This is split from my <a href="http://www.indie-rpgs.com/forum/index.php?topic=16240.0">Auxiliary Gaming Zone thread, which I managed to drive off topic by my own hand with a PS comment.

In short -- the GenCon day is 9-6, and it is incredibly hectic.  Food and drink and other important things often get neglected.  I'd like to try to rectify that in a simple and easy manner, by having an easily accessible location where Monkeys and Masters alike can get some basic refreshments.

Back in the other thread, Tony proposed the simple yet slightly dangerous solution of simply placing food and drink in the stockroom.  I think that this is a good idea (although I'm willing to hear others, or hear why I'm wrong), as long as we are absolutely certain that food is food and stock is stock and never the twain shall meet.

What I'm thinking here is a couple of coolers and paper bags with a cache of some basic foods and drinks.  I'm thinking some healthy food, not junk food, that will give long-term energy.  Furthermore, it should be totally non-messy and totally convenient.

Some ideas I have for stuff:
Bananas
Apples
Carrots
Celery
Breakfast Bars
Beef Jerky
Bottled Water
Bottled Juice

I'm willing to hear other ideas, as well.  Nothing gooey, nothing spready, nothing with more than one part.

Getting something like this to work is going to require:

1) Will.  I'm willing to take point in organizing, but I'll need support.  Further, of course, it needs to be cool with all publishers to have these foods near their stock.  If even one is uncomfortable, that's it.

2) Money. Food is not free.  I'm willing to front some costs, but I need to get that money back.

3) A car.  If this is successful, I imagine we'll want to make a couple of evening or early-morning "refill runs" to local supermarkets.  I'm willing to go along with these, but I have no car.

What do people think?  Good?  Bad?  Why?

yrs--
--Ben

Sounds good to me.

There is a CostCo exactly 11 miles up Michigan Road from the convention center.  I can't be the only person in this crowd who has a CostCo card.  Getting (say) bananas, apples, bottled water and juice in ludicrous, mind-boggling quantities is really where that particular chain shines.  I'd recommend it for the purpose.  The hours stink, however: 10a.m. - 8:30 p.m. pretty much does in any notion of early-morning runs by anyone who is manning the booth.

If you guys need it, I'll have a rental car.  It should be noted for planning purposes that I won't be arriving until Thursday around noon, so if you want to pre-stock I won't be able to help.  And there's got to be an open-24-hours supermarket somewhere in Indianapolis...

Thomas

I normally just pack a cooler with the day's munchies and drinks. I cannot stress enough the need for decent nutrition. You're going to be on your feet all day, not getting enough sleep, and coming off (probably) a long drive to get to Indy. So in addition to sugar and caffiene, make sure you get some protein during the day. Energy bars will work, but I also am fond of canned tuna (in water, not oil). Low in calories, high in protein, all that good stuff. The packs in foil (instead of cans) have very little fluid and are not messy at all, but are somewhat more expensive.

Other items worth mentioning (for better or worse):
Raisins (serving size is up to you)
V-8 (good mix of sodium and potassium, low in calories)
Breath mints
Drinkable yogurts (pricey)
Fruit cups (ones with jello are less messy)

Things to watch out for:
Easily bruised fruits (sorry 'bout your banana)
Crackers and cookies (crumbs are hard to keep contained)
Greasy stuff (leaves fingerprints on books)

Anyone else want to chime in?

Greg Porter

P.S. If anyone can get it, I'll pay you for a 6-pack of 20oz bottles of Jolt. It is impossible to get in this part of the country, and by the end of the show I'll be mainlining the stuff (with tuna and V-8...;)

Cough drops, in bulk.  Oh for the restorative powers of throat analgesics.  When my vocal cords are ready to tense themselves into a knot, it's only cough drops that keep me talking.

Which, yeah, not necessarily an advantage for those around me.

btrc wrote:
Things to watch out for:
Easily bruised fruits (sorry 'bout your banana)
Crackers and cookies (crumbs are hard to keep contained)
Greasy stuff (leaves fingerprints on books)

Anyone else want to chime in?

Hello,

All rules, conduct, variety, and finances regarding booth foodstuffs are now under the authority of BEN LEHMAN. If you have a booth exhibitor badge, contact him through PM if you want to make suggestions or clarify any details.

Ben, as a fellow native northern Californian, I heartily support your (and Greg's) specification of non-geek nutrition.

