Carlsbad Caverns Dinner Menu

This 1944 menu from Bill Hough’s collection is one of Southern Pacific’s series of color photo menus printed on rather flimsy paper. All of the ones previously shown here are dated between 1940 and 1950 and, like this one, most don’t specify the name of a train.

Click image to download a 586-KB PDF of this menu.

Either because of the war or because it was for a secondary train or both, this menu is pretty sparse. The table d’hôte side has entrées of baked fish ($1.20, $17 in today’s dollars), braised beef ($1.25, $17.50 today), or roast duckling ($1.35, $19 today) with soup, salad, potatoes, vegetable, bread, dessert, and beverage. It also has “special dinners” with the fish or duckling plus salad, bread, potatoes, vegetable, and beverage, but no soup or dessert, for $1.10 ($15.50 today). The a la carte side is limited to two sandwiches — egg salad or chicken salad — and some side dishes.


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