This started as an endnote on the Feasts of Epic Proportions post, and grew so out of hand that I had to make a new post for it. Brace yourselves, this isn’t a post for the faint of heart. All I ask is that you never, ever, show this list to GRRM. He’s described a number of strange dishes in his books, and really takes it to a new level in Dance.
However, this real world club put his imagination to shame. Which is fine with me- I’ve met my culinary limits.
Don’t get me wrong, I was the only one in the house to eat honey-roasted crickets, and I actually enjoyed them, but these meals take things to a whole new level. A friend of mine swears that bugs are the food of the future, since they are such a sustainable resource. If that’s the case, I hope I can get mine ground into a smoothie or something. My entry to this dubious world of bizarre foods came with the list of dishes served at a dinner put on by the Explorers Club in NYC in 1992. It included:
- roasted crickets and larvae
- mealworm ghanouj
- waxworm fritters with plum sauce
- cricket and vegetable tempura
- roasted Australian kurrajong grubs to roast beef and gravy.
- dessert of chocolate cricket torte
- live tarantulas as centerpieces
Now, you might think that this was a one time thing. I mean, the “Explorers Club” puts one in mind of the two adorable kids in the beginning of the film “Up”, with their badges and quest for adventure. But as the club was founded in 1904, they’ve been doing this for decades, and each year, they seemingly try to outdo themselves.
Wildling Special: all you can eat mammoth ribs
I mean, this is the group that served up thawed Mammoth meat in the 50s, and their later dinners are no less extreme. I’ll give you the link to this article, and let you read it for yourself. Seriously, not for the faint of heart. Some of the pictures alone are daunting, and cannot be unseen (there are eyeballs. For martinis…). Granted, some of the dishes are appealing, such as the slow-roasted elk with rosemary potatoes, or the mustard-thyme rubbed rabbit, or even the caramelized yak. My favorite (might have to make it) are the edible orchids with a honey-creamed dipping sauce. Others sound completely made up, like the ricewine-pickled duck tongue, or jellyfish slivers in white soy marinade. For better or worse, I could see a number of these elements working their way into aSoIaF: Dornishmen nibbling on scorpions, prisoners in the Red Keep munching on roaches, and so on. I’ll spare you the more intense dishes, but in the spirit of things, what’s the strangest thing YOU have ever eaten? Would you take advantage of such a crazy buffet?
Dornish delicacies?