Gourmet Food For The Gourmet Adventurer

I recently started re-reading the Neverwinter Campaign Setting to gather inspiration for my next campaign. As I looked at the city, I got taken back to one of my very first campaigns. At that time, I was obsessed with the old Spanish cities. Sure enough, the city my players were operating from had a bull fighting arena and bull fights were held every morning.

On one of the few occasions in which the players were actually in the city at lunch time, they decided to go to the local inn to spend some well earned gold on decent food and save on rations (this was 1^st Ed. AD&D). As they were waiting for their food, one of the waiters walked by with a big plate that had two HUGE eggs. They had been cooked with all sorts of spices and the succulent smell filled the medium sized hall. After the waiter served the patron who ordered the dish, the other patrons in the establishment stood up and clapped and smiled at the man.

As the waiter headed back to the kitchen, one of the players stopped him to inquire about the plate. The waiter told him that the plate was called “eggs from the run” and that it was indeed a very gourmet and expensive plate. The player decided to order a plate of “eggs from the run,” right then and there. Unfortunately, the waiter explained, they only ran one bull in the morning bull run. Therefore, they could only serve one plate of “eggs from the run” for lunch. However, there would be another bull run the next morning. For a small deposit, he could reserve the next day's “eggs from the run”. Of course, he reserved them.

The next day, the player got his huge and succulent “eggs from the run” for lunch. After eating his lunch, he realized that his prime attribute had increased by +2 and that the effect lasted between 4 to 6 hours. As you can imagine, the players started showing up every day for lunch at the inn and taking turns as to who would order the “eggs from the run” for lunch.

After about a game week of this, it was the party's stalwart fighter's turn to order the “eggs from the run”, which he promptly did. Contrary to his expectations, he was served two pretty small eggs. They were similarly cooked as the previous days “eggs from the run” but they did not smell or taste succulent at all. The patrons did not stand up and cheer when the fighter was served. The fighter ate his “eggs from the run” but did not feel any different. No +2 bonus to strength today.

The fighter stood up from his table, very upset, and called the waiter. He demanded to know why his “eggs from the run” were different from those the party had been served in the days before. “I apologize, sir,” said the waiter... “but sometimes, the bull wins.”

After a few seconds of confused silence, the players realized what exactly it was that the fighter had eaten for lunch and then they could not stop laughing for about five minutes. Of course, the fact that we were between 12 and 14 years old probably had a lot to do with it. Still, thirty years later, someone always brings up that story whenever we manage to get the old group together.

Today's lesson: gourmet food can make for unforgettable experiences.