Best,
Ron

I'm not a Booth Monkey or anything but I will have my own personal vehicle at the Convention and I will be spending a lot of time at the Forge booth.  In fact, the Forge is pretty much why I'm going to GenCon.  I'm perfectly willing to make a daily or twice daily run to the CostCo for folks.  Let me know if you need this service from me.

At the very least I can offer up a W alMart discount :D That can help with coughdrops, drinks (sports drinks, pops, waters etc). Course, it's 10%, so depends on the deals elsewhere. Could easily be cheaper elsewhere.

People must not be reading.

Contact Ben directly regarding any and all of this helpful stuff.

Thanks,
Ron

Here are my big questions right now:

Answer them!

1) Are the publishers willing to have food in the stock room, provided it is kept seperate from merchandise?

2) Are people interested in using the room during the Con?  Just a general sense of how many people might be eating out of this place.

3) Who can contribute money and how much?  Publishers, I'm looking at you.

4) Who is willing to do volunteer work in terms of stocking the room -- purchasing runs, car driving, etc?

5) Are you comfortable buying at WalMart or not?

6) Any recommended / favorite food items.

7) If you work at the booth and have life-threatening allergies, LET ME KNOW NOW.

yrs--
--Ben

What is a "stock room"?

Paul

That would be the room that we're going to be keeping boxes of merchandise in, and making runs back and forth during the day.

yrs--
--Ben

Speaking for BTRC:

1) Are the publishers willing to have food in the stock room, provided it is kept seperate from merchandise?

2) Are people interested in using the room during the Con?  Just a general sense of how many people might be eating out of this place.

3) Who can contribute money and how much?  Publishers, I'm looking at you.

4) Who is willing to do volunteer work in terms of stocking the room -- purchasing runs, car driving, etc?

5) Are you comfortable buying at WalMart or not?

6) Any recommended / favorite food items.

7) If you work at the booth and have life-threatening allergies, LET ME KNOW NOW.

Ben wrote:
Here are my big questions right now:

Answer them!

Ben,

Unless the room has cartons of cigarettes, bourbon and black coffee, I'm going to handle my own grazing needs like last year.

Keith

Bob wrote:
Ben,

Unless the room has cartons of cigarettes, bourbon and black coffee, I'm going to handle my own grazing needs like last year.

Keith

Now, see, I was considering suggesting a coffee maker, maybe even packing my wife's mini-one-cup maker.  But if Clinton's going to go around making threats like that....

Clinton wrote:
Seriously - if anyone local to Indy brings a coffee maker to the suite, I'll kiss you with tongue.

I'll bring you guys a coffee maker if Clinton promises NOT to kiss me with tongue.

Gaerik wrote:
I'll bring you guys a coffee maker if Clinton promises NOT to kiss me with tongue.

You guys are talking about carting hot beverages from a hotel room a half mile away through a crowded exhibition hall all the way to our circus-like booth?

Keith, kidding aside, if your ass shows up on Sunday hung over again -- like last year -- I will personally pack your shit up early so we can make space for people who're still working. You were useless last year when you were hung over. It was freaking depressing, man. And you know what? That goes for everyone. Color me a hard ass, but the booth is for one thing and one thing only: selling games. Zombification brings us all down.

-L

abzu wrote:
That goes for everyone. Color me a hard ass, but the booth is for one thing and one thing only: selling games. Zombification brings us all down.

For those of you that just gotta hit the sauce, here's a little advice from a guy who's been working in a bar since he was old enough to do so.

Gatorade!

Puts back into you everything that drinking takes out, exept for the vomit. A one liter bottle the morning after with two tylenol will put someone who's mostly dead back on his feet in about an hour. Now you can have your fun, still function like a human and do your job.

Oh, for my other two cents, Ben, you can count on me to pitch in some cash and go get supplies so that the important folks don't have to. Lets here it for real food.

It seems that if we're going to have a real coffee maker, then someone ought to bring one of those pump carafes, or a big thermos, or some other means of getting a lot of hot coffee to the booth and keeping it hot for a while. Similarly, milk and sugar, but we can probably snag non-dairy creamer (blech!) and sugar from the concession area. I'm bringing some of the boxed, uber-pasteurized milk for my morning cereal and I can donate a few of those for coffee purposes.

Greg Porter

Clinton wrote:

abzu wrote:
And for the record, I'm bringing a big thermos so coffee can be brought to the booth. That plus a few styrofoam cups equals awesome.

btrc wrote:
someone ought to bring one of those pump carafes, or a big thermos, or some other means of getting a lot of hot coffee to the booth and keeping it hot for a while.