While this certainly doesn’t hold true for all Lodges, a great many of our Lodges meet quite near quality restaurants. Out of all the Lodges I am a member of, only one meets further than a block or two from a great restaurant.
Providing a good Lodge meal is a lot of work, for someone, and if the Lodge is stingy with the meal budget, the quality suffers.
I often wonder, in these cases where good restaurants are right next door, if we aren’t shooting ourselves in the foot. If it wouldn’t be much easier, and prefered by our members, if we shared a meal prior to our meeting at a next door restaurant instead of in our dining hall.
I am aware that some Lodges do a tremendous job of turning the meal into a wonderful experience all its own with fine food, fine drink, and fine fellowship. But Lodges that do that are rare, and in my view, fall outside of this discussion.
But for the average Lodge that doesn’t have a gourmet cook, or a member who loves to cook, and that isn’t willing or able to invest the funds needed to put on an excellent meal, wouldn’t we be better off doing it at a restaurant instead?
While I imagine there is something to be said about the level of camaraderie engendered by food preparation and eating together at lodge, eating at a nearby restaurant may yield some unrealized positive effects beyond offloading food preparation efforts. Immersing ourselves in the community and being seen by others as a group, can help to raise awareness of masonry enticing those that may be curious to ask questions. Reducing food preparation efforts and costs can save lodge funds that might otherwise be directed towards needed operations or charitable endeavors. And, for me at least, eating at a restaurant offers added flexibility for what type of food to consume - for those on diets or with specific food needs, that might be a factor to consider.
Thank you for giving us these thoughts! I'd not considered the great benefits that could come about by simply being seen, as a group of Masons, having fun. It could certainly help to build interest in our local Lodge in the minds of other members of the community.
I think having dinner at a restaurant (best if it has a banquet or semi-private area to set aside) is a wonderful idea.
My biggest issue with the meals is that somehow a lot of masons seem to think that a decent meal costs five bucks, because that's what they tend to drop in the donation bucket. I know a few brothers that never donate anything. If all the members donate is a few bucks, you're going to get tater tot casserole, or a sandwich.
There have been a couple of occasions where I have forgotten to go to the ATM to get cash for dinner, the problem is today most people don't carry around cash, they simply pay for everything with a debit card.
I'd love to see a lodge either have a catered meal, or meet at a nearby restaurant if possible for their meeting social hour. Charge people a set amount if catered or they don't eat. I understand that for some it's not supposed to be relying on donations to pay for the meals, that the fellowship is more important, but that's how we end up with terrible food.
Get creative. In my former lodge, the rainbow girls asked if they could take care of our dinners. One of the moms was awesome at feeding groups on a budget, and normally kept the costs below $100 dollars. Anything raised over the $100 (or whatever they spent) they kept to help fund their activities. The girls all got service points, and the JW got to not stress over it. During my term as JW, I made sure I told the brothers that the meal was being handled by the rainbow girls, and to donate accordingly. It worked out great. The food was awesome, and everyone went away happy.
I think your points are very well taken. $5 bucks in the donation jar ensures that the food is going to be poor. A hot dog at the gas station is now $2.50, so to think that a good meal can be created for double that is just absurd.
I also have experienced the problem you mentioned re: forgetting to take some cash. Years ago I was a cash guy, but now I'm a plastic guy. Never good to forget to take some money for the donation bucket.
One solution, if the Lodge wanted to continue cooking, but not relying on donations would be to roll the projected costs of meals into the yearly dues structure. I know that at least some of our Lodges do that. Another thing that can help is to require RSVP's for dinner. That would greatly reduce waste, as I remember my wife cooking for the Lodge for a few years, never knowing if ten would show up or thirty.
