About us
Have you ever looked at a recipe and thought, I’d really like to try that? That’s what the Test Kitchen is all about. Everyone brings a dish they’ve never made before. Simple.
Make something experimental, something you’re genuinely excited about exploring—take a culinary risk. Occasional failures are part of the experience, so don’t hold back. As Julia Child said, “Always bring it to the table!”
The Test Kitchen is a 5-star meetup where folks consistently say the vibe is welcoming, engaging, and inclusive.
In 2025, we landed in the top 16% of Gay Singles events in California—while, of course, welcoming our coupled cuties, too.
Upcoming events
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February Test Kitchen
Hayes Valley, San Francisco, CA, USCooks! We’re thrilled to announce that the Test Kitchen is turning three years old.
Join us for our Three-Year Anniversary Test Kitchen, where we’ll toast to three years of bold flavors, kitchen triumphs, near-misses, whatever that thing was Pete made for the October Test Kitchen, and the delicious creativity you all bring month after month. Bring a dish that feels festive to you—whether that means elevated comfort food, a show-stopping dessert, or something you’ve always wanted to try for a special occasion.
Here’s to three years of cooking together. Check out pics from the past three years of the Test Kitchens on Instagram and Facebook.
12 attendees
🧇 March Test Kitchen 🧇
Hayes Valley, San Francisco, CA, USMarch’s Test Kitchen is happening Sunday the 8th in San Francisco’s Hayes Valley.
This month’s Test Kitchen challenge—should you choose to accept it—is Breakfast for Dinner. Think comfort, nostalgia, indulgence, or clever reinvention. Savory or sweet, elegant or a little unhinged, anything that feels like breakfast but is served after sunset is fair game.
Maybe it’s a twist on a classic like shakshuka, chilaquiles, or congee. Maybe it’s a breakfast-meets-dinner mashup like savory pancakes, breakfast fried rice, or pancake tacos. Maybe it leans sweet—French toast, waffles, or bread pudding—or goes all in on eggs, pastries, or breads you’ve been curious to try.
As always, this is a test kitchen, not a potluck. Make something you’ve never made before, something experimental, something you’re genuinely excited about exploring. Occasional failures are part of the experience, so don’t hold back!
Please post your dish at least 2 weeks before the Test Kitchen. Go to the event’s Comments area and let the other cooks know what you’re planning to make.
We’ll experiment, we’ll eat, and we’ll celebrate breakfast at entirely the wrong time of day.
Check out pics from past Test Kitchens on Instagram.
1 attendee
April Test Kitchen
Hayes Valley, San Francisco, CA, USCooks! The April Test Kitchen is happening on Sunday the 19th in San Francisco’s Hayes Valley.
This month’s Test Kitchen challenge—should you choose to accept it—is a little act of culinary chance. Pull a cookbook from your shelf (or your favorite library’s), flip your way to page 123, and—if it’s a recipe you’ve never made—commit.
Here’re a few recipes that turned up on page 123 from my own shelves. Rumaki, from A Cookbook for Poor Poets and Others, a retro, savory-sweet classic of chicken livers and water chestnuts wrapped in bacon, glazed and broiled until crisp.
Things get heartier with Kalbijjim with Root Vegetables and Beef-Fat Croutons from Korean American, a rich, slow-braised dish in which tender short ribs mingle with earthy vegetables and decadent, crisp croutons.
And for pure whimsy, The Big Book of Cupcakes lands on—believe it or not—Somewhere Over the Rainbow Cupcakes, a Pride-worthy explosion of color and sweetness.
Wherever page 123 leads you—savory, sweet, familiar, or strange—embrace it. That element of chance is part of the fun. Can’t wait to see what surprises emerge from your shelves and onto the Test Kitchen table.
Check out pics from past Test Kitchens on Instagram and Facebook.
1 attendee
Past events
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