Do people really consider it unreasonable to eat on the train?

[MyNewBearTotoro]

Reading another thread in which a poster mentioned eating on the train and I was really surprised by the responses calling her unreasonable/ antisocial for bringing food onto the train and the vitriol she was facing for this alone.

Do people really consider it unreasonable to eat on the train or is this just one of those 'only on Mumsnet' things?

I know it's not pleasant to be stuck next to someone eating smelly food, but equally lots of things are unpleasant on trains - being crammed in close to a stranger, oversized luggage, crying babies, other people's conversations, air-conditioning to high/low etc - but just because some people may find it unpleasant does that automatically make it unreasonable or anti-social?

In an ideal world people would not bring smelly food onto the train, but in an ideal world neither would people bring on crying babies/ noisy children etc but we are human and we need to eat, especially as many people will be making journeys over several hours long. Choices of food are usually limited by either what is available on board the train or what is available from the shops on/ around the station and sometimes hot or fast food is the only option available.

Obviously hot food is permitted on trains, my local train company has buffet carriages which sell hot food (including bacon rolls) and sandwiches (including tuna fish or egg mayo) for people to buy. So I'm not questioning whether it's allowed but I guess I'm curious as to whether people genuinely think it shouldn't be. And, considering it is allowed, are people who do eat on trains genuinely considered anti-social or unreasonable by some?

Long-distance Chinese trains are the best, Hester. There is an urn at the end of the carriage for boiling water and some people do pot noodle style things that way. There is also a cart being rattled up and down selling little trays of hot food. Everyone sits on the bottom bunk and if you're near friendly people you'll get offered random things to eat.

Sounds delicious, Provisionally.

Of course you can eat on a train. Bloody stupid to say otherwise. GAVEL

Well, I think WhatsGoingIn has it covered :o

On not in.

Good grief, is it rude to eat on a (packed) commuter train? (Again, we're not talking about the Eurostar here).Yes.

Is anyone going to change because of an internet forum? No.

Don't start complaining if the person next to you starts burping or farting loudly. It's perfectly natural, and really unavoidable. If you are happy with smells, you won't mind anyway, will you.

We sometimes get the commuter train out of London, lots of commuters get off after a short time but for us it's a two hour journey over dinner time (6pm) so yes we will eat. I have generally booked seats with a table anyway.

I finished work late on Friday, got the 10pm train home (door to door takes about 90 minutes). Should I have found a cafe, and so missed my train and got home even later? Or waited till gone 11pm to eat, having not had anything since midday? Nah, I spread out in my lovely quiet train, ate a tuna sandwich and thought of this thread. It made my sarnie taste even nicer

I am about to make my packed lunch for the train. I will report back later.

People are muddling different kinds of journeys. I have very very often travelled from London to the NE (or even SE to Scotland). Those are very very long journeys and everyone except those practising intermittent fasting will eat on the train. Then there are short tub journeys where you are packed like sardines when you could not eat if you tried. Then there are not packed short tube journeys when people eating very smelly food are of course unsociable.

'I am about to make my packed lunch for the train. I will report back later.'

Make sure it's 'polite' and nibble furtively, checking first if anyone is around.

Deo no one's confusing anything. There was one poster earlier in the thread who insisted that anyone who ate anything in any journey that she thought "smelled" (almost all food, it transpired) was inconsiderate and selfish. She went on and on and on and on and on and on about it. Along with anyone who was awful enough to travel with bulky luggage.

It has all passed off the way that I knew it would. On the first train, people standing, the girl next to me managed to tip meusli into yoghurt, without inconveniencing anyone- guess it was late breakfast. Now on quieter train. Man opposite had a cold rice salad (no smell ). I have just had my spicy, butternut squash soup and egg sandwich - no notice taken by anyone. Woman diagonally opposite has a half baguette - in front of her is a man with a meat sandwich.Judging by the rustling further up someone else is getting their lunch out. In short we are all having our lunch at lunch time. Perfectly normal. People passing through from buffet car. No one has fainted or vomited!