Comments here are most appropriate and correct. During my term as Master, I tried hard to get the lodge out to some of the local restaurants. It really did not go well. If we made plans to have libations after lodge most of the brothers saw that as a way to go home early. We had minimal attendance also at pre meeting functions. While our lodge is in the middle of a number of good restaurants the restaurants themselves were in no hurry to make arrangements for our group. All this has not changed my mind in that we should upgrade our food and opportunities to meet and socialize outside of the lodge walls. It takes effort and we have to get creative, but I still believe it can and must be done for our lodges to survive in good order.
I think that whenever we introduce changes to our Lodge, those changes take a long time to stick. Our collective unwillingness to embrace change can be a good thing in many ways, but frustrating as all get out in others.
The trick is, I think, the new members of our Lodge. When we make changes, and then the brand new guys embrace those things, then everyone starts slowly going along with them. At least that's been my experience at my Lodge.
In our Lodge we have had the benefit of a local brother who is an excellent chef, and the meals have been great. Its also an opportunity for youth groups to raise a little money serving. That said, i think when one person does all the work, they tend to be excluded from the fellowship, and that always felt bad to me. I think a restaurant is a great option, and there is no clean up!
I worry about burnout too when one guy has to do all the kitchen work. Even if someone loves it, being expected to do it every time could get quite old I imagine.
There's a lot of factors at play in a discussion of this type. At my mother lodge we say that 90% of Masonry happens outside of the lodge room. While that is somewhat hyperbole, we mean to say that fellowship is what brings us together as a lodge. If we all did our Freemasonry in a vacuum and only let it out within the confines of a lodge room, it wouldn't be conducive to Harmony and Brotherhood. So with that said, the question at hand is "wouldn’t we be better off doing it <dinner> at a restaurant instead?"
I find it a much better experience to have "dinner" within a lodge building when possible. I think it's a better way to mentally prepare us for our upcoming "sacred retreat". There's sometimes a sense of panic for the Brothers who are coordinating an outside excursion and inevitably there will be hiccups in added guests, missed expectations by the restaurant, running into people you know outside of masonry, etc... Also, in my experience everyone has a different sense of time, and as such there will inevitably be people who are always early or always late. If you're late to dinner it's not a big deal, but if you're late to lodge it can be tricky to gain entrance depending on what is going on at that particular meeting. The dinner in the lodge building gives us padding in all that. Additionally, I can tell you that getting dinner reservations for 30 people at a Seattle restaurant is no easy (or inexpensive) task. This may be a much more accessible option in other regions though.
I'm also biased in this because my lodge meets quarterly. The "burden" of dinners becomes a lot more intense if your lodge meets monthly. And even in the case of a Junior Warden (or just enthusiastic brother) who really really enjoys cooking dinners, I think it's an unsustainable feature to put such a large burden on one or two brothers that frequently. The time commitment becomes quite large quite quick. I will say, however, if you ever get a chance to go to one of Occidental #72's monthly dinners while Forest Eads is sitting in the south.... you will never be disappointed.
Now, with all that being said, I 100% agree with Charles Negron's comment about immersing the lodge into the community. We always go out to the nearest bar after our meeting to engage in fellowship, and we always get people asking "Where did you guys just come from?", "What's a Freemason?", etc... and it's not even about necessarily getting new members, but also for the community to know that we exist and are a part of it. The restaurants and bars nearby our lodge all know who we are when we come in after a lodge meeting and they're ALWAYS happy to have us there.
Your point about the burden of dinners being greatly lessened in a Lodge that meets quarterly instead of once or twice a month is very well taken. Both from a financial (assuming the Lodge foots the bill), and a labor perspective. This I think would certainly help to keep the quality high.
When attending my own Lodge, I've always tried to remember to take a good bottle for toasting after the meeting. After reading your comments, and Bro. Negron's here though, I think that in future I'll instead ask those who are interested to meet me at one of the nearby restaurants for a nightcap. I can easily see how doing so would be a good way to remind the community that we are here and active.
Amazing dinner at your Lodge last night by the way! Thank you!
