After church this morning I chatted with some of my musician friends; all of us headed to a different musical event--one to play a dance, one to play a folk festival, me to play a matinee symphony concert, all of us getting a “quick sandwich” beforehand. All the talk of food in a previous discussion made me wonder: what is everyone’s favorite “musician-on-the-go” food?
I quite like those little vol-au-vent things - prawns or whatever. They’re not too dangerous and you can stuff your gob and play almost simultaneously.
I’m also partial to those wrapped chocolate things you get with coffee - I’ve managed to secrete lots of those in the base of my harp - which means you can reach into the harp and have a feed during the odd pause. A plus if they’re the ones you can unwrap single-handed.
Worst ever (for string players especially) - chicken drumsticks. Greasy + horrible for the strings.
Beware of sandwiches, cakes and biscuits if you
play the concertina.
The crumbs always seem to end up in the crevices of your bellows even if you put the instrument on the table while eating.
Poutine. I live on it.
Gorp
KFG
Sandwiches are good, as are hot dogs if you have time to fix them. If I’m in a real hurry, what I usually grab is either a granola bar of some sort or a type of trail mix with peanuts, raisins, and M&M’s.
I live solely on music. Who needs food?
( I usually go for conviniance. Whatever is in the fridge that can go in my bag )
Is this what this once-proud website is reduced to?
Watch the poutine fidkid. That gravy is made in a factory on the outskirts of Moncton and shipped in unused oil-tankers across the Great Dominion.The cheese curds are probably still alive you can hear them squeek with pain as you chew the poor wee darlings.
Aye, a good cheese curd should squeak as you bite into it, like stepping on fresh fallen snow in cold moonlight.
Ottery: yes.
fidkid, educate the ignorant American--what is poutine? And Ottery, food and music go together; gripes about no food at gigs, raves for the good feeds--well-fed musicians are happy and more willing to entertain. I didn’t mean it to be a flippant question; I was really curious.
Food on the go for musicians reminds me of a good-going session in “The Politician” on the island of Erisky, at which I was sitting beside a fiddle player - better known as a Highland piper (and a Doctor). I was really starving and said I needed to go for some food - to which the advice I was given was “eat some fu****g peanuts”. Well, it was a very good session right enough, so I did what the Doctor ordered!
poutine :
French fried potatoes
Cheese curd
Gravy.
all at the same time
dmarie you’re post is a really funny coincidence because I was just thinking about good snacks to lay out when I have friends over to my home for an upcoming session. Obviously nothing too greasy but it’s always nice to have a little something. I suppose I could just put out sliced carrots and celery, but that’s no fun!
Poitine is a delicious concoction of French fries/chips, cheese curds and gravy. It is awesome but really no good if you’re planning on playing an instrument.
Potcheen is probably better!
you’re=your
McMandolin, something tells me you don’t care for poitine…
uh, poitine=poutine
hmm. not in spellcheck. WTF? 😎
I can’t get crumbs in my Flute and Whistles…
Of course after playing I do like to eat a lot but I am 16 so it is all good.
TO whomever cooked the chili at yesterday’s house-concert/session in Chapel Hill, THANKS. It was really good.
Needless to say, there was an extended break between the concert and the session. Perfect for brew ‘n’ chili.
fidkid your “you’re” was correct in the original post. If it was ‘your’ it would be wrong. 😉
fidkid You forgot to mention poutine is sold out of retired Canada Post trucks painted queer colours and parked at inconvenient places along public thoroughfares.The drink of choice avec poutine le diet Pepsi bien sûr .
Poutine and ‘diet’ Pepsi?
My God.
At least at the Hershell we get smoked salmon on soda bread with Guinness (on a good night - sometimes we get spicy Hallal Chicken and Poteen) Which is not good for playing the flute
fidkid, since you like that concoction I’m making you an honorary Okie--you’d love the food in some of Oklahoma’s small-town cafes. Potcheen? Is that what we call White Lightning?
