As Memorial Day weekend signals the start of another summer season, it's time to head outdoors with picnic basket in hand. Whether it's a backyard barbeque with friends or a family gathering at a local park pavilion, there's something special about toting one's lunch to the nearest picnic table. With the elaborate portable food carriers currently on the market, there's no excuse for serving soggy sandwiches and warm cold cuts on flimsy paper plates. Whether the menu calls for basic ham and cheese on buns or elegant filled croissants, today's baskets take picnicking to a whole new level. In a way, they also suggest a return to the origin of the word itself. Cheri Sicard, author and editor of FabulousFoods.com, says the term "picnic" actually comes from the French pique-nique, meaning "a fashionable social entertainment" in which guests bring contributions to the feast. "In other words, pique-nique was a fancy way of saying 'potluck,'" says Sicard, of Playa del Rey, Calif. "The tradition of the potluck lives on at a good many of today's picnics, but the word picnic has developed a much broader meaning, encompassing virtually any portable meal." Sicard says that while the 18th-century French and English aristocracy enjoyed servant-attended formal picnics with chairs and table settings of fine china and crystal, modern picnics usually are more casual affairs. "I love picnics for entertaining," she says. "I started having them when I lived in a small studio apartment. I still wanted to have parties. With picnics, I could still give a big bash for 50 to 60 guests without having them in my house. And I didn't have to worry about the cleaning up afterward. They're convenient and inexpensive." With the new options in baskets, picnics can still be "a fashionable social entertainment." A variety of picnic baskets and accessories makes it easy to pack up a meal to go. Picnickers today want "more features so that they only have to supply the food and the wine," says Christiane Robinett, spokeswoman for Pier I stores. "Our most popular baskets are those containing real glassware, porcelain dishes and stainless flatware." Pier I offers four stylish models on its Web site -- www.pier1.com -- ranging from its most elaborate Willow Picnic Basket for Four ($75), which comes with four place settings of flatware and plates, wine glasses, a bottle and can opener and a set of salt and pepper shakers, to its most economical Sea Seagrass Picnic Basket ($30), made of hand-woven cotton, bamboo, fern, and seagrass with leather handle. The set includes plate, mug, and three-piece flatware for two. Also available at Pier 1 are a variety of Melamine acrylic plates and glasses and Wave stackable shatter-resistant polypropylene goblets ($5 for set of 4) and matching plates ($8 for 4) in green, turquoise, pink and orange. "We've used a lot of bright colors in our acrylic ware," Robinett says. Target stores stock a unique barrel-style picnic basket ($79.99) that comes with a deluxe service for two with two 9-inch Melamine plates, two 8-ounce wine glasses and two stainless steel knives, forks and spoons, plus two cotton napkins, a cotton tablecloth, a combination bottle opener and corkscrew, and salt and pepper shakers. Target's small woven picnic basket ($29.99 and available only at www.target.com ) is already packed with a wooden cutting board, beef summer sausage and salami, brick and cheddar cheeses, foil-wrapped chocolates and lemonade drink mix. Other picnic accessories are available in Target stores, including individual Melamine dinnerware in "fun, flashy prints, pastels and stripes," insulated lunch bags and coolers, points out Aimee Sands, spokeswoman for Target stores. For a traditional look, Crate & Barrel sells its Gourmet Picnic Basket ($32.95), described as an al fresco dining classic woven basket with a butternut finish, brass hardware and wood handles with a flat, slatted wood top. JC Penney has one of the latest additions to the outdoor entertaining department, the Picnic Basket Backpack ($19.99). Its version of the new design is a compact, portable backpack that stores 18 picnic items and includes an insulated compartment for storing chilled items. It comes with a cutting board, two wine glasses, two plates, two stainless steel flatware sets, a corkscrew, cheese knife, gingham tablecloth and napkins, and salt and pepper shakers. Sheila Fetterolf of Pismo Beach, Calif. manages three Web sites relating to picnic baskets and accessories, including www.picnic-baskets.com, which offers a huge assortment of picnic baskets, backpacks, totes and coolers. She says that picnic backpacks are the top sellers and are more