In the heart of Massachusetts, you will find the town of Palmer 75 miles west of Boston and about 20 miles east of Springfield. This quaint community has been called the “Town of Seven Railroads”. I remember some years back exploring many of the railroad lines that connect Palmer. A few of them are now abandoned. Today you will see three freight providers, CSX, New England Central Railroads, Massachusetts Central Railroad, and Amtrak’s Lake Shore Limited. Over the years Palmer became a location for railfans to visit and many of them would set up in the parking lot of the old Palmer’s Union Station.
In 1987 Blake and Robin Lamothe purchased Palmer’s Union Station, which was once the third-largest passenger train station in Massachusetts. The Lamothe’s spent years restoring this historical train station. ln 2004 Steaming Tender Restaurant opened for takeout then late 2005 the restaurant was open for dine-in service.
I would often visit the restaurant prior to moving to North Carolina. Birthday dinners, Thanksgivings, Sunday morning brunches, railfanning trips in Palmer, and dinners after the Amherst Hobby Shows. Let me put it this way, I’ve been there a lot. It’s still one of my favorite places and I haven’t found a place quite like it down here in the Carolinas. The food is fantastic and the whiskey bread pudding is amazing!
On January 5th I saw their Facebook post (see video below) about the struggles trying to survive in the COVID environment we are in right now. They are open for limited dining and now have an online takeout service. I would encourage all of my readers in the northeast to book reservations or order takeout to help to support this railfan friendly restaurant. Places like the Steaming Tender don’t have the ability to survive for long periods of time without revenue like big chain restaurants. The next time I plan to go to the northeast I will be stopping in for dinner for sure.
Website: https://steamingtender.com/
Phone: 413-283-2744
Address: 28 Depot St Palmer, MA 01069
As of last Friday, January 8th, YouTuber “Boston and Maine Live” has installed a railfanning cam, so you can watch trains traveling west to east on CSX’s Boston Subdivision along with seeing New England Central Railroad crossing the Palmer Railroad Diamond heading north to Vermont and south to Connecticut. Every now and then you will see Massachusetts Central Railroad picking up some freight cars at the CSX Palmer Yard.
I hope things turn around in 2021 for one of my favorite restaurants!
Scanner Programming:
CSX
160.8000 Road
160.5600 NC Dispatch
New England Central Railroad
160.4150 Road
160.7700 Dispatch
161.2050 Yard
160.9350 Yard
Massachusetts Central Railroad
160.4250
160.4700
160.5750
