Shine & Sizzle: Baker City Memory Cruise and Durkee Steak Feed return after 2-year hiatus

Aug. 15—Classic cars and a steak dinner are returning to Baker City this weekend after a two-year absence.

The Baker City Memory Cruise starts at 8 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 20, in Geiser-Pollman Park.

Registration is from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. Entry is $15.

Visitors can tour the shiny cars from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. for the show-and-shine portion in the park.

After the awards ceremony, which starts at 3 p.m., the car owners will drive to Quail Ridge Golf Course, 2801 Indiana Ave., and park on the 9th fairway during the Durkee Steak Feed.

The dinner runs from 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $27 for a steak plate, or $7 for a hot dog plate. The meal includes rib eye, corn on the cob, veggies, potato, dessert and the locally famous pan-fried bread cooked over a fire in cast-iron skillets.

Tickets are available at the Baker County Chamber of Commerce, Quail Ridge, and at the gate.

Due to limited parking at the golf course, Cheryl Buchanan encourages diners to carpool if possible.

Buchanan is one of 40-some volunteers, from ages 4 to 93, who put on the steak feed.

"It takes the whole community and people out of Baker help, too," she said.

The steak feed began in 1948 as a late summer tradition for the Durkee community, about 25 miles southeast of Baker City along the Burnt River.

The event has since moved into Baker City to partner with the Memory Cruise and the golf course.

"It's such a beautiful venue," Buchanan said.

The most recent event, in 2019, served 650 steak dinners.

Proceeds from the dinner support maintenance and costs of the old Durkee school, which now serves at the community building for dinners, events and special functions.

In 2014, the Durkee Steak Feed was named Best Philanthropic Event by the Oregon Festivals and Events Association.

Saturday ends with an informal cruise on Main Street, starting around 7 p.m.