First Anniversary Dinner
A year ago, this started as an idea I wasn’t entirely sure would work.
A few dinners. Some strangers around a table. Food inspired by places, memories, conversations, and experiences that stuck with me long after I came home. Since then, Gathered Grounds has somehow grown into something much bigger than I expected.
Over the past year, there have been late nights prepping until exhaustion, last-minute menu changes, moments where everything clicked perfectly, and moments where I questioned why I decided serving six courses mostly alone was a good idea in the first place.
But there have also been packed tables full of people who started the night as strangers and left exchanging numbers. Guests returning dinner after dinner. Conversations stretching late into the night over shared bottles and empty plates. The kind of moments that reminded me why I started doing this at all.
This anniversary dinner is a celebration of that year.
Not a recreation of one specific country, but a collection of favorite dishes, ideas, techniques, and memories pulled from the dinners that shaped Gathered Grounds so far. Some courses are refined versions of past favorites. Others are dishes I never quite got right the first time and wanted another shot at.
Because honestly, that’s what this whole project has been about from the beginning: exploration. Trying things. Failing occasionally. Eating well regardless.
If you’ve been to one dinner or many, thank you for being part of it.
There would be no first anniversary without people willing to show up, sit down with strangers, and trust me to cook for them.
That still means a lot to me.
