What was Friendsgiving 2026 at Sauté Sundays?

Our October 2026 cookbook club night, held on Sunday, October 18 at Jrew's in downtown Toronto, the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Everyone brought a dish they love to share potluck style, and there was a free DIY mocktail bar.

Did Friendsgiving have a featured cookbook?

No. It was the first Sauté Sundays night without one. Guests brought a recipe they love instead: one from a favourite cookbook, a family recipe, or the dish they always bring to the holidays.

Was the mocktail bar free?

Yes. Like the potluck itself, the DIY mocktail bar was free. Guests built their own alcohol free drinks and could go back as often as they liked to try a new combination.

Event Recap

Friendsgiving and a DIY Mocktail Bar — October 2026

No featured cookbook, a mocktail bar people kept going back to, a surprise pâté, and our first two babies.

Tammy·October 18, 2026·3 min read

Everyone at Sauté Sundays Friendsgiving 2026 gathered for a group photo behind the spread of dishes at Jrew's in Toronto, one of the night's two babies in a carrier on the left.

Friendsgiving fell on October 18 this year, the Sunday after Thanksgiving. I hope you got to spend the long weekend with the people you wanted to spend it with, and that there was something on your list to be thankful for this year.

One of mine is easy. It’s everyone who came to Jrew’s with their favourite dish. October sold out to newsletter subscribers within six hours, before spots ever opened to the public.

October was the first night we’ve run without a featured cookbook. Instead, we asked everyone to bring a recipe they love, whether that came from a cookbook they keep going back to, a family recipe, or the dish they always end up bringing to the holidays.

The DIY mocktail bar

We also set up a free DIY mocktail bar for the night with our sponsors, Heartwood Farm and Sobrii, and it got a lot more love than I expected. People kept drifting back to it all night to try another combination, which is exactly what I was hoping for when we set it up.

Guests at the DIY mocktail bar, one pouring from a bottle of Sobrii into a glass, with bottles and glasses laid out on the table

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A guest smiling with a red mocktail in one hand and a can of Heartwood Sparkle in the other

Two guests raising their mocktails at the bar, one holding a can of Heartwood Sparkle

What I ate, as far as I know

I do have a confession. I spent most of the night standing at that bar taking photos for Heartwood Farm and Sobrii, so my husband was the one bringing me plates. I genuinely don’t know what I ate for a good chunk of the evening. All of it was good, I just couldn’t tell you whose it was. It’s also why there are more photos of drinks than food from this one, and why the reel above catches more of the night than I did.

Two guests holding plates of food and cans of Heartwood Sparkle beside a stack of cans and cups at the mocktail bar

The three I got up and grabbed myself were the pumpkin pie, the Earl Grey cupcakes, and a chicken liver pâté I did not see coming. Someone made pâté. For a potluck. I’m still thinking about it.

An amber mocktail held up in front of the potluck spread, with guests serving themselves in the background

So if your dish isn’t named here, that’s my fault for spending the night behind the bar. Send us a message on Instagram and tell me what you brought, and I’ll make sure it gets a mention next time.

Two babies at a potluck

We also had two babies at this one. I’d been hoping that would happen eventually, and I loved it. We’re officially an all ages event now.

We run one of these every month. Subscribers get the link before spots open to everyone.

Common questions

What was Friendsgiving 2026 at Sauté Sundays?: Our October 2026 cookbook club night, held on Sunday, October 18 at Jrew's in downtown Toronto, the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Everyone brought a dish they love to share potluck style, and there was a free DIY mocktail bar.
Did Friendsgiving have a featured cookbook?: No. It was the first Sauté Sundays night without one. Guests brought a recipe they love instead: one from a favourite cookbook, a family recipe, or the dish they always bring to the holidays.
Was the mocktail bar free?: Yes. Like the potluck itself, the DIY mocktail bar was free. Guests built their own alcohol free drinks and could go back as often as they liked to try a new combination.

Written by

Tammy

Co-host. Started Sauté Sundays in her party room in 2025, and writes the newsletter that keeps it running.

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