About Time: You Discovered the Best October Supper Clubs in LondonBy Angelica Malin
London, you really do deliver the goods when it comes to supper clubs. This months sees a whole host of foodie events taking place across the capital – there’s everything from a pasta banquet to a curry celebration. Hungry? It’s time to eat:
1. For a Pasta Party: The Sicilian Supper Club x Hackney City Farm
What: The Sicilian Supper Club is a new series by Emilia Strazzanti, showcasing fresh and seasonal produce from Sicily. Hot on the tail of Strazzanti’s sellout supper club in the summer at Hackney City Farm, Emilia is working with east London suppliers, to serve the five-course traditional Italian feast, inspired by both British and Sicilian ingredients.
The Event: A selection of aperitivo and stuzzichini such as deep-fried primo sale cheese with honey and Sicilian oregano, and capuliato sundried tomatoes with fresh ricotta and basil served alongside a welcome cocktail by Hackney Coffee Company, will kick off the evening. Next up is the antipasti course of caponata Siciliana and cherry tomatoes with Strazzanti’s pesto Trapanese served with E5 Hackney Wilde Bread. And in true Italian style, Strazzanti has collaborated with Shoreditch-based homemade pasta specialist, Burro e Salvia where Emilia was previously the pasta chef. Together they have created a traditional fresh pasta of slow-cooked pork rib sugo served with ricotta and pecorino encased in a fresh marjoram infused cappellacci pasta.
Price: £35 per person. Tickets here.
Where: 503 Hackney Rd, London E2 9ED
2. For a Indian Feast: Mark Hix x Vivek Singh
What: On 10th October during National Curry Week, Mark Hix will join forces with Vivek Singh, chef and restaurateur of The Cinnamon Club and Kitchens, for a one-off British curry evening. The two chefs will celebrate the humble Ruby Murray and their love of Indian food and passion for spice at HIX Oyster & Chop House.
The Event: An homage to curry, the full menu of British-Indian flavours – including Vivek’s Old Dehli-style butter chicken and duck heart and liver takatak, and Mark’s seasonal pheasant curry, will allow both chefs to demonstrate how well British ingredients can work in Indian cooking. With a cocktail on arrival and wine paired to each course there will be plenty of time to chat to Mark and Vivek throughout the evening as the hosts share stories of their life in the restaurant industry.
Price: Tickets from £85. Buy here.
Where: 36-37 Greenhill Rents Cowcross Street EC1M 6BN
3. For Weekly Supper Clubs: The Water House Project
What: In 2015 Gabriel Waterhouse left the grand surrounds of Michelin-starred Galvin La Chapelle with the aim of making fine dining accessible. Since then, Gabriel has been running supper clubs every Friday and Saturday, The Water House Project, in Bethnal Green.
The Event: Dishes featuring on the October menu include: giroles, pickled trompets, sherry vinegar, parsley puree and tarragon; razor clam with preserved lemon and Jerusalem artichoke veloute; smoked haddock with potato puree and English mustard sauce; and pheasant, parsley root purée, fermented summer cherries and oak smoked bread sauce, finishing with stout ice cream, topped with puffed barley, barley cracker and black treacle.
Price: £75 per person. Buy here.
Where: 67 Vyner St, London E2 9DQ
Photo Credit: Lateef Photography
4. For Port and Portuguese Food: Graham’s Port x Disappearing Dining Club
What: Graham’s Port and Disappearing Dining Club will be hosting a series of ‘Little Porto’ dinners that will offer a six-course dining experience inspired by Port and Portuguese cuisine. Hosted at private dining venue Little Quiet, the series of dinners aims to transport you to the Douro for the evening and demonstrate that Port deserves a place at the table all year-round, not just at Christmas.
The Event: Highlights from the menu including pig’s head rillette with rosemary bread; slow roasted pork belly black bean stew; and pan-fried sea bream with baked fennel. Dishes will also be paired with a wine from the Graham’s range and will culminate in a flight of spectacular Tawny Ports – including a wine almost a quarter of a century old.
Price: £45 per person. Buy tickets here.
Where: 24-26 Newbury St, London EC1A 7HU
5. For a Chef Collaboration: Nathan Outlaw x Richard Turner x Tim Barnes
What: In collaboration with some of the nation’s favourite chefs including Richard Turner (Hawksmoor) and Tim Barnes, Nathan Outlaw and his Knightsbridge team bring a series of seafood supper clubs to Outlaw’s at The Capital.
The Event: Hawksmoor’s master of butchery, Richard Turner joins Nathan on 15th October for a classic surf ‘n’ turf dinner. Pairing the best of British land and sea, Nathan and Richard will serve a six-course meal, including chilled oyster with grilled chipolatas; John Dory and lamb tongues; monkfish and duck with BBQ sauce and vegetables; and grilled highland steak with XO sauce, bone marrow and salad. Championing the Cornish day boat fishermen whose catch influences all of Nathan’s menus, Tim Barnes, Head Chef of Outlaw’s Fish Kitchen, will reunite with Nathan in London on 29th October to showcase the best of Port Isaac. Plates include lobster risotto balls with basil mayonnaise; pickled herring with cucumber and dill yoghurt; crab fritters and chilli jam; and a whole John Dory with green sauce and chicory.
Price: From £130 per person. To book, please call the events team on 020 7591 1202 or email outlaws@capitalhotel.co.uk.
