In and Out Clubs

Food and Wine

Heard about the latest fashion for going out to eat in, at home, with complete strangers, in top-secret locations? Shh, says William Sitwell

FORGET GORDON RAMSAY and his plush, pricey temples of gastronomy — the hottest trend in London right now is restaurants in people’s homes. It’s Come Dine with Me meets the Michelin Guide, with everyone from talented amateurs to acclaimed chefs opening up their doors to punters.

The craze for underground restaurants began last year during the height of the recession, and is going from strength to strength. There are now 30–40 of these clubs in London, and they’re spreading to other UK cities (Bristol, Brighton, Manchester) too. For the most popular places you need to book two or three months in advance or get lucky and nab a cancellation.

The experience is totally different from eating in a posh restaurant. There’s always a great atmosphere at these places — chatting with the hosts and other diners is all part of the experience. Plus, dining at a ‘home restaurant’ is brilliant if you’re a nosey parker. To get round licensing laws, guests pay a suggested donation (typically around £25–£30) and most of these places are BYO.

Just remember that you’re in someone’s home, so don’t expect perfection and three waiters to a table, try to resist cancelling at the last minute — and don’t steal the silverware.

Fernandez and Leluu
East London
This is a popular fortnightly supper club run by software designer Simon Fernandez and his girlfriend, boutique owner Uyen Luu. Their fusion food is influenced by Simon’s Spanish and Uyen’s Vietnamese roots with dishes like octopus with sweet potato and Vietnamese pho and summer rolls. Each eight-course tasting menu has a theme: recent nights include ‘Something Eastern’, an evening of Oriental food, and a best of junk food night with a twist — think mini hamburgers, the pair’s very popular fish and chips, and eggs in tarragon jelly with bacon swirls. £30 a head.

The Secret Larder
North London
Run by 24-year-old food writer and chef James Ramsden and his artist sister Mary, the Secret Larder is a recent addition to the ever-growing supper club scene. The fortnightly dinners are held at their flat in a converted schoolhouse in Holloway, North London. Many of the nights feature guest chefs and ‘curators’ such as London cocktail bar Casita. The pop-up also displays a changing collection of works from young artists and photographers. Dinners cost a suggested donation of £25 for three courses, plus coffee, chocolates and a cocktail.

The Loft Project
East London
The Loft Project is the brainchild of acclaimed Portuguese chef Nuno Mendes, who trained at El Bulli. Last year he flung open the doors of this East London warehouse conversion every Friday and Saturday — and his futuristic tasting menus soon attracted praise and press.

Now busy with his new restaurant, Viajante, Mendes has evolved the Loft into the Loft Project, and an up-and-coming chef now caters each night. The guest chefs play host to a small group of diners who sit around the single communal table. At £100 a head it’s one of the priciest supper clubs, but in return you get Michelin-quality food in a unique setting.

The Underground Restaurant
North London
One of the first London supper clubs, run by the feisty ‘MsMarmitelover’, a former NME photographer. The restaurant is a jumble of mismatched tables crammed into her stylish sitting room, which is filled with rock photos and other ephemera. Check out the enviable collection of limited-edition Marmite on her mantelpiece.

Suppers are all cooked up on Ms-Marmitelover’s Aga, but don’t come expecting steak tartare — the Underground Restaurant is meat-free, though they do serve fish. There are guest chefs and themed nights — a recent ‘Harry Notter’ night attracted press attention after Warner Bros refused to let the restaurant use the name of its boy wizard. The irrepressible MsMarmitelover is engaged in similar scuffles with London Underground over the name of the restaurant.

Recent innovations there include cooking classes and the UK’s first underground farmers’ market in Ms MsMarmitelover’s Kilburn garden, and you can also book dinner at the summer house in her garden for a more intimate evening.

Salad Club
South London
Salad Club began life as a weekly catch up for twentysomethings Rosie French and Ellie Grace. The Brixton pair are passionate about inventive, healthy eating. So instead of iceberg with salad cream, think Rosie’s jerk salmon, spinach and goats’ cheese salad (served with Ellie’s homemade mango chutney) or Ellie’s minted pea, barley and rocket salad with lemon vinaigrette.

The girls describe their monthly supper club as ‘a bric-a-brac bistro in Ellie’s living room’, but they can also come to your home and cook. Much of the produce served up at this Brixton club comes from their nearby allotment.

Trail of Our Bread
East London
Trail of Our Bread is a new supper club in east London. Held in a converted warehouse apartment, each of the monthly nights is themed, with decorations by a talented set designer. So far Trail of Our Bread’s dinners have included an ocean-themed menu, with the venue decked out with jellyfish and mermaids, and a ‘temptation’ menu featuring gourmet versions of macaroni cheese and sticky ribs. £20 a head.

Lady Gray’s Hidden Tearoom
Central London
If you like your scones served with a dollop of subterfuge, try this hidden tearoom in central London. The location of the hidden tearoom, run by the mysterious Lady Gray, is a well-kept secret. You’ll be sent the address when you’ve booked. The menu wouldn’t look out of place at a Mayfair hotel — Champagne, Cheddar biscuits, smoked salmon
and cream cheese sandwiches, warm scones with clotted cream and strawberry preserve and toffee brownies are just some of the homemade treats on offer. You can also book the tearoom for birthdays and other special occasions.

The Pale Blue Door
East London
Not for the faint-hearted, the Pale Blue Door is a theatrical pop-up restaurant. Tarot readings, drag queens and singalongs are just some of the things you might expect at set designer Tony Hornecker’s Hackney studio. The three-course menu is slightly more traditional: Greek salad, rare roast beef with warm potato salad and ‘crumble of fancy’. £35 a head.

Illustration by Alex Robbins