Explore the low overhead and popularity of the supper club scene.

Often operating under the radar of mainstream hospitality, supper clubs offer caterers and chefs an opportunity to showcase their skills and experiment with new concepts in a more intimate and flexible setting. Peppered across the country, the low overheads and popularity of supper clubs make them the perfect springboard for budding chefs who want to test the market or start their own

Unique Venues, Unique Experiences

Whilst a restaurant is confined to its designated space, supper clubs can take place in hosts’ homes, cafés and unusual venues. Supperclub.tube in Walthamstow provides a Mexican dining experience in a decommissioned 1967 Victoria Line tube carriage. Chef Tony Singh MBE hosts supper clubs for 12 guests at his home in Edinburgh, while Ping Coombes, former MasterChef winner, gives customers a Malaysian dining experience at her supper clubs in Somerset.

Chef Pratap Chahal, who runs That Hungry Chef with his wife Nikhat, has been holding supper clubs at their home for 12 years. “I use supper clubs to showcase my passion for storytelling, history, literature, theatre and art, combining them into dining experiences, where I have a lot of interaction with the diners,” he says. “I use them to test recipes and ideas for catering and private dining services. We have forged some incredible friendships with people who came to our supper clubs as strangers and most of our private work and catering requests have come from supper club guests. It’s been our best PR and marketing tool, but also the most fun.”

Themed Dining and Intimate Settings

Pratap also holds themed supper clubs such as Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream which tells the story across six courses where the food is either mentioned in the play or inspired by a scene – ‘A Walk in the Fairy Woods’ is the name of one of the starters. His events usually seat 14, but they have catered for up to 50 people. “Restaurants will often need to turn tables at least twice to maximise profits, while supper clubs will generally have one relaxed sitting,” he says.

The Libertine restaurant and bar in the City of London holds regular supper clubs celebrating British produce by region. Chris Dutton, marketing and communications manager, says, “Our supper clubs are immersive dining experiences that go beyond a traditional restaurant meal. We wanted to create a space where guests can taste, learn and experience something new. They offer guests an evening of exceptional food, carefully paired drinks and an engaging, relaxed atmosphere. We typically host around 40 guests per supper club, ensuring a warm, communal atmosphere. It doesn’t affect our overheads or the amount of staff we need, but it does give our team the benefit of experience in a new
style of service.”

HOW TO START A SUPPER CLUB

Tips from Pratap Chahal, That Hungry Chef:

  • Visit a few, talk to the hosts about how they do it – we all try to help each other out.
  • A good starting point is the food you enjoy cooking the most.
  • A successful supper club tells the story of the host, the food, the flavours.
  • Bring your personality to the plate and table.
  • Keep an eye on portion control.
  • Suppler clubs mostly have BYOB policy due to licensing laws.