Sometimes – just a few times a year – you find yourself wanting to go out for dinner without going 'out out' for dinner. You know that feeling, right? You're craving some good food, doing the washing up after a massive dinner is a strong pass, but so is dressing to impress for a meal at your favourite restaurant. We've all been there. And we've all been there and not known what to do about it. Until now, that is… Enter: London supper clubs.
London supper clubs are like brunch with all your mates, except no one is hungover and crying over last night's assault on their bank balance. They're a fantastic and informal way to acquaint yourself with a new cuisine, make some new friends and get your fill until you're ready to either cry with laugher or cry because your jeans just bowed out and revealed all. If the latter happens, tough luck. But at least you don't have to wash up, eh?
These lot will do all of the above (yeah, maybe it's best if you just wear stretchy pants from now on) and some of them even go one step further with costumes, glitter and stand-up comedy. If that sounds like your cup of tea then scroll down to read up on Mam Sham – the cult supper club by best mates Maria and Rhiannon – or if you're looking to broaden your culinary horizons, then LUTO's Filipino feasts (read our guide to the best Filipino food in London, while you're here) might be the one for you. Whatever rocks your (gravy) boat, there's something in this round up for every tastebud.
19 London supper clubs to book now
1. South East London Supper Club
Where
Various locations across South East London
Next event
TBC
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If your taste buds like the sound of British grains and seasonal veg made by local producers, they'll love the grub served at South East London supper clubs, a new creative and sustainable series of events hosted by yoga teacher and vegan chef Sophie Gordon.
Popping up in various locations across (who'd have thought it) South East London, the dinners are hosted monthly. Think sharing platters of seasonal fruit and vegetables and bespoke kombucha cocktails in the light, bright and cosy Louie Louie in Elephant and Castle. There's also a strong focus on sustainability and minimising waste – each dish will use the whole vegetable or fruit to make sure every little bit of the product is being incorporated and as little as possible is being binned. All leftover food will be donated to a food bank in South East London. Tasty and good for the planet. Win, win.
2. Fork & Knife
Where
Various locations across London
Next event
23 November
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This is another one for veg lovers, those interested in eating more sustainably or both, the Fork & Knife supper club is hosted by chef Elizabeth Kerr and friends Khyati Patel and Jess Todd. As with most pop-up dinner events (and especially those focused on seasonality), the menu's theme and the dishes served is bespoke to each event. All F&K events use food that would otherwise have been thrown away or binned as food surplus. Smart, huh? Picture veg-packed curries and chaats, with all proceeds from each event donated to food waste reducing charities including FoodCycle, City Harvest and Made in Hackney. Next on the menu for this year: a North Indian inspired feast packed full of bright and bold flavours and regional dishes you may not have tasted before. You're in for a treat.
instagram.com/forkandknifesupperclub
3. Alexandra Dudley Supper Clubs
Where
Various locations across London
Next event
27 November
She's the queen of hosting dinner parties – so much so, she's amassed nearly 40k Instagram followers and a cookbook deal teaching the likes of us the true art of hosting guests without burning the food and having a breakdown (guilty). Dudley's USP is her ability to get creative with minimal-waste, plant-based cooking, serving up fresh, light and flavourful salads, tarts, hotpots and crudités minus tonnes of waste. As you can well imagine, her supper clubs are pretty special, too. Alexandra plays host regularly: in the lighter months, a series of summer 'garden suppers', and this November, a four-course dinner feast in aid of the Amazon rainforest with chef and friend Nina Parker at the home of Massimo Bottura's Refettorio Felix with a huge charity raffle included with the price of entry. The proceeds will be going directly to the Protect an Acre Rainforest Action Network project.
4. Elia
Where
East Dulwich
Next event
Every Saturday
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One of London's only weekly supper clubs is Tom Tsappis's Elia, where home-cooked Michelin-standard Greek food from his flat in East Dulwich is served with effortless ease. Tom Tsappis is the former Aquavit chef, who originally trained to be a chef at Leiths Cookery School, and Elia is his first solo venture, in which he serves fare as close to fine dining as you can get in someone else's home. Get ready for deep fried hummus served delicate and dainty, and a not-so traditional fish and chip dinner consisting of a single sardine, pickled cucumber and tartare dressing. You're encouraged to bring your own booze (read our guide to the best BYO restaurants in London) to accompany your mezze small plates of around 12 courses. Sounds good, right?