I agree that the quality of the meal can certainly be a draw. We meet in a building which has a contract with a caterer, so we must use their services for our meals. Having only moved there about a year ago, I can certainly say that the quality of our meals has improved. It is an expense, but a reasonable one, and I for one think it has been well worth it. No more last-minute trips to a pizza joint because the meal wasn't ready or the volunteer didn't show or whatever, just quality food (with a vegetable, even!). It has worked really well for us.
Jun 28, 2022·edited Jun 28, 2022Liked by Cameron M. Bailey
I have been to 3 different Lodges lately and one in a small area has quite a chef who cooks things that I could never cook and that look quite expensive but there I imagine the Brothers also do their part buy pitching in enough to pay for it and at others the cook is great at what he does and he does it at several lodges but at times the Brothers do not add to paying enough to have more expensive dinners.
Restaurants sound good but where I am some lodges do not have that choice for a few reasons.
One other problem is by the time all that have to get off work and then get ready to get to the lodges it is only an hour before the Stated meetings and that would be the biggest problem and Stated meetings would be late and rushed through and not in a ritual way.
And in my case I just sit with the Brothers at meal time without eating since my wife already is trying to make me get to the size of the refrigerator so in my case it is better to be part of the meal but only for discussions........not that I actually have lost one pound doing that .
>:-D { I just did a test and I see emeth doesn't let use use images or bbcode}
Your point is well taken that if the service were slow at a restaurant, it could well make the Brothers late for the meeting. I imagine that would have to be carefully considered when choosing a place to go.
Certainly it's also true that this is only an option for some of our Lodges. We do have plenty in this Jurisdiction that don't have anything close by.
I was fortunate as JW to have a couple women from OES prepare the meal for my entire year as such.
Our lodge is somewhat rural and having a meal ahead of time would not work.
When I was master of the lodge I offered up once a month to meet separately at a restaurant and the attendance was minimal.
I’ve watched other lodges do a great job in the preparation of food where they have very active Junior Warden’s.
The process in our lodge may change in that the two ladies from OES are both spouses the past masters in this could be their last year leaving that responsibility up to uncertainty once again.
So far for this Masonic year the amount of money taken in still exceeds the cost of the meal which is a good thing.
>>>So far for this Masonic year the amount of money taken in still exceeds the cost of the meal >>>which is a good thing.
I think that when this can be sustained, it certainly makes the proposition of cooking good Lodge meals feasible. In my experience, lack of proper funding from either the Lodge or the Brothers is the largest hurdle faced by many who take on the cooking duties.
This is an excellent topic. All of the lodges I'm a member of do provide a great meal, and it doesn't always have to be prepared at the lodge. I think of a meal as more of an opportunity to provide sustenance for the body to prepare the mind and soul to be fed during our stated meeting :-).
If timing is a concern, either meaning not enough time to prepare the meal or gather at a restaurant, we should explore the option of working with a local eatery and see about pre-orders or to-go options. The Lodge could have a standing order number, allowing each to select what they want and support a local business. If there isn't a delivery option, the JW could or designate a member to pick up the entire order for the lodge. If we notice that some brethren cannot afford this option, simple meat/cheese trays could be procured as an appetizer or confidential arrangements made.
Through the years my Lodge has brought food in as you suggest for quite a few of our special events. It does seem to be a superb solution, and the Brothers seem to really enjoy it, without balking at the costs involved. The trick we've found when doing this however is to get very firm RSVP's, for without them it is just too hard to try and guess how many meals need to be purchased.
'Confidential Arrangements' as you mention are I think key to providing a great Lodge experience. Lodges need high enough dues & such to be able to provide first class meetings and events, but in doing so need to make sure that there is a mechanism to take care of those who can't afford it. When I was Secretary of my Lodge such arrangements were made, known only to me and the men directly involved. I presume that is still the case in my Lodge, and I hope the case in most or all of our Lodges.
