Quail is tasty, less expensive alternative to pigeon usually weighing less than a half a pound with sweet juicy meat.  Like partridge, quail is related to the pheasant and in fact in the United States there is often confusion between quail and partridge.  The American Bobwhite Quail is also called partridge or Massena Quail. Other varieties in the United States and Europe are the California Quail and European Quail that are raised on farms and sold to restaurants. 

The most common farm raised quail in the United States is the Coturnix (or Pharaoh). They are diminutive birds, each weighing 4-5 oz. These fast growing birds are raised naturally without hormones, on a diet of grain, corn, wheat, barley, and soybean meal. Farm raised quail are tender, succulent little birds with light colored meat.

Quail can be roasted , sautéed, grilled and deep fried.  In earlier years it was also served in aspic.

A popular preparation: butterfly a whole quail by removing the backbone the flatten the bird. Then marinate in olive oil and herbs and charcoal grill for a few minutes on each side.