5. fodder
Where?
Shrub and Shutter, Brixton
Next event
Tuesday through Saturday evenings
Scouting out the producers going the extra mile to source exceptionally unique and fresh fare is hard on your own, especially in the city where there are food markets doing so left, right and centre. Lucky for you, the team at fodder are doing most of the leg work for you. Take their fruit and veg, for example, largely provided by Flourish Produce, a small Cambridgeshire farm growing imperfect (but tasty) fruit and veg with minimal carbon emissions with the help of their two ponies, Bill and Ben, and manual machinery. Their supper clubs series has chef Michael Thompson of Pollen Street Social, Fera at Claridge's and Lyan Cub at the helm and serves sustainably sourced, beautiful produce, with a focus on foraging and fermentation. That's probably why they were shortlisted for Foodism's Best Pop-Up or Residency award in 2018, then.
6. Olive & Caramel
Where
Southwark
Next event
30 November
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For an eclectic celebration of culture and heritage accompanied with delicious food, book yourself a seat at the next Olive & Caramel supper club. Co-founders Stephanie and Laura combine Lebanese, Australian, Chinese, Jamaican and English cooking techniques, ingredients and traditions to create vibrant fusion dishes nodding to the dishes of both of their childhoods. Both women transitioned from the corporate world into the food industry a few years back and serve up tasty food and hand-selected wine in a relaxed and homely environment. You may also recognise them from Channel 4’s Cooking Up a Fortune, where as finalists they cooked up a storm making street food with other amateur chefs at Hawker House.
designmynight.com/olive-caramel-supper-club
7. Elena Silcock
Where
Kentish Town
Next event
TBC
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Hands up if you like pasta? And a damn good bargain? We mean, who doesn't... which is why former BBC Good Food cookery writer and one half of Spirit and Salt supper club Elena Silcock is onto a winner with her new supper club series, which (if you didn't see this coming) is all about pasta. For £15, you'll get a generous portion of steaming saffron tagliatelle with king prawns and a glass of organic biodynamic white wine, plus ricotta doughnuts for dessert.... Oh yeah.
8. Gooce: singles supper club
Where
Various locations
Next event
TBC
The days of the blind date is over, but the reign of the singles supper clubs is just the beginning. Enter: Gooce, a roving supper club claiming to get London “fed and frisky”
Lucille Flood
The days of the blind date is over, but the reign of the singles supper clubs is just the beginning. Enter: Gooce, a roving supper club claiming to get London “fed and frisky”
Lucille Flood
The days of the blind date is over, but the reign of the singles supper clubs is just the beginning. Enter: Gooce, a roving supper club claiming to get London “fed and frisky”
Lucille Flood
The days of the blind date is over, but the reign of the singles supper clubs is just the beginning. Enter: Gooce, a roving supper club claiming to get London “fed and frisky”
Lucille Flood
Social media has ruined blind dates. It's a fact. Before your mate has even texted that friend of a friend back to say that you're game, you've already sussed out their initials, found out where they work and used those minuscule nuggets of information to dig out their Facebook. Next thing you know, you've stalked them from now all the way back to 2003. You can name all their siblings, you know where their aunt went on holiday last year and you've already shed a sympathy tear over the loss of their pet in 2012. Your date doesn't stand a chance, and don't be naïve to think that they haven't done the same thing to you either. The days of the blind date is over, but the reign of the singles supper clubs is just the beginning. Enter Gooce, a roving supper club claiming to get London "fed and frisky". It's like blind dates from back in the day, but even better. Run by Gabi and Luce, Gooce feels a little like speed dating, only there's no matchmaking and you get to eat a delicious three-course meal while mixing (or flirting) with strangers from all walks of life. We've given it a go and we can honestly say it's a right laugh. Check out goocesupperclub.com to keep up their next set of dates. You never know, bae might be just one supper club away...
