[Sca-cooks] Above/Below The Salt

[Christine Seelye-King]

> I am very interested in the topic of feasts above and below the
> salt.  How has this worked out for everyone?

Generally, it works out pretty well.

> Is the complication worth it?

For the most part, I see it done with a separate cook preparing the meal.
It is a much simpler meal, so there isn't usually too much disruption on the
kitchen, perhaps one or two eyes on the stove (although that is easy to get
around with additional camp kitchen supplies), and refrigerator room labeled
and separate from the main feast food.

How do you ensure that someone who paid for below the salt doesn't get the
above
> the salt feast?

I see this issue come up a lot - how to keep folks honest.  Letting people
know up front that feast spaces are sold out and tokens will be checked
informs those who might casually decide to stay that there aren't any
'fudge' spaces.  Issuing tokens at Troll and then checking them in the hall
are good ways to keep tabs.  If there is a below-the-salt feast, a slight
variation to the token is done.  I haven't had a problem with it personally
but once, and an announcement was made  at Court and in the hall as set-up
was being done that space was sold-out and tight.  A few folks apologized
and left.  Mostly it isn't an issue. Folks that pay for the below-the-salt
feast want a simpler meal, want a faster meal, don't want to sit in a
crowded hall, etc.  They aren't inclined to pay for one and 'sneak' into
another.

> Do you lose a lot of people who would normally pay for the full
> feast when the below the salt option is used?

Not really.  It usually takes care of over-flow from folks who either would
not have bought the main feast, or didn't get their money in on time for the
main one.  Every one I've ever seen had the diners happy that they chose the
simpler feast, especially since they were done sooner!

> What sorts of dishes do you have for the below the salt feast?

One main dish.  Soup, stew, grilled meats, baked chicken, etc.  Bread,
cheese or butter (cheese is expensive).  Fruits or fruit-based dessert.
Pickles, olives, other salty things.  Perhaps a salad or raw veggies.
Simple foods, one course, usually served buffet-style.  Can be period foods,
often they are not.  (Unless we're doing it :)

> How elaborate does the above the salt feast get?

Hard to answer that one.  If you spend any time at all on this list, you
should get a fair idea of how outrageous we can be. :)

> There has also been a problem in the past of people eating the full feast
without having paid > for the feast (paid reservations for 80 and yet we end
up feeding 120).

Issuing tokens and checking them at the door is the best way to deal with
this.  A Maitre 'd is a period position, actually.  We have used one (or
Steward or whatever you want to call it) several times.  Mostly to help
people find space, determine when some table has an extra seat or two, etc.

> Atenveldt's full feast price is usually in the $5-7 per person range so I
would imagine that
> the below the salt price would be on the order of $2-3 dollars if we had
them here.

Hm.  Another topic that gets tossed around periodically here (right now, as
a matter of fact) is the difference in feast/food prices in different areas
of the Known World.  We are averaging 6-8 for feasts here now.  A below the
salt feast would probably run in the 3-5 range.  With donated foods, lots
less.

> Yours in service,
> Katheline van Weye

Hope my answers can help.  Volunteer to put on a below-the-salt feast for
the next event you're involved in.  It can even be a privately run thing, if
that's the way the autocrats want things.  You can limit the number you're
serving (say 50 for example) and sell tickets yourself, or have them
available at Troll.  You might be surprised at how well it is received.
Good luck,
Mistress Christianna MacGrain
Barony of the South Downs, Meridies