SC - Protectorate Feast 5 (no recipes)

[Decker, Terry D.]

This time we had a fair sized commercial kitchen and I had a mob of helpers
in there on Saturday afternoon.  These were entirely pick up volunteers and
outside of the other three feast cooks I have no idea of their skills.  I
put the experienced people on the critical projects and set everyone else I
could to various preparation and light cooking tasks.  As Stefan and Gunthar
have both pointed out, I reached the place where I was unable to employ
further help.  

By the time we were down to the wire, what was left were the experienced
hands to whom cooking is the greatest fun.  We pulled in a couple extra
hands to help set up for the servers, but the crowd we had earlier would
have just gotten in the way. 

Having this much help is foreign to me.  Most of the time I am working sites
where the kitchen is too small or where most preparations must be done in
advance.  The previous feast I did, I had enough room to stand in front of
the stove and reach the sink with space for two service prep people at the
back of the room.  Walk in help and visitors were discouraged, because I
would have had no room to work. 

Given the facilities, I have no problem with volunteers, experienced or
otherwise.  But, getting the feast to the table is my first commitment.

Bear

> I agree with Lord Stefan about leaving room for newbie 
> volunteers.  Since my 
> main task in the kitchen is the "fun food", fancy garnishes, 
> subtlties, 
> etc., I have always gone out of my way at times to find some youth or 
> "bored" looking person to give me a hand.  I have set folks 
> down with a 
> knife and fruit and had all sorts of wonderful animals and 
> whacky whimsys 
> produced.  
> Olwen