Food Focus
By Ty Walker, The Mountain Times
Jan and Todd Ostrom created a buzz on the mountain when they opened Busy Bee Catering in 1998, more than 25 years ago. They have seen their business grow steadily over the years, especially since they found a permanent home for their catering arm when they opened their joint business, Alpine Events center.
Alpine Events holds several private and public events a month. From private business meetings and dinners to weddings, receptions, birthdays, graduation parties and celebrations of life, the Ostroms cater to their customers’ special needs.
“The event center gives us a space to cater and gives the community a space to gather, to have events,” Jan said. “We thought it was kind of a win-win. It’s easier for the client to be able to walk into their own party and be a guest of their own event. It’s kind of nice.”
The events center holds a pop-up dinner open to the public the first Monday of the month. This month, the theme is Cinco de Mayo with a Mexican buffet on the menu. “We put our spin on it,” Jan said.
Jan has always enjoyed cooking and was an active volunteer in her local school PTA when she started getting requests to organize birthday and retirement parties. Word spread and she started getting referrals to cater events.
In the early days, the Ostroms ran the business out of a mobile kitchen; then they built a commercial kitchen in their Welches home. They buzzed all over the mountain delivering their home-cooked meals for private special occasions.
In 2020, the Ostroms bought the former Still Creek Inn and remodeled and renamed it Alpine Events. They moved the commercial kitchen to Alpine Events, turning it into the new home for their catering business.
Jan has a lifelong passion for cooking and likes to keep the menu fresh. She enjoys trying new things and gets creative cooking up new recipes.
“We like everything and try new things,” she said. “The menu is all over the board. We season the food and use quality ingredients so it tastes really good. We use lots of herbs and spices, so it’s not bland.
“It’s not rocket science. It’s making a commitment to taste it and make it acceptable. If we like it, other people are going to like it.”
Stuffed mushrooms are a popular appetizer that keeps them coming back for more. People like meat and potatoes but are open to trying new things. The pop-up meals offer two or three different salads and multiple desserts.
Busy Bee does a lot of baking. You can find their pastries at Mt. Hood Roasters.
Jan said there is a lot of variety in catering and it’s different every day. She likes to be as creative as possible.
Grateful for the community’s support, Jan said Busy Bee Catering helped raise $2,500 at a brunch fundraiser for the Meals On Wheels program.
“I’ve always liked cooking,” she said. “I’m interested in food and flowers and entertaining and setting up. All those things interest me.”
For more information on Busy Bee Catering and Alpine Events, go online to busybeecatering.com and alpineevents.com.