The California City Arts Commission, in cooperation with the Guilde of Sainte Marie and the House of Tudor, are proud to announce the presentation of the second Queen’s Banquet. The banquet will be held in conjunction to the California City Renaissance Festival, and will start after the close of the festival on October 20, 2007 at 7:00PM.
The banquet will focus on the historical aspects of an Elizabethan dinner, as well as the etiquette and formality of the time period. Moreover, it will also feature foods prepared with recipes dating back to the Renaissance and Medieval time periods. Also, period correct entertainments will also be provided for the Queen, Her Court, and Her guests!
“Banquets held during the Renaissance time period, especially the Elizabethan era, are extremely interesting to read and learn about,” says Theatrical Director John Bloom of the Guilde of Sainte Marie. “The sheer amount of work that went into preparing even the simplest of dinners was astounding! I once read an account about a banquet held at the Baron and Baroness Chandos’ estate for the Queen. 300 sheep were slaughtered and dressed for preparation, and this was part of only one course.” John and his assistants will be catering the banquet this year.
Traditionally, an Elizabethan banquet would consist of three to four courses of food. Each course would serve between 12-15 dishes in itself! The dinner would be served by members of the hosting nobles’ household, with only the highest ranked persons serving the Queen directly, and only after her food was tested by the Captain of the Guard. The more elaborate dishes were sometimes set aside and served first to the favorites of the Queen, then dispersed to the rest of the guests.
Guests were seated according to rank and station, and the serving was not done in the direct style we are used to today. Rather, dishes were brought to the high end of the table, and then passed down until gone. It was often that a lower ranked knight and his wife would only get a nibble or even a scraping of the most sumptuous fair.
“We are going with a much lighter approach to the banquet, while still keeping the historical necessities in mind. Three courses will be served, each with four dishes, all prepared in the Elizabethan style,” says John.
Some of the dishes to be served include gilded chicken, mock escargot, several delicious desserts and a mouth-watering beef dish known as “beef in good broth”. The cost to attend the banquet is $20.00 per person. Tickets are available through the California City Arts Commission, and a limited number will be available for sale at the gate of the faire itself. A menu is posted at www.calcityrenfair.org, in both Old and modern English (especially for those with allergies). For more information, and directions to the grounds, visit www.calcityrenfair.org or call (760) 373-3530.