Feastware for SCA Feasting

If you are now considering attending a feast when you go to your next SCA event, you might be wondering just where to get feastware to use.  It is actually easier than you think.  However it also depends on how many people you need to buy for and what kind of feastware you desire.

Feastware for the SCA comes in wood, plastic, or metal.  Glass can be used if you want but it might get broke taking it to events.  You do not need to have anything fancy to carry your feastware in either.  A simple bag can suffice but a picnic basket is much easier and in one there is less chance of something getting broken.  Of course many picnic baskets have plastic dinnerware inside and this could suffice as your feastware in the beginning.

Plastic is easier to clean than many other kinds of feastware because now a days most are designed to be put in a dishwasher.  This is something you can not do with wood or metal.  And many picnic sets come with silverware and even cups.  So if you need an easy and fairly cheap way to get your feastware for and SCA event, find a picnic basket with all this in it.  Of course plastic is not very period and at some point you may want to eat on more of what they did back in the middle ages.

This is where metal or wood comes in.  Wood is the cheaper of the two here for the most part.  You can get bowls, plates, cups, and even silverware in wood.  I don’t really recommend a wood knife as it does not cut well.  Make sure what wood feastware you purchase is designed to be eaten on.  Buying it at an event or authorized SCA dealer online is the best way to go for this.  You might even find something that will work at a Renaissance or medieval fair in your area.  Price can be cheap to expensive depending on how many pieces come in the set and how big the items are.  Smaller plates, cups, ect. will cost less.

Metal feastware is a little trickier.  This is because some metals are harmful to eat off of and many items are made from them for decoration only.  I suggest if you want metal, buy them at an SCA event where you can look them over.  You might use a regular knife and fork for your utensils.  You will get the right tools for the job, especially since many things need to be cut as you eat.

If need be, start gathering pieces one at a time before attending an SCA feast.  This way you can find what you like and not break the bank.  However if you are lucky you might find it all at once.  Just remember you may not like what you have in a few years and purchase something new.  This will give you a chance to sell or give away your old feastware to help someone else new attend a feast.