As a nonflier and a travel writer, I spend a lot of time on trains. Train food, I’ve come to learn, is its own distinct and expansive category. It encompasses prime rib and crabcakes and the tinkling ...

Descendants of the late Kenny Sly ride his homemade train, refurbished by grandson Brent Sly of Ridge Farm and his cousin, Wade White of Terre Haute, Ind. AT RIGHT: The train’s caboose.