Gourmet Groups Cook
Up Food And Fun
ROGER M. SHOWLEY SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
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he printed menu, titled
"The Tastes of Au-
tumn," featured Gin-
ger Pumpkin Bisque,
Barbecued Turkey with Rose-
mary-Garlic Baste, Risotto With
Peas and, for dessert, Caramel
Apple Cheesecake. Each course
was accompanied by an appro-
priate wine.
But the venue was not a
trendy downtown restaurant of-
fering a $60 fixed-price dinner.
It was the home of Beverly and
Larry Boysen.
The occasion? The monthly
meeting of a private gourmet
club, whose five couples rotate
hosting elaborate meals, with
each couple preparing a dish
that fits a theme.
"For us, it's a better value for
the money," said Darlene Mont-
gomery, a teacher who, with her
husband, Don Hamilton, start-
ed the informal club five years
ago. "You can spend $50 or $60
for a dinner at a restaurant and
sometimes be disappointed.
With this, you can spend $10 to
$15 and have a wonderful meal
with friends."
For the fast-paced '90s, the
gourmet club fits many needs,
according to Shari Shields.
Three years ago, the Seattle au-
thor turned the concept into a
national organization, the In-
ternational Gourmet Grub Club,
and published two books to help
curious cooks graduate from mi-
crowaved leftovers and potluck
smorgasbords.
"People are spending more
time at home cocooning and
spending more money on their
homes, turning more to the
home for entertainment," she
said. "This just fits right in. It's
definitely a lot more fun than
pizza and beer and an afternoon
football game."
For Wendy Walkoe and her
sister Marcella Courtney, who
recently moved, a gourmet club
offered a chance to make new
friends.
"We're in our 30s," Walkoe
said. "Our contemporaries are
not into the bar scene, even if
they're not married. We don't go
to a lot of concerts, like we did •
when we were younger, and es-
pecially living in North Coun-
Roger M. Showley is a writer
with Copley News Service.
ty (San Diego), we want to net-
work with people who live up
here. This is a wonderful, won-
derful way to do it."
A third reason for getting a
club going is to learn more about
food by cooking for others. With
cooking classes and specialty
cookbooks so prevalent, today's
foodies need a way to hone their
developing skills.
"It's fun to get together with
your friends and share the joys
of cooking," said Karen Jimenez,
who started a gourmet club in
San Diego.
GETTING STARTED
A gourmet club can start with
a group of business associates
who like to socialize. It can be a
group of friends whose busy
schedules make it difficult to get
together regularly. But it usu-
ally requires one person to take
the initiative.
A group can be any size, but
successful gourmet clubs seem
to number between eight and
12, some married, some single.
Children are normally not in-
vited. Guest couples sometimes
are included, especially when
one of the regulars is absent.
Participants often are about
the same age and live in the
same neighborhood. But they
also include grandparents and
young parents, foreign visitors
and people from other parts of
town. While participants' pro-
files can vary widely, they all
share an adventuresome spirit.
Some clubs meet monthly ac-
cording to a schedule worked
out at the beginning of each
year. Others meet every two or
three months. Meals are usual-
ly at night and on the weekends,
but in the summer, a gathering
might be an afternoon clambake
at the beach. The meetings can
last from two to six hours, de-
pending on the season and
theme.
PICKING A THEME
The theme is what sets the
gourmet group gatherings apart
from potluck dinners. Shields'
second book, Creative Theme
Parties, offers 12 ideas for par-
ties, some tied to holidays, oth-
ers to cuisines.
Examples include "Taste of
Thai," "French Country Gath-
ering," "East Indian Escapade"