Peddie students immerse themselves not only in rigorous classes but also in sports, arts, community service and other extracurricular activities. Unlike most of these activities that are organized by faculty members, student clubs and interest groups are entirely run by teams of students. Although the annual club fair is a good chance for students to look through all of the student-led clubs and sign up for the ones that interest them, one can easily be overwhelmed by the variety of available clubs. In order to make that decision slightly easier, some of the leaders of Bon Appétit, Peddie’s cooking club, discussed reasons that Peddie students should join their club.
“Who doesn’t love food?” is Sarah Drake ’25’s simple answer. “Cooking and enjoying your own food while mingling with your friends is the perfect way to let down after a long morning of classes.” Drake mentioned the club’s most beloved event: lunches in the Longstreet library, where students can cook their own food with the given materials. Last year, students were able to cook and customize pancakes, burritos, omelets, grilled cheese, and more.
“We were inspired to start this club by the philosophy that ‘anyone can cook’, famously from the Disney movie ‘Ratatouille,’” Chris Denson ’25 explained. “To honor that, Bon Appétit joined with the film club to host a Saturday movie night of ‘Ratatouille,’ where we served rat-themed punch and had participants make crepes. That was our only movie night so far, but we have ideas for more this year.”
Ella Jiang ‘25 ensured that “Bon Appétit has even more ideas for this year,” and that “the lunches and movie nights will continue, but the team, now with even more leaders, has many ideas to choose from like food drives or an ice cream tour in Princeton. Bon Appétit has a lot planned for the year, so people should definitely look into joining.”
For students who are still not fully convinced to join Bon Appétit, here are a few experiences from club members. “I went to the grilled cheese lunch not really expecting anything because I don’t really know how to cook,” said Sylvania Peng ’26, “but the menus chosen by Bon Appétit are usually pretty easy and quick to prepare. I was chatting with my friends as I made my grilled cheese, and I was done with my lunch before I knew it.”
Elaine Liu ’26 also shared her positive experiences with Bon Appétit. “I love to cook but I don’t really have the chance to do so because I’m a boarder,” Liu ’26 explained. “So the Bon Appétit events, especially the ones during the school day, were a really nice de-stressor for me because they gave me a space to enjoy my hobby again. I’m excited for the events they’ll host this year.”
Bon Appétit members said the club is perfect for anyone who loves food, from at-home masterchefs to a first-timer at cracking an egg. All the leaders send a final message: “Fnd Bon Appétit at the club fair!”