9. The Sister Table
Where
Various locations
Next event
TBC
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Run by twin sisters Benjamina and Bonita Ebuehi, The Sister Table is an award-winning, roving brunch club for women by women. With every sitting the menu changes, but the vibe always remains the same: inclusive and creative. Benji – 2016 Great British Bake Off contestant, Luminary Bakery ambassador and food stylist – handles the food while Bonita, a stationery designer and marketing officer for a mental health charity, takes care of the setting. If you're looking for a friendly space to meet and break bread with a bunch of like-minded humans, then this is it.
10. Foodism Local Heroes Supper Club
Where
Various locations, next event being held in Dalston
Next event
28 November
We know, we know, it's unfair of us to shout about our own event. But we're going to do it anyway, because it was that brilliant. We held our very first Local Heroes supper club in April this year at Foodism HQ in Battersea. Social Pantry dished up delicious dishes made from produce sourced directly from local businesses. We worked with the likes of plastic-free bakery and café Common, Bad Boys Bakery and Growing Underground; veg was 'seconds' provided by Natoora, who supply London's best restaurants, and meat came from Abel & Cole. Tickets included a welcome G&T from Doghouse Distillery and everything was served on beautiful Falcon Enamelware. It was the first in a series of supper clubs being held across London, the next popping up on 28 November in Dalston.
11. LUTO
Where
Various locations
Next event
TBC
Luto Supper Club
Photography: Laura Davis (@loveboatphotography)
Luto Supper Club
Luto Supper Club
Photography: Laura Davis (@loveboatphotography)
Luto Supper Club
Photography: Laura Davis (@loveboatphotography)
Luto Supper Club
Photography: Laura Davis (@loveboatphotography)
Luto Supper Club
Photography: Laura Davis (@loveboatphotography)
Luto Supper Club
Photography: Laura Davis (@loveboatphotography)
Luto Supper Club
Photography: Laura Davis (@loveboatphotography)
Filipino food is riding on a wave of popularity, coursing through the kitchens of London and (rightly so) demanding your attention. There's plenty of places across the capital to familiarise – or reacquaint – yourself with this cuisine, but you're here for supper clubs, so we present to you: LUTO. It's a monthly Filipino-inspired supper club by former Quality Chop House chef Mary San Pablo and former general manager Amelie Andre. Expect a solid five-courses of remixed Filipino classics, paying homage to the varied and delicious food of the Philippines.
12. KinoVino
Where
Various locations
Next event
TBC
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This isn't your average, knees-up kind of supper club. Oh no, KinoVino is where food and culture meets. Best described as a visual feast, KinoVino screens classic and contemporary films alongside superlative spreads put on by renowned chefs and cookery book writers at regularly rotating venues. No two supper clubs are the same and each has a theme or a purpose. When film and food collide, great things happen – and at KinoVino's cinema supper clubs that's how the credits roll.
13. The Art Of Dining
Where
Mare Street
Next event
November-December 2019
A set designer and a former Moro chef walk into a central London location… The results? Seriously good finger food served in a stylish setting with a fun immersive twist. The Art of Dining supper club is run by Ellen Parr (the chef) and Alice Hodge (the artist). They met at the University of Glasgow and threw their first feast using food sneakily scavenged from the contents of a M&S skip. Now they've left the skip behind them and brought their supper club to the capital. Past pop-ups have included a retro dining experience with five-courses and a 'race' to the moon; dinner at the opera where the meal was served with a side of musical theatre at the Southbank Centre; and a goofy, 80s-themed 'office party'. Next up: the ultimate immersive Christmas party, Merry Miami, held at Hackney’s Night Tales with a feast of Cuban and Deep South-influenced grub on hand. Arepa bread stuffed with black bean, fried plantain, cheese and guacamole, anyone?
14. Mam Sham
Where
Various locations
Next event
TBC
Maria K-Georgiou and Rhiannon Butler – the duo behind cult supper club Mam Sham – are queens of the interactive dining scene. The supper club's tagline is 'good grub + lols' and while that might seem mercilessly Millennial, it's no lie. Each event Mam Sham teams up with a chef (and often a charity partner) to deliver a bold and boozy banquet that could having you laughing along to anything from stand-up comedy to dancing on the tables with a glitter-fuelled drag act.
