SC - Re:Feast planning

[LrdRas]

>Poppa Gunthar and all those lucky people who got to attend his feast
>have been discussing the issues that had to deal with space and people.
>
>I know this has been hashed over before (for all of us old timers out
>there), but maybe a discussion on how feasts are run and prepays vs.
>feeding everyone.
>
<<<<<<MUCH SNIPPAGE>>>>>>
>How does this differ from other areas out there?
>
>Murkial af Maun

Greetings!

First, a mention of qualifications and background:

I have been in commercial food service in the past, of various types
ranging from bad pizza to impressive gourmet stuff.  (Some days, I prefer
the pizza...)  The question arises mundanely, every day, every restaurant.
The proper solution to the problem is the key to staying in business.

I have been making feasts for SCA events since 1979.  Over 30 feasts ago, I
had these same exact problems to deal with, namely, "For how many do I cook?"

There isn't any easy answer.  I have used rules of thumb, and statistical
analysis.  Neither one worked any better than the other.  Since the
calculus of statistics is a pain in the tuchus, the thumb now rules.

The trend today (at least right now in the Middle Kingdom) seems to be
toward few-or-no preregistrations.  This makes everything "iffy" for
planning any event.  If you put "preregistration only" in the event flyers
and ads, you still only get a few checks in the mail and a flock of "Any
feast seats left?" folks at the gate.

What has worked for me in the past few years has been to set a limit on the
number served.  Period.  Keep the feast small in comparison to the expected
attendance.  If we expect 120 people, the feast is set for 40.  The "break
even" financial point is __30__.  In other words, I plan to feed 40 people,
and divide the costs by 30.  This way, if 40 show, we make a little cash
for the next event.  If 30 show, we break even.  If only 20 eat feast, we
lose some, but we don't lose our shirts.

In the past 2 years, we have held 2 events each year (or at least tried
to).  Of the 4 events we have scheduled in the last 24 months, 2 of them
have met with sudden competition from a kingdom-level event(one crown
tourney and one coronation) which was suddenly moved onto the date we had
chosen 6 months before.  <<Shrug.  Feces occurs.>>  In other words, my
pessimistic planning paid off once (we only lost a little bit on the
feast), and we just got disgusted and cancelled the event that got smooshed
for this Spring.

In other words, you take your chances in the Midrealm.  Hardly anyone
bothers to preregister, and you can never be sure if there won't be a
sudden change in Kingdom law that moves a major event onto your
long-planned date, so it's all a crap shoot.

Why I keep doing feasts is quite beyond me.  I must be nuts.  Can you say
"stress"?  Sure, I knew you could.

Being steward of a feast in the Midrealm at least is not for the
faint-of-heart.  All you can do is make a guess, plan for the worst, and be
prepared to lose a couple of hundred bucks.  Leftovers, anyone?  Barley
pilaf freezes surprisingly well......
Eoin Campbell
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