• Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Snapchat
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

MsMarmiteLover

  • Food
    • Recipes
    • Vegetarian
    • Vegan
  • Travel
    • France
    • Italy
    • Spain
    • UK
  • Wine
  • Gardens
  • Supperclubs/Events
  • About
    • Published Articles
    • Books
  • Shop
    • Cart

Comedy Night at The Underground Restaurant: The One Show

March 19, 2011 1 Comment Filed Under: Food, Recipes, Uncategorized

Josie Long slayin’ ’em with Jay Rayner looking on…
Camera crew filming Lenny and the cheeseboards… (great name for a group?)
Jon Richardson and Tim Basden wearing the crowns we made for the galette des rois earlier in the year…
Isy Suttie 
Chef’s table of comedians…
No pix of food I’m afraid…can’t do everything!

I can get a little stressed before some of my events. The bigger and more complex the event, the more stressed I become. It’s almost like stage fright. I love comedy nights at The Underground Restaurant but cooking for the main room and having a sort of chef’s table in the pantry, replete with the nation’s quickest wits, requires organisation and a cool head.
This week I got word that The One Show with Jay Rayner, the Jay Rayner, uber famous and respected restaurant critic, were coming down to film. This is a great opportunity and hopefully will bring supper clubs to an audience outside of the London food blogging twitterati whilst, at the same time, spread the word about my forthcoming book Supper Club: recipes and notes from The Underground Restaurant (out March 31st). The BBC aren’t allowed to advertise so I was desperate to wedge in a mention of my book. I had a copy of my book under my arm as I stirred the soup…totally unnatural but needs must.

It being St. Patrick’s Day, I decided upon a simple but hearty Irish influenced menu:

Black Velvet (a cocktail of champagne and Guinness)

Home-made soda bread

Celeriac soup with goat’s cheese cream and a green pepper and pecan salsa (adapted from Irish Chef Dennis Cotter’s new book ‘For the love of food’ out in April)

Smoked undyed haddock filet poached with milk and chives
Champ (a traditional Irish potato mash with spring onions)

Irish cheeses from Neal’s Yard: St. Tola; Milleen; Ardrahan; Crozier Blue and St. Gall with oat biscuits and Mostarda di fruta

Chocolate Guinness liegeois 

A cup of Barry’s tea (I absolutely adore this golden hued tea)

The person who was supposed to help me prep didn’t turn up so I did all the prep on my own. By the time my front of house team arrived at 6pm I was a little frantic, sweaty, and covered in flour. I did a quick spritz with the deodorant, changed my dress, and rubbed on some lipstick in order to be presentable for the camera crew. They’d just come up from Kensington where they filmed legendary chef Pierre Koffman who is starting his own Michelin starred supper club.
Josie Long assembled a fantastic crew of comics: Isy Suttie of Peep Show, Jon Richardson, Tim Basden of The Cowards and The Behemoth.
Among the guests I had seven vegetarians (five of which were a surprise so I whipped together a last minute ‘store cupboard special’ of of baked beetroot, Puy lentils, chili halloumi, roast tomatoes, pine nuts, oak smoked tomatoes with pomegranate syrup on a bed of rocket), two coeliacs and two with serious nut allergies.
Of the comics I only saw a little of Isy Suttie who was really funny. At the end I sat and chatted with the comedians, sharing a bottle of smooth Bushmills Irish whisky.
Jay Rayner is very tall with a curly glossy brown mane and a warm humourous manner. He put me at my ease for the Aga-side interview which was fortunate as by the time we came to film it, it had been a long day and I was not as sharp as I usually am. I tend to look up to the side when I’m thinking of an answer and that’s an annoying tick on film, it gets worse when I’m tired.
We did of course all ask whether Matt Baker was being deliberately provocative when he asked David Cameron ‘How do you sleep at night?’. They said the interview was running late and that’s why the question was asked in a rushed way at the end.
The poor cameraman fell over at one point when moving backwards while filming a waitress, he then forgot his bag and made me jump at 2 am when he rapped on my bedroom window! But this film crew were not too intrusive, and Jay soon got all the guests joining in as crew, holding the sound boom etc, while they did vox pops (little interviews with guests).
It was a great evening…no need to be nervous at all…but you don’t know that until afterwards!
Next comedy night, probably June.

Upcoming events:
March 31st: publication of my book!! Pre-order. Perfect gift for Mother’s Day on April 3rd.
April 2nd: Chocolate menu with Trish Deseine.
April 29th: The Royal Wedding Banquet Banquet
May 6th: The Underground Night Market   Fantastic kletzmer band She’koyokh are playing as is Tom Baker on accordion. I’ll be selling and signing my book. Bring cash to eat hot food after work, enjoy the cooking demonstrations, stock up on food for the weekend and buy crafts as presents or for yourself.

