Bookshop cookbook buyer Stefanie Berntson shares 30 years of wisdom, and her favorite books

If the bookstore is the heart of a community, then its stomach might be the cookbook section. For the past three decades, the cookbooks at Bookshop Santa Cruz have been curated by one woman: 57-year-old Stefanie Berntson, a New Orleans native who wandered into the independent bookstore in downtown Santa Cruz in 1992 to apply for a job and stayed for the next 32 years, quietly keeping the shelves stocked with endless ideas for weeknight dinners and information on cuisines from all over the world.  

Although Berntson says her love of food came from New Orleans, it did not come from her mother, a German immigrant who tried to integrate into the community by serving American-style meals and TV dinners. As a young woman, Berntson taught herself how to cook by reading Sunset magazines and cookbooks like those by influential Southern chef and author Edna Lewis, whom Berntson describes as one of her heroes. 

After graduating as a fine art major from the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena in early 1990, she moved to Sante Fe, New Mexico. Working at a greenhouse where she grew herbs and vegetables, as well as flowers and non-edible plants, and exploring the Mexican cuisines in the area opened her eyes to new ingredients. By the time she moved to Northern California, she had fallen in love with the intersection of agriculture and cooking. “The melding of gardening and food sparked something exciting. Taking a tiny step into the food world was so thrilling,” she said. 

In addition to sourcing and selecting cookbooks, Berntson educates the staff by hosting cookbook potlucks, and brings chefs and authors to Santa Cruz for book readings. Cooking recipes from the books for the events has created many personal connections with famed cooks, like baking guru Dorie Greenspan. “Her husband was so cute and sweet. He saw me as I was bringing all the cookies out for her cookie book. There was one really tricky cookie – well, it was tricky for me anyway – and he said, ‘Oh, that looks exactly right, as if Dorie made it,’” said Berntson. 

Most homes in Santa Cruz County probably contain at least one cookbook from Bookshop Santa Cruz, but Berntson has never thought about her influence on the local food culture. “I admire so many people who are in the food industry and who have an effect on the community, the farmers and restaurants,” said Berntson. “It’s a delight to think that the store and that cookbook section has impacted so many households. I feel so much fulfillment in getting cookbooks into people’s hands.”

Berntson shared her selection process, how the industry has changed, some of her favorite memories from the past 30 years and why, despite the availability of online recipes, she believes cookbooks are just as relevant as ever. 

This interview was edited for length and clarity.

Lookout: How do you choose which cookbooks end up on Bookshop’s shelves?

Stefanie Berntson: I reflect on what our community wants to cook and eat, but I try to stretch that a bit as well. We’re a very agricultural community. Vegetarian cooking is absolutely my bestselling section, so I try to keep that well-stocked. 

But I’m not a snob. Whether you get your book recommendations from TikTok or Goodreads or wherever, it’s all good. It used to be TV shows. I’m like, “Great. Let’s get you a copy.” I don’t care, as long as they’re cooking. 

Cookbook author Jenny Rosenstrach writes the blog Dinner: A Love Story, and she firmly believes that if everybody just sat down for a meal together, it would solve world peace. I used to have a bumper sticker by her that said, “Make Dinner, Not War.”

Lookout: How has the cookbook industry changed over the past 30 years?

Berntson: There is much more representation in the cookbook world. It used to be super white and European. If you wanted a book on African cooking, it was usually from the University Press, maybe with photos, maybe not. It was there, but it wasn’t being celebrated.

In the U.S. publishing world, there’s been a significant shift to more representation, and I’m thrilled. There’s not just one way to cook, and food means the same thing all around the world. I think the way that people read novels to gain experiences or empathy, I do it through cookbooks, and then the bonus is you get to make the food and eat the food.

But I feel like this change is precarious. These publishing monoliths control so many of the presses, and they want results. It might be fantastic that there’s a Puerto Rican cookbook that I’m excited about, but if it doesn’t really do well, there might not be another Puerto Rican cookbook for 10 years. One of the challenges of my job is to get people excited about these books that maybe don’t seem familiar, or they don’t know why they should be excited about it.

Lookout: You’ve helped bring some big names in the food world to Santa Cruz for cookbook events, including chef Sean Brock, Smitten Kitchen blogger Deb Perelman and food writer Khushbu Shah. What events stand out in your mind?

Berntson: Our biggest event ever was in 2018 with Yotam Ottolenghi and Samin Nosrat. It was right before Samin’s show “Salt Fat Acid Heat” debuted on Netflix, and she was still a bit under the radar. The first episode released right before she was in conversation with Yotam, and she exploded in popularity. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect. 

It was at Peace United Church in Santa Cruz, and it sold out: 500 people, 500 books. Kendra Baker [co-owner of The Penny Ice Creamery] had Assembly [restaurant in downtown Santa Cruz] at the time, and they did the food. It was magic. They were the loveliest people. 

Another is when chef David Kinch brought his team from [his Los Gatos three Michelin-star restaurant] Manresa here to promote the Manresa cookbook. They made an egg dish on an induction stove in the skylight room of little Bookshop Santa Cruz. It was one of those moments you’re just like, this does not happen everywhere. We’re so fortunate to be surrounded by so much talent and so many kind people who are willing to do that kind of thing. 

Lookout: These days, millions of recipes are readily available online. Why are cookbooks still important? 

Berntson: First of all, I think it’s much easier to cook from a book than your phone or from your computer screen. But it’s really the tactile nature of it, the history that’s held literally on the page, splatters, drips and little notes that hold memories the same way that the meal that you eat from it does. 

In a cookbook, you don’t just see the one recipe in its digital form. It’s part of a bigger story that is encapsulated in that book. I think that feels more emotional. 

And the value of a cookbook cannot be overstated. It’s worth your money, because you can have it forever, cook from it forever, have those memories and experiences, pass on recipes and it just keeps going and going. 

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