KFG, I love gorp, too, especially when it’s got the little flaked coconut and yogurt chips. Or is that Gort, the robot from "The Day the Earth Stood Still”. I mean a nice little burg in Galway. Uh…
Actually, gorp is the most sensible snack I’ve seen on this thread. Well, okay, THAT and salmon on soda biscuit… Mmmm. Must get to the Herschel Arms.
Wow! An honorary Okie! dmarie, I’m truly honored.
🙂 🙂 🙂
What I serve:
1) Fry 1lb sausage. Cube a large block Velveeta cheese. Dump in a jar of salsa. Microwave until bubbly. Serve with taco chips.
2) Obligatory veggie/ranch dip tray.
3) Any variation of chocolate dessert.
Beverages of course. Tho’ I must confess, smoked salmon and Guinness sounds a good sight better!
P.S. fidkid you need to learn how to say “y‘all” and its plural, “all y’all”.
yep, that too. y‘all and all y’all are staple parts of conversation whether y‘all are in Okie or Texas, better learn ’er quick.
Yeah. It ain’t you-all, either. And never say y‘all to just one person, or people think ya don’t got no grammer skills. And I know this is an Irish Trad site, but fidkid, to be an honorary Okie, you’ve got to learn Bob Wills’ Faded Love, Oklahoma’s State Country song.
*sniff* just thinkin‘ of that song brings the tears to my eyes. World’s greatest song. In Texas now, it can be ok to use y’all for one to four or five people. Anymore then that, or if there is more then one group there, then you use all y’all.
Given the subject of this thread, how ‘bout if I learn to play Bob Wills’ “Roly-Poly”. That okeh with y’all?
Yup. Thas‘ a good-un. Goin’ to a bluegrass festival next weekend and am sure to hear it. Be thinkin‘ of ya. But if you ever do appear in Oklahoma with a fiddle under your arm three things you will definitely hear hollered at you: “Play Orange Blossom Special! Play Faded Love! Play somethin’ ya know!” Of lesser value: Devil Went Down to Georgia and San Antonio Rose.
I’ve lost track of the times I’ve been asked to play the Devil Went Down to Georgia, people seem to forget that you need someone to sing the words and I’ve never played it anyways. I do know Orange Blossom Special and Faded Love. Here in Texas the Yellow Rose of Texas is a big hit. Of course if you accidentally stumble onto a old-time or dulcimer group you need to Bile them Cabbages Down and Golden Slippers.
dmarie, what festival are you going to? Is it the Sawdust Festival there in Bennington?
I’m not sure about on-the-go, but after a session, nothing makes me happier than a kebab and curry fries. Guess late nite munchies is really a different thread, but that’s my two cents.
musicfan, no, it’s the Oklahoma International Bluegrass Festival in Guthrie, OK. It’s hosted by Byron Berline. Runs Sept. 29th-Oct 2nd. There will be a bluegrass group from the Czech Republic--that’ll be cool. Web-site is www.obif.com if you’d like more info.
Dyslexia kicks in--that should be http://www.oibf.com. Sorry.
To get back to the original subject………..( almost )……..I used to work with a musician who seemed to live on cheese sandwiches, instant coffee, and what we got given at gigs on the barn dance circuit. He was also notorious for his short temper. One night I suggested he might have Beri-beri due to vitamin deficiency, and he nearly hit me.
Snacks at gigs, as opposed to a proper meal, are just to keep you going, and I sometimes think that they fulfil as much a psychological as a physiological need. Wearing my other hat, when doing domestic construction work, I’m usually offered a drink, and in warm weather I always request anything “long, cold, and non-alcoholic”. Often I don’t finish it, but if I’m not offered one I feel thirsty. These days most people are more aware of the need for proper nutrition, and i reckon you still have to complete your balanced intake of food, even if you get by with “ a little something”.
