I had the chance to take part at the running dinner a few times before – but not as a team member cooking some meals, but as member of a photo-team taking pictures for www.feki.de. Taking pictures was always even a Greater challenge, since we wanted to take pictures of at least 2 teams each dish. And visiting six different teams an evening can keep you really running.
But this year I wanted to have it easier, so I asked my friend Katrin, whether she was up to cook with me for the running dinner. Since Katrin is always a inspiration for me, I was always sure, that we would have great idea what to cook. But first of all we had to get rid of a organisational problem – where to cook? Katrin’s flat is really small and you wouldn’t want to have 6 persons eating in her kitchen or living room. I for myself don’t have a flat yet, and didn’t want to ask Christian (who gives me a place to sleep) for his flat. My next idea was to use a kitchen at the student apartments, where I used to live, and where I know a lot of people. I asked my friend Holger and after talking to some other occupants he said, that he didn’t think that this would be a problem, although there was already someone else cooking for running dinner at the same kitchen.
The last week Katrin and I where very creative in thinking about possibilities to cook, since we only were told that we’d have to cook the main dish on last Sunday, we brainstormed about all possibilities before. I will never forget Katrin talking almost half an hour in 4 messages to my phone mailbox putting forward proposals for a dessert. In the end we decided against fish fingers and potato salad and for lasagne. The timing for the evening intended to arrive at the hors d’oeuvre at 7pm, go for the main dish at 8pm and arrive for dessert at 9.15pm. We started our preparations at quarter to five at the Lidl supermarket. Unluckily we didn’t get the special pasta we needed for our lasagne there, so we also had to go to the real.- supermarket. We managed to get all ingredients, but were still missing a oven dish. I talked to Holger and he said that he would have a big one, which sounded sufficient. But it turned out to be to small, so I had to borrow my brothers oven dish, which did cost some more valuable time. It was already quarter past six, when I finally got back to the student apartments with the oven dish, and Katrin had already cut the onion and garlic and was starting to sear the mincemeat. When we were done with preparing the lasagne into the oven dish, it was already five past seven.
So we were a little late for the hors d’oeuvre, but since we only had to walk to the “Schranne”, we didn’t lose too much time. Finding the right house was a little challenge, but then we got a really warm welcome by our hosts. The tendency that more girls than boys take part in the running dinner was proofed at this occasion. I ended up being the only guy at this dish! The dish which was served was a salad and Italian Bruschetta. It was so nice that we really had to pay attention, that we’d keep some appetite for our main dish.
After finishing most of the prepared meal (only a little salad was left) and almost two bottles of sparkling wine we headed “home” for our main dish. By coincidence the two other guests of the hors d’oeuvre had the same target like we did – the kitchen at the student apartments. So it was clear that we would face another challenge – 12 people together in one kitchen for the main dish?! Arriving at the kitchen the other guests had already arrived. So time was pressing to get a solution for our time. Although we had this problem considering space, the mood was really relaxed, and no one did complain about the initial situation. Luckily two of our guest had to cook the dessert at the kitchen at the first floor. So we could borrow their kitchen for our main dish. So we moved one floor higher and everyone got his drinks first. The red Sangiovese-wine was a good choice, and by the time everybody hat his wine the lasagne was done, too (I’ve got to thank Holger here, who put in into the oven). This time we were an evenly mixed group, and we had quite some fun finishing our two bottles of wine and enjoying the lasagne.
Before we could start for the dessert we had to do some cleaning up, since we couldn’t leave a dirty kitchen at the student apartments. But it didn’t take us too long and we were only some 15 minutes late for dessert. Arriving at the Jesuitenstraße, we met another couple, searching for the same number and we initially thought they might be the other guests at our hosts place. But then we found out, that one floor below our host there was another party cooking for running dinner. This time it was guys vs. girls 2 to 4, and we started our dessert with some red wine . The dish itself is hard to describe in English, but was very tasty! We had some really nice discussions, and so it went late.. at 10 to midnight we really had to hurry for the running dinner party, since entrance was only guaranteed until midnight. And the party was really crowded, so we had to wait some minutes for admittance. But it was worth the waiting, just have a look at the pictures taken by Feki.de

This entry was posted by Jürgen Hösch on Thursday, December 1. 2005 at 17:34. and is filed under Daily Life, LS Bamberg. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own blog.