15. Rangoon Sisters
Where
Various locations
Next event
TBC
Emily and Amy Chung are two junior doctors looking to fix you up with incredible home-style Burmese food. In their spare time, the sisters run the much-lauded Rangoon Sisters supper club. It's been going since their first pop-up at Ye Olde Rose and Crown in Walthamstow in 2013, but their constant ability to sell out (their food really is that good) caught the eye of The Observer and in 2018 Rangoon Sisters was listed at number one in The OFM 50. That's no small feat and if you want to try their mohinga or khauk swe for yourself, then you're going to have to be quick to snap up those tickets.
16. The Waterhouse Project
Where
67 Vyner Street, E2 9DQ
Next event
Every Thursday, Friday and Saturday
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Fine-dining with none of the usual stuffy attitude (or hefty price tag), The Waterhouse Project is a sociable, monthly supper club in East London. It's headed up by Gabriel Waterhouse, a philosophy graduate-turned-chef who's made his way around a fair few of London's Michelin-starred kitchens, including the three-star kitchen of Herbert Berger at Innholders Hall and the one-starred kitchen at Galvin La Chapelle. All things considered, £75 for an all-in eight-course tasting menu with paired wines ain't a bad deal. Not a bad deal at all – especially considering all the old-school Dock Kitchen vibes you'll be inundated with as dinner is served in the stylish, but laid-back setting of the Bert & May showroom on Vyner street near Broadway Market. Stevie Parle eat your heart out.
17. Malaysian Nyonya Supper Club
Where
Various locations
Next event
8 November
Another day goes by, another banker leaves the city to make the leap into the world of food. Not familiar with this phenomenon? Take at look at our Escapists, an entire column dedicated to people doing just that. But what's this got to do with supper clubs? Well, Guan Leong Chua – a former Finance Analyst turned Le Cordon Bleu trained chef – is cut from the same cloth. Chua is the host of the popular Malaysian-Nyonya Supper Club. He also made it to the final six on The Taste, a Channel 4 culinary competition which aired in 2014 and boasted a stellar line up of judges, including Nigella Lawson, chef Ludo Lefebvre and the late Anthony Bourdain. That's pretty impressive, but what's more impressive is how good Chua's supper clubs are. Held at pop-up venues or in Chua's house near Aldgate East, they're BYOB and all the food is inspired his Chinese and Malay heritage with twists influenced by his classical training at Le Cordon Bleu.
18. Fat Macy's
Where
Various locations
Next event
TBC
Fat Macy's supper club
Ever spooned something oh-so-delicious into your mouth and found yourself wondering: what's that amazing flavour? Well, at Fat Macy's supper club you'll find yourself doing that quite a lot. But here's the thing, the flavour you'll be tasting won't just be from superlative spices and heaps of herbs, it'll also be the sweet, sweet flavour of change. This isn't any old supper club, this is also a social enterprise working to help young Londoners find their feet. Fat Macy's has spent the last three years dishing up incredible food with an incredible mission. It trains up aspiring chefs, giving them the life skills and qualifications to move from hostels to homes. Each supper club consists of a three-course meal designed by the trainee chef of the night. Trainees volunteer their time at events and in return they receive 'credit', which eventually manifests into a secure deposit fund for the trainee's house. This truly is dining with a difference.
19. South West Kitchen
Where
Various locations
Next event
TBC
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Veganism might be the buzzword of the moment, but that's not to say veggies and vegans always get the best deal when it comes to eating out. Luckily for those all too familiar with this trend, South West Kitchen are on hand to turn things around. Run by best mates Ella and Ellie, the food at SWK is entirely vegetarian, mostly seasonal and always delicious. When they're not running pop-up supper clubs across South West London, Ella and Ellie's events take place just off Tooting Common in Ella's Kitchen. Dishes are designed to be shared and it's BYOB, so even if you're flying solo there's lots of opportunities to be sociable.
