[Sca-cooks] Serving and High Table

[Ted Eisenstein]

>1) Who is served first, especially if all the Royals are present?
Their Majesties, of the realm in which the feast is being served, of
course, followed by TRM in order of the creation of the appropriate
kingdom. Then, lessee, Their Highnesses of the principality in
which the feast is being served, and Their Highnesses of other
principalities; followed by TRH (the heirs of the home Crown),
the other RH; visiting ambassadors; probably visiting principality
heirs; dukes by order of creation of their duchy; counts, ditto; and
so on down the home kingdom's OP, I guess.

>2) As a server, do you serve them or put the dish in front of them
>for them to pass?
The job of the Royalty present is to eat, and to enjoy, not to work.
Hence, they are served, they do not pass food along.

>3) How many of each dishes is ideal?  (One?  Two, one for each side
>of the table?)
Each dish should have as much food in it as it can hold, elegantly, and
without spillage; hence, your mileage will vary depending on dish size,
and type of food.

>4) Should the meats, chicken, etc., be presented whole or cut up?
Presented whole, and cut up at the table. For why else would there be
a Royal Carver?

>If whole, who do you think should cut them up?
See above.

>5) What about having one or two "servitors" standing behind High
>Table to assist those Head Table folk in retrieving dishes that are
>out of reach?  (Would solve the dilemma of having to say "Your
>Majesty, would you please have the Baron pass the pickled
>mushrooms?")
There should be a sufficiency of servers that those at Head Table need
not ask for seconds; the food should magically appear in front of them
the second they are hungry for more. At least for those Royals that are
greedy enough for more, for all should know that greed is a sin, and
unworthy of a good Christian ruler. . .

>6) For serving the populace, how many of your groups provide serving
>utensils for each dish?  (Or do we expect folk to dip in with the
>spoon/fork they've already had in their mouth?!?)
The populace, being the normal, grubby, working people, know not how
to eat properly; for they are the people, after all, not the nobility, and
therefore lack the education and proper  upbringing normal to those
of the Royal Classes.
One can hope, however; and to start in on education, there should be
a sufficiency of serving implements so that no one person, nor table, may
be able to take more than their fair share, especially at the first go-round of
a particularly delicious dish. Especially in these times of the spreading of
mysterious plagues and foul diseases, having a set of common utensils
that have been pre-cleaned is most helpful and sanitary, so that the Plague,
and the Wasting Disease, and the Pox do not spread and decimate the
kingdom.

(Aren't there period serving manuals floating around somewhere? We could
mine them for good, period, and really spiff stuff. . .)

Alban