In G2 today Leonie Cooper writes about the old style Hollywood glamour being recreated at exclusive nightspots across the land, in a burgeoning revival of the 1940s American supper club.
Venues like the Pigalle Club of Piccadilly have adopted the vintage dinner and dance formula, to offer punters everything they could want from a night out under one roof.
But if things are looking slightly more Great Depression than post-war street party and you don't want to fork out 100-odd quid for the pleasure, why not form one yourself? (Apologies to Tim Hayward.)
I was lucky enough to attend my first home-made supper club last month, courtesy of Emma Norton and Malcolm Campbell, who have been throwing regular events for friends in their Streatham flat for the past year.
The theme was Moroccan: the 20 of us in attendance took off our shoes and sat on cushions and rugs on the floor, and dined on a veritable feast of slow-cooked beef tagine, chickpea tagine, spiced carrots, okra and pastries. The only thing missing were the belly dancers.
Streatham Supper Club was inspired by a scene from the film Once where a load of musicians get together for a haphazard dinner party. Coupled with the fact that Emma and Malcolm didn't see friends as much as they liked, and the monthly gathering was born.
So what differentiates a supper club from a dinner party? Once you're a member you can attend every time forever more and suggest others worthy of a place at the table. Of course not everyone can attend every time, so numbers tend to fluctuate. Emma says it can be a bit like running a small restaurant but the chaos and unpredictability is all part of the fun.
For the first evening, attendees received formal postcard invitations and were issued with membership cards, but it has proved more straightforward (although perhaps less chic) to deal with the admin via a Facebook group.
So if you fancy giving it a try here are some top tips:
· Have imaginative themes. Unlike the pan-European theme (yawn) popular with public clubs, be creative. Maybe a hybrid book club /supper club evening with the food theme inspired by the book's setting, or a meal consumed in the story
· Get guests to contribute drinks, starters and desserts
· Have a seating plan to encourage guests to mingle
· Cook one big pot of food rather than fiddly individual portions
· Get people to commit to the club, so it feels like a regular get-together
Any other good ideas for themes? And more generally, is eating at home more popular than dining out?
