RAILWAY FOOD

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 572, 26 January 1929, Page 13

RAILWAY FOOD

BEST MATERIALS USED REPLY TO TRAVELLER’S COMPLAINT* Yesterday a correspondent complained in The Sun that the food supplied by the railway refreshment branches on the Rotorua line was hardly fit for consumption. He maintained that it was a libel to call the decoction he received by the name "of tea, and that the state of the beverage overshadowed the state of the sandwiches. Mr. A. H. W. Evenden, officer-in-charge of the refreshment branches, pointed out to-day that only the best quality tea was purchased by the department, and that the butter used is graded at 92 points —high quality. The bread used is made in the department’s own bakery at Frankton Junction, and is not used if it is more than a day old. Meat for sandwiches is guaranteed to be the best which can be purchased. Mr. Evenden personally inspects the branches at unexpected times, aud a high state of efliciency and cleanliness is demanded at ail times. This morni*s, on his return from one of his periodic tours, lie said that the refreshment rooms had been very busy during the Christmas and New Year holidays. During the past four weeks 51,700 cups of tea had been supplied at the six refreshment rooms and 15,300 cups of coffee. In addition, 44.500 sandwiches, 5.100 miscellaneous sandwiches, 3,83J)1b. of ham and 56,600 small cakes, liad been consumed by travellers, as well as 1,380 lb. of butter.