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Newest HSR trains have buffets, 1 per 8 cars.

Configurations for short routes don't have them.

Do you really need a dining car when the longest route in the country is only 8 hours long?

Packaged meals on HSR do worth their price. Whatever meal I had in the past 7 years on the rail was cooked fresh.

I agree dining cars aren't needed on high speed rail because of the short amount of time passengers are on the train. That doesn't mean I can't miss the old 24+ hour trains with dining cars.

I wasn't aware of the HSR buffet. Look forward to trying out!

Packaged meals on the Beijing to GZ HSR were pretty bad. The trip was only 8 hours (BJ to ChenZhou Hunan), but you do get hungry between there and then. Having said that, I didn’t feel like checking out the dining car (if there was one). Having been on longer trips on normal fast trains with hard sleepers, the dining car was definitely useful.

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