FEEDING THE MULTITUDE.

Otago Witness, Issue 3763, 27 April 1926, Page 6

FEEDING THE MULTITUDE.

TRAVELLERS BY TRAIN. A TRIUMPH OF ORGANISATION. OAMARU DINING ROOMS. To feed upwards of 700 persons in less than an hour and a-half is in itself no light Wisk. but to serve them quickly and without congestion in a dining room with a total seating capacity of 250 is an achievement that calls for no little organising ability, and reflects great credit on those responsible for the task. TKe world over, the question of meals for train travellers presents a problem and where a dining car is not attached to the train severe criticism is frequently passed on the system of railway refreshment and dining rooms, the chief complaint being that meals taken in such places have to be eaten hurriedly with a corresponding amount of inconvenience, before the appetite is satisfied. Again, it is argued that should a rush occur, the size of the average railway dining room is altogether inadequate to cope with the excess over the usual number of passengers. One also hears complaints regarding the quality of the food, the service, and the haphazard methods employed so that the sum total of complaints recalls a badly-managed arm ( y canteen where the rules are “Rafferty’s. ’ Such a state of affairs may, and probably does exist on some systems, but certainly not on the southern portion of tho New Zealand railways. With a view to ascertaininsr exactly how an influx of hungry travellers is coped with our representative last week watched tho arrival of four express trains at Oamaru, and after seeing some 600 meals served expeditiously and cleanly in a little over an hour he came to the conclusion that the New Zealand Government at all events is doing its best to attend to tho wants of the inner man so far as the travelling public is concerned. To begin with, there is an entire absence • of the hurried methods usually associated with a public dining room during busy hours On the arrival of a train, not a moment is lost, and not a movement is wasted. Could the average diner who has an appetising meal placed before him immediately he takes his sent know the careful preparation and far-seeing organisation which have gone towards the expeditious attention he receives, he would be filled with wonder at the enormous amount of work and organisation involved.. A staff of waitresses under tho experienced

eye of th© head waistress is continually ort the move. Entering the serving pantry by one passage, they set down the empty dishes, pick up full ones, and continue their circuit through the exit, the whole process being completed promptly and without fuss. In the scrupulously clean kitchen, the chef and his assistants attend to tho carving and dishing, and as fast as the plates are filled they are taken up and carried to the tables to make room for clean ones, which are being passed over in a continual stream from the dish-washers. So smoothly does everything proceed, and so well does the work of each department synchronise with that of the other, that by the time the last diner has left the room the whole system is in readiness for the next batch. Some idea of the huge quantity of tood consumed on a busy day may be gathered from the fact that for the Oamaru room alone, the Government lias to meet a daily bill for some 4001 b of meat, 300 loaves of bread, 2cwt of potatoes, 2001 b of assorted vegetables, 30 gallons of milk, and 101 bof tea. In addition to this, there are the hundreds of buns, pies, rolls, and other smallgoods which are baked in the department’s own bakery adjacent to the dining rooms. One noteworthy point is the first-class quality, of all the raw material used. Everything is of the very best, and housewives particularly will appreciate the fact that the butter used for cooking is precisely the same as that used for the table. Of course, a very small proportion, if any, of the smallgoods is used in the dining room. These dainties are mostly for use in the refreshment buffet, where many, through slimness of purse or lack of hunger, prefer to refresh themselves rather than to dine. On an average, the reporter was informed, 700 to 800 cops of tea, with as many buns and sandwiches, are served over the counters of the buffet daily, and this is exclusive of other refreshments such as soft drinks, fruit, and sweets. At first sight, one is apt to think that whilst the meal served to those on the first train is fresh and hot, the next meal is likely to have suffered by being kept. But such is far from the case, and it was noticeable yesterday that those who arrived at 1.45 pin. fared just as well as those who came by the early express. The whole is a triumph of organisation, and great credit is due to the supervisor, Mr Stevenson, and the manager, Mr Ji. Black, for the excellence of the arrangements. In the matter of managing railway dining rooms, Mr Black has a fund ot experience to draw from, having been for some years in charge of the Frankton Junction rooms, and latterly of those at Otira, and, as he himself puts it, the whole thing boils down tojooking ahead and organising accordingly. A chat with the head waitress revealed the fact that, on the whole the passengers appear to be well satisfied. Complaints, she stated, were rare, and when any were brought forward they were almost nnaiiably trivial, and did not reflect on the duality of the food or the management ot the rooms. Of course, she pointed out, there were always those who would "rumble, but the great majority were considerate and helpful. Cases ol attempting to evade payment were almost unknown and as they were never successful, could be considered as negligible. . , , Unlimited “returns,” included in tno same charge, is the rule in there room? and inquiries disclosed the fact that this privilege, whilst not often abused, is sometimes treated in a very elastic fashion. Of course, the staff is too busy to check tlie gastronomic performances ot the diners, but at times there appears a patron whose remarkable appetite cannot but attract notice. Such a one was a travelling “theatrical,” whose astounding performance is still a matter of wonder to the head waitress and the young woman who attended to him. The meal was breakfast, and after first lnquning anxiously if “returns were extra, and discovering (no doubt to his great relief) that they were not, he demolished three helpings of two eggs and bacon, two fried chops, two poached eggs, and two sausages. “And he had porridge, too, stated the waitress who told the story, “but I suppose that was only a ‘kick-off! Truly a sturdy trencherman this! A team of overseas footballers who toured New Zealand a few years back (not the Australians, by the way) also earned undving fame for their feats at the table of the Oamaru Railway Dining Rooms, but head and shoulders above all, it was stated, stood the visiting Boy Scouts. They, it appeared, were gifted with appetites which would turn a dyspeptic green with envy, and one diminutive youth is on record as having consumed four helpings of jelly. In fairness to the scouts, this can hardly be taken as a sign of greediness, for it is doubtful if anyone has ever been able accurately to gauge the average small boj'’s capacity for this toothsome sweet.