Recent posts

High protein recipes: roast tofu block

July 2, 2025

Sour cherry and rose ice cream recipe

June 28, 2025

Midsummer Supper Club 21st June 2025

June 1, 2025

Previous Post: « Comedy, conferences, dinners and market at The Underground Restaurant
Next Post: Drawings of The Underground Restaurant »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. James

    March 20, 2011 at 8:20 pm

    Wow – just gets bigger & better! Hate it when people don't turn up – how utterly annoying. Need any help with the next one?

    Suprise vegetarians, coeliacs & nut free – this is why you need to be prepared at Bestival 🙂

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

MsMarmiteLover aka Kerstin Rodgers.

Chef, photographer, author, journalist, blogger. Pioneer of the supperclub movement.

This is my food and travel blog, with recipes, reviews and travel stories. I also stray into politics, feminism, gardening.

msmarmitelover

I wrote this long read for @scotnational about the I wrote this long read for @scotnational about the anti G8 camp in Stirling to protest against the G8 in Gleneagles. I partipated in the camp & protest along with my daughter @siennamarla playing in the samba band, part of the Pink Bloc. The camp was an incredible experience- the possibility of a different type of politics, of horizontal democracy. It was also a lot of fun. But our protest was tragically overshadowed by the 7/7 bombings in London. We wanted to create a new world but by the actions of a few disaffected British Muslim terrorists our positive movement for change was drowned out by hideous violence against normal ordinary people. Here is my account. 20 years anniversary #7/7 #londonbombings #scotland #antig8 #protest #gleneagles
Cheap stuff. Since the pandemic money has been tig Cheap stuff. Since the pandemic money has been tight. I shop at Lidl and aldi for food, Vinted, Portobello and Primark for clothes. The first pic is gazpacho with a banderilla from Lidl. They often have Spanish weeks and other nationality foods at a bargain price. I love those huge cartons of gazpacho- I glug it down like juice, especially in the heat. The banderillas are sold by the jar. Second pic is me in a primark vest, cardi, with an Anthropologie sale belt and old denim shorts from 10 years ago. Sorry about the mess behind, I sold a piece of furniture, a desk I found on the street, painted enamel green with ‘bamboo’brass handles which I sold on eBay for £225 #needsmust #thrift
My tea book Msmarmitelover’s secret tea party is My tea book Msmarmitelover’s secret tea party is now out on the cookbook app @ckbk it’s now out of print but you can still buy some print copies via me or Amazon. However you can see all the recipes ( like my sour cherry icecream which I served last week) on this site which is like a Spotify for cooks. Arguably afternoon tea is a meal which the English do better than any other country. #cookbooks #afternoontea #supperclubs
Saturdays midsummer supperclub was mostly a bbq on Saturdays midsummer supperclub was mostly a bbq on the @biggreenegguk I divided the meal into fragrance families: vegetal, fougere (fern), green notes, fresh: asparagus, garden artichokes on the bbq, dolmades made from my garden vine leaves. Then citrus fragrances with yuzu, 🍊 🍋 bergamot glaze, salmon, smoked tofu steaks, vegan smoked salmon carrot. Next spice which in perfume is oriental spices: bbq mini aubergines with paprika seed oil, home ground garam masala, a tahini caper dressing. Then wood and resinous fragrances using rosemary oil brushed bbq mini peppers, pine syrup on labneh, mushrooms a la grecque with juniper, finally the floral family of fragrance with sour cherry and rose icecream, lavender shortbread  hearts and orange flower water meringue kisses. It was a lively warm evening- children were welcome. There was a bonfire, lots of wine and laughter. I buy welding gloves £12 from Amazon  to use with the bbq. I also use @pomoragoodfood oils #london
With my home grown artichokes, grown from seed for With my home grown artichokes, grown from seed for tonight’s supperclub.
Sour cherries from the garden for my midsummer sup Sour cherries from the garden for my midsummer supperclub in the garden this Saturday 21st June. Tickets available, link in bio. Also at this link: https://substack.com/redirect/5a700a44-49c1-4e6d-834f-8d4851f98f45?j=eyJ1IjoiMWUzYm4ifQ.njFJL9K8WpzSqVZ5HFSvq84gnJeUD7reFZV9LrDwYtI #midsummernightsdream #supperclub #og #sourcherry
Can’t wait to delve into this by one of my favou Can’t wait to delve into this by one of my favourite food writers @kitchenbee it’s got everything: kitchenalia, divorce and food. Did you know that what we call heartache is actually stomach ache? It’s now recognised that rejection actually causes physical as well as psychological pain. A study shows that pain relief medications such as paracetamol can alleviate heartache. Some of our emotional pain is autonomic: it’s referred to as polyvagal theory. #heartbreak #foodwriting #lovehurts #takotsubo #dopaminewithdrawal
