The Drover's Cook

3. The SERVICE STYLE

Every national dining style is enhanced
by a solid effort of entertainment in
the national manner.
This is at the core of the Drover's Cook's Cook-House
SERVICE STYLE.

Three main aspects will enhance the Australian
atmosphere in the Drover's Cook Cook-House

1: The style of furnishing and decor
2: The style of dress of the staff
AND
3: The uniquely rustic service style.

What does this mean? Is it really possible, or is Australia past
the point where it can present a new yet historically accurate service style? Must Australia follow in the footsteps of the new
wave of multi-cultural fusion exponents of the big city? Or are we ignoring a chance to be really different?

1: The style of furnishing and decor
The obvious direction in a wool shed format is to
go back to the bush furniture style. This means setting up
with rough hewn wooden furniture. It has an utterly
eccentric appearance and is highly evocative.

AS to dining setting, it is the plan of the Drover's Cook Inc.
to arrange tables so that they face inward around an ampitheatred
floor. Seats will not be sold on the inside. This is to give the
patron a clear view of the fire place. It will promote the feeling of being around
a camp-fire - one of the oldest experiences in anthropology, and the
truest reflection of the drover's experience at supper times.

2: The style of dress of the staff:
Through the use of bushman's styles, or through rustic caricature - being a jokey outline of the bushman's style, the Staff will present in an Australian manner
and enhance the feeling of being in Australia.

Here are a rough illustrations of one of the uniforms:

The Drover's CookUniform DCP DC1
"Now let's begins with 'is nibs,
The Drover's Cook
Regard-me Tar-boy thumbnail with
a look
A chef-ish dome, black with
gauze'd crown,
'As felt brim, black
And corks all 'anging' down,

"Looks like a shirt, (striped black),
Fer an old roughneck,
But's an actual chefi-sh jacket
w'ich protecks!

DCU1 - Shall be designed for work in the camp-fire.

The image is a practical cross between the chef and the out-door worker.
The Drover's Cook's jacket will be of pyjama-striped dark (Black or Navy) drill,
but will be double breasted. The sleeves will be wide enough to be rolled all the way up. He or she will wear moleskins, possibly of black or navy, possibly striped. He or she will wear a full bib apron in reflection of the fact that a fireside worker needs it.
He or she will have hide gloves ready in his belt along with the chefs cloth.
He or she will affect a knife around his waste.
The HAT is actually a two-piece design: The BOWL is a bishop's style chefs hat in black or blue with studs. The brim is of matching felt and has suds on the inside. This design will permit the `bowl' to be removed for washing, an essential for hygeine.

The term "~~Black Iron Service~~" is taken obviously from the appearance of camp ovens which have simply had enough use to be black!

The Drover's Cook Project's Cook-House""~~Black Iron Service~~" policy compiles a range of service methods which affect the rusticity of the Outback. Some come from the world of the original drover's cooks who travelled with sheep and cattle "droves" of yore. Others stem from the world of bushmen, diggers and workers who eked out a life on the gold fields and during the Depression "on the wallaby track".

DC CH BIS1: Black Iron Camp Oven Service from a "camp oven cart" = service from the camp oven as with "silver service". This is the central "~~Black Iron Service~~" tactic. The features are:
1: Arrive at a table with a trolley which is fireproof and heat proof, conveying camp ovens, handling irons and a carving board and knife ready where needed.
2: Remove a lid from a camp oven with handling irons - shows skill in not tipping the ash.
3: Serve and cut from the camp oven:
Featuring a little coal ash as a stylish approach and a challenge to skill will mark Black Iron Service as a service feat to remember.

On A Shovel: A spectacle which will go down in history. Items especially Rabbit On as Shovel suited. Features:
1: Rabbit or other dish is cooked in the fire on a stainless steel or black steel shovel (cookery graded).
2: Shovel is loaded on an iron dish which is on a Black Iron Service cart - along with items for carvery service and sauces.
3: A second iron dish is laid on the table which must be of sufficient length to take the shovel plus occupants.
4: The item is carved and laid on the shovel
5: The whole shovel is laid length-wise over the table on the second iron dish for the head of the table or the waiter to serve.
Perhaps an especially designed shovel will be necessary to effect this spectualar method without losing it.
However, with invention, troial and error, I am sure I will arrive at a method which will make it safe and easy for a skilled waiter. If so, it will prove to be one of the coups des graces of the Cook-House style.`

END OF THE DROVER'S COOK COOKHOUSE "~~Black Iron Service~~" Plan
C o p y r i g h t, “Bluey” Quilty TDC, 2000