Can we improve this menu planning question?

Question

The question, Forties dinner buffet, has a close vote and a flag. I have to agree that as written, it's not a good fit for Seasoned Advice (or any Q&A site).

However, I think we benefit from the occasional topic like this to add some colour to the site, and my instinct says that there's a potentially good question hiding in there. I just don't know enough about the subject matter to resculpt it on my own.

Can anybody think of a way to edit this into a form that's more conducive to Q&A, or am I barking up the wrong tree?

{Related topic: What makes a great menu planning question? Still no answers to that one...)

Answer 1

I think that the answer that's currently there is perfect -- a link to resources to find menus from that era. I see it as an exact equivalent of Where can I find ancient ages/middle ages recipes and preparation techniques?

Which would suggest that the question really should be: How can I find out what food would have been served at a dinner held by the Deputy Mayor of Casablanca in 1942? (What resources would help me find menus from a particular era?)

The menu planning question is too broad as is -- far too many things can be made into fork buffet food. But if the original questioner were to ask a later question about how to adapt a food from one of those menus into buffet food, that would be potentially appropriate.

(For example, the first comment suggests that "they used to dine on gigantic hams." Asking how to turn a gigantic ham into buffet food would fit current question guidelines. (What is the best way to cut a ham so that I preserve the look without losing meat? Or something of the sort.)

Answer 2

For reference, here's the question:

I'm serving food to 11 people in a dinner that is supposed to be set at the house of the Deputy Mayor of Casablanca in 1942. I can't seat that many people at table, so the food will have to be capable of being eat from laps - I'm thinking of nibbles for a starter, followed by either a fork buffet or fork food such as a boeuf bourguignon.

Does anyone have any suggestions for my menu? I'm based in the UK.

It seems to me that there are 2 questions in there, which pretty much boil down to:

• [history] What would have been served at a dinner party in Casablanca in 1942?
• [menu-planning] What can I serve as fork buffet food?