popular than traditional wicker baskets. "A lot of people want the backpacks to go hiking or biking or to the beach," she says. "You don't have to carry them, and some of them even turn into a chair." Others have a detachable wine duffel, removable waterproof insulated food compartment, telescopic handles, exterior utility pockets and deluxe service for two or four persons. One model, the Survivor insulated backpack for two ($152), has a rattan core and contains two Melamine plates, wine glasses and flatware, a stainless steel cheese knife and corkscrew, salt and pepper shakers, bottle stopper, napkins, cutting board and an acrylic blanket. At www.picnicbaskets2go.com , Fetterolf features her top-of-the-line Elite picnic basket for four ($230), which includes Italian ceramic plates, cotton napkins, glasses, stainless steel flatware and corkscrew, insulated wine pouch with nickel cork topper, wood cheese knife and cutting board, brushed stainless coffee set with vacuum flask and cups, a picnic blanket, and more. She says her corporate customers purchase picnic baskets as gifts for their clients and employees. "I sell a lot of them as wedding and anniversary presents, too," she says. Picnic prep Bill Blefere, owner of Italian Specialty and Gourmet Catering, Brookline, has prepared picnics for as many as 5,000 guests in the Pittsburgh area. He says his most important picnic advice is to bring along ice or blue ice and keep foods in closed containers away from insects until ready to eat. Also, avoid bringing desserts with custard fillings or foods that won't keep well in the heat. He recommends taking a spray bottle filled with diluted bleach and paper towels to the picnic site so table surfaces and restroom areas can be disinfected before guests arrive. "The biggest factor at a picnic is the heat," Blefere says. If possible, "make sure you set up under cover for protection from the sun - or the rain." Author Cheri Sicard says the most difficult thing about having a picnic or cookout away from home is remembering to bring everything. This checklist should help to avoid picnic disasters, she says: Picnic blankets or other ground cloths Eating utensils Serving utensils Sharp knife Napkins Paper towels Can and bottle opener Corkscrew Small cutting board or plastic cutting mat Salt and pepper Sugar or artificial sweetener Condiments Plastic zipper storage bags for leftovers Trash bags for cleanup Moist towelettes Beverages Ice Picnic options Insect repellent Sunscreen Flashlight Portable chairs and table Camping stove Deck of cards or small games Sports equipment Single use camera Portable radio or CD player Where to picnic Looking for a good picnic spot? In Pittsburgh, Schenley Park in Oakland is the most popular picnic site, according to Rod Perkins of the city's permits office in the Department of Public Works. It's also the biggest park, with a total capacity of 335 picnickers among five shelters. The largest picnic site at Schenley Park is the open-air shelter Vietnam Veteran's Pavilion, which holds 170 people and includes an equipped kitchen with electrical outlets, outdoor grill, restrooms and access to swimming, fields, Frisbee golf and tennis. It costs $262 to rent the pavilion Fridays to Sundays, and $132 on weekdays. Highland Park offers space for 320 guests at six groves and shelters, including Rhododendron Shelter, which can accommodate 150 people with an indoor food preparation area, outdoor grills, electrical outlets, restrooms and access to recreation areas. Rental fee is $212 on weekends, $132 weekdays. Reservations are considered on a first-come, first-serve basis, Perkins says, and may be made by telephone -- (412) 255-2370 -- or in person in the Public Works Building, Permit Office, 611 Second Ave., Downtown. Other city parks include Riverview, Banksville, McBride, McKinley, Mellon, Sheraden and West End Shelter. Allegheny County offers nine parks within a 25-mile radius of downtown Pittsburgh. Of those, Hartwood Acres is the only park that does not offer picnic facilities. "We get the most requests for North and South parks," says Clarence Hopson, deputy director of county parks. For the upcoming Memorial Day weekend, "the good pavilions were already taken last year at this time," he adds. Unlike city parks, county facilities may be reserved a year in advance. Other county parks include Boyce, Round Hill, White Oak, Deer Lakes, Harrison Hills and Settler's Cabin. Rental fees vary according to facilities, Hopson says. For information, call the individual park office or county parks office at (412) 350-2455. -- Candy Williams

---

Copyright ©2025— Trib Total Media, LLC (TribLIVE.com)

---