Haggis and lamb tummies was Re: SC - More lamb

[Weiszbrod, Barbara A]

maddie teller-kook wrote, in response to Stefan li Rous:
> 
> > It may be splitting hairs, but serving special dishes or the same dishes with
> > special, more expensive ingredients to the the high table might also be
> > considered
> > to be a similar misuse of event or group money. I am undecided myself on this one.
> >
> 
> I must disagree with you here Stefan.  Serviing 'special' dishes to the crown or
> ranking nobility in a group is a very period thing to do. I don't usually cook special
> dishes but I might serve the same dish differently to the high table. For example, a
> long time ago I did a perio-oid dish called Basque Chicken. I used chicken parts for
> the dish served to the populace. For the high table I used Rock Cornish Hens to dress
> the dish up for the high table.
> 
> Meadhbh

On problem might be that "period" and "equitable" aren't the same. Certainly
when one prepares special dishes for high table, it can be easy to accrue
expenses it might be seen as unfair for the rest of the populace's event
structure to absorb.

As Phlip mentioned, the special dishes prepared for Their Majesties and
Highnesses of the East at their Spring Crown were mostly made from items
donated by al Sayyid A'Aql Ras (to whom, I gather, many of those items were
given by friends). These items were supplemented by about $5 worth of
ingredients purchased locally.

And yes, I did taste all of the sauces, as well as some of the bear heart,
some pheasant, and, I seem to recall, some goose (all of which were
magnificent). In addition, I had arranged for my butcher to tie a crown roast
of pork loin (it being crown tourney and all) for high table, which was the
same cut of meat everyone else got, and for no additional charge. All it meant
was the side-allocation of meat that I would have bought anyway, because I
expected as many as sixteen or more people at high table. Now, as it happens,
we ended up having oven problems (to name one of several), which delayed
things, so the dishes for high table ended up being served just as the
combined Royalty were leaving the site (Her Majesty was not feeling well _and_
had three over-tired children, and Their Highnesses had over-tired children
and a 200-mile drive). What this meant was my Viceroy and Vicereine sat there
at a nearly empty high table for perhaps a minute, after which they sent
someone around to find people who might like to join them for the crown roast.
(The Royalty got pointy-hat bags of samples of key dishes, including pieces of
the more munitions-grade roast.)

Meanwhile, Ras went out into the highways and byways, looking for the opinion
of the Gentle on the Street on period esoterica like bear heart in red-wine
pevorade, pheasant in garlic sauce, etc., and returned shortly thereafter with
empty platters and an s.e.g. (a variety of smile I'll describe privately). He
seemed to have felt the outcome was worth the trouble and the unforseen difficulties.

For the high table at the Coronation feast for Horic and Leah, I provided (and
paid for personally), an entire seven-rib "prime rib" roast, which was fun
because we left the rib bones long and trimmed the roast down to the eye, so
it looked like a giant rack of lamb, complete with silver foil on the bones. I
seem to recall being asked if there were Bronto-burgers on the menu as well,
for after the ribs. Horic and Leah are good friends of mine, and the roast was
my gift to them (one whose cost I didn't feel comfortable asking my Province
to pay for out of event funds). As in the previous example, after everyone at
the table had had some, it was asked by Their Majesties that the remaining 3/4
of the roast be brought out and served to the rest of the gentles on-board. 

I think perhaps the question of fairness of providing special dishes for high
table is a simple discretionary one, to be determined by the kitchener and the
steward, with the good of the group in mind. Yes, it's a period practice, but
then in period feast guest were, literally, guests, and it was not for them to
say how their $8, or whatever, was used. This isn't really true of SCAdians
today, however much we sometimes might like it to be. As long as the kitchen
steward is prepared to defend the decision, and defend it reasonably and well,
I think there's an acceptable range of event-absorbable expenses, but this
range assumes a level of discretion on the part of those making the decisions. 

Adamantius    
Østgardr, East
- -- 
Phil & Susan Troy

troy at asan.com
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