Where: 22-24 Basil Street, London, SW3 1AT
6. For a Taste of History: St Pancras Brasserie
What: In celebration of 150 years of St Pancras Station, one of London’s most iconic landmarks, St Pancras Brasserie by Searcys is hosting a celebratory three-course anniversary dinner on 17th October.
The Event: Dinner will start with smoked eel, a play on the historic dish which was a delicacy during the Victorian era when fresh ingredients were hard to come by. The main course follows with a hearty display of wholesome British ingredients: suckling pig Assiette is inspired by dishes that would have been served on trains in times gone by, while Megrim Sole Veronique pays homage to the nostalgic splendour of the first-class dining experience, when metal trollies displaying alcohol and food would be wheeled through the carriage. And finally, Queen of Puddings takes inspiration from The Midland Rail Line, which originally transported the milk to London from the Millers Dale in the Lake District in the 1800s, a huge transportation leap in the supply of fresh food across the country. A glass of English sparkling wine will be served with each course.
Price: £65 per head. Buy here.
Where: Grand Terrace, St Pancras International Station, Kings Cross, London N1C 4QL
7. For a Pie Night: Dominique Ansel Bakery
What: Chef Dominique Ansel is bringing his beloved Pie Night to the capital for the very first time marking the start of autumn (and pie season) at Dominique Ansel Bakery London. Enjoy unlimited slices of ten different pies (both sweet and savoury) along with a Sparkling Apple Cider cocktail that’ll be topped up throughout the night, and a server hand-scooping Tahitian Vanilla ice-cream at tables.
The Event: Savoury pies include slow-cooked beef cheek and port cottage pie with golden parmesan and rosemary mash; a vegetarian wild mushroom, leek and artichoke pie with crème fraîche, roasted garlic and thyme; and the London classic, ale-braised steak and rock oyster pie. On the sweet front, they’ll be salted caramel harvest apple pie; indulgent Nutella angel cream pie with whipped sour cream mousse; and an autumnal pomegranate-poached quince and elderflower pie with toasted cobnut crumble.
Price: £42 per person. Buy here.
Where: 17-21 Elizabeth St, Belgravia, London SW1W 9RP
8. For a Cultural Dining Experience: Island Social Club x TT Liquor
What: Island Social Club is a collective founded by Marie Mitchell and Joseph Pilgrim, who host explorative dining events centred on the cuisine of the Black British diaspora. The Nyamming episodes are a series investigating Caribbean cuisine – no tropical feast of jollof rice, jerk chicken, curried goat, rice and peas – instead, a dining experience designed and curated by Marie and Joseph to share honest, human and British experiences through food.
The Event: The four course dinner includes a drink with every course, and dishes include small bites of rice akara and salt-fish fritter, served with CHAMCHAM hot pepper sauce and Pop’s scotch bonnet sweet chilli jam; sweetcorn chowder served with a seasonal pumpkin and thyme loaf; stout braised guinea fowl with stout and treacle reduction and dumboy; and for dessert, vanilla and cinnamon poached pear served with Madagascan vanilla ice cream.
Price: £5o per person. Buy here.
Where: 17B Kingsland Rd, London E2 8AA
Photo Credit: Chiron Cole Photography
9. For a Wine Education: Bar Douro x Rocim Winery
What: On Tuesday 30th October from 7pm, Bar Douro will welcome esteemed winemakers Pedro Ribeiro and Catarina Vieira. Together, the husband-and-wife team run Rocim winery in Vidigueira, Alentejo, which was founded by Catarina’s late father, Jose Ribeiro Vieira.
The Event: Pedro and Catarina will explain the role of terroir, tradition, and talhas in their winemaking, and showcase some thoroughly innovative wines too. Wines on offer throughout the evening will include an aperitif of Herdade do Rocim Sparkling Rose Brut Nature 2016; followed by a selection of 5 white and 5 red wines, paired with Bar Douro’s signature dishes including croquettes de alheira; lamb chanfana; and charcuterie/cheese boards.
Price: £50 per guest. Tickets can be booked by emailing sol@bardouro.co.uk or calling 020 7378 0524.
Where: Arch 35b, Flat Iron Square, Union St, London SE1 1TD
10. For a Chef Residency: Carousel x Rafael Gomes
What: Carousel, Marylebone’s revolving creative hub, is welcoming Brazilian Rafael Gomes into the kitchen from 16th – 20th October, to showcase his signature style, using seasonal produce from the British Isles.
The Event: Rafael Gomes cut his teeth in NYC at Eleven Madison Park and Gramercy Tavern, before moving to France to work under the tutelage of two Michelin-starred chef Mauro Colagreco at Paris’ celebrated Grand Cœur brasserie. Now with his own restaurant Itacoa (named after his favourite beach back home in Brazil) in Paris’ second arrondissement, Rafael incorporates flavours from his Brazilian heritage, his time in New York and his more classical French training to produce inventive, cross-cultural dishes like his own take on ‘Pão de Queijo’ – a traditional Brazilian comfort food, ‘Wild Coley with Carrot, Ginger and Orange’ and his signature ‘Passion Fruit and White Chocolate Crémeux’. Rafael’s dishes are all about balance: hot and cold, creamy and crunchy, savoury and sweet.
Price: £39.50 per person. Buy here.
Where: 71 Blandford St, Marylebone, London W1U 8AB
