I was quite fascinated when I started seeing a fair few articles in the newspapers about Supper Clubs or ‘home restaurants’. The concept is not new and I think originated in Cuba or South America, and basically consists of people cooking food in their homes and charging strangers for the privilege. This was a concept that did not float Ms R’s boat, and by the time I got round to trying to book at MsMarmiteLover’s Underground Restaurant, it had a longer wait for tickets than some Michelin star restaurants.

Partly through a touch of delinquency, I ended up leaving it rather late to secure a dining partner. Luckily I have a bunch of cool and trendy friends who I can always rely on in a last minute (sort of) emergency. So, I met my Mum at Kilburn tube and arrived (un)fashionably early at MsMarmiteLover’s, soon being put to work as the DJ, due to the ‘teenage goth’ (daughter) having rather inconsiderately gone out, taking her ipod with her. After about 10 minutes of listening to the rather out of date music on my ipod, MsMarmiteLover and her helpers decided to cut their losses before too many other people arrived and decided to go without music at all!

Part of the fun of Supper Clubs is the social aspect, sharing tables with strangers and although the Underground restaurant has had a lot of media coverage, I was still looking forward to meeting quite a foody type crowd. I was therefore a bit disappointed when a dozen hooray Henry’s and Henrietta’s arrived en masse. Due to the seating arrangements, two of this group ended up sitting next to me & Ma. My hopes were further dashed when Xanthe (yes, this was actually her name) and James, in particular, started name dropping like crazy. However, my hopes then were subject to a ‘Jesus’ moment, when Xanthe not only proclaimed she worked in her Father’s restaurant, but that it was the rather quietly successful Andrew Edmunds in Soho. Perhaps not a complete resurrection, but it was a great deal better than listening to James hark on about what writers he knew (being in the publishing industry, I didn’t think this was a particularly impressive boast).

Anyway, more importantly, onto the food. Being a home restaurant, you get what you’re given and I was certainly happy with the choice of starter. A rich pumpkin soup with a touch of aniseed flavour got the table talking. I thought it was toasted fennel seeds, but the South African Ladies to my left got it right in guessing star anise. The dollop of greek yoghurt on top was also a nice sour counter to the sweet pumpkin.

Next up was the mushroom lasagne with basil & cream, which was probably the best mushroom lasagne I’ve ever eaten. Another rich dish, but so full of flavour. Superb. 

In between the mains & dessert, I popped into the kitchen for a chat with MsMarmiteLover and her helpers, something which is actively encouraged. This is another aspect of the informality which I really enjoyed. You may get to visit professional kitchens if you ask for a look, although this is not a wish always granted and even so, you rarely get a chance to have a chat with the chef.

Dessert was Tarte Tatin, which I thought was lovely, but my Mum, a Dessert expert, raved about it.

After the meal, MsMarmiteLover came to more actively socialise with everyone, including thanking not only the waiters & waitresses, but tengreenbottles, an independent wine merchant specialising in Italian wine, who had provided a glass or so of wine with each course. This did produce another amusing moment, when Hooray Henry No 2, at hearing the name, tengreenbottles, jumped up and starting singing the song. Towards the end of the verse, as he realised that not one of the other 30 odd diners had joined him, kind of petered out like ‘and if one little bottle, should accidentally fall, then I’ll drink another bottle and be absolutely pissed.’ It made me laugh, anyway. I would have liked to have stayed on longer, but, having got up at stupid o’clock that morning for a meeting in Brussels, I was definitely feeling worse for wear by about 10pm and needed to head back to a nice comfy bed.

So, a really enjoyable night out and very good value for money, being £25 a head, including wine. There is a tip tray which you can donate to on the way out and considering the friendliness and knowledge of the waiters & waitresses, we were more than happy to contribute. I would thoroughly recommend going, although since The Underground Restaurant has had even more media coverage, here & here, you may find it even more difficult to get tickets, these days!

BTW, to get tickets, go to wegottickets.