[MR] From a SCA Cook

[Orla Carey]

Greetings Your Highness,

I am Lady Orla Carey. Many people would recognize me as the other half of
the Tirzah/Orla team since I am Lady Tirzah MacCrudden's chief assistant
cook. I say this in part because this email comes from the same address as
the one she sent earlier and I want to clear up any confusion caused by the
fact I neglected to mention that I was forwarding it for her since she does
not belong to the Merry Rose list.

Thank you for your quick response and the invitation for questions. As it
happens, I have been working on putting together a set of questions that I
hope will clear up the confusion I have. I feel a lot of the issue here is
that the paragraph in the Acorn letter caused some confusion overall as it
could not convey enough information to forstall questions.

1) Are you requesting that "Your Guests" eat free, or be comped for the
whole event? Yes it seems obvious that you are talking about feast but no
where in your letter does it say "comped for feast". It merely says guests
should not have to pay. While I am assuming you mean only for feast I'd like
to have this confirmed.

2) I feel from the letters I have read from you in response to questions
that you are talking more about people who have not pre-registered for feast
but are invited to sit at High Table. How do you propose we deal with people
who have already paid for feast but are then invited to eat with you. Do we
now owe them a refund? How much extra work is this going to require from the
Exchequer of the group running the event?

3) You have stated several times that most high tables are only six people.
Yet I can not remember the last time we only served high table for six
people. Events that have a Royal and Highness presence will generally have a
MINIMUM of six, all of whom are usually comped anyway (King, Queen, Prince,
Princess, Baron & Baroness). Most often the event will have eight and we
have even served 12 at High Table at Royal whim. Do you propose to limit
your high tables to a total of six or eight during your reign as to not
cause financial strain on the event?

4) You have stated that "the math breaks down to .043 of a single
tablespoon, barely over one teaspoon from each plate that leaves the
kitchen." To a certain extent you are probably right in this. However this
assumes that High Table is being served the exact same foods as the
populace. In my experience any extra special food that is too expensive to
serve the main populace goes to High Table. This is also the case for foods
that are "showy" or too time consuming to make for 100 people. For example
it is not ununsual for us to talk about serving Cornish Game Hens to High
Table but roast chicken to the rest of the populace. Any sublties go to High
Table, etc. This gives the Head Cook an chance to show off a bit but also
means that the costs of the High Table meal is more expensive. Do you
propose we stop doing this in an effort to save funds? Or that it come
exclusively from the Head Cook's pocket? It just seems wrong to me that the
populace should not only be charged extra so that the High Table should eat,
but also so that they can eat a better meal.

5) Please note that where I disagree with you on the cost of feeding one
extra table is anything involving meat. Generally we tend to budget between
1/2 lb and 1 lb of meet per person as a total (even if it's split between
different meats such as 1/4 lb chicken, 1/2 lb beef and 1/4 lb pork for
example). Whether you agree that this is a reasonable assumption or not, it
does mean that the cost of an extra table is more significant when it comes
to the meat dishes.

6) While thinking about writing this letter I reviewed Corporate policy
because, as a former exchequer, I remembered the "Pizza rule". Could you
please confirm that neither SCA Gift Policy(found at
http://sca.org/BOD/announcements/gift.html) nor Society Financial Policy
will be an issue when rewriting local group financial policies? The specific
Financial Policy I'm referring to is:

"From the Society Financial Policy
IX. Expense Authorization

E. SCA funds may not be used to reimburse expenses for events or meetings
closed to the general populace unless the events or meetings have a business
agenda which requires limited attendance, such as officer staff meetings,
kingdom councils, and event planning meetings. Kingdom Financial Policies
may have additional requirements for reimbursement of these expenses.

Expenses soley incurred for Royalty-only and order-only meetings are
specifically ineligible for reimbursement. The Society Chancellor of the
Exchequer may grant variances to this policy on a case-by-case basis, based
on written requests received no later than seven days prior to the event or
meeting date."
end quote

While granted Feasts are not "closed to the general populace", High Table
is. I'm concerned that an argument can be made that having a stated
financial policy saying that High Table does not have to pay for feast
violates this rule.

While I have additional reservations on the subject concerning the
additional planning headaches this policy could cause to event staff, I am
hoping that the answers to these questions will help clarify the policy.

Thanks you for your attention and consideration,

Orla

-- 
Lady Orla Carey
Personal Secretary to Dame Roxanne Greenstreet
Co-Minion to Lady Tirzah McCrudden
orlacarey at gmail.com

Per bend sinister gules and Or, a wolf couchant contourny sable.