Midsummer supper club 21st June. The theme is frag Midsummer supper club 21st June. The theme is fragrance and scent. Tickets are £45  and you can bring your own drink. Starts 7.30pm and the nearest tube is Kilburn on the jubilee. Parking is free outside. Exact address given on booking. https://msmarmitelover.com/product/midsummer-supper-club-2025-scent-and-fragrance #london #supperclub
Oil portraits of me painted at Burning Van festiva Oil portraits of me painted at Burning Van festival by artists @cristina_vercesi (left) and YouTube sensation and Royal Portrait gallery exhibiter @alex_tzavaras. It was an utter privilege to sit for these wonderful artists- a real highlight. I’m taking them home and framing them. It was easy to sit still for 90 minutes with the amazing DJ set @leonidas_lovetoparty More deets later. #portraiture #festivals #oilpainting
Went with influencers to @standrewslakes in Kent w Went with influencers to @standrewslakes in Kent with @ourfinland @lakelandfinland @pcagency to experience Finnish food such as Karelian pies with egg butter, cinnamon buns, blueberry pies, and pea soup which they have with mustard and sour cream. We did zip lining, kayaking, saunas, whipped ourselves with birch sticks, ate in a gorgeous wooden bbq shed @arctic_cabins at the end of all this activity we were all tired but happy. @miramakeup @holidaywiththeheathers @amie_jane__ @onehungryasian @iamtimchung @travellingtuesdays @helimendetravels @charlotteemilyprice #presstrip
@camille.osullivan @camilleosullivanpics and @grah @camille.osullivan @camilleosullivanpics and @grahnort @wiltonsmusichall god this woman is talented. She did a solo show of The Rape of Lucrece. Her voice! #theatre #shakespeare #london
My latest article on Hungarian cuisine, a unique m My latest article on Hungarian cuisine, a unique meeting of east and west, for @ckbk It's a blend of Ottoman, Eastern and middle European, Austro-Hungarian empire and cowboy food. #food&travel #foodanthropology #hungary
Made Fermented Cucumber dill pickles from @nickvad Made Fermented Cucumber dill pickles from @nickvadasz book The Pickle Jar. At @katzsdeli in New York they sell half sours and full sours. I reckon these are 3/4 sour. The white mould is fine btw. These are delicious #pickleperson #fermentation #guthealthy
London in bloom: wisteria, cherry blossom, lilac, London in bloom: wisteria, cherry blossom, lilac, plum blossom, 🌸 you don’t need to go to Japan for the Sakura season- it’s all here- london at its most beautiful. #london
Bluebell walk on Wanstead flats. The scent is incr Bluebell walk on Wanstead flats. The scent is incredible: similar to lily of the valley. These are actual English bluebells - a deeper colour & more delicate than Spanish bluebells which are rather invasive. #london #walks #april #bluebells
Snapshots from portobello rd market. Portuguese fo Snapshots from portobello rd market. Portuguese folar de pascua bread from Lisboa patisserie,  a gorgeous mosaic table from Fez, my favourite antique shop @muirshindurkin, Alice’s shop, an Easter hat, the best wisteria I wrote a substack on portobello road: https://open.substack.com/pub/kerstinrodgers/p/where-to-go-in-portobello-road-the?r=3873k&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true #london
I visited @tokyobagellondon with my granddaughter I visited @tokyobagellondon with my granddaughter yesterday to try one of their viral wobbly bunnies. We also tried the multi layer Oreo pancake cakes, the onigiri shaped croissant. My sister had the black sesame latte and I had yuzu tea. I spent £35 in a short space of time as each dessert was £5 but it was a fun experience. Ophelia said ‘lovely flowers’ which shows a degree of sophistication for a 2 year old. I preferred the strawberry to the coconut flavour . #londondaysout #grandmacore #easter
A quick high protein lunch of ratatouille with smo A quick high protein lunch of ratatouille with smoked tofu.  @pomoragoodfood olive oil then an aubergine cut into thick slices then quartered. Fry till translucent then add the chunks of red pepper. 2 fat garlic cloves sliced thinly, a block of smoked tofu in chunks, 2 bay leaves, a small handful of maldon salt. A courgette cut into thick half lengthways- then sliced into half moons. I might chuck in a handful of pantelleria capers in vinegar to give some acidity. Serve hot or cold. #sololunch #protein #vegetables
Inspired by @nickvadasz book The pickle Jar I used Inspired by @nickvadasz book The pickle Jar I used his dill pickles to make one of my favourite recipes for lunch - a potato, sour cream & pickle soup. Recipe on the blog. #soup #pickles
One of my favourite ways to eat mushrooms. Cook wh One of my favourite ways to eat mushrooms. Cook whole button mushrooms in olive oil, lemon juice, a little white wine vinegar, salt, bay leaves, whole coriander seeds, thyme, and white wine if you have it to hand. I used @pomoragoodfood olive oil. You can eat it straight away or leave it to marinate longer and eat the next day. #vegetarian #vegan #mushroomrecipe
Follow on Instagram

Archives

Copyright © 2025 msmarmitelover