SC - Intolerances-RAVING RANT

[CorwynWdwd]

The simple answer is "control the feast hall."  Whoever takes responsibility
for the feast (not necessarily the cook, although I have done double duty),
needs to take control of the feast hall, reservations and entertainment.
They handle the organizing, scheduling, and timing of everything occurring
in the feast hall.  The best feasts I have had were when I knew what
entertainment had been scheduled in what order and how long the performances
would run.

If the high table wishes to hold court, your hall co-ordinator and the court
herald need to work out the approximate timing of the awards and
presentations.  The kitchen is responsible for notifying the co-ordinator
and the herald of the actually timing of the courses.  In this case, let the
herald announce the course and stall the court, while the food is delivered
and people fall to eating.

If the desire is for entertainment, select your entertainers and arrange
your entertainment to suit.  If this is not possible, have people who wish
to entertain during the feast sign up with the hall co-ordinator to be
properly scheduled "in the interests of fairness and courtesy."  Find out
what they intend to do and the approximate length, then it can be scheduled.


Position your strongest performers, the ones who can command an audience in
a tempest, just before the courses are to be delivered.  In general, they
have bettery time control and are less likely to have their feelings hurt if
you have to step on them.  If you work with them in advance, good performers
can stall a delay in the kitchen and present the delivery of the next course
in such a manner as to make the entertainment and the food work together.

It should be remembered that a feast is not just food.  It is a performance
of the art of dining.  To make it work, you need to plan what will occur,
prepare to make it occur, and communicate the details of the occurence to
those who will take part.  The feast begins with the layout of the hall and
ends with taking out the last of the garbage and everything occurring in the
feast hall that falls in between needs organization and scheduling as much
as the work in the kitchen.

Bear



> but sometimes it just bugs me to death to have to stop and put a
> feast on hold while someone sings for a head table.  A song can wait a few
> minutes until a remove is served.  
> 	The feast should go on especially when a remove is time/heat
> sensitive. 
> Our autocrats and head tables need to be made aware that what we are doing
> is as important as every thing else going on!
> 
> 	sigh, stepping off my soap box and collapsing in a foxhole pulling
> the lid
> over my head . . .
> 	Balldrich
> 
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