Information on all banquets, dinners, luncheons and food events is here.

NMRA Banquet - St. Louis Union Station
Saturday, July 14, evening, $55 with transportation per person

Experience the Golden Age of Rail Travel at our Gateway 2001 Banquet at St. Louis Union Station! After a long week of layout tours, swap meets, auctions and contests, sightseeing and exploring, relax in the Grand Hall of one of America's premier railroad stations. Join your friends from all over the world to discuss your recent NMRA adventure in the most elegant public room in St. Louis.

Our banquet will take place under the Beaux Arts barrel-vaulted ceiling in the Grand Hall of the Hyatt Hotel at Union Station. Originally built to handle the huge crowds of the 1904 World's Fair, the station was designed by noted architect Theodore C. Link. It often handled over 200 trains per day in its heyday, yet fell into terrible disrepair after abandonment by Amtrak in 1978. Restored to the tune of tens of millions of dollars and reopened in 1983, Union Station today has been restored to its former glory. The historically accurate restoration included painstaking research to confirm original colors chemically "discovered" under layer upon layer of paint.

Today, Union Station is St. Louis' second most popular tourist attraction (behind only the Gateway Arch). It features dozens of specialty shops and well-known retailers along with many nightclubs and restaurants. The train shed features a lake with paddleboats and several locomotives and cars on display. Historical "time capsule-like" displays throughout the station feature railroad memorabilia such as china, silver, timetables, photos and mementoes. Come early to wander the halls and explore this perfect example of urban renewal and reuse at its best! Don't miss the whispering arch!

Our banquet will be catered by the Hyatt, so expect way beyond the usual banquet fare! Select your choice of beef or chicken entree. Tickets are available with ($55) or without transportation ($50). You may wish to take MetroLink to the banquet on your own. The Busch Stadium stop is 3 blocks from the Regal Riverfront Hotel and the Union Station stop requires an additional two-block walk under the historic trainshed, past the shops, to the Grand Hall.

Please join us for your premier convention experience. Fine dining, spectacular setting, good friends!

St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway
Dinner Rail Trip and Murder Mystery
13575, Sunday, July 8, 1:30 p.m., $75 each person

Ride the St. Louis Iron Mountain and Southern for a murder mystery dinner. Enjoy your meal while you join in on the fun of solving a murder, or just enjoy the three-hour train ride. The train departs from and returns to Jackson, Missouri. There is a two-hour bus ride each way.

Non-Rail Luncheon
31502, Tuesday, July 10, 11:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m., $28 each person

Lunch at the Top of the Riverfront, the Regal Hotel's revolving restaurant on the 28th floor overlooking the Gateway Arch, the Mississippi River, and the City of St. Louis. The lunch menu includes The Regal Riverfront Salad for fresh mixed greens with white cheddar dressing, grilled breast of chicken served with honey almond glaze with a wild rice medley, fresh seasonal vegetable, rolls and butter, dessert, and coffee or tea (soda is extra).

Mississippi Riverboat Dinner Cruise
43321, Wednesday, July 11, 6:30 p.m. - 10:00 p.m., $55
63321, Friday, July 13, 6:30 p.m. - 10:00 p.m., $55

Experience the Mighty Mississippi first-hand with a two-hour cruise on an authentic paddlewheeler. See the city's original settlement area at Laclede's Landing and view the St. Louis skyline as you enjoy a delicious Prime Rib dinner and listen to one of St. Louis' best Dixieland bands.

Historic St. Louis Progressive Dine-Around
Tour #33320, Tue, July 10, 6:00-10:00 pm, $68

Experience a unique view of St. Louis history with a visit to two of its oldest and most well loved neighborhoods for an evening of food, drink and fun. Start with appetizers and a drink at Laclede’s Landing where cobblestone streets and brick and iron-front buildings recall the riverfront days of steamboats. En route to dinner, you’ll pass through Lafayette Park and Compton Heights, late nineteenth century neighborhoods. Dinner is on "The Hill," a large Italian community with a restaurant, grocery or bakery on nearly every corner. Finish with dessert on historic Old Route 66 at Ted Drewes Frozen Custard.

Caves and Cellars:
Meramec Cavern and Mt. Pleasant Winery
Tour #54312, Thr, July 12, 9:00 am-5:00 pm, $52

Meramec Caverns is Missouri’s #1 show cave, considered one of the best in America. The guided tour is one hour and 20 minutes. Lunch at the Cavern Restaurant is included. Then it’s on to Mt. Pleasant Wine Company, founded in 1881 in Augusta. Sample wine, fresh baked bread, and Missouri cheeses. You’ll want to dress in layers — the caverns are about 60 degrees year-round.

Murder and Mystery at the Bevo Mill
Tour #53322, Thr, July 12, 6:30-10:30 pm, $67

Hear about St. Louis’ rich brewing history and the colorful Busch family as you pass Anheuser-Busch Brewery and its corporate headquarters, 70 red brick buildings covering 100 acres. Dine at the Bevo Mill, built for August A. Busch halfway between the brewery and his home, Grant’s Farm. Mr. Busch studied various construction methods of Dutch windmills and used the Mill Room as his private dining room. Take on a new persona to discover the culprit in Murder on the Mississippi when an unpublished novel by Mark Twain "found" by billionaire Donald Frump results in foul play.