Valid points, MW. I wonder then, if instead of putting the ownership coordinating the RSVP and Lodge being on the hook so to speak for purchasing the meals, we create a "splash page" or a special order effort that allows the Brothers to order their meal from a designated place for lodge night at their expense. The JW could be the one to pick up all the orders or if the eatery has the ability to deliver for a fee. We do that often at work, provide a list of the meals available and the Brother orders what they want to pay for.
That is a great idea, something that I'd never thought of. It would certainly make things easier. So many people like using credit/debit cards today, and that would allow that without the Lodge needing to get a merchant account.
While I imagine there is something to be said about the level of camaraderie engendered by food preparation and eating together at lodge, eating at a nearby restaurant may yield some unrealized positive effects beyond offloading food preparation efforts. Immersing ourselves in the community and being seen by others as a group, can help to raise awareness of masonry enticing those that may be curious to ask questions. Reducing food preparation efforts and costs can save lodge funds that might otherwise be directed towards needed operations or charitable endeavors. And, for me at least, eating at a restaurant offers added flexibility for what type of food to consume - for those on diets or with specific food needs, that might be a factor to consider.
Thank you for giving us these thoughts! I'd not considered the great benefits that could come about by simply being seen, as a group of Masons, having fun. It could certainly help to build interest in our local Lodge in the minds of other members of the community.
Point well taken
Yes.
I think having dinner at a restaurant (best if it has a banquet or semi-private area to set aside) is a wonderful idea.
My biggest issue with the meals is that somehow a lot of masons seem to think that a decent meal costs five bucks, because that's what they tend to drop in the donation bucket. I know a few brothers that never donate anything. If all the members donate is a few bucks, you're going to get tater tot casserole, or a sandwich.
There have been a couple of occasions where I have forgotten to go to the ATM to get cash for dinner, the problem is today most people don't carry around cash, they simply pay for everything with a debit card.
I'd love to see a lodge either have a catered meal, or meet at a nearby restaurant if possible for their meeting social hour. Charge people a set amount if catered or they don't eat. I understand that for some it's not supposed to be relying on donations to pay for the meals, that the fellowship is more important, but that's how we end up with terrible food.
Get creative. In my former lodge, the rainbow girls asked if they could take care of our dinners. One of the moms was awesome at feeding groups on a budget, and normally kept the costs below $100 dollars. Anything raised over the $100 (or whatever they spent) they kept to help fund their activities. The girls all got service points, and the JW got to not stress over it. During my term as JW, I made sure I told the brothers that the meal was being handled by the rainbow girls, and to donate accordingly. It worked out great. The food was awesome, and everyone went away happy.
I think your points are very well taken. $5 bucks in the donation jar ensures that the food is going to be poor. A hot dog at the gas station is now $2.50, so to think that a good meal can be created for double that is just absurd.
I also have experienced the problem you mentioned re: forgetting to take some cash. Years ago I was a cash guy, but now I'm a plastic guy. Never good to forget to take some money for the donation bucket.
One solution, if the Lodge wanted to continue cooking, but not relying on donations would be to roll the projected costs of meals into the yearly dues structure. I know that at least some of our Lodges do that. Another thing that can help is to require RSVP's for dinner. That would greatly reduce waste, as I remember my wife cooking for the Lodge for a few years, never knowing if ten would show up or thirty.
Comments here are most appropriate and correct. During my term as Master, I tried hard to get the lodge out to some of the local restaurants. It really did not go well. If we made plans to have libations after lodge most of the brothers saw that as a way to go home early. We had minimal attendance also at pre meeting functions. While our lodge is in the middle of a number of good restaurants the restaurants themselves were in no hurry to make arrangements for our group. All this has not changed my mind in that we should upgrade our food and opportunities to meet and socialize outside of the lodge walls. It takes effort and we have to get creative, but I still believe it can and must be done for our lodges to survive in good order.
I think that whenever we introduce changes to our Lodge, those changes take a long time to stick. Our collective unwillingness to embrace change can be a good thing in many ways, but frustrating as all get out in others.
