How many times have you cringed at the watery dal and the rubbery rotis served on your train? And how many times have you fallen sick after eating train food? Is this one of the main reasons why you spend extra on flight tickets?

Well, there’s a mind-blowing news for you. Now on your next train journey you can order food online from any of the restaurants in the cities your train passes through. Food portals have tied up with restaurants across the country to deliver food to train passengers. The menu is, of course, varied and you can choose from Chinese, Mughlai, Italian, continental and fast food. These three good samaritans are TravelKhana, Merafoodchoice, and Comesum.

All you have to do is fill in your train details and choose from the menu. The order will be delivered at a pre-decided station. What an idea, sirji! We can already see these 3 as a superhero trinity that helps distressed train passengers.

Travelkhana serves around 100 stations (including some less frequented ones such as Ratlam Junction of Jab We Met fame, Pipariya, Rourkela, and Alwar Junction) and even tracks the train and makes sure the food served doesn’t get cold and stale! The founder, Pushpinder Singh, says about his plans for the company that started operations last year in August: “We are in talks with McDonalds.”

Merafoodchioce reaches 130 stations and serves only vegetarian food. Piyush Kasliwal, the founder of MFC says: “The food we deliver is freshly prepared by the restaurants. The cut off time is one hour.”

Comesum, that specializes in railway catering and has been here for 40 years, delivers food prepared at its own outlets.

How it works:

1. Fill in your train details or PNR (passenger name record).
2. Choose any restaurant en route your destination.
3. Order whatever you want. You can make the payment online or at the time of delivery.
4. Wait for the order to be delivered at a railway station of your choice.

Here you widen your eyes, chuckle a little, and book your train tickets.