At a time when you can find any recipe online, there are many who still value a cookbook with each recipe an inspirational treasure. Both Bend and Redmond have active cookbook clubs that meet twice a month. Jill Drum started the Bend Cookbook Club in 2021 as a way to build community while enjoying a homecooked feast.
“The Bend club took off right away (30 people came to our first dinner!) and I had to really learn how to organize and scale commensurate with what the community wanted,” Drum told the Source. She selects a different cookbook each month then organizes a Happy Hour planning get-together where each person choses a recipe from the book. Folks who can’t attend the planning party but want to participate in the dinner party can sign up for a recipe online. The club meets at local bars or restaurants with permission.
“I went from calling around to different bars asking if it was OK to bring in outside food on a slower night, bringing paper plates and silverware, to getting to the point that I could partner with a venue to make the events more polished and exciting,” Drum explains.
Participants cook their dishes at home and bring them along with serving utensils. Drum takes care of the rest. “When you arrive at the venue, I have dish labels for each dish that have allergy information, so folks that have any dietary restrictions can still participate in the dinners,” she says. “We dig in shortly after 6pm and things escalate quickly when dishing up — imagine putting 40 dishes on one plate! It’s fun to see everyone’s strategy for dishing up. We then dig into our feast together and towards the end of the dinner we go around the room and each talk a little bit about our dish. At the end of the meal, I raffle off a copy of the current month’s cookbook and the next month’s cookbook!” Drum says more than 1,000 people have participated in the Bend dinners since it launched. Dinners in Bend are limited to 35 people.
The cookbooks selected each month are a mix of modern or classic and generally match the season. For September it’s Kenji Lopez-Alt’s “The Wok”, a James Beard award-winning cookbook. In November, the Bend group chucks the book and shares favorite family recipes.
Drum is an energy regulatory attorney with a passion for food. “In law school I was in need of a distraction from endless reading and decided to trade in my first-year textbooks for a bunch of cookbooks! …I view cookbooks as equal parts textbook and storytelling and think they can help you expand the horizons of your cooking and build confidence! Cooking is my way of showing love, my creative outlet, a way to explore cultures and different approaches to flavor and technique and a way to create community over something delicious.” Drum says a cookbook is an equalizer at the club. She urges everyone to follow the recipe exactly, so that all chefs are on the same playing field.
“I would love for folks to know that I strive for the club to be welcoming, affordable and a way to expand your cooking skills while meeting new people! I want people to walk away from each dinner feeling full of community and food and encourage anyone that is curious to learn more to reach out to me or come to our planning Happy Hour!” Drum says.
The history of cookbooks dates to at least 1700 BC with the oldest recorded recipe written on clay tablets from Ancient Mesopotamia. According to bookriot.com it was a recipe for meat stew using vinegar, smoked wood and herbs. The first cookbook in English was “Forme of Cury” written by chefs for King Richard II in 1390. The first American cookbook was by Amelia Simmons in 1796. Food, for many, is often connected to fond childhood memories and the centerpiece of celebrations with generations passing down beloved recipes.
Kelsey Seymour started the Redmond Cookbook Club last year shortly after she moved to the area. She uses the same cookbook each month as the Bend club, creating a community connection between the clubs.
“Imagine you and 15 other home cooks having a themed potluck once a month. You get a glass of wine, then fill your plate with 15 different bite-sized samples and then go back for seconds of your favorites… For one night a month, we eat better than anyone else in town,” Seymour says.
The Redmond Cookbook Club has its planning Happy Hour at E BarGrill on the second Tuesday of each month. Dinners are at Arome Kitchen on the third Tuesday. While Seymour is enthusiastic about the food, she says, “The real magic is that the club attracts the most delightful people. Being social with a group of strangers feels like a toss-up in most cases, but there’s something about home-cooked food and sharing a meal that brings everyone together on the friendliest of terms.” When she’s not organizing the club, Seymour is busy doing community outreach for a nonprofit and is expecting her second child.
For both clubs, the planning meeting is free but participants need to purchase a ticket to attend the dinner party to help cover costs. The fee is minimal: $15 in Redmond or $25 in Bend. Spouses are invited to the dinner as long as they purchase a ticket. Anyone interested in participating can register online. The next planning Happy Hour for the Bend Cookbook Club is Wednesday, Sept. 17 at Waypoint BBC in the Grove and the dinner party will be at Flights Wine Bar on Sunday, Sept. 28.
“No cooking experience required – just a love for food and an openness to trying new things and meeting new people! We are a super welcoming group and it is such a low-key way to expand your cooking skills,” Drum says. “If your recipe goes totally awry, there are still going to be 30 other recipes at the dinner.”
Bend Cookbook Club
Planning Happy Hour: Sept. 17, 4:30-6pm
Dinner Party Sept. 28, 6-8pm
$25 for Dinner Party
Redmond Cookbook Club
Planning Happy Hour: 2nd Tuesday, 4;30pm
Dinner Party: 3rd Tuesday, 6pm
eventbrite.com/o/redmond-cookbook-club-90482886363
$15 for Dinner Party
This article appears in the Source September 11, 2025.
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