[Sca-cooks] Above/Below the Salt was Greetings

Antonia Calvo ladyadele at paradise.net.nz
Tue Mar 18 18:31:33 PDT 2008


Terry Decker wrote:

>I've encountered above/below the salt feasts a couple of times during my 
>early days in the Society and I've heard of a number of others.  I am of the 
>opinion that they work better with personna players, especially in older 
>days when the beer could flow freely below the salt.  They are a way to 
>provide two tier pricing, which I believe (at least in Ansteorra) is more 
>commonly handled these days by a feast and a tavern.
>
>The idea can work.  In the case you cite, it apparently didn't.  YMMV.
>
>I must admit that I never tried one, because it seemed like a waste of time 
>and effort at the quantities and prices I was working at.
>  
>


We usually have only one dinner option, maybe a feast or maybe something 
simple, but no two-tuering.  At the one event I've been to where there 
were to options.  The steward absolutely insisted that it was customary 
for new Heirs to celebrate with a fancy Victory Feast (with a fairly 
small number of attendees) and that the rest of the populace should have 
a simple meal.  Well, first there were the arguments about pricing.  And 
the argument about who should do what. Eventually, Terese and I agreed 
to do the "below the salt" meal for 100 and the Victory Feast was done 
by another cook for 40 or so, but with a much higher per-head budget.  
There was also the argument about what should be served at each meal-- 
we put our collective foot down when the organisers tried to suggest 
that we (who were flying in for the occasion) were going to cook a meal 
of stew and rice.

The down-side:  Few people could see the point of two feasts.  The 
Victory Feast had definite organisational issues.  I've never had 
terribly detailed description of the allegedly fancier meal, but there 
did seem to be a lack of enthusiasm.  I think the people in the cheap 
seats may have got a better dinner.   It just wasn't worth the trouble.

-- 
Antonia Calvo 
(formerly known as Adele de Maisieres)

-----------------------------
Habeo metrum - musicamque,
hominem meam. Expectat alium quid?
-Georgeus Gershwinus
----------------------------- 





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