After a long drive yesterday dropping daughter off at her new Uni, and remembering the under-inspiring roadside chain restaurant we lunched at, I wish to reinforce the comment about balancing your diet. Why is it so hard to prepare a balanced meal two hours from London ?
They do a particularly fine brand of pork scratchings at our pub. The landlord has me a pint of mild and a bag on the bar by the time I’ve got from the van to the bar.
Which is nice.
Mark darling, since when has this board ever been so proud as to not discuss food!?! 🙂 Food is IMPORTANT!
Freshly made Ham sandwiches washed down with a pint of cold Smithwicks mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm ham sandwiches 😉
You’re more likely to get bratwurst or döner kebab over here. And it’d be Warsteiner or Veltins instead of Smithwicks.
For one-handed, eating-while-running between sessions in the big smoke, I am finding the cornish pasty to be a useful grub grab. Among the various sorts, I was amused to find that there’s a steak ‘n guinness flavour. Keep the theme going ’n all.
one thing I never understood about bratwurst was why the rolls are so damn small. Please can someone explain this to me? It just doesn’t make senf. Er, sense.
Or why crepes are so thin - when I visited Brittany a few years ago, I had to eat about 20 of the bloody things before I started to feel remotely near full. Tasty though!
And as for bagels - just why???
They have the consistency of leather and are not in the least bit tasty!!
You can’t knock bagels! Charles Darwin came up with theories of natural selection and evolution while travelling around the world on a bagel. Um.
Fried egg Sandwiches with masses of onions.
I canna get ma heid round “y‘all” I thought that was what a ship does in heavy seas. I’ll stick with “youse’uns”.
Zina. There’s food …
and there’s Poutine and Gorp 🙁
Bagels are a mystery to me too - even fresh they seem to be stale.
Where’s the point in that?
You probably don’t like Spam (S.ome P.arts A.re M.eat), either. Even on white Wonder bread with velveeta cheese spread. Philistines!
Bagels?
Okay, I admit it, sometimes I bake my own bagels.
THEY HAVE TO BE HOT! (That’s the secret.) Really Jewish People I know pretend to throw up their hands in horror at me putting Crunchy Peanut Butter on a Bagel. So we don’t tell them that my wife sometimes does a Bacon Buttie in a Bagel! Oy Gevalt! And my sister tells me that there is some kind of Farchadat New Zealander Baker in Golders Green who doesn’t dip his bagels in boiling water to puff them. And he is still in business! Nu!
But cold, yes, they taste stale, even on the day they were baked. But I tell you, a wholemeal bagel (yes, there are such things) is a meal in itself (even without the bacon).
Blast you, now you’ve made me REALLY HUNGRY!
Just a thought - for authenticity’s sake should you only eat food appropriate to the nationality of the music you’re playing?
That could be severely limiting. . .
fidkid---Spam, Velveeta and white bread? You were an Okie in a previous incarnation! We need to graduate you to chicken-fried steak w/grits and gravy, guarenteed to make anyone’s jigs as heavy as hell. I loved the acronym! : )
If you’re lucky enough to be given sandwiches or other food by the landlord at your session, what do you get?
I was deeply impressed at a tune in London the other week to be given great big schlabs of soda bread with great big schlabs of ham with Irish salad (coleslaw).
Has anyone noticed that the other events in the pub, darts matches for example (I was going to mention speed-dating nites but darling wife would have questions) have better food than session nights?
Oh Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Not more Sand Witch talk!!!!! I can’t stand any mo…………………………………………………………………….
Just let this thread rot and go mouldy like all sandwiches…………..
I’m deeply suspicious of people who don’t love food, deeply.
I’m deeply suspicious of people.
Been to sessions where you get chicken drumsticks and wings. Murder for playing after that, unless you get to the bog and wash the mitts…and the coupon!
The coupon or the capon?
Ha ha, Simon. “Coupon” is Glasgowese for “Face.”
Watch out or I’ll punch your capon…….
Doesn’t have quite the right ring to it!