A perfectly set table. The sound of laughter. The smell of food wafting from the kitchen. A menu with a full dinner course planned. Once every month, this is the reality for a lucky group of USC students who are personally invited into Hiya Vora’s apartment for her supper club. 

Last year, Vora, a senior majoring in accounting and finance, started a supper club for her fellow classmates. Vora, being a vegetarian, has ensured all the meals are entirely plant-based and center around a specific theme each month. To those granted an invite, Vora hoped her club could help cultivate community over a shared human interest: food. 

“I love eating food,” Vora said. “I love feeding others. I feel like the supper club is a place where I love bringing people together, having good conversation and good food.”

Vora’s club is exclusive to invites. She sends out a Google Form to her friends that she wants to join her at dinner and that is how she determines the guest list. If people are interested in joining they can direct message Vora with the Instagram handle @too_matcha_caffeine to ask for a spot

While the monthly themes differ, one thing that stays the same is Vora in the kitchen. For each dinner, she spends hours cooking a variety of fun dishes for her eight to 10 guests, almost always with a little help.  

“Even though [cooking for the club] is such a pain, and I’m occupied completely for two calendar days, it does bring me a lot of joy, and just being there with everybody brings me a lot of joy,” Vora said.

Eleanor Tupper, a senior majoring in French and chemistry, met Vora in France during their freshman fall. Tupper has attended every supper club and was there when Vora came up with the idea.

“The food is fantastic, and [Vora] is one of my best friends,” Tupper said. “[I love] being able to spend time with her and also see worlds colliding. Because she’s a business student, she brings a lot of her friends from the area of USC that I don’t really interact with that often, and it’s a really warm, welcoming environment.”

In the past few years, videos of people creating themed cooking events for close friends and family have taken off, a trend that inspired Vora. She said prior to hosting the supper club, she would create tasting menus for her family and has put on similar themed dinner parties back home. 

Vora also drew a lot of inspiration for her supper club from her time with her family in the kitchen. 

“I remember my mom telling me that sometimes at our aunt’s house I would just go hide in the kitchen cabinets,” Vora said. “I was passionate about food.”

Ultimately, Vora was moved to host such events to find her own community. Some of the supper club themes at USC have related back to her roots, with one of her favorite meals being “A Journey Back Home” dinner, where she cooked Indian fusion food. Later this year, Vora will host “A Desi Thanksgiving,” a cultural community gathering around the food she grew up loving. 

Some of Tupper’s favorite meals have been a tomato, cheese and bread dinner as well as a banana pudding matcha that Vora made from scratch.

“With the day and age of everything being very automated [with] DoorDash and [artificial intelligence], taking the time to do something like cooking a huge meal for a bunch of people is very special,” Tupper said. “I think no matter where that’s happening around USC … taking the time to share food … is a very special experience.”

Joy Ndamukunda, a senior majoring in global geodesign, echoed Tupper’s sentiments. Ndamukunda was Vora’s sophomore year roommate and listened to Vora’s ideas about starting the supper club. 

“[The supper club] really inspired me to also make an attempt to service my community,” Ndamukunda said. “I believe when people have the conversation about the lack of community they discuss it in [the lens] of ‘Why aren’t there community events that I can go to that can service me?’ But [the club] made me realize that if you want to have community, you have to put in the effort [and] the sacrifices.”

Vora usually ends up footing most of the bill for her dinners, even with attendees paying a $20 deposit. But Ndamukunda believes the experience and memories made from the club are worth it. 

“[The club] made me grow in my ability to spark up conversation with strangers,” Ndamukunda said. “I know that’s something a lot of people struggle with. Also, it helped me realize that when you want to experience something you have to make time for it. … If you want to be a part of something, you have to make space for it.”

With the little time she has left at USC, Vora will continue with her themed dinners. This fall, she will host two more meals that join community and food in a beautiful connection.

“I feel like the people have just been so incredibly kind,” Vora said. “Sometimes it may slip that I’m a little bit worried, and I feel like everyone’s been incredibly supportive and has cheered me on. I’m really grateful because that’s the opposite of the voice in my head.” 

Vora’s next dinner will be hosted Oct. 16, with the theme “Remy’s Table,” where she will recreate iconic foods from the movie “Ratatouille” (2007) surrounded by old and new friends.