I usually find EMR staff very friendly and attentive and quite generous with the amount of refreshments they let you have. Plenty of hot drinks, fruit juices and bottled water available. Also biscuits, crisps, nuts and other snacks. The sandwiches are quite good quality but they are not always offered and you do sometimes have to ask for one. The last time I travelled on a Saturday morning from Nottingham to London orders were taken for bacon rolls very soon after leaving Nottingham. I was impressed that they were freshly made bacon rolls with nice bread and not something soggy in plastic that had been warmed up in the microwave.
First Class on EMR is perhaps often better than some people here admit to. With my Senior Railcard and a Super Off Peak Return being around £30 more than a Standard Class I always go First Class. That’s only around £15 extra each way with all the refreshments, with a more comfortable seat and usually no overcrowding, plus space to store my case it’s so less stressful.
