A friend Les Beckman just completed a trip to Baltimore using Amtrak regional
train and passed what he thought was "Howie", but in all actuallity on the
run back to DC, saw it said Bowie. It brings back the memories of being
at Ft Meade (NSA) for a 2 month school. To relax I use to cross over
the Pennsy Main line and remember sitting in the car watching the
GG-1's fly by with the Pennsy passenger trains. Les found a web site
now containing the interlocking tower, caboose and a couple of other
buildings. But my main question is anyone remember near the plant
was a restuarant that served sandwiches the size of footballs, many happy
meals were eaten there hearing the Pennsy trains fly by.

Any help appreciated in remembering the name of it.

Tom Travis

The restaurant is "Railroad Inn". They are still in business.

Wesley

Wesley, thanks very much for the reply, brings back good memories.
Same thing out in Los Angeles CA, 1 block from Union Station,
Philippes deli, great french dip roast beef sandwiches.

Tom

Are you sure you aren't thinking of another trackside restaurant, Henkels (sp) which was on the CSX Line ( not Amtrak) at Camp Meade Junction? It was known for huge sandwiches more so that the Railroad Inn, and a favorite for those stationed at Fort Meade.

BTW, the Railroad Inn was across the tracks from the Bowie home signal on Track 1, used by northbound freights. I often saw one or more train crew members walk over to the Railroad Inn to pick up a meal while waiting at Bowie for a shot to head north.

Huntington Railroad Museum

http://mysite.verizon.net/n3szw.rrmuseum/rr.html

Big local news a year or so ago when the owner retired and closed up. Some impressive photos of PRR steam running through Bowie pre-GG1 days on the walls, D's and E's pulling wooden coaches. It was dark, smokey, quiet and homely. Everything chain restaurants aren't.

If you are in the area, a new family owned place has opened, http://www.oldbowietowngrille.com/, two buildings up from the museum. The benches outside the museum are a fine location to watch the action. Between the RR museum and the Old Bowie Town Grill is a small building, the Old Town Bowie Welcome Center. If open, the place has some very neat artifacts and is an interesting visit.

Bob Bunge
Bowie

I heartily second Brother Schmidt's motion. Henkel's was located across from what is now the junction with the Wimpey Materials quarry underneath the Md. Rt. 32 overpass over the B&O main. It was a run-down wooden building that would have been at home in a Old Wild West movie set as a saloon (hell, I think they did have swinging half-doors!), and with any of their sandwiches, you swore you were getting a whole damned pound of fresh, high-quality deli meat with an excuse for some bread wrapped around it. You didn't eat the sandwich--you conquered it, at best.

To everyone who replied, Thank You very much. It has been close
to 40 years and the memory is failing, but the sandwiches were
colossal and definetly conquered

Tom Travis La Porte IN, Retired Navy 22 1/2 years