The trick is, I think, the new members of our Lodge. When we make changes, and then the brand new guys embrace those things, then everyone starts slowly going along with them. At least that's been my experience at my Lodge.
In our Lodge we have had the benefit of a local brother who is an excellent chef, and the meals have been great. Its also an opportunity for youth groups to raise a little money serving. That said, i think when one person does all the work, they tend to be excluded from the fellowship, and that always felt bad to me. I think a restaurant is a great option, and there is no clean up!
I worry about burnout too when one guy has to do all the kitchen work. Even if someone loves it, being expected to do it every time could get quite old I imagine.
There's a lot of factors at play in a discussion of this type. At my mother lodge we say that 90% of Masonry happens outside of the lodge room. While that is somewhat hyperbole, we mean to say that fellowship is what brings us together as a lodge. If we all did our Freemasonry in a vacuum and only let it out within the confines of a lodge room, it wouldn't be conducive to Harmony and Brotherhood. So with that said, the question at hand is "wouldn’t we be better off doing it <dinner> at a restaurant instead?"
I find it a much better experience to have "dinner" within a lodge building when possible. I think it's a better way to mentally prepare us for our upcoming "sacred retreat". There's sometimes a sense of panic for the Brothers who are coordinating an outside excursion and inevitably there will be hiccups in added guests, missed expectations by the restaurant, running into people you know outside of masonry, etc... Also, in my experience everyone has a different sense of time, and as such there will inevitably be people who are always early or always late. If you're late to dinner it's not a big deal, but if you're late to lodge it can be tricky to gain entrance depending on what is going on at that particular meeting. The dinner in the lodge building gives us padding in all that. Additionally, I can tell you that getting dinner reservations for 30 people at a Seattle restaurant is no easy (or inexpensive) task. This may be a much more accessible option in other regions though.
I'm also biased in this because my lodge meets quarterly. The "burden" of dinners becomes a lot more intense if your lodge meets monthly. And even in the case of a Junior Warden (or just enthusiastic brother) who really really enjoys cooking dinners, I think it's an unsustainable feature to put such a large burden on one or two brothers that frequently. The time commitment becomes quite large quite quick. I will say, however, if you ever get a chance to go to one of Occidental #72's monthly dinners while Forest Eads is sitting in the south.... you will never be disappointed.
Now, with all that being said, I 100% agree with Charles Negron's comment about immersing the lodge into the community. We always go out to the nearest bar after our meeting to engage in fellowship, and we always get people asking "Where did you guys just come from?", "What's a Freemason?", etc... and it's not even about necessarily getting new members, but also for the community to know that we exist and are a part of it. The restaurants and bars nearby our lodge all know who we are when we come in after a lodge meeting and they're ALWAYS happy to have us there.
Your point about the burden of dinners being greatly lessened in a Lodge that meets quarterly instead of once or twice a month is very well taken. Both from a financial (assuming the Lodge foots the bill), and a labor perspective. This I think would certainly help to keep the quality high.
When attending my own Lodge, I've always tried to remember to take a good bottle for toasting after the meeting. After reading your comments, and Bro. Negron's here though, I think that in future I'll instead ask those who are interested to meet me at one of the nearby restaurants for a nightcap. I can easily see how doing so would be a good way to remind the community that we are here and active.
Amazing dinner at your Lodge last night by the way! Thank you!
I agree that the quality of the meal can certainly be a draw. We meet in a building which has a contract with a caterer, so we must use their services for our meals. Having only moved there about a year ago, I can certainly say that the quality of our meals has improved. It is an expense, but a reasonable one, and I for one think it has been well worth it. No more last-minute trips to a pizza joint because the meal wasn't ready or the volunteer didn't show or whatever, just quality food (with a vegetable, even!). It has worked really well for us.
Yeah, we've made a few of those emergency pizza trips too! Never a good situation.
