On a recent Sunday morning, people gathered in a North Whidbey home with stunning views of Mount Baker and Camano Island and feasted on a decadent variety of food and drink. The brunch menu featured a pear spritzer with bourbon and a splash of champagne, Italian espresso with chocolate, egg Florentine topped with caviar, broiled grapefruit and grilled oysters with onions and bacon.

The gathering may represent the first private supper club on the island. It’s known as “With Magsy” and hosted by Margaret and Mike Croom.

When the Texas couple moved to Whidbey Island two years ago at the height of the pandemic, Margaret was looking for a way to meet people and celebrate her love of food at the same time. Private supper clubs were common in Dallas where they previously lived and Margaret decided to recreate the invite-only meals at her own home.

The Crooms will host brunches on Sunday afternoon and dinners on Sunday evenings throughout this spring. All meals have different themes, such as the southern seaside brunch, which features the cuisine of New Orleans. As soon as it gets warm enough, Margaret plans to host meals outside.

Due to Mike’s job, the couple has lived all over the country and have always enjoyed seeking out locally owned restaurants.

“My husband and I are foodies and we love to go out to eat but we do not like chains,” she said. “We like to eat local.”

Their dinners will feature different chefs from local restaurants and wine pairings from local wineries for each course of the meal. Margaret said once her kitchen remodel is completed, guests will even be able to watch the chefs cook the meals. She is keeping the featured chefs a surprise for now.

The brunches, on the other hand, are strictly created by Mike and Margaret, who are excellent chefs in their own right. Brunch will be a combination of lunch and breakfast items, complete with cocktails.

To attend a With Magsy event, prospective guests need to sign up at withmagsy.com, which also has a list of upcoming meals. Ten lucky guests are randomly chosen via lottery and allowed to bring a plus one. After names are drawn, people have two days to pay a deposit. Menus are posted online ahead of time.

“It’s not a restaurant so there’s no ordering,” Margaret explained.

She insists that meals are not stuffy or formal. There is no dress code.

“It’s a great way to meet people as well,” she said. “It’s hard to meet people here.”

The first brunch brought people from all walks of life together over tables piled high with food any foodie would love. Eric Hanks, commanding officer of NAS Whidbey, and his wife Renee saw the event on the app Next Door. Suzanne Aldrich, who recently moved to the island from California, found it the same way. Adrienne Hawkins, owner of Zen Esthetics in Oak Harbor, brought her friend Erin Hoover, who was visiting from Los Angeles. Retired teachers Laura Moore and Lynn Goebel, who is Oak Harbor’s school board president, attended the event together.

Ten percent of the supper club’s proceeds will go to I Support the Girls, a charity that provides underwear, hygiene and other essential items to homeless girls and women. The money will go to the charity’s Oak Harbor chapter.

“I just want to make sure that (while) we’re having fun, we’re giving back,” Margaret said.

Margaret Croom put together a large charcuterie board for her first supper club event.

Amanda LoVecchio enjoys granola and a bourbon cocktail.

Photos by David Welton Captain Eric Hanks, commanding officer of NAS Whidbey Island, was in attendance at the brunch.

Margaret Croom serves grilled oysters with onions and bacon.

Photo by David Welton From left, Erin Hoover and Suzanne Aldrich drink bicerin, a traditional Italian espresso with chocolate.