes and some green beans. I was NOT impressed. I didn't finish my meal, and my only hope was dessert.
I assumed we'd get the choice of two types of dessert. While the staff left a bit to be desired, the ambiance was lovely and I was SO hoping for a really good dessert to end the evening with. Not so much. It was a half-frozen piece of chocolate cake! And we didn't get a choice in the matter. G-d forbid I was allergic to chocolate and couldn't have even had it. They really should have offered another option, if you ask me.
Overall, I was wholly unimpressed with the experience. While I had fun and enjoyed the ride and the atmosphere and the novelty of it all, the meal was not worth what I would have paid for it. Thank goodness I didn't actually pay the $70 to ride this dinner train. Normal fare for the train ride is $26, so even for $44, the meal was a sad excuse for something served for what could have been a really classy dinner experience. I just hope the omnivores on the train had better meals than we did. :-/
I wouldn't recommend the train to anyone, unless they too had a gift certificate. It's not worth the money to ride the dinner train at all. I can only hope this was a fluke, because they didn't know what to do with a couple vegetarians on the train. Ugh.
(I am giving them 2 stars, only because the conductor was SUPER nice, and the train atmosphere/decor and the ride itself were nice.
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