[Sca-cooks] Sign of the Times perhaps --Dinner at Crown - cancelled

[Avelyn Grene]

Having very recently worked in a hotel/conference center/catering 
facility similar to the one where Crown is being held, I see both sides 
of the problem.

Finding an easily accessible site in the Cincinnati area, that can hold 
4-600 people, and all of the different activities  we hold for our 
Spring Crown (which includes Kingdom A&S) is certainly not an easy task, 
and sites that can accommodate this are few and far between, and 
generally limited to fairgrounds (which require a whole lot more  work 
and planning) and conference centers (at least from what I have seen in 
this area).  From an SCAdian point of view, this is one of the easiest 
ways to ensure that everything should work out the way you need it to, 
as you have basically hired a site to do everything for you.

This does come with drawbacks (food wise):

Catering/Conference side (at least from my limited experience in Ohio):
-Catering centers of this type have preplanned menu options at preset 
prices, ranging from about $20-40, for dinners from anything to simple 
chicken and veggie buffets, to 4 course served duo shrimp and fillet 
dinners.  These are generally for business groups (who get a bulk 
discount a lot of the time) or weddings.  We are just strange people 
that wear funny clothes and asked for dinner to be included.
-Most catering facilities are unbending in their menus, etc.  Unless you 
have an "in" with the facility (work there, are friends with the chef, 
what have you), you are unlikely to have any influence on what is 
served.  There are many reasons for this, which many of us can come up 
with pretty easily.  Unfamiliarity of recipes, food costs, labor costs, 
etc.  The food we make is foreign to them and generally more tedious 
that the standard dinners they provide.
-The issue of bringing in food.  Facilities do not forbid outside food 
just to be annoying.  True, they don't really want to have to deal with 
our snack bags and juice boxes, and they would much rather we buy their 
food,  but the real reason is that it is usually illegal to bring 
outside food in to public serving areas (please note this does not 
include private hotel rooms - you can order all the pizza you want).  
Food service licenses only cover the food bought or prepared by the 
facility.  If the health inspector was to pop his head in and see a 
lunch tavern, or a homemade lunch, they would be in a world of trouble 
and lose their license.  Unfortunately this extends to snacks and things 
as well.  (Please keep in mind these rules may not apply to all states 
boards of health)

As far as Doc's suggestion on creating menus for catering facilities to 
use:  The likelihood of a randomly picked catering facility actually 
allowing such a thing is slim, but this does not mean that it is a 
project not worth doing.  There are a number of people who have "ins" 
with such facilities, ones which may be willing to quietly bend the 
rules and cook the menus, and for those places, it would be awesome to 
have a menu ready to hand to them.  Many of the chefs at some of these 
places are foodies as well and would love the opportunity to dabble in 
something new provided they can do it (the chefs where I worked were 
some of the biggest food geeks I've ever met and were/are in constant 
support of my research and cooking).  The trick is just finding the 
right venue that can get away with bending the rules a bit.

I hope that made sense - I am usually asleep by now...

Avelyn

On 5/23/08, *chawkswrth at aol.com* <chawkswrth at aol.com> wrote:

    Here, it is a bit of both. We have only had one Event that I know of
    where the vendor insisted that their cooks do the cooking and the
    menu planning. It did not go well. They did not plan enough food and
    there were other issues.?

    Neither I, nor anyone I know of would pay that kind of price for
    that kind of menu. Frankly, I am appalled, and if I were in that
    group, would have insisted on finding another, more compliant venue.
    They are out there....somewhere....

    I was just trying to give a cost comparison.

    So, what would $25 per Adult cover in your Kingdom?


    Helen



-- 
Lady Avelyn Grene
Apprentice to Master Edouard Halidai
Chronicler and Historian for Barony Flaming Gryphon

The Commonplace Boke of Lady Avelyn Grene
www.greneboke.com