The word 'exotic' is strictly relative - for some of us, eating bison or venison is about as exotic as we care to get; others might have the same reaction to calamari (squid) or octopus. And, of course, one person's exotic is another's commonplace; in many Mediterranean towns, for example, eating octopus is almost a daily occurance. On the other hand, many of us would balk at the variety of exotic game meat available today.

"Game" refers to meat that comes from the wild, rather than having been raised on a farm. We are becoming accustomed to the idea of eating bison, rabbit or duck - but what about kangaroo? Unusual meats, like kangaroo, alligator or rattlesnake, are being served at some of the top restaurants in the United States.

Kangaroo, for example, is prepared according to a variety of innovative recipes - sometimes it is even served raw, to highlight its distinct, ruby-red color. A firm in Seattle that specialises in exotic game meat claims that the popularity of these foodstuffs is definitely on the rise - last year saw a 30% increase in sales, for example.

If exotic game meat doesn't happen to appeal to you personally, you might well wonder why people would go out of their way to eat snake or camel. There are several valid explanations. Some restaurant patrons are thrill seekers, and exotic game meat is the new thrill.

After all, we have more or less exhausted our awe of foreign cuisines. A few generations ago, sushi might have had a degree of shock-appeal; now, it is as ubiquitous as pizza. After becoming acquainted, as we are, with the mysteries of dim sum, most of us are too jaded to marvel at exotic food.

Exotic game meat might well be the last frontier. We can still boast about having eaten camel, and make a point of telling our fascinated friends that it tastes similar to duck.

A coiled rattlesnake

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