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Vol. II , Issue I |
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FEAST MANAGEMENT
Many factors go in to producing a
Medieval Feast. Decisions must be made on to what type of feast it is: budget,
theme, menu and overall resources. By looking at the individual components, the
Feast Manager will be able to decide the best course of action. Type of Feast Indoor: A site survey must be done
to determine size and resources. An indoor feast will provide the opportunity
for better preparation, convenience, safety (food temperature control, traffic
in kitchen...), and decorating needs. However, careful consideration must be
given to size and or cooking limitations. Outdoor: An outdoor site must be
compatible with the menu. It offers more challenges in that all kitchen aspects
must be brought to site. The important thing is to be able to adapt the menu to
outside site limitations. Buffet: A Buffet is not a feast. Served: The challenge of this type
of feast is having enough servers and the space to allow the servers to move in
and out efficiently. Mixed Buffet or Family Style: In my opinion this is the
best way to go. The food is brought out on platters and they take what they
want. This allows a maximum number of people to be served with very few
servers. High Table: If there is a High Table
have two servers dedicated to it. Serve High Table same food as populace. Planning a Feast Theme: By having a theme, menu
planning will be much easier, as will entertainment and decorating needs. The
theme need not be elaborate, having two main colors, or type of flower will
give the Feast Manager an outline to start from. Menu: There are fundamentally
three ways a menu can be presented: totally period, a mix of period and modern,
not even close to period. My suggestion is to do a mix, bring in elements of
period with period style dishes. Eel was a popular period dish; however, having
it as a main course would not be wise, instead serve a smaller quantity so that
people can taste it. Have enough non-meat courses; yet keep in mind that to
most people a feast is meat. Please remember dessert, this can truly be a
moment to delight and astonish the populace. Keep in mind food allergies, but
you will not be able to appease everyone so list all ingredients on the menu.
It is a great idea to post menu with ingredients before the feast. By having a
variety of courses you can reduce the amount of each course, have enough
different dishes to appease everyone, and leave your populace stuffed to the
brim. Cost: My Exchequer will not
approve an unlimited feast budget, if yours will, then congratulations. Many
factors go into the budget: cost of hall, food, non-food items (printing,,
trash bags, wood, etc...). Most feasts can be planned for 100 people. Feast
cost is number of people divided by budget, or another way of looking at it is
if you have $250.00 then that works out to $2.50 per person. If you charge a $5
feast fee than you have about $500.00 to use for the overall feast cost
(including rental of hall, food and everything else.) When planning the budget
determine what your actual food cost will be after everything else is planned
for, this will allow you to plan the menu. A 60lb suckling pig will cost about
$200.00, while 60lbs of pork ribs will cost about $60.00. By knowing how much
you have you can change the menu to meet the demands of your Exchequer, while
keeping the favor of your design. Marshal Your Resources: Look to your group
resources while planning a feast, what donations can you hope to receive. Would
other members have items such as pots and pans, white Christmas lights, ladles,
tablecloths, trash bags, a cup of sugar, a pinch of cinnamon, could a member
make breads, or butter dips. The point is let others play also, most people
would love to have the opportunity to help, but do not know how. Maybe the
perfect centerpiece for the High Table is sitting collecting dust in somebody
garage. Cut cost by letting someone donate a box of cornstarch, or by having a
Household do the dessert. Call around to Food Vendors asking for a donation or
a cost break. We are a non-profit organization and we have a non-profit tax ID
number (check with your Seneschal and Exchequer). A word of caution, there is a
difference between a donation and borrowing an item, be sure and have people
mark the items they want returned. Let the children help at feast by taking
around trash bags (Alms for the Poor). Some Advice One of the best teachers is
failure. Here are words of wisdom from those who have been there:
Roles To Fill for a Successful Feast
Feast Manager The Feast Manager is the
director, producer and artist of the feasting experience. It is the Feast
Manager who takes us back in time with the sites, sounds, smells and tastes of
the Middle Ages at the same time all preparation, expense and product must take
place in this reality. The Feast Manager can be compared to the contemporary
restaurateur, except for the fact that the restaurant is not open all the time,
no ongoing staff, limited supplies, equipment and the location changes places. The
comparison lies in that each must have a plan of operation, must be organized,
the job must fit the person and your customers have top priority. Customers,
yes I said customers, for participates of the feast have paid for
entertainment, atmosphere, service and food. The Feast Manager is responsible for
the overall feast experience, and it is a large responsibility. To assist the
Manager there are supportive roles that must be filled, having these positions
filled will prove to be an invaluable relief. But, please remember the right
person for the job. Head Cook In most cases this should
not be the Feast Manager. The Head Cook is responsible for securing, training
and overseeing their cooking staff, any preparation and cooking the meal. The
Head Cook along with the Feast Manager works to balance a menu that meets the
requirements of space, supplies, equipment, time and cost of the feast. It is
also a good idea to have a timed Cooks schedule; what time should the roast be
put in, be sure and schedule a break. How many prep cooks the Head Cook as
depends on size of feast, kitchen and cook. A word of caution, just because
someone is a great cook for a family of four does not mean they are ready to
oversee a meal for a hundred. Head Server The Head Server is
responsible for acting as the go between the cooks and servers. It can become
very confusing and upsetting to have more than one voice asking for this and
wanting that. In most cases the servers are not from the site and have stepped
in at the last minute to help. The Head Server will know the feast, the site,
table arrangements and serving needs. The Head Server will work with Feast Manager
and Head Cook to correlate serving needs. Work with all parties to make sure
that servers do not interfere with entertainment. I would also suggest that
Head Server work with Feast Manager and Entertainment Director on set-up for
the feast hall. Entertainment Director What makes a Medieval Feast
a true out of time experience is the atmosphere. The Entertainment Director
schedules entertainers, arranges for lighting, decoration, background music.
Correlate with the Head Server when something is coming out, plan the
entertainers around the food, having a singer performing while servers are
serving is rude. The Entertainment Director might be in charge of printing
menus, advertisement and Heralding the Feast. Head Porter This person will be in
charge of arranging for helpers to move tables and chairs and any other labor
work needed for set up and tear down. This person will schedule scullery or
dishwashers for the Head cook. They will arrange for any other labor or
cleaning needs. The Final Thought Managing a feast can be
fun. All it takes is careful planning, adapting to the situation as it evolves,
letting everyone do their job, maintaining control, and do not forget to smile.
There will be things you would have done different, there will be things you
will do again, but no matter what, there will be one precious moment when you
will see your Medieval Feast Dream come true. A Small Reference List Black, Maggie. THE MEDIEVAL COOKBOOK. Thames
& Hudson. 1992 Buxton, Moria. MEDIEVAL COOKING TODAY. The
Kylin Press. 1983 Cinqueterr, Berengario delle. THE RENAISSANCE
COOKBOOK. The Dunes Press. 1975 Cosman, Madeliene Pelner. FABULOUS FEASTS.
George Brazlier. 1976 (Not the Recipes) Hammond, P.A. FOOD AND FEAST IN MEDIEVAL
ENGLAND. Alan Sutton. 1993 Renfrow, Cindy TAKE A THOUSAND EGGS OR MORE,
VOLS 1 & 2. Tannahill, Reay. FOOD IN HISTORY. Stein and
Day.1973 About Author
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