[Sca-cooks] Offboard/onboard was Diabetic needs

[Johnna Holloway]

Since it has been a while since we discussed this, I want to put in a request/vote for those who are eating "offboard" to be able to eat sitting among their friends, rather than being off in another section or evicted from the feast hall. Yes, I realize that allowing non-feasters to eat in the feast hall does complicate serving, and in a few cases there simply isn't enough room. But when it is possible I think it should be done.
In Ansteorra, you can almost always eat with your friends even if you don't purchase the feast, but that apparently isn't true in many (most?) areas.
snipped
Stefan
-----

It depends on the hall and the type of tables. Do they seat 8 or 6 or possibly 10? Aren't you portioning out the feast based on the tables and seating? 8 servings or 6 servings per table works well. 10 ends up a bit more complicated. Long rows of rectangular tables usually get marked off by ribbons or garlands making them into divided tables of 8 servings and for easy dish placement.

In terms of serving, how do you know at any one table who gets a portion and who doesn't? I've been to off board feasts where the people who didn't pay went ahead and ate because the food was served in 8 portions to a table. 6 paid and 2 didn't, but everyone ate. If you put the off board people in a separate section, at least maybe the food wouldn't be served to them by a hurried  and inexperienced wait staff. 

Also those 1/2 price children's portions add up. 15 children equals another adult table of 8 servings. Well, 7.5 anyway. Finding out at the last minute that the event troll sold children's tickets but never kept a count of those can be a last minute nightmare. How many are you feeding and seating?

Lastly, If you allow for non-paying guests to sit in the hall, does the set up allow room for aisles and easy movement for paying guests and servers? Being squeezed 10 to a round table that more reasonably seats 6-8 is not nice. Doing that so that people can sit free just to talk to their friends might not be appreciated.

It's also a major hassle to arrive for feast and find that all the seats are gone with the extras being taken up by non-paying guests. Having to sit in the back of the hall at a hastily assembled table and then watching as food passes that table by because you are at the 17th table and there are 16 platters being arranged in the kitchen does not create a favorable impression.

Johnnae