I have been to 3 different Lodges lately and one in a small area has quite a chef who cooks things that I could never cook and that look quite expensive but there I imagine the Brothers also do their part buy pitching in enough to pay for it and at others the cook is great at what he does and he does it at several lodges but at times the Brothers do not add to paying enough to have more expensive dinners.
Restaurants sound good but where I am some lodges do not have that choice for a few reasons.
One other problem is by the time all that have to get off work and then get ready to get to the lodges it is only an hour before the Stated meetings and that would be the biggest problem and Stated meetings would be late and rushed through and not in a ritual way.
And in my case I just sit with the Brothers at meal time without eating since my wife already is trying to make me get to the size of the refrigerator so in my case it is better to be part of the meal but only for discussions........not that I actually have lost one pound doing that .
>:-D { I just did a test and I see emeth doesn't let use use images or bbcode}
Bill
District 11
Your point is well taken that if the service were slow at a restaurant, it could well make the Brothers late for the meeting. I imagine that would have to be carefully considered when choosing a place to go.
Certainly it's also true that this is only an option for some of our Lodges. We do have plenty in this Jurisdiction that don't have anything close by.
This is a tough one.
I was fortunate as JW to have a couple women from OES prepare the meal for my entire year as such.
Our lodge is somewhat rural and having a meal ahead of time would not work.
When I was master of the lodge I offered up once a month to meet separately at a restaurant and the attendance was minimal.
I’ve watched other lodges do a great job in the preparation of food where they have very active Junior Warden’s.
The process in our lodge may change in that the two ladies from OES are both spouses the past masters in this could be their last year leaving that responsibility up to uncertainty once again.
So far for this Masonic year the amount of money taken in still exceeds the cost of the meal which is a good thing.
>>>So far for this Masonic year the amount of money taken in still exceeds the cost of the meal >>>which is a good thing.
I think that when this can be sustained, it certainly makes the proposition of cooking good Lodge meals feasible. In my experience, lack of proper funding from either the Lodge or the Brothers is the largest hurdle faced by many who take on the cooking duties.
This is an excellent topic. All of the lodges I'm a member of do provide a great meal, and it doesn't always have to be prepared at the lodge. I think of a meal as more of an opportunity to provide sustenance for the body to prepare the mind and soul to be fed during our stated meeting :-).
If timing is a concern, either meaning not enough time to prepare the meal or gather at a restaurant, we should explore the option of working with a local eatery and see about pre-orders or to-go options. The Lodge could have a standing order number, allowing each to select what they want and support a local business. If there isn't a delivery option, the JW could or designate a member to pick up the entire order for the lodge. If we notice that some brethren cannot afford this option, simple meat/cheese trays could be procured as an appetizer or confidential arrangements made.
Lots of opportunities on this subject, MW!!
Through the years my Lodge has brought food in as you suggest for quite a few of our special events. It does seem to be a superb solution, and the Brothers seem to really enjoy it, without balking at the costs involved. The trick we've found when doing this however is to get very firm RSVP's, for without them it is just too hard to try and guess how many meals need to be purchased.
'Confidential Arrangements' as you mention are I think key to providing a great Lodge experience. Lodges need high enough dues & such to be able to provide first class meetings and events, but in doing so need to make sure that there is a mechanism to take care of those who can't afford it. When I was Secretary of my Lodge such arrangements were made, known only to me and the men directly involved. I presume that is still the case in my Lodge, and I hope the case in most or all of our Lodges.
Valid points, MW. I wonder then, if instead of putting the ownership coordinating the RSVP and Lodge being on the hook so to speak for purchasing the meals, we create a "splash page" or a special order effort that allows the Brothers to order their meal from a designated place for lodge night at their expense. The JW could be the one to pick up all the orders or if the eatery has the ability to deliver for a fee. We do that often at work, provide a list of the meals available and the Brother orders what they want to pay for.
That is a great idea, something that I'd never thought of. It would certainly make things easier. So many people like using credit/debit cards today, and that would allow that without the Lodge needing to get a merchant account.